Neon Genesis Evangelion: Legacy
Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Chapter 6 – Beauty and Brains
1990 – Ishikari, Japan

It was the end of another school day at Ishikari Minami High School. A young blonde girl was walking to her locker to grab her stuff and head home after a very long day. When she opened her locker, a huge stack of letters fell to the floor. "How many love letters can these perverts write in a day?" She scoffed. 16–year–old Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu was the most beautiful girl in school. She looked very exotic with her long blonde hair, and sparkling sapphire blue eyes. The love letters were always stuffed into her locker. "How the hell do they get these in here? Don't they have anything else to do, like homework, or a life?"

As she did every day, Kyoko took the stack of letters and threw them in the trash. As she sulked out of the school she began to think to herself. 'Why do they only think of my as something to ogle. I have a mind too, I'm not just here to be looked at. I'd like someone who respects me for my intelligence. But that's unlikely considering most men are perverts, or afraid of a successful woman.' She sighed, and left the school.

She was walking towards the train station as she usually took the train home, but because today was a nice day, she decided to just walk home. That would also avoid her having to be on the train where guys would 'bump' into her and end up getting a free feel of her breasts or ass. 'Men can be so disgusting sometimes. It's like they let their penis lead their actions… ficken idiots.' Kyoko thought dejectedly.

It had been like this since Kyoko was a little girl. The way she looked simply drew attention to her. It wasn't her fault; it was simply the way things were. She got stared at, or ogled, or sometimes even catcalled (that started when she older) as she walked around in a store, on the street, or while using the bus or train. This was something she learned to try to ignore. But she also found out at a very young age that she was just as intelligent as she was beautiful. This led to her becoming aware that no matter how smart she was, she would always be objectified. So, she started to work harder in school to be in the top of her class. She had skipped several grades at this point and was the youngest person in her class. After this year she would be done with high school and onto college to become a scientist. She wasn't sure what field she wanted to go into, but she'd have plenty of time to decide that.

By the time she got home, it was later than she would usually get back. She had taken the side streets and alleys in the city to avoid any people wandering around. She had planned many routes to get home without being seen. When she got inside she did not issue a greeting. That would be pointless, considering her parents were never really home. Her father worked as a defense contractor for the newly reunified Germany. Her mother on the other hand worked as a U.N. official dealing with human rights. So most weeks, she was alone at home. This didn't particularly bother Kyoko, because she liked being alone. She thought it was nice to be able to be somewhere and not get stared at and be left alone, so she enjoyed it when she could. She plopped down on the couch. 'Nice and quiet.' Kyoko thought, and after staring at the wall for a few minutes, she fell asleep.

When she woke up, it was dark in the room, and she looked out the window to see a streetlight on. 'I didn't realize I was so tired.' Kyoko said as she sat up and rubbed her eyes. 'I guess I was pretty exhausted from the past few weeks, I shouldn't stay up that late anymore.' she thought as her stomach grumbled loudly 'Shit, now I'm hungry.' She scoffed 'Well I want to change first, I hate this stupid school uniform. Some pervert with a fetish definitely designed this, the arschloch.' She stood up and walked to her room and found some loose pants and a sweater to wear.

She then went back downstairs towards the kitchen to make something to eat, and satisfy her beast of an appetite. She opened the fridge and saw no prepackaged meals or bentos, she turned to a cabinet and noticed her supply of instant noodles was getting dangerously low. 'Shit, I'll have to go to the store tomorrow to get more, it's not like I can cook.' Kyoko sighed, and realized that she'd be relentlessly stared at if she went to the store during the day. 'I might as well go now, it's after dark, and there'll be less people at the store to deal with, and it'll be less busy too for that matter.'

Reluctantly, Kyoko headed towards the door and put her shoes on. The air was cool and brisk. 'I'm glad I have a sweater on, otherwise I'd be freezing.' She went in the direction of the supermarket to stock up on her essentials, bottled water, premade bentos, TV dinners, and instant noodles. When she arrived she went towards the aisles she knew held the food she was after. 'With all this crap, I'm surprised I'm so skinny, it's not exactly health food, is it?' Kyoko chuckled to herself softly. With all her purchases in hand, she went up front to the checkout.

While waiting in line, there was a man standing behind her. He was in Kyoko's class and he recognized her. Kyoko tried to ignore his presence, but that didn't last long.

"Hey beautiful, how you doin'? Did you get the letter I left in your locker?" Kyoko continued to ignore him, but he kept edging closer to her. "Come on babe, you must have read it. Did you not like what I said about that great body of yours? Girls love when you talk about their bodies."

Kyoko started to feel uncomfortable. By now he had edged close enough that she could feel his hot breath on her neck as he spoke. "Can you just leave me alone? I only came here to do some shopping, not talk to a Neanderthal." Kyoko quipped.

"Hey, who are you calling a Neanderthal, you bitch. I'm just trying to be nice here, telling you how hot you are and you're being some kinda bitchy prude about it!" The boy shouted.

"I threw your stupid letter out with all the others, you pig!" Kyoko hissed, hoping the line would move faster so she could get home. She hated guys like this. Actually it was because of this she hated guys in general. She just couldn't trust them to be polite or curious to her just because she was attractive. Sometimes Kyoko wished she was ugly so people would ignore her. "Can you just go away!? Go to another line and just leave me the fuck alone!"

"No, I think I like the view right where I am. Besides you don't get to act like this towards a star athlete like me. I'm the pride of the school, and I could have any girl I want. And I want you." He kept leering at her, and the look he had on his face scared Kyoko a bit.

"I don't think you heard her very well kid, she said to leave her alone." Said someone from behind the jerk Kyoko was arguing with.

The jerk turned around to face the accuser. "Who the hell do you think you are talkin' to me like that? I can do what I want."

"Listen kiddo, why don't you go home to your mommy before there's a problem here you can't handle." The man said, putting down his shopping basket as he spoke. "The lady said to leave her alone and you should never refuse a request from a lady." The man said calmly.

"Listen asshole, were having a private conversation, so back the fuck off." The jerk said pushing the man away.

"Big mistake kid, pushing me like that." The man said as he raised his fist and gave the kid the most perfect surprise right hook anyone had ever seen. The kid was lifted off his feet by the impact and fell to the ground with loud thud, completely unconscious. "Damn fool, he is probably the most stubborn bastard I've ever seen." The man turned to Kyoko. "Are you ok, young lady?" He asked politely.

"Uh… yeah… I'm fine." Kyoko stammered. "Th… thank you for… your help." She bowed her head in thanks. "Not many people would have the… courage to step in and help others like that."

"It's not a problem, I hate when guys treat girls like that, gives the rest of us a bad rap." The man turned to walk away. "Have good night kid." He waived his hand as walked toward the back of the store. "Be seein' ya."

Kyoko stood there shocked for a moment. The people who had been watching the exchange with her and the jerk no one looked shocked that the boy was laid out on the floor, and the man who did it had simply walked away. Kyoko didn't hear the girl at the counter call her over, but when she came to her senses, she paid for her food and left for home. Her walk home was silent and empty, there was no one else out but her.

"Well, I guess there are men out there that are respectable" Kyoko said to herself just before getting back home. "I've never been wrong about something before. Who knew it felt this good to be wrong about something."

1994 – Osaka, Japan

In the years since finishing high school, Kyoko had changed quite a bit. After the incident in the supermarket with a random guy knocking out one of her pervy classmates, things started to look up. For one, she didn't see all guys as pervs. She actually started dating a quiet guy from her class, at least for a few months. They lost their virginity together, and after they graduated, the relationship ended, and it was mutual as they were going to separate schools, and Kyoko was happy. He had been very good to her, and he had liked her for body, but more importantly, also liked Kyoko for her mind.

Moving on to college, she met a lot of mature, normal guys who actually valued her opinions. She still encountered Neanderthals, but they were kept more towards those who were cheerleading, not doing science like her. Kyoko also found out what she wanted to do, become a bio engineer with her exciting thesis and prove it could work. The theory came to her in her first year of college. She was sitting alone in her room, and something crossed her mind. 'What if a system could be devised to create a living being as a shell, something like a clone, and it could be used for transplants of not only organs, but body parts as well. That would be revolutionary!' She began writing out what her thesis would entail, and after she got her masters she would find a doctoral program that would let her study this.

Kyoko's thoughts would focus mostly on this theory until she finished her undergraduate work. She had few boyfriends in college, but no one very special, not 'the one' like many girls would put it. But Kyoko had other things on her mind, like finishing what would become the project of her life. Today, Kyoko was meeting up with some friends from her dorm. They always ended up having long conversations about nothing, but today was going to be different.

When Kyoko met her friends on the quad to decide where they were going, Kyoko enacted her plan. "Ladies, I think it's time to go out for some drinks, whaddya say?" Kyoko said with a wide smile on her face. 'Let's get wasted.' Kyoko thought.

1996 – Osaka, Japan

Kyoko's apartment was dark, and seeing as it was late that wasn't unusual, most people slept when it was dark outside. Kyoko on the other hand was not an ordinary person. The people in the apartment were not asleep, as sounds of passion were coming from the bedroom. Kyoko had meant to go to bed at a reasonable hour, however realizing this would be the last time she would see the man she'd been having a wonderful tryst with for the past two years, she decided to end the relationship the best way possible, with lots of passionate sex. The reason for this impromptu rendezvous, and ending of the relationship, was the letter still sitting on the kitchen table that Kyoko had been reading constantly for over a week, because she was proud of what it said.

"Dear Ms. Kyoko Soryu, It is my pleasure to inform you that you have been accepted into the metaphysical biology doctoral program. This acceptance is tentative upon your current completion of your studies at Osaka University by the end of this term. We would like to set up a preliminary meeting with you to meet with your faculty advisor, Professor Kozo Fuyutsuki, scheduled for March 18, 1996 at 11:00a. The meeting will take place in Metaphysical Biology Lab 1 of the Scientific Research Building on our main campus. We look forward to meeting you. Regards, Jushiro Kyoraku, Dean of Students."

A loud moan from both parties emanated from the bedroom, signaling the end of the passion between the two lovers.

"Oh my God, that was fantastic!" Kyoko moaned, panting slightly.

"I concur. That was certainly what I would call some of the best sex we've had, at least in my opinion." The man said as he slid off the beautiful blonde, both were covered in sweat, and still breathing quite heavily.

"I think I'm going to miss this." Kyoko sighed. She was beginning to regret the decision to break it off, mostly because of the sex, but also because, even though her lover had an abrasive attitude towards most, he did have a kind heart.

"I will as well. I'm not sure what I'll do after you're gone." The man sighed and slid to the edge of the bed, hiding his face from view of Kyoko. "You're the only person I can have an intelligent conversation with."

"Well, you're probably going to end up listening to that damn music player again or getting into more bar fights." Kyoko smirked, wondering if he was hiding his sorrow from her. "Well the fights aren't all that unexpected are they, because you do have a tendency to piss people off just by walking into the room."

"It is a gift after all. So how do I walk into a room with you and you not want to hit me?" He asked sullenly.

. "I must be one of the only people alive who can tolerate you or your bullshit." Kyoko stopped smirking as she watched the man get up and walk over to the window.

"You would be correct in that respect, Kyoko." The man said, as he stared pensively out the window at the cityscape before him. "So when do you leave for Kyoto?"

"Tomorrow morning for the interview, which I'm sure I'll be fine with, and then I'll be out of here March 31st to move up to Kyoto for April 1st." Kyoko looked over at him, grabbed the bed sheet and wrapped it around herself, walked over to him, and put her arms around his neck. When she spoke her words were uttered softly into his ear. "You know, I will miss these encounters, but more so, I'll miss seeing, and being with you, Gendo Rokubungi." Kyoko said as she kissed his cheek gently and walked towards the bathroom.

"As will I, but as you said earlier, we both have to move on." Gendo smiled and followed Kyoko. "Since you picked me up in that bar two years ago, I have finally come to understand what happiness is. Back then I was angry at everything and everyone, but now, my faith in the human race has been restored, perhaps I can finally learn to be kind again to others, at least in time anyway."

The shower turned on, and Kyoko called out. "You're always so melodramatic, Gendo, you need to take it easy. Even after all this time I find it hard to believe that you haven't had a single friend until me." She sighed, she didn't want to believe it, but it had to be true, otherwise he wouldn't be so hurt at her leaving for someplace else. 'I have to try and tell him that we weren't meant for each other, maybe he'll understand. I hope he understands.'

Several minutes passed as the Gendo got dressed and ready to leave in silence, and Kyoko finished her shower. She came out of the shower wrapped in a towel, with a second on her hair Gendo was sitting on the bed waiting for her to finish up. Kyoko spoke softly again, in a gentle voice. "Gendo, I know you've had a tough life, but we were never really in love, were we? You deserve someone who loves you, not just likes you and enjoys having sex with you." Kyoko stood there looking at the man she had come to know, his steely face was generally unreadable, but tonight there was a slight frown on his face. "I want you to be happy, and for that to truly happen, you can't be with me. I hate to say it, because I know it will hurt, but I have to be honest, right?" Kyoko sighed as she said this.

"Kyoko, I understand. But a lack of love really isn't a big problem, at least I know someone cares about me. From your words, I know that you care about me, and as long as we can keep our friendship, then I think I will survive. I've been standing on my own two feet for so long, for the time we had, I'm glad I was able to stand with someone for a little while. I will miss you dearly, Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu. And I hope you find happiness in your new life. But, now, sadly this is goodbye." As Gendo said this, he got up and walked silently towards the door.

"Goodbye." Kyoko said as he reached the door, she continued. "And good luck Gendo, try and stay out of trouble. I know you will find happiness at some point in your life, and when you do, don't let it go, whatever you do." Kyoko said, surveying him for the last time. Gendo opened the door and left without another word.

Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu now stood alone in a towel in her apartment.

As she was getting dressed her mind wandered from thoughts of Kyoto, 'It will be very nice to start a new life in a different city.' However then her thoughts shifted to Gendo. 'I will miss him a lot though.' She thought 'But, it's not like I loved him, right? It was just sex, wasn't it?' She asked herself, unsure of what the real answer was. 'He was emotionally unavailable at times, but still, he was attractive, in a mysterious way, it wasn't just about sex, he liked me more for my intelligence, and it's not like he was ever mean to me, he was just sometimes uninterested in things.' Her thoughts continued to focus on Gendo, even if she didn't want them to. 'Still I'm surprised he wished me happiness, and said goodbye. I guess he has really changed since we met. I didn't think anything about Kyoto University would register for him, I thought he didn't care. But he still asked about it anyway. He always been a bit of a mystery, but I guess I won't be solving that mystery any time soon.' Kyoko finished changing the sheets and laying out clothes for the morning. She didn't want to be late for her appointment with Professor Fuyutsuki.

'Well tomorrow begins a new life for me, and after I get back, I'll have to start packing up this place to be ready to move up to Kyoto. Change is never easy, but it certainly makes life interesting.' And with that last thought, Kyoko, got back into bed and was ready to move to a new life starting tomorrow.

March 18, 1996 – Kyoto University

"Shit, its 10:50, I think I'm gonna be late!" Kyoko was not having a good morning, her train was delayed, the train then broke down, but thankfully it had arrived at her station first. With the lack of proper train service, finding a taxi was damn near impossible, so she decided to walk. 'I am so tired from all this walking, I hope I get to the campus soon.' She thought to herself just as the main gates appeared in her field of view. 'About time, my legs are gonna fall off.'

She crossed the quad to the information board situated in plain sight. She found her location and the building she had to walk to. "Great, more walking." She growled. She stomped off toward the Scientific Research Building for her meeting. 'It's 10:54, I don't think I'll be there on time.' She broke into a run and saw the building, and it wasn't too far away. When she reached the steps she ran up those too, but as she went to grab the door, it swung open on its own.

THWACK

Kyoko had collided with a young woman with shoulder length brunette hair. The girl was on top of Kyoko, with her boobs in the precarious position of being on her face. "Clud ou gt ooof f me?" Kyoko's voice was muffled by the girl's chest.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't see you when I opened the door." The girl got up and was still straddling Kyoko. "I apologize for bumping into you Miss." She bowed her head in apology. "I guess I just wasn't paying enough attention."

"It's not your fault, I was the one who was running." Kyoko said. When Kyoko realized the girl was still straddling her, she blushed. "Although, would you mind getting off of me?"

"Oh, I'm sorry" the girl bolted up from where she was and offered a hand to Kyoko. "Here, let me help you up.' The girl smiled at her as Kyoko took her hand.

"Thanks for that. By the way I'm Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu, what's your name?" Kyoko asked.

"Oh, my name is Yui Ikari, nice to meet you." Yui bowed her head again.

Well, I don't mean to be abrupt, but I have an appointment to get to, and I don't want to be late." Kyoko said, picking up her bag. "But I'm sure we'll see each other again." Kyoko hurried off and waved goodbye to the girl she just met. 'Nice girl.' Kyoko thought. 'Maybe I'll see more of her come next year.'

She found where she had to go from the partially obstructed building directory. "Great, more stairs, it just couldn't be on the ground floor could it?" Kyoko grumbled as she trudged up the stairs. She found the lab labeled for Fuyutsuki and knocked. Her knock was greeted with a simple. "Enter" from its occupant.

"Good morning Professor Fuyutsuki." Kyoko said, bowing. "My name is Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu, it's a pleasure to meet you. I have an appointment with you at 11:00 today." She rattled off quickly.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Ms. Soryu, please sit down." Kyoko sat down. "So, Ms. Soryu, tell me about your thesis. It is quite an interesting theory you have, how did you come up with it?" Fuyutsuki asked.

"Well, Professor Fuyutsuki, I came up with the idea when we were going over cell replication in class. But it didn't sink in until I was back in my room that if there were a system to develop a clone body of a person by taking a cell sample an forcing it to replicate. Transplant organs and body parts could be taken from it without the need for a donor. It should be possible, as my thesis points out, but there are the moral implications." Kyoko said and her face fell as she continued to speak. "Do the 'shells' have a soul, and if they don't, could they be considered property? It's a very large conundrum."

"Well, all great scientific discoveries have stigma attached to them, look at Oppenheimer and the atomic bomb." Fuyutsuki said calmly. "His creation spawned a two horrific events for our country, and he even thought of the Hindu quote, 'Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.' What he created however was not only a weapon of war, but also could be used as a power source to move industry and large sailing vessels alike. Now with your eventual discovery, there will be a stigma, but people will also see all the good it can do for the world, and that can outweigh the bad any day." Fuyutsuki concluded.

"Wow, I would never have thought of it that way." Kyoko said with a blush on her face. "But why did you choose me for this program Professor? I'm curious." She asked in a quiet voice.

"I chose you because, instead of hiding the moral implications of your thesis, you list out some of the issues, and make a case that the pros of your project outweigh the cons of the morality in the project." Fuyutsuki stated simply.

Kyoko was shocked, not only had the professor liked her thesis, he appreciated her intelligence and honesty! It was certainly a large change from when she was younger. Because of this shock, she was speechless.

"I take it you appreciated my answer, Ms. Soryu?" Fuyutsuki asked. He smiled and then continued. "Perhaps you could answer a question of mine, why apply here?"

Kyoko took a moment to ponder why she did apply there and then answered. "I wanted a fresh start away from what I knew so I could get a fresh perspective on things. That's the only reason I can think of." She replied.

"That answer more than suffices for me." He said, thinking to himself that her response was similar to his own as to why he moved here from Tokyo. After a moment Fuyutsuki continued. "Well, Ms. Soryu, you and two other young women have been chosen for this program. Now you only have a few weeks before the new term starts on April 1st. You'll need to be ready to move in by then. You'll have a room to yourself, if that helps, and you'll also have a lab assigned to you on this floor of the building. I don't see any problems with you finishing your degree by the start of term. So, is all of this agreeable, Ms. Soryu?"

"Yes Professor, all of that is more than agreeable. I have already started to pack in preparation of moving to campus." She stood up and bowed deeply. "Thank you for this opportunity professor, I deeply appreciate it."

"All capable minds should be fostered, Ms. Soryu, so please, there is no need to thank me." Fuyutsuki responded, caught off guard by her admission of appreciation.

"Well then, I'll see you in a few weeks Professor Fuyutsuki." Kyoko said as she left the office to head home and begin to ready herself for a new life.

To Be Continued

A/N: I do not own Evangelion or any of the characters, GAINAX and the other distributors of NGE related material do. I am simply using them as a backdrop for my fanfic.

Hahahahahaha, Gendo and Kyoko banged. I call that one hell of a curveball. I hope no one was too shocked at that little plot twist. I did tell you it would be in a later episode, I fibbed a bit because, well, it's nice to catch people off guard.

Anyway, I know this was a long chapter, but so little was known about Kyoko (other than her sad demise) there were a lot blanks to fill in. So she doesn't like to be objectified or the center of attention (shame her daughter didn't inherit some of those traits), and she meets both clumsy Yui and sensei Fuyutsuki in this chapter. We also learn about her portion of the research that will go into Project E at some point in the near future. Also, the quiet guy in her class that she dated is Kensuke's father, just because, reasons.

As I said before, and will always say at the end of chapter, please leave comments, as I would like to try to improve the story going forward any way I can. And, hell, constructive criticism is a good thing.

つづく