The next few days at Daten High were awkward for both Shinji and the Angels. Their classmates would either hound around Shinji, practically demanding any information about the Angels from Tokyo-3, or step awkwardly around the Anarchy sisters. Panty, ever the talkative sister, managed to earn goodwill from some classmates by inquiring about 'human interests' as she put it. Yes, most of what she talked about was about sex, potty mouth humor, and asked the male student body about their length and girth, but she, at the very least, was integrating. Most of what chatter he heard about the Angels was normally about the blonde and how friendly she was to everyone.

Stocking, on the other hand, cared little for interacting with anyone. Her cold demeanor, harsh stares, and icy tone when she did speak made many except the boldest stay away from her. The bold ones, the unlucky ones, normally found themselves stuffed in a garbage can or kicked into a classroom with the strength to make pro soccer players jealous. People talked about her beauty from afar, though most only spoke of her spitefulness. As much as Shinji wanted to ask her about the titles she called him, her vicious attitude made him nervous to approach her.

Which left him in his current predicament. He had to ask someone with access to Heaven about those titles. As much as he wanted to ask Lilith about them, those were modern titles. Well, modern considering the recent act of Third Impact versus the Dead Sea Scroll's creation, and did not want to waste their time with something she would not know about. His other options were also problematic.

Brief would try to drain him dry for his blood or information. Perhaps both.

The priest, Garterbelt, might keep him locked up in the basement or in a coffin until he could get information. Probably with Brief as his assistant to teach him the way of interrogation. Even the priest would need an heir for his techniques after all.

Was Shinji being a bit paranoid? Probably. Being in Daten City has taught him to be wary of every one and every sound.

Back to point, Shinji found himself avoiding the cafeteria. With the students being on edge around the Angels, Shinji wanted to have a lunch without any interaction. Thankfully the rooftop was unlocked and without a student occupying it, making it a simple affair to enjoy his food with peace. The chatter of students hanging out on the ground level. Random instruments being played in the nearby choir room. These simple, human actions brought a smile to Shinji's face as he sat on the white rooftop and took it all in.

The world may have sin and cruelty. Many who do not bat an eye for the suffering for others. Yet moments like these...

Eva Unit-02's mutilated body being carried by flying Mass Production Eva Units flashed before his vision. A horrified scream echoing through his ears. A scream so inhuman that it took him moments to realize it was his own.

He made the correct choice. 'I made the right choice.' There was no other alternative. If his father or SEELE had it their way, humanity would have suffered for their selfish desires. No one should suffer due to their corrupted choices.

"Was your choice corrupted Shinji?" Lilith spoke from within. Her silence was something he noted over the past few days. Was she pondering something she did not wish to share? The squeak of the rooftop's door alerted Shinji to someone coming. He glanced over at the door and saw the familiar sight of one of his problems.

"Oh, Fuck!" Panty Anarchy, one of the Angels of Daten City, rubbed the back of her head with her left hand. "Sorry, was just looking for a nice view to drink to. Care to share the rooftop?" She asked with a wave of her right hand. The familiar can of some fruit drink, at least, made it seem like she was sincere with her intent.

"Plenty of roof for the two of us." The blonde took it upon herself to sit across from him. Her back leaned against the metal railing. Elbows on the rail to keep herself propped. He could feel her eyes looking at him as he stared out at the few students he could see below. The sounds of their classmates below and the birds above was the only thing to break their silence. The silence began the gnaw at him. Gnawed like guilt he thought he was well passed at this point. When he stood up and began to turn around, the words for his departure forming on his lips, a hand grabbed him.

A can hit the floor hard.

"Wait, not yet." Her words struck him as hard as the can hitting the floor was loud. When he turned back to her, he saw her head looked down at the ground. Eyes looking away from her feet. "Fuck, I'm not good at this whole normal talking thing. Just give me a moment. Please?" She said the last bit with her head up and a shy smile on her face. He nodded, sitting back down.

"Just talk like yourself." Shinji suggested to her. "Whatever you want to say will come out better than trying to word things in a different way." A chuckle escaped the Angel.

"Look at you, Mr. Angel Slayer, giving advice." Though she meant it as a joke, it made his throat tighten and him look away from her. She sighed and sat in front of him. "Look, maybe I give Geek Boy too much of a rough time if most of you humans act like this instead of just him. I mean, most humans act like idiots, joking about racism or killing others for sport, or-"

"Not all humans do that stuff!" Shinji shouted. His eyes wide at the implications he heard from her. "Where did you even hear any of that stuff?"

"From the Angels that you and your fellow pilots killed. The Progenitors, our oldest Angel Ancestors, the ones who have seen all that humanity has to offer since their conception and evolution. The ones who said that humanity were nothing but wicked souls with no more growth to offer evolution. Yet, people like you and Geek Boy make me think they were wrong."

"Of course they were wrong! Humanity still have so much potential to improve on. So much growth to provide not just each other, but to the planet!"

"The potential to become flaccid Ghosts or pathetic Demons. A cum stain blight upon not just the planet, but humanity. So many wrongs in life occur due to good intentions. Intentions, whether they be righteous or pure, always become corrupted along the way, leading to crime, death, or becoming something else." Panty looked at him with a solid look that reminded him of Stocking's intense anger. He did not look away; however, and met her stare head on with his own determination. A flicker of emotion flashed in her eyes, leading to her giggling and pointing at him.

"W-what?"

"Oh My Fucking God!" She began to laugh, kicking the ground with glee. "You really remind me of Geek Boy. So pure. So nice. So hopeful of humanity. When us Angels were told of the imminence of Third Impact, many Angels took it upon themselves to dine in on the current cultures of humanity before they were erased from existence. Eating their food. Partaking in their customs. Fucking all the bachelors... Well, some more than others, came to enjoy humans while others came to make them suffer for bringing the Progenitors upon them to initiate Third Impact."

"But Third Impact didn't happen."

"But it did. Just not in the way the Progenitors predicted. In the center of this displacement was you, Shinji Ikari. Honestly, I don't give a fuck about Instrumentality, the purging of humanity, or the cultivation of the planet by Angel hands. There is a reason my sister and I are currently stuck on Earth until we have repented for our actions. Can't speak for my sister, but I wanted to enjoy everything your species had to offer the way you guys intended. Can't exactly ask how a human did it if there were no more humans after all."

"So, were you happy at the idea of humans not existing anymore?" If Shinji was honest with himself, he felt anger at Panty. The way she spoke reminded him of how Misato spoke to Pen Pen. A cute creature that she cared for. Possibly even loved, but not for who they were.

No, she loved them for what a human could do for her.

"Maaa," Panty waved her right hand, "I would rather have humans that know how to have a good time surviving than every human. Not every human has an impressive set in the sack or shoulder boulders after all. Most of the humans are a fucking joke. You have to know that too Shinji. But no, in fact, I was sad to hear that the time of the humans were about to come to an end. Die in a fire. Snapped away. Take your pick, but I was not happy.

"Humans get to act however they want. A freedom to pick and choose how they want to live their lives after a certain point. All an Angel can do is redeem and purify. We grow slowly, aren't allowed to form attachments like humans can..." Panty trailed off with a sigh. She closed her eyes, taking in a breath with her head pointed up...

Then proceeded to press her hands to her head, scratching her scalp while moaning in pleasure. Her eyes opened with mirth directed at him.

"I certainly love humans. Probably second only to your love of humanity, though I'm much more open and honest with my fascination and intimacy than you are. So, maybe you and I could show each other how much we love the human act of sex hmm?" Panty leaned down, a finger pulling her collar to show her bare breasts to him. An act that got him to blush and react in a way that made her eyes dart down and her flirty smile grow wider.

"I got to go. See you in class Panty!"

The whimsical laugh that taunted him from behind made the blush on his face darken.

The unusual day for Shinji Ikari became tame after lunch. No one suddenly died in the school. A meteor didn't fall from the sky. The remainder of his day was predictable and mundane. Much to his joy, Shinji opened his locker to put away the unneeded textbooks and hurry to Fastener to take him home when his joy suddenly became confused.

'Huh, a rather romantic notecard addressed to me.' A quick glance at the contents of the card made Shinji sigh. While he understood that Barby was trying to be discreet and not garner more attention from their classmates, why did she write him such a card in a love letter style? A glance at a nearby clock made him realize that the meet-up time was in a few minutes. Packing his bag with the necessary materials for homework, Shinji made his way to the school's football field. The familiar sounds of the school coach making the football team run drills made him chuckle as he surveyed the benches for her. When he didn't see her at first, he found himself confused and glanced back at the note in his hand. Was there a date and a time meant for another day?

He did not expect for a hand to grab his extended wrist and pulled him under the benches. A hand covered his mouth before he could let out a sound. Thankfully for him, it was Barby that was making him silent and not someone else. He felt his body react in a defensive manner. The faintest shimmer of his A.T. Field caught Shinji's attention for a moment before he found his gaze back to the blonde cheer captain. He tried to speak, only for his muffled words to bounce off her hand. She smiled, letting out a playful scoff before she let him go.

"We have a problem, and its Angel related."

"I've had my fill with Angel related problems for the week. What is going on now?" Shinji tried. He really tried to keep the annoyance off his face. He wanted to be a good friend to Barby and be supportive of her concerns. But, after what happened between him and Panty during lunch, he wanted to forget about the Angels for the rest of the day.

"I know that you suggested that we should help the Angels with their investigations however we can, and I've been trying my best to help them, but they keep wanting to refute me! Every time I try to offer advice on who to question, odd occurrences on the school property, or even giving names just ends up with them not wanting to listen!"

'Considering the color of purple on her face, she must be trying to tone down on what she really wants to say.' Shinji thought to himself. Panty and Stocking, from what he remembered from the airport and the mall, were blunt to each other. Open with their feelings and not giving a damn about personal space or being polite about someone's emotions. Work ethics for purifying Ghosts aside, Barby's school unifying methodology would not work well on a duo that could only work well with each other.

"Maybe work with them but from the student perspective. I mean, Panty is the sociable one. So maybe make the attractive guys tell her about what you want the Angels to know so they can listen to your words through another's mouth? Stocking cares about desserts, so maybe having some guys bring her some tasty desserts as a distraction to get close? You might not get the credit," at this point Shinji shrugged his shoulders, "but I would rather be a silent benefactor instead of giving them the information in person, just to be spat on."

"I guess that could work, but then all of my work would go unnoticed." Barby sighed, rolling her eyes before shaking her head. "Well, the point is that we help them, they leave, then the school can go back to normal right?"

"Right." Shinji nodded. The sooner they left, the sooner he could know that the school would be the one peaceful place in Daten City he could rely on for some normality.

"So what are they exactly investigating anyway? I haven't heard of their conditions for being here."

"See, that is something that has not made any sense to me. The principal told me and the Angels about some disappearing students and that a Ghost is the reason behind the disappearances, but that doesn't make sense." Barby's face began to look strained, Shinji noticed. Was it something that Shinji said? Maybe that was the face she wore when she heard unusual, shocking information? "But we haven't lost any students. I'm not exactly a social butterfly, but I haven't seen anyone really missing for more than one day, and those are normally sick days or senior ditch days!"

"Why would the principal tell you and the Angels about a serious matter and not me, the Student Body President, Cheer Captain, and overall representative of Daten High! UGH!" She stomped on the ground, making the benches shake, much to his concern. A loud growl escaped her before she sighed, shaking her head once again, and looked at him. "I can get the student attendance records for the current week and the last few to compare any consistent 'disappearances' as the principal put it. But where should we discuss the findings?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well we can't exactly talk about it at school if someone in the school is making students disappear. Maybe we can talk about it some place tomorrow."

"Yeah, that makes sense. So where should we talk about the findings?"

"Oh, I'll write the address in your locker tomorrow before the day is over. Just keep an eye out on your locker okay?" With a nod she grabbed Shinji by his left wrist, firm but gentle, and led him out from under the bench. As she walked out towards the exit she paused, turned to him, and flashed him a smile. "Thank you, Shinji."

"Not a problem Barby. I'll do everything I can to help you." Despite the smile on his face, a sense of dread began to form in the pit of his stomach. Why did he feel this way? Was this due to the threat of something stealing fellow classmates? The attention from the Angels? Or, deep down, did he feel something special for Barby that made him feel disgust.

"How disgusting." Whispered through his soul. A whisper that sounded like Asuka.

'Yeah, I'm being pretty pathetic right now aren't I Asuka?' With a stretch he walked away from the football field, glancing to the right as a pink vehicle drove away with the Angels and Brief. 'I wonder what Ghost those three are trying to hunt this time?' Should he follow them? An image of Panty flashing him, well, flashed in his brain. He shook his head, taking a breath as he tried to calm down...

Only to feel an intense agony beneath his feet.

"What was that?"