Forty-five years after.
Hikari hobbled along the path, child at her side. The two of them made an odd pair - the serene little old maid who breathed in the beauty of their surroundings, humming some tune or other, and the sullen and silent child who didn't even look up from her 'phone.
It was a beautiful day. The sea-air was fresh and clean. Kaede was clearly bored out of her tiny little mind, but Hikari did her best not to notice. On a whim, she reached up - kids were so big these days - and ruffled the kid's hair, and Kaede leaned away from her. Hikari grinned.
Eventually they reached the Yacht Club, and she checked her watch. Two o'clock. They still had half an hour before they stopped serving lunch. Steak was on special today - half price. It still wasn't cheap, but she'd be damned if a few lousy dollars were going to keep her from doting on her progeny. Though she'd never said as much, maintaining the means to do so was a big part of why she was still teaching despite her so-called 'retirement'.
But first, she brought them to the little monument.
Kaede looked up, disinterested. The whole thing was just a man and a weird-looking machine. The man wore a funny costume.
"His clothes are weird."
She smiled.
"Grandma wore those too, you know."
She actually managed to capture her interest for a moment. "When battling monsters with her friends," she said.
The way she said it was very different to how she usually did. Grandma was an amazing musician and story-teller, everyone said so - especially her students' parents. But this time... there were no theatrics. There was no excitement, no glint in her eye, no emphasis. It had just been a statement.
She had no idea what to make of that.
"Come, little one. A little meat will do you a lot of good," she said, feeling like a spokesperson for one of those adverts that had appeared, oh... a decade or two ago?
Kaede stole a glance at the plaque.
For all who died in The Great War.
Die Wunder, activated 15th July 2031.
Captain Shinji Ikari of Unit One. Killed in action 21st June 2031
He awoke, alone - in a box. Machinery sounded all around him.
He went back to sleep.
In time a cool, bony hand caressed his face. He opened his eyes.
"Ritsuko?"
She sighed. "You haven't aged a day..."
Thank you all.
Incidentally, some might call my spartan writing-style an artistic choice.
Real reason: I'm lazy.
DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO
...good reviewers are hard to come by, so thank you all. And thanks again.