+++++ Tokyo-3 High. (Thursday, August 26th, +5, Waning Gibbous 4/4)

"Thanks for accepting the short-notice request, Takao-san," Ritsuko offered with sincerity. "I'm sorry to have to drag you away from any other tasks you might have had going on."

Yuko inclined her head politely, waiting with Ritsuko inside the men's locker room of Shinji's school. "He is my first priority, regardless of those other duties assigned. If NERV has medical concerns regarding his health, then I find myself not caring what else I might need to do."

Ritsuko chuckled. "I'm glad to know he has someone watching out for him like that." Looking around, she lowered her voice and asked hopefully, "I realize this is likely going to seem…inappropriate…. Do you happen to know if he's been 'eyeing' anyone?"

"It has only been a few days, Doctor. I have seen him reciprocate kindnesses, completely misunderstand flirtations, and generally remain ignorant of overall feminine interest in him."

"Mmm, ok." Her lips bunched off to one side. "Please don't misunderstand when I ask him if he's comfortable having you here for my questions, as a medical doctor I have a responsibility to uphold."

"Perfectly understandable, and greatly appreciated." Yuko offered a quick grin. "It may have only been a few days, but I have come to find that I enjoy having him around. I would be…disappointed, if something happened to him."

"Considering what rumor has regarding what you did to Captain Katsuragi, I'm guessing that's an understatement."

"None will lay hand upon him without his permission, so long as he allows me to serve him." The door from outside the building opened, admitting Shinji and both of his instructors. Yuko motioned for Ritsuko to stay silent for the moment.

"You did far better than many would have," Isako stated with enthusiasm. "Learning that kind of movement requires overcoming the natural fear of being underwater. Anybody who's spent time underwater has gone through the 'sputtering and coughing' routine after miscalculating where the surface is and getting a lungful of water instead of air."

Sadayo had her hand on his spine, between his shoulders. "I'm a qualified SCUBA diver, if I have that happen from time to time even now, you're not doing anything wrong by having it happen at your skill level."

Both eavesdroppers noticed Shinji seemed calm in the presence of both women, standing with his hands folded behind him and looking between them with appreciation. "I guess I…uhm, I was just…." Breathing out harshly, he shook his head. "Neither of you would ever…I'm sorry that I thought you would punish me."

"Don't be." Sadayo used the hand not on his back to tap under his chin. "It took you decades to arrive where you are. It might very well take decades to get back to sanity. We'll help you however we can on the journey back."

"That we will." Isako scrubbed her fingers in his hair, sending water scattering around. "And the next step on that journey is you getting into the shower and washing the chlorine off. You've got great hair, I don't want it becoming like straw."

He smiled, bowing lightly in gratitude as the women went to leave through the same door they'd entered. "Thank you, again. I will see you tomorrow morning, please be safe." Waiting until the door closed behind them, he spoke without turning around. "That was not polite, Yuko."

"I am offered very few opportunities to assess the people you interact with in such situations," she responded without guilt or shame. "After the disaster that was Kashiwagi-sensei, you will hopefully forgive me for ensuring that you were comfortable with the affections of your two remaining sensei."

Ritsuko was impressed, both at how Shinji spoke to Yuko and at how he'd managed to sense her without seeing her. "Was there some problem that I didn't hear about?"

Motioning for her to follow, Yuko moved towards Shinji at a slow pace. "An overeager woman with serious self-esteem issues that used the hormonally driven youth in her immediate area to temporarily disguise the gaping hole in her soul that was a total lack of marriageability. She chased after strata she couldn't support with assets that wouldn't assist her in the climb."

Shinji saw Ritsuko frown, and shrugged. "She was attractive, but empty. I didn't care that she acted the way she did, because I wasn't going to do anything about it."

"If she pushed, however, you might have given her what she wanted." Ritsuko didn't like hearing that he'd been harassed. "You need to speak up when someone's doing that, Shinji. We can't keep you safe if you don't let us know you're in danger."

"I'm sorry." He looked down, now frowning himself.

She reached his side, taking his chin between her fingers and lifting his head back up. "And I'm worried about someone I care about. How about instead of you being sorry, and me being worried, we both agree that you'll speak up in the future. Ok?"

"An excellent compromise," Yuko agreed giving Shinji a supportive smile. "One that any of us who feel as she does would offer you."

His happier, calmer, demeanor returned as he looked between the two women. "Ok…I'll try to do better."

"Good." Ritsuko tipped her head over towards Yuko. "We need to have a talk about a medical requirement. Are you ok with her being here for it?"

"Uhm…yes? Doesn't she have access to that information anyway?"

"Access to your past does not infer access to your future, and it is only right that Doctor Akagi make certain." Yuko made sure he understood her point, then looked to Ritsuko. "So, doctor, what are we working towards today?"

Bracing herself for a possible negative response, and readying a number of explanations that wouldn't give away the specifics but would instead allow for him to understand without understanding, Ritsuko dove into her pitch. "A number of issues have come to our attention, and in order to take preventative measures we are going to require a semen sample. Understanding that you have an ingrained prohibition against providing one by yourself, I volunteered to come here and assist in whatever way I could. I want you to understand that I am not doing this because I have to, nor am I averse to providing this assistance. I am a medical professional, you are someone who has specific needs. If there is someone else that you have reached an understanding with, and you would rather they assist you, I will provide instructions on how to collect the sample and wait outside."

"I-I…uhm…I…." The last thing he wanted to do was get Yuko in trouble. She had helped him, and would help him in the future, and nothing that they did together was hurtful in his mind. If he admitted that he had reached an understanding with her, he'd be putting her at risk.

"I should add," Ritsuko raised one finger, "that I'm well aware that someone had to have helped you with your erection that night. If it hadn't gone away after over five hours, it wasn't going away on its own. Whoever that person is, I have zero interest in making an issue of their existence. I am glad that they were there to help in a way I was prevented from providing by timing, and I am glad that you haven't been experiencing lingering issues due to that incident. Hopefully that puts you at ease."

Yuko interjected quickly before Shinji could react, "I believe it would be for the best if you gave him assistance today, Doctor. The circumstances being what they are, it would only be more suspect if you waited outside the lockers, would it not?"

Shinji blinked, Yuko's argument making a great deal of sense and still admitting nothing as to the truth of their 'agreement'. "O-only…uhm, if you're…you know…."

"I'm quite comfortable with doing this," Ritsuko assured him with a smirk. "Thank you for your support, Takao-san. If there's anything I can do to help support him, please don't be afraid to reach out to me."

"I will keep your very generous offer in mind, doctor." Turning her focus on Shinji, she stressed something he would understand, "I will be waiting outside, and will escort you home. You have a few obligations today, but this takes priority over all of them. You are breaking no trust in this." A fluid curtsey led to her leaving calmly from the room.

Once the door was closed, Ritsuko set the bag she'd brought down on the nearby bench. "So, there are a number of ways we can accomplish this. But," she drew out the word, "there is a shower right there. We should get the chlorine off of you first, and things might be a little more relaxing with some warm water involved." Shrugging slightly, she spread her hands. "I brought my swimsuit, in case we could manage this in a shower, so I don't mind getting wet." Figuring that some self-deprecation would help him relax, she added, "I understand that you're very much not interested in ogling Christmas Cake, or I'd offer to get the girls out and give you something to focus on."

His eyes hardened, his jaw clenching. "Is someone saying you're ugly?" The thought that someone would be belittling someone he enjoyed having around, that someone would degrade her, made his anger prowl at the edges of his awareness. "I…I don't want to stare at you because you…you're better than I am. You don't deserve me looking at…at you…like that."

Well…if I wasn't into him before…. Slipping off the coat she'd worn, leaving her in her blouse and slacks, she watched him struggle with his anger with a scientist's eye. "I wouldn't agree that I'm better. I don't need to denigrate you to speak to my own worth." Setting her hands alongside his neck, she tilted her head slightly. "I was making a joke, though. Trying to help you relax so we could ease into doing this. No matter how you look at it, it's a little awkward."

"O-oh." Realizing his gaffe, he blushed. "That…uhm, that makes sense."

Is this because of the reduced BNST activity, because he's absolutely adorable, or because I'm a monster? "What do you want, then? What can I do to help?"

Swallowing, his mouth beginning to grow slick, he put voice to another concern he had, "What…uh, what about M-Maya? Y-you two…uhm…you love each other."

"She knows I'm here, and if it weren't for a direct order from her superior she'd be here with me to help you relax." She could see, in her peripheral vision, that he was growing 'interested'. That he, despite that, was still very concerned for not only her own position but that of a woman that wasn't present, bolstered her own 'interest'. "So…shower?"

+++++ Kirijo Manor. (Thursday, August 26th, +5, Waning Gibbous 4/4)

Shinji had been quiet on the ride home, with a clear interest in remaining introspective. The difference between the raw, animalistic, lust that Yuko or Pixie inspired and…whatever overwhelmingly positive emotion Ritsuko's touch had given him, required that introspection. Yuko could ask him, right at that moment, to give her everything he had and he wouldn't blink. It wasn't in doubt in his mind that he enjoyed her presence against him. She gave positive sensations in his mind. Pixie was much the same, with the only difference being the slight guilt he felt at not having told Yuko about her presence. But if Ritsuko walked in the door to his room, where he sat thinking, and asked him to give her even more of himself…well, the thought made him very happy.

Sitting at his writing desk, he was idly flipping through the table of contents covering the timeline of letters Meroko had sent Yui, and those responses his mother provided. It only felt right to do this at a time where he was bolstered by…whatever it was that Ritsuko had given him. His spirit was wrapped in light, might as well use it to brace against the darkness. The first few letters were genuinely from Meroko, showing pictures of scenes he recalled well enough, but with a much different 'angle' than he recalled. Stacking blocks ranging in sizes from several centimeters to only a few millimeters were being utilized to construct a pyramid, the script indicating that 'Shinji enjoys playing with construction materials'.

That wasn't the truth of the matter, of course. He had been instructed to stack them in perfect layers, according to size, with the grain of the material all flowing in a unified direction, in such a manner as any defects in the material were hidden by other blocks, with the color gradient going from darkest on the southeast to lightest on the northwest. Each time he'd failed, she knocked them down and told him his mother wouldn't accept imperfections and that was why he was sent away from her.

Writing down that explanation, he moved on to the next letter. Each annotation chipped away at the gift Ritsuko had given him, serving to increase the appreciation he had for that gift's presence. After an hour and a half of reading letters and writing responses, he heard a soft knock at his door and turned to see the portal had been opened slightly to reveal Chie and Yukiko peeking in with curious expressions, wearing relaxed and loose-fitting clothes. Standing slowly, he tilted his head slightly, "I'm sorry…did someone need me?"

Chie, clearly the more assertive of the two, deflected his question, "Can we come in?"

"Oh, uhm, sure." He looked around for seating, and realized he'd have to ask for some to be put in his actual room once it was finished being refurbished after the Angel's attack. "I…uh, I don't have anywhere to sit but the bed, though."

"That's ok, Yukiko-chan can sit there." Chie strode in with more confidence, seeing that he wasn't 'hiding'. "I prefer to stand."

"That's because you don't know what 'sitting still' means," her friend teased with a fond grin as she moved over to sit demurely on the edge of the western bed. "I've seen better behaved toddlers, sometimes."

As was natural for Shinji, he attempted to 'protect' the woman being teased, "Satonaka-san is just a naturally energetic person. It's nice to see someone so enthusiastic about both fitness and culture."

Giving him a light punch on the arm, Chie grinned up at him, "I knew I liked you for a reason, Shinji-kun." She then poked him in the side, "But if you call me by my last name again, I'm going to go 'Fist of Fury' on you."

"It really would be better to just use our given names," Yukiko agreed. "We hope to become good friends quickly, especially considering what we're going to need to lean on each other for."

The memory of Tartarus once again rose in his mind. "…Ok." Scrubbing one hand in his hair, Shinji let his eyes go unfocused as he recalled the 'feel' of the barbed arm shoved through his chest. "If you think it will help."

"Whatcha studying?" Chie looked at the tablets, spying a picture of a very young, and very serious, Shinji standing next to a hanging scroll with seemingly immaculate calligraphy. "Oh, wow, you were so…." Her memory caught up, recalling the truth of Shinji's childhood. "Uhm…did we interrupt something?"

He shook his head slightly. "No. I'm going through the lies that were sent to my mother, and writing down what actually happened." Tapping the power button for the tablets, he turned them off. "I should stop anyway…I don't know if I can handle more of that without completely…losing…."

Yukiko hopped off his bed and moved to stand in front of him quickly, "We came to ask if you wanted to practice self-defense with us. Chie-chan and I have started working together to improve our odds against the things we run into from time to time, and we figured practicing against a larger opponent would help us out."

That idea seemed both practical and advisable. Letting them throw him around would help protect them, after all. "Sure, yeah. I can…uhm," he looked over to the wardrobe that held his clothing options, "I can get changed into the workout clothes they gave me." Taking hold of the bottom of the shirt he was wearing, he had it over his head and off before he'd taken two steps towards the wardrobe. "We can ask if the gym has been repaired, or just go outside if you'd rather use the grass."

Watching the muscles on Shinji's back move, and seeing several scars that she hadn't had a chance to from the distance she'd been seeing him from during their school workout, Chie's mind forgot for a moment that she probably shouldn't be in the same room as him while he was changing according to traditional social mores. "Either works for me. What do you think Yukiko?"

With her eyes shielded by her unfolded fan, Yukiko was nearly as red as the t-shirt she was wearing. "I'd prefer being indoors, thank you."

Something tugged at Chie's mind as she watched Shinji strip down, but she couldn't quite place what was wrong. "Shinji…how often do you work out?"

"Hmm?" Now fully nude, intending to change into more supportive underwear for physical activity, he turned and looked to Chie as he replayed the question in his mind. "I didn't, at least not before I came here. Learning to swim at school, and lifting weights with Andreja-san yesterday, I'm pretty sure that's the first time I've ever actually intentionally 'worked out'."

Her feet followed her body as she approached him. "There's…really no visible fat, though." When she reached his side, she ran her fingers along his ribs. "This is all muscle, or bone…." Looking along his body, she then met his gaze. "Did she starve you too? It's pretty rare that someone is just genetically 'athletic'."

"Sometimes." He remembered those weeks with a scowl. "I did do a lot of work, though. I cleaned the house, I moved all of the packages she ordered, I put away the groceries, I did the laundry, and I practiced instruments." He paused for a second, then admitted, "I also had sex with her a lot. Several hours a day, which was probably a lot of aerobic exercise by itself." A part of him was terrified that she would be repulsed, as he was enjoying her presence.

He shouldn't have worried. "I'm glad you're not living there anymore," Chie growled. "When they catch her…well…I wouldn't be as nice as they're probably going to have to be."

A soft smile touched his lips. "You're a good person, Chie-san. I'm glad I'm not living there anymore as well." Beginning to put on the clothing he'd need to work out, he began to feel the warmth of someone caring about him. "I…I'm glad I'm around so many good people now."

+++++ NERV. (Thursday, August 26th, +5, Waning Gibbous 4/4)

Grateful that her mother was nowhere to be seen, Ritsuko had returned to find a very visibly downbeat Maya performing busywork in the lab where they'd be analyzing what she'd just garnered from Shinji. Hugging the smaller woman from behind, she exuded all the joy she'd been given through the experience with him. "I love you so much, Maya Ibuki. We are going to make an appointment through Takao-san so that you get to spend some time with him one-on-one."

"How did he take it?" Her mood had been improved by both statements, though not enough to overcome the previous few hours of isolation. "Did it go ok?"

"He was worried that you would be hurt because I was there and you weren't," she enthused. "He sees us as us. In his mind we belong together, which is absolutely adorable."

Maya giggled, amused at her love's enthusiasm. "You are such a weirdo."

"Yes."

Relaxing further, she accepted the 'package'. "Did you take some time afterwards to reassure him?"

"To be honest, I took some time afterwards to just linger next to him." Releasing the embrace, she moved to a point in the area where Maya could work and see her at the same time. Her face trended towards seriousness, out of respect for the woman she loved. "You might notice my hair got a bit messy, and my lipstick got a fresh coat."

"I did note that, yes."

"This BNST issue is definitely originating from him. He was…enthusiastic. He wanted my touch. I had to remind myself more than once that the hand job wasn't foreplay, and that I had a goal to accomplish. I'm sorry. I…don't believe that anyone else would have moved me to that point, and I'm telling you because you deserve to know the truth of the encounter."

Maya reached across the table and smoothed her hand against Ritsuko's cheek. "And I thank you for being honest. I don't blame you for your reaction, precisely because you're the type of woman to own up to something you have done that you believe needs to be owned up to." Going back to preparing the sample, she shrugged one shoulder. "Besides, there's no guarantee I would have done any better."

"It's probably better you weren't there, then," she snorted out a laugh. "I think we'd both still be there with him right now. We have to come up with something to help him, or he's going to be exposed to a lot more danger than should be."

Dispensing globs into several analyzers, Maya sealed a cavity slide and slid it into place to display the result up on the large screen on the nearby wall. "His count…seems…."

Ritsuko froze the screen, then moved closer to begin counting directly. "Have the results for his blood samples come back yet?"

"Yes."

"No toxins, no heavy metals, or irregular prolactin hormones?"

"An extremely healthy O-neg," Maya reported. "No irregularities in count or content. No signs of diseases or disorders. Nothing that would…I mean, we would have to know what we were looking for! Humans don't produce sperm with five tails naturally. A few cells with two is considered concerning, but each of them having five regularly shaped tails?"

"The device in his neck?" She'd not found a single example on the slide that didn't have five tails. "Lophotrichous, highly motile but extremely collaborative. The size of the head is slightly enlarged, but that would make sense considering it has to have space for the number of flagella. Damn it." Muttering angrily, she pushed the speed dial on a nearby phone. "We have to report this."

+++++ Kirijo Manor. (Thursday, August 26th, +5, Waning Gibbous 4/4)

The position he found himself in wasn't the most uncomfortable he'd been that week, let alone ever. Yukiko was probably the lightest of all of the women in his class, and was certainly the lightest of the women he'd had any physical contact with so far in his life. For the third time, he'd been physically unable to prevent the Aikido she had practiced from landing him on the floor. Unlike the previous two times, however, he now had her kneeling atop him sitting on her heels frowning down at him with mild frustration.

"Shinji-kun…I need you to resist. I can't learn how to use these skills if you just go along with it." Her voice conveyed frustration, though undercut with far more confusion than anything, "If you don't try to stop me, or throw me in return, I'm not getting the type of practice I need."

"He's afraid he's going to hurt you." Chie had been watching, both how Yukiko was performing the move and how Shinji was handling the landing. She'd seen enough professionals to know someone 'holding back'. "Considering the size difference it's not a shock. Add on the fact that he's never had to actually tussle with someone, and it's even understandable."

He'd been trying to put words to his hesitation, and was grateful that Chie had given him something of a launchpad. "I…can't. It's not that I don't want to, I physically can't."

Yukiko frowned hard. "Ok…that might become something of a problem." After a moment of thought, she looked back to Chie. "Could you please go get one of those ladies that watches over our class? They might have an idea of what we can do to fix this."

"Right." Spinning towards the door of the gym, Chie dashed off to find one of the Agents that seemed to always be within earshot of Shinji.

"…Shinji-kun," Yukiko used the moment of one-on-one time to ask something she felt important, "you seem very…comfortable. With…with others looking at your body."

He failed to pick up specifically what she was referencing, and so he just answered with what he thought most likely, "It's just meat. It's nothing to be uncomfortable, or comfortable, about so long as it isn't making someone else uncomfortable. Are you uncomfortable with me walking to the pool in my swimsuit? I can try and find something to cover up with if-"

"No!" Coughing as she pulled back on how emphatic she'd been, she motioned with her hands, "No, no. You're fine. More than fine. I just…it's not something everyone-" The lights going out in the room caused her to cry out in fright, which caused Shinji to roll up into a kneeling position, cradling her to his chest and curling around her protectively.

"It's ok. It's ok." Unsure of what to do, and already preparing to have the lights return with him inside of Tartarus, Shinji focused his mind around remaining calm and in control to not hurt Yukiko. "I'm here." With a shuddering crack, the lights did indeed come back on to reveal corridors lined with crash mats and dumbbells. The floors of the hall were lined with rounded weights, the ceilings far outside of the visible range with the glaring artificial lights radiating down like miniature suns. Standing easily, he growled in irritation. "Damn it."

Clutching Shinji around the neck and curling into his torso, Yukiko looked around as well. "How…how did we get here? There wasn't even a television in the room!"

While the second statement made no sense to Shinji, he had something of an answer for the first, "While we were at a showroom for Kirijo Group products, Mitsuru-san and I were pulled into Tartarus. I don't know if she told you, everything was crazy yesterday…." He looked down the hall in both directions. "I don't suppose you're able to sense an exit?"

"…Only Rise-chan can, that I know of."

That wasn't great, in his mind. The only reason they'd known where to go last time was because Mitsuru had the capacity to sense the direction of the exit. "Ok…then we'll just keep choosing right." Beginning to move in that direction, he simply chose to continue carrying Yukiko until she asked otherwise.

Yukiko herself felt far more comfortable where she was than she might have walking alongside him instead. "If we run into anything, I'll do my best to support you with spells, but I'm not the greatest at hand-to-hand combat."

"Spells are fine, but please don't get close to the enemy," he begged her. "I'm supposed to protect you, and that's a lot harder if you're where the enemy can reach you." Glancing down at her quickly, he shook his head, "Like you said in class, I don't want to see you get hurt…ever."

After he looked back in their direction of travel, Yukiko bit down hard on her bottom lip. She'd wanted to be told those words from a strong man all her life, wanted to hear that someone wanted to keep her safe, while not admonishing her for wanting to shine on her own. He'd just expressly told her that she could fight, just not where she was weak and he was strong. "I'm not really eager for you to get hurt either…just so you know. I'm decent with healing magic, but I'd prefer not to have to use it if we can avoid it."

His smile was self-derisive, but shone with gratitude. "Yeah, I don't have the greatest streak going here. Two appearances in this…place, and both times I should have died. I promise, I'm not trying to get killed."

"Good," she announced, hamming up the role of the commanding officer. "Because it's just not allowed. Against the rules."

+++++ Kirijo Manor. (Thursday, August 26th, +5, Waning Gibbous 4/4)

Chie was now a passenger on a ride she hadn't anticipated taking when she'd left the gym in search of an Agent to help them help Shinji. After returning to the same Gym with Shiori Miyashiro, and finding that neither Shinji nor Yukiko were there, she'd been dragged off to another room where Shiori set off an immediate search for the pair. The physically active youth was placed in a chair and asked politely to sit still, which of course immediately became quite the challenge.

During a quiet moment, when there was no other person in the room, Shiori turned to her and asked quietly, "I understand that you might feel uncomfortable answering this, Satonaka-chan, but I need to know if you think there's a possibility that Ikari-kun and Amagi-chan have gone to find a less trafficked location to get to know each other better. Nobody will be in trouble, I just would like to warn my people that it's possible."

Chie laughed uncomfortably, but with great confidence, "Not a chance. Shinji-kun isn't that kind of a guy, and Yukiko-chan has the confidence of a field mouse. I mean, yeah we all think he's great, but he's also very much a 'wait for her to make a move' kinda guy. Yukiko-chan isn't going to make that move on day four, and certainly not after she sent me to find you."

"Yeah," she blew out a frustrated sigh, "I was afraid of that. They're probably in Tartarus somewhere."

A wash of frigid anxiety drilled down her spine. "Y-you know about…."

"That would be why we moved you here, kid." She eyed Chie askance. "Nobody else has ever wound up there on their own. It's always only been your class. Recently Kirijo-chan and Ikari-kun ended up in Tartarus alone, and we damn near lost them both." Pressing a button on the nearby desk phone, she braced herself to make a report that she'd hoped wouldn't be needed quite this soon.

+++++ Author's Notes:

GhostMan: RE: End of Everything.

This won't shock you, but I do actually know what's going to happen at the end of the series. Only problem is making sure that there's not an Author Existence Failure before I get it posted on here.