Chapter 12 – The Storm
"Anyone-want-to-go-to-the-mall?"
Who knew the harbinger of doomsday would be brought by those seven words from one insane Misato Katsuragi?
Grumbling and sniping, Shinji-and-friends made their way out to the parking lot of the apartment complex. They were stopped by the sight of their ride, which screamed out 'awesome' and 'my-creator-is-a-raving-lunatic' at the same time. In fact, Misato had been desperately screwing with her Tarot card's variables until she found a way to make what, for all intents and purposes, was a stretch-Lambo. The monstrosity had six wheels (two pair in back and one pair in front), a shockingly lurid color scheme that one might expect from a color-blind tye-died shirt maker, and enough cylinders to put the Detroit Automakers back by a year or so.
"That's... wrong on so many levels," Asuka commented in an unusually quiet voice.
"Is it safe?" Hikari asked in a small voice, and no one answered. Everyone assumed it was a rhetorical question. Even Rei.
"Oh-pshaw!" Misato chortled, and began chucking girls into the car like there was no tomorrow.
"Worse... than an Eva launch!" Shinji gasped, staggering from the deathtrap and onto the blessed ground.
"I swear that woman would be right at home in a Mad Max movie!" Asuka griped, smoothing out her dress.
"I-I'm sure she was just misunderstood as a child, or something," Hikari squeaked, trying to regain control of her vocal cords.
"She broke fifty three local traffic ordinances," Rei reminded the Class Rep. The blue-haired girl was calm as always, but there was a telltale bead of sweat running down the side of her face.
"Hmph," Mana said sulkily. Then, "HLORFF!" Everyone discretely stepped around the mess. After hasty visits to the restrooms, the party split up into groups.
"Hey Mana, want to go check out the Fall Fashions?" Hikari said excitedly.
"Uh? Well I guess I don't mind-URK!" Mana found herself dragged bodily into a clothing store.
"Come on, First," Asuka said, "Let's hit the food court!" Asuka gave Shinji a cheery little wave that said 'so long, sucker!' The boy did not catch this, sadly.
Shinji looked around. Misato looked over at Shinji, who was the only one left.
"...hehehehehehe!"
Asuka walked along, eating take-out from one of the pseudo-German hole-in-the-wall food-shops scattered around the Mall. It really is nice to have a day off from school and NERV and... Her thoughts were interrupted by the sight of Love Potion Rei coming in her direction with a group of young men trailing behind her.
"Wh-what are you doing, wondergirl?" Asuka blurted out.
"Training." The purple-fringed girl had apparently registered her school uniform as one of her outfits, and it was immaculate. "You saw Miss Katsuragi's car. The cards are quite flexible, and I will only learn by practicing."
"Hmph!" Asuka's slapped her hand against a wall, causing a passing male to abruptly stop. She gave the boy a mind-blowing smile, and after chatting him up, she brought the poor besotted young man over to Rei. "See? You don't need a card trick to pick up men!"
Rei made a little 'tsk' noise, shaking her head. "I am sorry, Pilot Sohryu, but you will not be able to compete with me in this form."
Asuka opened her mouth, but her retort died on her tongue at Rei's next actions. The girl slinked up to the young man, gave him a little wink, put her finger underneath his chin, and he was hers. He was even leaning in to kiss her when she smoothly stepped aside, causing him to fall flat on his face.
"Oh, you think you're so hot?" Asuka shrieked.
"Indeed I do, Pilot Sohryu," Rei answered, as the young man joined her impromptu crowd.
"Bring it!" The redhead switched her clips from 'doom' to 'angst' and activated her own Love Potion form, the tips of her hair going vibrant orange. The two pilots swept through the mall like vacuum cleaners, picking up all the young men in their path. Fights began to break out where the two harems intermingled.
Shinji had managed to lose Misato in a liquor shop, and was currently wandering the Mall, his hands in his pockets. It was nice to be able to look people in the eyes again without worrying if they were female, and whether they might be seduced by his casual glance. The Ancient Professor had been thorough, and the lesson had been surprisingly short. Afterwards, the old man had told him, in effect, that the training was very easy to pick up, but difficult to completely master. It turned out to be very easy to suppress the Charm, but very difficult to control, and so Shinji currently only had two settings – 'off' and 'mind-bendingly hot.' He had turned himself 'off' after the lesson, and truth be told, he was not sure if he would ever turn himself back on, atleast not until he had mastered the art.
Oh well, I did enjoy it while it lasted, Shinji thought with a bittersweet sigh. It's not very fair to keep all the girls hanging off my coat-tails without any free will of their own... His thoughts were interrupted by a flash of white in the distance, and he stopped moving. He had no way of knowing, but he would not take another step in this reality. He had barely caught a glance through the throngs of people crowding the mall, and then several seconds later the crowd's random movements opened a pathway enough for him to see.
Mana.
She wore a white sundress, a wide-brimmed white hat, and she had just turned her head in time to see him. This was the other Mana, he knew, because she did not have a guitar slung across her back. He sheepishly raised a hand in greeting, and to his surprise, her face lit up. The sight of her as she wove her way through the crowd brought a strange familiarity that he could not identify, and he found himself searching his memory in vain trying to place the feeling. She ran up and threw her arms around him.
"Shinji," her voice shook as she spoke into his ear. "I don't know why I didn't recognize you at the school! I thought I'd never see you again..."
He was too stunned to ask questions, or notice that a thin black film was spreading beneath the two of them.
Lieutenant Shigeru turned from his monitor in Central Dogma as the red 'alert' signals lit up all around. "Angel has been detected in the middle of Tokyo-3!"
"What!?" Fuyutski had just gotten up to get a cup of coffee, the long weekend shift having begun.
"It just popped up with no warning!"
Asuka and Rei mowed their way through the mall until they happened across the spot where Shinji and Mana were standing. They saw the two of them embracing, and the shock caused them to drop their Love Potion forms. The massive crowd of young men behind them suddenly began to mill around in confusion, wondering what they were doing.
Fate/Mana and Hikari had just exited the clothing shop and were heading towards the food court when Fate/Mana happened to catch a glimpse of Shinji and Mana. No! How did I let this happen? She desperately thought back to when she had first taken form, and her plan. To screw Gendo using Sachiel, because of what he said. And somehow she had gotten caught up with this boy, trapped by his Charm into staying far longer than she had intended. This meeting was not supposed to have happened. She noticed the spreading patch of inky blackness beneath the two of them, and saw them begin to sink into it.
"No! Shinji...!" she heard Asuka cry out from some distance away, and saw the redhead running towards the boy, Rei behind her.
The two figures disappeared into the blackness, which continued to spread.
Touch.
Warmth.
Shinji floated amidst darkness, and the only root he had was the young woman in his arms. Beyond that there was no light, no sound, no smell, nothing to tell him anything of his surroundings.
Flashback
Mana was standing beside the black Section Two car, a forlorn expression on her face. She wore her usual white sleeveless button-up shirt and red blouse.
"I feel responsible for all of this," she said, and Shinji immediately shook his head.
"No, that's not...
"I'm sorry Shinji." The deep sorrow in her expression brought a lump to his throat. "I know an apology isn't enough in this case, but it's all I have." She struggled to continue, a tear slipping down her cheek. "I'm going to be given a new name, a new house, I'll be in a far-away city no one knows about. No one connected to the Evas, anyway."
"I really won't get to see you again." The enormity of it finally dawned on him, and it was enough to almost buckle his knees. He had never felt this way about anyone before, let alone a girl, and he had no defense against the sudden sense of loss.
"I'll come visit you. I don't know when, but I promise I will." His eyes blurred with tears at the emotion in her voice.
"I'll... I'll be waiting for you."
End Flashback
Shinji pondered the strange memory. He knew it was his, yet he could not place it anywhere in his life. He did not understand how this could be, but from the looks of things, he had plenty of time to think about it.