Disclaimer: I do not own Neon Genesis Evangelion or any of its characters. All the fictional characters and brands used in the story are purely fictional and any resemblance to real people or brands is coincidental.
Author's Note: It was about time I updated this!
Waking up in the morning was something I both loved and loathed these past few weeks. I loved it because I knew that I had found myself an enjoyable career path (or more like it had found me) that provided me with a large income. I loathed it because of the fuss that people known as the media made. I could not exit my flat without at least half a dozen photographers taking photographs. Every time I went grocery shopping, or any kind of shopping for that matter, I could not shake the feeling that I was being followed. Well, to be honest, I knew that I was being followed. These media people weren't so discreet about it. At least they didn't try to ask me questions like they had done before. That had been incredibly annoying. Now, I'm just stalked everywhere I go.
"You've got to learn to live with it," Hikari had said. "Like it or not, it's their job. You've just got to deal with the paparazzi as best you can. Besides, you've got one of the best jobs in the word and there's always a price to pay for good things." I have also come to learn that there are two kinds of media people. There are the bad kind, the paparazzi, who stalk you and try to get anything they possibly can into their tabloid magazines and newspapers. Once, I saw a front page story about how my hair went when it got wet and how it was 'shocking'. I could not believe that people spent time writing an article and wasted perfectly good paper on producing such a futile story. And the problem was there are so many of these small time tabloids that somehow have a readership large enough to sustain their continued pestering.
The other media is the kind I have come to know as the good media. These are the broadsheet newspapers, the big fashion magazines and TV news channels. They all asked me through Hikari for interviews and requested to take photographs and film. Everything was done with my consent and they were friendly and amiable, not oppressive and annoying. I would do anything sometimes to wake up, walk out of my flat and not have a million camera lenses pushed up against my face so that the pictures could be used in some ridiculous story about anything these people could think about. Some of them even commented on the flat I lived in, saying that it was hardly fit for a supermodel. I don't know what was so 'super' about my modelling and I also didn't know what it had to do with the size of the flat I lived in. I was happy with my flat so I didn't see what the fuss was about.
Because I tried my best to stay away from the paparazzi, I was quickly becoming hard to find for them. The saddest thing was that this was much unlike some celebrities that actually go out to be photographed and to receive attention from the paparazzi, much to my surprise. This world of fame and celebrity just got weirder the more I delved into it and I very much intended to keep away from the extreme lengths some people went to for attention.
Today, I had to do a photo shoot just at Yama-Gucci so I assumed that it would be a fairly quiet day if I managed to walk outside my flat undetected. I found that it was impossible to take the subway these days without being hounded by photographers. I didn't mind regular people asking for autographs or having photos taken with them because they were generally very nice and I could speak to them. I know I have ranted long and hard about the paparazzi but with the way they are, it is very easy to rant about them! I left my flat and emerged out into the open air, wary that I might not be alone. Thankfully however, there were no photographers in sight and I also decided to take the subway because of this. I was also very early out of the flat, so I then thought I would take an unscheduled detour this morning.
The subway ride was short and fairly enjoyable. There were a few people who recognised me and asked for autographs and photographs. After that, I managed to get a decent conversation out of them, which was a pleasant diversion to my morning. Once I reached what used to be my usual stop, I disembarked the train and headed out into the street and towards the café that used to always be the first stop of my day. However, I hadn't managed to go there in the past few weeks and I was going to make it up to Haruka by making an unscheduled stop here. I walked through the glass doors of the café and went up to the counter and like always, Haruka was manning the till. Her eyes lit up when she saw me as did mine when I saw her. "Ah, hello Rei. The usual?" she inquired.
I smiled, "Yes please."
I took my usual seat and Haruka joined me after placing a latte in front of me. "So, long time no see, Rei! And I gather you've been pretty busy all over the TV and fashion magazines," Haruka chuckled.
"Sorry I couldn't come here sooner. It's just been hectic," I apologised.
"Heck, don't worry about it!" Haruka said. "At least you showed face, right? God, how did this ever happen?"
"I don't know. It just did," I said.
"There have been so many stories in the tabloids and different magazines about how Yama-Gucci found you! I didn't really know what to believe. Is it true that it was Tayo Takata himself that found you?" Haruka inquired.
"That's true," I said. "I was walking home, disappointed after messing up my interview when I somehow bumped into him. The rest is history, as they say."
"Some might say you were lucky," Haruka mused. "Others might call it fate."
"Fate? I do not believe in predestination," I stated.
"Some do. I think it's a little more than coincidental. I'm not saying it's predestination, or fate, or whatever you want to call it, but I'm just saying that maybe you weren't just in the right place, at the right time and said the right things," Haruka explained. "Heck, maybe it's karma."
"Karma? Like good deeds leading to good?" I inquired. I wasn't so familiar with the concept of karma but I had a rough idea.
"That's the one," Haruka said. "I don't know what it is, but maybe you've done something to deserve this good fortune!"
"Maybe," I said. "Although I can't think of anything I have done to grant me this."
"You were always so modest Rei," Haruka said. "And becoming a supermodel hasn't done anything to affect that." Despite the new world I found myself in, I still wasn't accustomed to sincere compliments and blushed at Haruka's words. She was quick to spot this. "And you're blushing as well! My god Rei, you really haven't changed one bit!" Haruka laughed.
"It has only been a few weeks," I said sheepishly.
"I hear that it only takes hours in that business to change a person," Haruka pointed out.
"That may be true," I said. "But the only bad thing I've really come against is the media."
"You probably should have expected that," Haruka said. "Say, would you like a muffin?" My eyes immediately lit up and I was sure that I began to whimper. Haruka laughed and said, "I'll take that as a yes."
After having a long and enjoyable catch-up conversation with Haruka, I made my way back onto the subway and began to make my way towards Yama-Gucci headquarters. The subways were already very crowded and it allowed me to stay relatively unnoticed from the large majority of the people around me. Some did recognise me, but couldn't make much of it because they were crammed into a corner by a mass of people. Tokyo-2 was a very busy city which made blending in slightly easier at times. Having blue hair didn't help, but I managed to stay low-key nonetheless. I reached my stop and got off, getting out just in time to avoid a mass rush of people.
I once again emerged onto the street and went off on the fairly short walk towards the Yama-Gucci building. However, as I just about made it inside, about half a dozen photographers appeared, some jumping out from behind bushes, some even emerging from recycling bins, all with their cameras at the ready. "Rei!" some of theme yelled. At that moment, I quickened my pass and went straight for the door to minimise the time those photographers had for snapping randomly placed pictures of me. I pushed the door and got inside as quickly as possible, knowing that if the photographers got anywhere near the building, security would 'politely' ask them to leave. I even felt like turning around and blowing a raspberry at the pursuing paparazzi but I knew that would just be another photo opportunity for them so I decided against doing so. It was childish, anyway.
I made my way through the main foyer and made sure to smile to the secretaries on my way in. They all smiled back as I entered the elevator. I remember on how on my first day here, they all looked at me with judging eyes but I guess things have changed. Maybe it was only because I was the new top model for Yama-Gucci, but I made the effort to smile and say hello when I could, because I was learning that people appreciated things like that. I guess that I was not only becoming more aware of my own feelings, but the feelings of others, and it is getting that balance right that is so vital in day to day life.
I exited the elevator once I got to my desired floor and was greeted by Tayo himself this morning which was a pleasant surprise. He was usually always busy so I never saw him during my photo shoots. "Morning Rei," he greeted with a smile.
"Morning Tayo," I replied.
"How are you Rei? Ready for today's shoot?"
I managed a smile and said, "Yes, I am, thank you."
"That's good," he said before walking me in. Kenji was there setting up his camera equipment while a team of workers were waiting to put me in different items of clothing, do my hair in many different styles as well as a make up team. I always felt that I didn't need that many people fretting over me, but as time went on, I got more and more used to them being around.
Today was just a standard photo shoot, although more emphasis was put on accessories, which in this case were several different bags from Yama-Gucci's latest range. After the shoot, I was about to go away and change back into my regular clothes when Tayo appeared, looking very nervous. "Rei," he said, "could you, uh, come into my office."
"Sure," I said. "What is it?"
"My father," he replied. "He wants to meet you."
"Ah," I said.
He said I had been lucky not to meet him thus far. I didn't know much about Tayo's father but I was sure he couldn't be as bad as Tayo made him out to be. I knew he was the chairman of the board of directors, but that was about it. I followed Tayo to his office where he suddenly stopped at the door. "Okay Rei," he said. "I'm warning you know, he'll try and unnerve you and make you feel as uncomfortable as possible,"
"Uh, okay," I said before Tayo opened the door and led me inside his office. Tayo's father was sitting down behind the desk, writing something down on a piece of paper. Without looking up, he said, "Sit down."
I did as he asked and took the seat in front of the desk. Tayo sat down just adjacent to me, looking incredibly nervous. "You are Rei Ayanami, correct?" he asked, still with his eyes on piece of paper he was writing on.
"Yes sir," I replied as politely as possible.
"I see you've settled right into our business," he added.
"Yes sir, I have," I said, wondering why Tayo was so nervous.
The man looked up from his paper and straight towards me. He was a man of around sixty with a lean, regal figure and a full head of black hair. He had a thick, bushy moustache that covered a considerable portion of his upper lip and he was dressed in the usual business attire of a suit. From his appearance, I would have deduced nothing untoward about the man, although he did speak without looking at me, which possibly indicated that he had a dismissive view of me. However, these are first impressions and as important as they are, I cannot let that be the final image of this man. Plus, I had no idea why Tayo thought he was so bad either.
"Very well," he said. "My name is Sai Takata. I am the chairman of the board of directors and I am also Tayo's father. You may be aware of both these facts but I shall make them clear to you regardless. Now, answer me one question, Miss Rei Ayanami. Have you had any previous modelling experience before joining us here at Yama-Gucci?"
"No sir," I replied honestly. At this point in time, Tayo's face was incredibly pale, even paler than my skin.
"I see," Sai Takata said, glancing over the Tayo, giving him what appeared to be a look of disapproval. "What did you do then, before joining Yama-Gucci?"
"I was studying at Tokyo-2 University," I replied.
"What was your field of study?" he asked next.
"Economics," I replied.
This was beginning to feel more like an interrogation than a first meeting. It wasn't the questions he was asking, it was how he was asking them. The questions came thick and fast and he didn't seem to stop to breath. It was then that I began to feel uncomfortable and I saw the Tayo had been right. Sai Takata could have made this more relaxed had he chosen to, but instead he had chosen to push me into the back of my seat with his questioning. However, the only thing I could do was take it on the chin and try to get through it all without breaking.
"Tayo," he said, suddenly taking his attention off of me and onto his son.
"Yes, father?" Tayo asked.
"Did you do a background check on Miss Rei Ayanami?" Sai Takata inquired.
"Uh…no father," he replied. At this point, I was feeling pretty small and insignificant. He didn't even bother lowering his voice or speaking to Tayo in private. He wanted me to know that he didn't like the fact I hadn't done any modelling before I had joined Yama-Gucci and was interested to find out where my origins lay. That had me worried. What would he think if he discovered that I was the designated pilot of Evangelion Unit 00?
"Well Tayo, I suggest you have a word with Miss Ayanami about her background then and report back to me with your findings," he said, standing up and putting his pen into his inside suit pocket. "Miss Ayanami, it's been a pleasure."
"Likewise, sir," I said. He swiftly left without another word and made no attempt to shake hands or any other gesture of that kind. It left me feeling slightly bewildered and Tayo was in an even worse state. He looked like a nervous wreck. He stood up and said, "I'm sorry you had to go through that."
"It's all right," I said, managing a weak smile.
"I would like to say that he's like that with all our models but I would be lying if I said that. He really doesn't like the fact that you've had no past experience," Tayo explained.
"I could see that," I said. "However, I can provide you with my background if necessary."
"I'm sorry to say that I'm going to have to get it if I am going to get him off of your back," Tayo said. "However, I don't want to interrogate you like he did."
"I am happy to give out my background, whatever the circumstances," I said.
"I know you are Rei," Tayo said, "but I'm not happy cross examining you for something like your background."
I sat there, not really knowing what to say. Tayo stood up with his hand over his chin, trying to think of something. "Actually," he said. "You've finished your work for the day, haven't you?"
"I have, yes," I confirmed.
"How about we have lunch at this great place I know," Tayo said. "It'll be on me. And while we're there, we'll swap stories."
"Swap stories?" I asked.
"Yeah, I tell you my background and you tell me yours. It's only fair. This way, it'll be a lot more relaxed and we'll get to know each other better as well," Tayo said. It wasn't a bad sounding offer at all and I was beginning to feel hungry. "Okay," I said. "We shall do that, then."
"Great," Tayo said. "And you'll love this restaurant."
He was right. I did love it. It was situated at the very top floor of a Tokyo-2 skyscraper in the city centre and being up there provided a marvellous all round view of the city as the whole floor had glass walls supported by a few steel struts. It was breathtaking. I could see for many miles all around me with seemingly no end in sight. The visibility today was literally just as far as the eye could see. "So, how is it?" Tayo asked.
"This place is incredible!" I said. "How did you ever find it?"
"I looked it up in the phone book, actually," Tayo said with a laugh. "Amazing what you can find if you just look."
"That is true," I said. "So, where are we sitting?"
"The best seats in the house," Tayo said, leading me up to an area of the restaurant section off in the corner of the room. There was only one table there and we have a considerable portion of the window to ourselves.
As soon as we took our seats, I stared out of the window, almost in the same manner I used to do whenever I sat in the classroom of class 2A in junior high. Of course, this view was a lot better and I didn't have so much on my mind as I had did back then with piloting Eva to worry about. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" Tayo asked.
"Yeah," I said. "It reminds me of when I was in junior high. I never paid attention. I just used to stare out of the window for hours."
"Were you always one to look for bigger and better things?" Tayo inquired.
"No, not really…It just helped me to think about everything back then," I replied. "Anyway, shall we order?"
"Sounds like a plan," Tayo said with a smile.
It seemed Tayo wanted to extend this as long as possible as we chose starters before our main course and I expected that we would have dessert as well. To be honest, I was grateful for that because I was absolutely starving. "So Rei, I think I'll start of with telling you a bit about myself," Tayo said.
"No, that isn't necessary, Tayo, I'll…"
He interjected and said, "No Rei, I insist. It's only fair that I go first."
"…Very well," I said, conceding to Tayo's persistence.
"Okay, to begin with, I was a failure in school," Tayo said. "I bombed out of senior high with scrapped passes in all my subjects except art which I got an A for. After school, I worked odd jobs while I kept on drawing in my spare time. I become more and more fascinated in architecture of all things, but also doing things like portraits before eventually working on clothing designs. My father noticed some of those clothing designs, helped me to set up Yama-Gucci and I had to take it from there. My father was already a very rich man but was a firm believer in a man being 'self-made' so because of that, I had to do everything in Yama-Gucci to get it going. It was really hard for the first year or so, and it was struggling financially. However, I got lucky when the label attracted the attention of Yumi Kimura, an already famous supermodel who was looking for a new contract. She came to us, and the rest is history.
"Prior to high school, I was your average failing student. I think back then I had the wrong attitude and never knew the meaning of hard work, just because my father was already very rich. I thought that regardless of what I did at school, I would be set for life afterwards. Of course, as soon as he discovered my grades he wasn't best pleased and literally kicked me out of the house as soon as I finished school. I have no idea why he helped me out with Yama-Gucci. Maybe he saw an opportunity to expand his wallet space. Maybe he genuinely thought I could work at it. Whatever it is, without his help, I would have never gotten started. Of course, once I had gotten started, I never got any of his help. So, I guess that's my life story."
I sat there, soaking it all in. And as I did, I wondered whether I should give him the story I had given everybody else about my childhood, or whether I should tell him, for the most part, the truth. That would include telling him about piloting Eva. Looking out at the city, I decided there could be nothing I could possibly lose by telling him the truth about Eva. However, I did need to fabricate a story about my origins because that part of my story is one I want to forget forever.
"Well," I said, "I've grown up without ever knowing my family. I was orphaned at an age too young for me to remember anything and I was taken in by a man and raised by him. I was a shy, quiet child, and I struggled to make friends. As well as that, I was chosen to take part in a very special program when I was very young, maybe about four years old."
"A special program?" Tayo asked.
"Are you familiar with the Evangelion Units?" I asked.
"Yes, I am," Tayo said. "They always used to amaze me. Why do you ask?"
"Because I was chosen to be the designated pilot of Evangelion Unit 00," I said.
Tayo was clearly taken aback by this piece of information. "You? You were an Eva pilot? I can't believe that," he said.
"It's true. And when I was 14, I began the fight against the angels alongside my fellow pilots who I still know to this day and I am very good friends with. My time as an Eva pilot was turbulent to say the least, with every day unpredictable. I was a different person back then though. I was much quieter and a little less understanding of people's emotions. It took Third Impact for me to change how I was," I explained.
"Third Impact," Tayo said. "Now there's something people never talk about. They always try to push that subject into a corner and ignore it."
"It is something I could never possibly forget, as an Eva pilot," I said. I kept out the part about me being the catalyst to start it. That piece of information was probably best left unmentioned.
"I never understood the things that went on during that day," Tayo said. "And suddenly, after it all, I'm back on planet Earth along with the rest of the human race and we all just try to restart our lives."
"Most of the human race," I corrected.
"Yeah, some people didn't make it," Tayo said. "I was always fascinated by the event but the thought of even mentioning it has become taboo."
"Yes, I know," I said. "Well, that was a short but an important part of my teenage life. After Third Impact, I began to focus in school, came out of my senior high school class second only to a fellow former pilot and good friend, Asuka Langley Sohryu. After that, she returned to Germany for a few years while I went to Tokyo-2 University along with another pilot and someone who's like a brother to me, Shinji Ikari."
"You pilots must have been a very tight bunch," Tayo noted.
"Not even close. During our time as pilots, our relationships were all strained to put it lightly. I'd rather not talk about how they were strained," I said.
"That's fair enough," Tayo said. "The thing that gets me is how exactly did you get selected to pilot Eva?"
"The man who took me in and raised me, he was Commander of NERV, the organisation that possessed the Evas," I answered.
"But you were only 14 when you were fighting the angels and 4 when you were selected? Surely that wasn't a job for children?" Tayo continued.
"Evangelion isn't just a giant robot. It's is mostly biological and is almost alive in a sense. For some reason, they only responded to pilots born after Second Impact. When the angels attacked, I was only 14 so that was the age that I piloted," I further explained.
"You know, I wasn't quite expecting this to be your background," Tayo said. "Out of interest, which Eva was yours?"
"The white and blue one with one eye," I replied.
"Aw, damn it! I liked the purple one," Tayo said, with a laughed. I laughed as well, feeling that I managed to get the story across as best as I could have.
"I don't know how my father would take this story, but it is my duty to inform him, I guess," Tayo said. "Anyway, how about we forget about work and eat?"
I smiled and said, "That would be nice."
A few days past and I was in Yama-Gucci HQ, looking over some new proposed designs for the new range. I was interested to see what they looked like just to get an idea of what I might be wearing in the future. As I licked through the designs, Hikari walked into the office and said, "Rei, have you see this?" In her hand was a magazine opened up to a specific page. "No. What is it?" I asked.
"Take a look," Hikari said. "Somebody somewhere has found out that you used to be an Eva pilot. Now everybody wants interviews, public statements, everything. I can't hang up the phone without it ringing straight away again!"
"They found out I was an Eva pilot?" I asked. "How would they find that out?"
"I dunno. I was hoping that you were going to tell me because this piece of news has just quadrupled my workload in about in an hour!" Hikari said.
"The only person I told I was an Eva pilot was Tayo and that was for a background check," I pointed out as I skimmed through the article.
"Tayo's not going to be giving out news like that to some magazine," Hikari added. "Rei, were you in the Tokyo-2 Skyline restaurant at any point in the past week?"
"Yes, that's were Tayo and I went for lunch one day and he performed the background check there and then," I answered.
"Ah, that must be it. Some paparazzi weasel must have been listening in," Hikari said.
"Listening in?" I asked in shock. "They were eavesdropping on our conversation?"
"Listen Rei, sometimes these guys go lower than low for a story," Hikari pointed out. "You're currently the nation's biggest sensation so everybody wants stories about you and weasels like this guy who listened in on you are willing to go that extra step just to get that story. Rei, I can threaten legal action and file a lawsuit against this magazine for illicit use of private information. It would be for so much money that they couldn't survive as a business afterwards."
"It's okay," I said.
"Are you sure, Rei? This is normal procedure and I would recommend you take legal action," Hikari insisted.
"No, it's all right. If everybody knows that I was an Eva pilot, then so be it," I said.
Hikari frowned, possibly because I didn't allow for her to use her legal skills in a battle she would have most certainly won. However, I never liked the thought of having to sue. I knew there was a point that people might try to take advantage of that and that would be when I would have to allow action to be taken. "I understand it may make me seem like a pushover now but we will take action in the future if anything else happens. Could we leave this for now?" I asked.
"Fine Rei. This is probably the right choice, if I was contradicting the lawyer inside of me," Hikari said. "But if any other paparazzi sleazeball tries anything like this again, then we sue them into oblivion, agreed?"
"Agreed," I said with a smile.
After we made that little pact, a secretary entered and said, "Miss Ayanami, there is a Misato Katsuragi wanting to see you."
"Oh, thank you. Please let her up," I said.
"Very well, Miss," the secretary said amiably before heading off. It wasn't long before Misato came into sight. "Hey there Rei. Hello Hikari," she greeted.
"Hello Misato," Hikari greeted.
"Hi there. What's up?" I asked.
"Have you seen what's all over the news?" Misato inquired.
"The fact that everybody now knows that I used to be an Eva pilot?" I said.
"Bingo," Misato said. "Now, it isn't that knowledge that I'm worried about. People can know that you used to pilot Eva. However, you need to watch that you don't let some of the more sensitive details slip. As well as this, you are also now under the official protection of the UN."
"Official protection?" I asked.
"Yes, we're afraid that some people out there might not appreciate what Eva has done or even former members of SEELE. I don't know. It's just a precautionary measure but I'm sure nothing will happen," Misato explained.
"So, who from the UN will be protecting me?" I asked.
Misato smiled and said, "Yours truly! Lieutenant Colonel Katsuragi, reporting for duty!"
"You are my protection?" I said.
"Well, I am to be your security advisor. Because nothing will actually happen to you, it means free money for me!" Misato said. "Plus, I get to travel anywhere you go! Anywhere special soon?"
"Actually," Hikari said, "Rei is going to Paris in a week."
"I'm going where?!" I exclaimed.
"Oooooooh! Paris! Sounds exciting!" Misato said.
"When did this happen?" I asked in shock.
"Twenty minutes ago," Hikari said. "You're going to the annual Paris Fashion Show, which is one of the three biggest fashion events on the planet, along with London and New York."
"I…I am?" I asked nervously.
"Yup, sure are. And I think you can scare out the opposition, with you being a former Eva pilot and all," Hikari added with a smile. However, it did not reassure me at all. This was huge and it was the last thing I expected. On the flip side, I guess the last thing the fashion world expected was a former Eva pilot as Yama-Gucci's main model.