Chapter 28: Do We Believe What We Say?

Ikuko Katsuragi knew what she would be feeling in the morning and she stopped caring long ago. Just a year away from turning 50, she determined she had done all she could to have a meaningful life. Every time she was ready to celebrate however, she was reminded there was still one responsibility that kept her from going totally off the rails with her life.

Before she could open her bottle of sake, Ikuko heard her phone ring. She sighed not knowing who could be so interested this time of night. It was not until she picked up the phone she would realize how serious the call would be.

Ikuko greeted, "Hello?"

"Hi mom. Am I interrupting?"

As soon as Ikuko recognized the voice she laughed, "Yeah, I got a nice hunk of a man in the other room ready to handle me the way your father never could. If you hurry over, you can join."

What sense of joking she intended to start was lost as soon as she heard Misato tell her, "Mom, I'm not in the mood for teasing right now."

Ikuko sobered as she sat down in a nearby seat asking, "It's serious huh? I can hear you out if that's what you need."

"How were you ever really fine with having me?"

Ikuko wished she started on her sake as soon as she heard that. Her occasional call with her daughter Misato made her believe there was something weighing down on her mind for a while. Being presented with confirmation proved to be a serious slap of reality that found its way back to her.

Leaning back in her seat, Ikuko recalled, "I loved your father at one point and I was ready to love whoever I gave birth to. That's the short answer."

"Is it really as simple as you just had an obligation at one point?"

"I was expected to be married at some point and your father was the one I thought I would spend the rest of my life with. For as long as that was anyway."

"I know dad got... obsessive after a while. You don't think he was trying to get away?"

"I never could get through to him what he wanted from me. As soon as he found out I was pregnant he decided he had enough of me. Your grandparents were about as fine with him getting his hands off me as he was."

"I don't see you as the sort of person who would stick around just for someone else that much."

"I used to be younger than you Misato. I thought as soon as I got married your father wouldn't keep his hands off me. I wanted that to happen so much..."

Misato heard Ikuko start to hold back her tears as soon as she reflected on her past. While her mother told stories about her youth when she was not drinking her problems away, Misato found herself scraping away at a surface she only scantily thought about every now and again. Why did her parents want to have her? What drove them apart?

Misato was afraid she was not easy enough with the subject yet as she told her mother, "If it's too much for you, you don't have to say anything."

Ikuko made her way for the sake bottle and twisted the cap off before pouring it into her cup. She sniffed before telling Misato, "It's the past and I've been telling myself that for at least 10 years now. I'm supposed to be steering you right when things get troublesome, this is about you isn't it?"

Misato prepared to move forward with revealing more about herself, "So about you and dad... there's a reason I've been trying to find out about why you had me."

"I know you, you don't bring anything up without a reason."

"Do you think you did the best you could?"

Ikuko immediately chugged the cup of sake down before answering, "Not even close. Any parent who loses custody at any point has no business being one. If it was as easy as leaving you, there wouldn't be any broken families."

"The years we had before weren't terrible though."

"That's nice of you to say Misato but I sure struggled to get through it."

The frank dismissal was enough to make Misato realize how close she was to trivializing her mother's past. While she was afraid of making her feel less in control of the conversation, Misato requested, "I know you don't want to talk about it but I really want to know what kept you going."

Ikuko laughed before reflecting, "You are having trouble remembering aren't you? Well it was a long time ago and I always made sure being selfish under my household was never a good thing."

Trying to make her mother feel easier about where the conversation was going, Misato tried to joke, "I guess Christians don't like to be selfish but did that do anything to you?"

"When I married your father, as soon as he made me have you, he was done with me. I was fine with him working as long as I had you but... then you wanted to be around him. You even told me you were tired of me and wanted to have a father instead."

Being reminded of what a deamdn she had as a child made Misato look down at the floor in shame. Onlookers could have easily assumed that her behavior as a child was expected even in such a conflicting past. For her, it was instead a prologue to her projection of her demands she imposed on those who got involved in a relationship with her. A story that she was still suffering the effects of to this day.

Misato could not tell how long she lingered in her regret over the recollection before finally admitting, "I did tell you that didn't I?"

Ikuko took her turn to deride her own failure as an individual by condemning, "That was bad enough and then all this madness happened and now... here I am trying to resemble a real parent. I never even got to find out if either of your grandparents... if either of them... were even happy with me around..."

As soon as Misato heard her mother sniffing to keep herself from crying further Misato hung up her phone. The sound of her on the verge of tears left her to believe there was nothing else she could learn. Just confirmation of how she treated her mother as a child and how she wanted to find some resemblance of normalcy compared to other kids.

Her plans to turn in for the night were stopped as soon as she heard the phone ring. Hopeful it might have been Kyoya, Misato made her way over to it expecting a more productive conversation. If anything, she would finally know when all of this confusion could finally be laid to rest.

Picking up the phone, Misato greeted, "Hello?"

"Don't you hang up on me young lady!"

Backing her phone away from her ear, Misato realized what she had gotten herself into. She started to curse being stuck with his conversation but knew the alternative would have her mother breaking down her door just to get back in contact with her. The only consolation Misato could accept was that there was a possibility of coming out of this conversation wiser in some way. After all, this whole debacle that her life had become started out because she let someone else bring themselves into her life in a way she did not anticipate. For better or for worse.

Misato began by apologizing, "I'm sorry mom, I thought you were... uh..."

"Drunk off my ass? Well I'm working on it. Probably what made you try to get closer to your father when you saw me like this."

The comebacks to Misato's assumptions became enough that she tried to back out of the conversation by pointing out, "Mom, I thought you couldn't handle talking about what we went through."

Ikuko landed a hand on her table as she added, "Same thing isn't it? Those government people sure didn't need much of a reason beyond just that."

Trying to comprehend what her mother was referring to, Misato reasoned, "You mean GEHRIN? Mom I... I was never more scared than when I got taken away from you."

There was a short pause from Ikuko before she managed, "It was bad enough losing your father wasn't it? God help me I... I just failed you in every way I could..."

Knowing better than to hang up on Ikoku this time, Misato suggested, "Mom, I'm really not trying to make you cry thinking about the past like this."

Ikuko sniffed before dismissing, "You're calling me so I can help you out. I've been sitting here for I can't even count how long bitching about my past and just putting off your present. Now tell me what's bothering you."

Accepting she would not have any other choice besides eventually facing an even more furious version of her mother down the line made Misato answer, "So... I had another breakup recently... and I got pregnant."

Misato could hear her mother spitting out the sake from her mouth before responding in a forced laugh, "Oh Misato, you have no idea how I feel right now. You're thinking of being a single mom?"

Still uneasy about revealing who the father was or what circumstances brought her to this point, Misato went along with the assessment, "That's... probably the easy way to describe it."

"If it's from that Ryoji Kaji fellow, you know what I would tell you right now."

"He's dead mom, you aren't going to see his kid running around."

Ikuko dropped her cup before remembering the news about Kaji and apologized, "Ugh, you're right. Okay, so it's someone better already. You still think it can't be fixed?"

With a better idea of where the conversation was headed, Misato acknowledged the situation, "I don't think he ever wants to look me in the eye again if that says anything."

"So you want the honest truth if I think you can do it right?"

"That's what I need to hear right now."

It was not the advice she wanted to give when there was so much that she failed to accomplish in Misato's life beforehand, but Ikuko mustered what remnants of her motherhood she felt she could call upon to answer, "It's a no from me. Misato, you're a better woman than I ever was but you still have too much to handle yourself. God knows how much worse you would have turned out if you stayed with me. If your luck with me hasn't gotten any better by now, a child is the last thing you'll be able to handle."

Misato accepted the evaluation from her mother and hoped to end the conversation by acknowledging, "Sounds like there's only one thing for me to do then."

"Misato, I need to tell you what I regret the most."

Disappointed she would not have a chance to hang up, Misato asked, "Is this somehow about what we were trying to decide?"

Ikuko continued with her recollection, "That I never tried. I was always told to respect the wishes of your father no matter what he did. If I hadn't done that, you might not have hated me as much. At least it would have looked like I tried to get through to him."

Remembering everything she could about her father, Misato could recall what made her distance herself from her mother so much. Being forced to hear other children taunt her for being unable to have any fun times with her father made her determined to spend every moment she could around him. She could barely even conceive of a time where she treated her mother with the same sort of respect she had for her before the age of seven.

Behind the scenes of her desire to reach out to her father, Misato allowed her mother to linger in solitude as she gave complete indifference towards her. And all of those attempts ultimately accumulated in her traveling to Antarctica where she became the only remaining testament of humanity's first contact with the Angels. At some point, be it from recalling the smell of her or just seeing her sprawled out in a drunken stupor, Ikuko Katsuragi allowed herself to fall completely under the spell of drink while Misato allowed it to be one of the few images she had of her.

For all of the imperfections Ikuko was as a mother however, she had given some amount of effort to be what she needed to be one. Even after leaving GEHRIN, Misato could recall her mother's attempts to take her back and give her the life advice she thought she would need. Her warnings about Kaji, her pleas to not become reliant on drinking, her desire to make sure she did not become involved with NERV. All of it was her accumulated attempts to be the mother she was supposed to be while having already been crushed by how much she turned away from her.

The amount of pain she had forced her mother through made Misato wonder how she was still able to hold a conversation with her. At the center of it all was sincere love. The unconditional union any other parent should have had. Ikuko was broken and sad but still had intentions for her child to live a good life.

Feeling the conclusion run over her made Misato struggle to imagine how she could feel as though she could be forgiven and how she could consider relieving Shinji's child from her. The intent to maintain her solitude and move on from someone she once cared for vanished as she heard the reminder of what her mother was like right now. How there had to be a chance she could avoid meeting the same unfortunate fate of misery she was heading down before because, like her mother, she simply did not try.

Hopeful there was an answer for her confusion, Misato asked about the possibility of her mother reaching out to her father, "You... think you could have?"

Ikuko sniffed before explaining, "I honored him so much and let myself end up like this because of it. I wanted to have you as the center of my world and I just let expectations tell me what I could and couldn't do. Even if you did run away with that Kaji fellow I would still be proud of you for doing what I never could."

While her mother kept herself from crying any further, Misato tried to alter the scenario by pointing out, "How do you know father would have been honest about what you were doing with him? It's not like he would tell the truth all the time."

Misato did not expect to hear nuance for a situation like this but proved to be what she needed to hear as Ikuko countered, "Misato, you're how old and you still think people tell the truth all the time? We don't just lie to take advantage of people. We do it to keep them from being hurt. If the boy you were seeing wasn't doing that then you had a right to ditch him but that's just one case. If he didn't then it's time you started being a lady and apologized."

Such a reminder about lies proved to be the reminder Misato needed to hear. Every day she was essentially lying about what she was in making herself seem like a more capable person than she appeared. For all of Shinji's faults, lying about what he did to find Kaji's discovery was not one of them. It was done before they even thought about getting together and he wanted to make sure she would not be hurt by what he had done. He even did what he could to make it seem as though she never lost it.

That realization knocked down the very foundation that made Misato question how sincere Shinji was in being with her. Every moment where it seemed as though he was trying to live a different life away from her was instead him trying desperately to fix it. He had done the best he could ever since he came into her life and that was something she could not say of most men. Whatever misunderstanding there might have been, she knew it was up to her to make sure he knew she was sorry for making him go through another difficult period in his life.

Stiffening her lips, Misato told her mother, "You're right mom."

Hearing such a concession, Ikuko kept herself from rattling on further before asking, "Do you think so? Because if that's the case you should know what to do."

Misato had her mind made up as she determined, "Alright. I'm going to do that. Thank you mom."

Smiling at the hope she might have for once helped her daughter in some way, Ikuko parted, "I always wanted to hear that. I love you honey."

The call ended with Misato parting, "I love you too, mom. Goodbye."

Misato could not say she expected to end her conversation with her mother on a hopeful note, but it was one of the few instances where she felt like she heard what she needed to hear. She might not hear from Kyoya or anyone about what was happening at NERV but there was a perfect reason for her to prepare to face the next day. There was still shaky ground on whether or not what she was doing was morally right, but she would accept that challenge if she would ever be with Shinji again. The question of if she could achieve what she prepared herself for was another thing entirely.

Everything Misato was hoping to accomplish however was focused on the question of how she would be received now. The last exchange she had was trying to reestablish a professional relationship she allowed to go awry. More importantly she was now being challenged by Asuka, a child more than half her age. A premise she never thought she would be challenged by in her adult life.

The words of encouragement Misato received from her mother were enough to make her accept that she would have to try and make things right again. She also knew she would have to be ready for whatever the outcome would be. She had to be ready to accept that the boy she allowed herself to fall in love with may not be coming back to her.

Everything Shinji heard last night left him unsure how he would find a way to make his way through another day in NERV. He was still confused on how he felt about Kaworu and how he seemed to have no interest in fulfilling his mission. He was a threat to the human race and was more interested in where Shinji was.

Even as he considered what sort of threat Kaworu was, Shinji remembered his observation of the phenomena that he was experiencing. Being told of the Language of Masoch provided an idea of what sort of scenario he was living but left him afraid who he was affecting. The implication that he had spoken to many but only truly communicated with Misato left him feeling more isolated than before as such context made him realize a sense of isolation he was entering. A creeping idea that no one could truly understand him by now.

"What does it mean if I approach anyone else?" Shinji asked himself. He could potentially try to approach anyone else and metaphorically harm them as a consequence. Such a possibility left him assuming he must have been able to approach someone and be willing to accept the pain of being with him.

This reasoning was what made him decide to approach Asuka and discover if she was in fact the best alternative. Even after approaching her before only to be met with the illusion that she had become. The conflict of being stuck with the only person who wasn't Kaworu who cared about him now left him realizing what sort of choice he was making. He was afraid of the implications but the motivation from what brought Kaworu to tears brought him even closer to the edge of despair.

The conflict followed him as he made his way through the halls and saw Asuka walking towards him. Still shaken and confused by everything that was making him approach herm Shining clenched his hands as he tried to prepare to once again be face to face with the changed Asuka. A change that he knew was still a struggle for him to accept.

You again... What is it this time?

"Hi Asuka. Are you doing okay?" Shinji greeted.

He was not sure what else could have heard as Asuka made her way up to him and welcomed back, "I'm always wonderful when I'm around you Shinji! Please tell me you're here to go out with me, I really want to!"

Forced to accept what he was confronted with, Shinji told her, "I... really have to understand. Is that actually you Asuka?"

Shinji? Please tell me you finally get it... Please tell me you know it's not me...

"Of course it's me, Shinji. This is the me I always was. I was afraid before because I wanted you to care for me."

"I get it... But I don't get how this happened. Do you really believe Kaworu that much?"

"He doesn't have a reason to lie. He's your friend and he wants us together."

Still unsure how much he could trust Kaworu's supposed word, Shinji tried to point out, "Do you even know what Kaworu is? Why he was doing this?"

Asuka placed her hands behind her and answered, "He has been a good friend with us for a long time. What else could he be?"

Irritated with how in the dark Asuka was, Shinji dropped a hand to his side revealing, "He says he's an Angel Asuka. He can't be doing this to help us."

The reveal earned a brief silence as Asuka was asked to accept the rumor before giggling to ask, "Where did you get that idea? You think he might be our Cupid? You should be directing your flirts to me, Shinji."

Shinji gritted his teeth at the dismissal reminding, "The kind we're supposed to be fighting Asuka! If he wants us together he can't be doing this for a good reason!"

Asuka took a few steps towards Shinji as she asked, "What makes you think he's the only one interested in this? You're the one who told him weren't you?"

The reminder of that fateful lie he told long ago brought him to this point. In retrospect he should have been able to tell Kaworu was not human by his assumption that he was in a relationship with someone just by touching him but wondered what he could have done differently. He might not have been reported to the authorities like he feared but the idea demanded that he acted in a way he was not used to. His attempts to be honest with Misato kept him going for so long but the lies he spread to keep a secret proved to become a weight after no longer being tied to her.

The reflection of where he was now made Shinji lose track of time before raising his head. Asuka was closer to him than before and looking him down with the closest smile she ever gave him. The two had their eyes locked with one another as Shinji continued to hesitate to answer his thoughts about the enigma Kaworu was.

Giggling again, Asuka asked, "Tell me Shinji. How long are we going to keep teasing each other?"

Shinji took a step backwards as he told her, "Asuka... I want the real you back..."

He knows... He knows... He knows! He knows! He knows! Please Shinji help me!

"You know this is the real me Shinji. I've been choosing to be honest with myself ever since you saved me."

"Is that what happened? That can't be right. You can't be always lying about yourself like that."

"I was kept away from others for so long. I want you now. Don't you?"

The exchange was not going anywhere. Try as he might, Shinji could not get through to Asuka about what she was doing to him or even herself. If he was engaged in speaking the Language of Masoch with her as he intended, the terminology he was exchanging with her was far different than he intended.

He struggled to make sense of how he would have justified what he was doing as he prepared to approach her but ultimately answered, "I do..."

Shinji could not make another step as he felt himself locked in place as Asuka dropped her arms on his shoulders. He immediately regretted what he said earlier, finding himself face to face with Asuka more uncomfortably than he could remember. He was face to face with the illusion Asuka had become and he was forced to discover what embracing her would be like.

Deep within her mind, the real Asuka wailed, No! Shinji! How could you?!

"You just wanted a turn at hard to get, didn't you? It was certainly fun but we shouldn't be holding back anymore shouldn't we?"

"Asuka... If this is the real you..."

"Why are you so concerned about me? I'm made for you."

Made?! No I'm not!

Asuka took hold of Shinji's right hand and placed it in her cheek continuing, "I'll be your perfect girl however you want me to be Shinji. Just make me however you want me to be."

Still uneasy with Asuka's advance, Shinji denied, "Asuka I can't do that to you. I can't control you."

No shit! Now hit me! Push me away! Do anything, just get me out of here!

"You can Shinji. If I'm going to live for anything it should be for you. You deserve it after all of this."

Shaking his head and struggling to pull his hand away, Shinji denied, "I can't. You're a person Asuka. I won't take advantage of other people."

You mean like you totally respected that whore of yours?! Oh God! No!

Asuka tightened her hold of Shinji's wrist as she kept his hand on her cheek asking, "It's fine when two people are in love isn't it? Haven't you said you didn't like Misato anymore?"

Finding himself at the point of panicking over what was occurring, Shinji pointed out, "I thought you knew it was a joke!"

Asuka smiled as she countered, "Even if it wasn't that wouldn't stop me. I want you to use me Shinji. You and I are completely free now."

Shinji you idiot! How long is it going to take?! How many times?! Help me! This isn't me!

Desperate to find a way he could discourage her, Shinji warned, "But Asuka I might hurt you if I do that..."

Running his hand down her cheek while wiggling in the hold, Asuka reminded, "I'm willing to be hurt for you if that's what you want. You can even dress me and change me any way you want. I'll be that dedicated to you."

Turning his head away from the persistent offer, Shinji explained, "Asuka you don't get it. I've never hurt you before. If I do it, you'll never forgive me."

Like that will be a change!

Asuka pouted before proclaiming, "But Shinji, I don't want anyone else."

Jerking his hand away as hard as he could, Shinji could not bring himself to bear any more of Asuka's advances. While he struggled to keep himself from crying at the display, he told her, "You don't get it Asuka... This isn't you... I don't want to be with someone who isn't honest."

Please! Go! Leave me! Get help! Just do something, I can't take being like this anymore!

Frowning at Shinji just having removed himself from her embrace, Asuka looked up to him countering, "But Shinji, I'm being more honest than I've ever been. This is the me I was always supposed to be. I can only be happier when you are with me."

This time Shinji turned away. He could not tolerate listening to any more of Asuka's suggestions as he told her, "I knew the real Asuka. You're not her."

You know this...

"Are you the same Shinji you were before?"

The question caught Shinji off guard when he heard it. He did not anticipate Asuka to ask anything beyond being with her and it kept him from walking away. He still had his space but he feared what hesitating to walk would do to him.

Such a point was more than what Shinji expected to be raised over such a serious topic. For all her desire to be with him he never thought Asuka was still able to make him ponder what she said. It was the one reason he could think of that made him turn around and face Asuka to answer her plea.

You're choosing now to face me?!

"What do you mean?" Shinji asked.

Asuka smiled before answering, "Nobody is the same when stuff happens to them. I know I was changed for the best now that I get to be honest with you."

"I can't believe this. This isn't you. I know you aren't like this."

"Does it even matter? We're standing in front of each other, that should be real enough shouldn't it?"

"No Asuka. I want this to be real. Not just some...act."

Turning away and determined to walk away from Asuka this time, Shinji began to make his way down the halls. He cursed himself for even thinking he could have turned to Asuka as an alternative for his loneliness despite having no idea who else he could have turned to. The Asuka he once knew was truly gone and there was no way for him to make her realize what she was saying was not in line with who she once was.

As soon as he saw a nearby door open, he found himself cursing his luck once again. Misato stood in the doorway across from him as she stopped to realize he was there. As though she was a reminder of what he was demanding from Asuka before, Shinji was forced to remember there was a consequence to choosing who the alternative would be.

Despite her hopes of catching up to him, Misato found Shinji was still unwilling to meet her face to face and saw him make his match towards Asuka. She did not understand what he was hoping to accomplish but immediately received confirmation as soon as he stopped in front of Asuka. As though there was no argument between the two of them before, Shinji took hold of Asuka's face and kissed her.

The sight was all that told Misato what she needed to know as she saw Asuka surprised by the gesture but willing to return it. What hope she had in reaching out to Shinji was ultimately shut down as she realized she would not be able to capture his interest. He was committing himself to Asuka now and there was nothing she could do to make him take back his choice.

Looking down in defeat, Misato concluded, "I could have tried... I took too long... Asuka... Please take care of him..."

Within the halls, Shinji kept himself pressed to Asuka's lips as though he intended to make up for all the times he had done so with Misato. He took one look into the face of reality and he realized where it would have taken him. If that was the alternative, he came to decide that the illusion was the preferable choice after all.

He came to determine it would not be so bad for either of them. If this was the new Asuka, he was willing to accept the new her that did not assume the worst of him. He had been searching for his chance at happiness for so long and he found it right in front of him. An ideal girl who had no ill thoughts about him or intended to make him suffer after trying for so long.

Liar! Monster! Bastard! I hate you so much Shinji! Why do you do this to me?!

There was no answer from Shinji as he kept Asuka in his embrace. There was nothing for him to apologize for as far as he was concerned after choosing to move on with his life. No matter how unreal Asuka might have been, he was willing to accept the version of her that was right in front of him.

You don't love me! You don't even respect me! You're terrible Shinji! Stop doing this to me! Let me go!

Even as Shinji finally parted, he looked Asuka in the eye to see her giving a happy smile at his approach. As though she was the answer he had been waiting so long for, she remained in his embrace as though she had finally lured Shinji to her side. Asuka did not have a full grasp of the Language of Masoch, but her body was willing to accept the first few instances of what she had just endured.

Taking hold of his face in return, Asuka asked, "So what would you like to do to me first, Shinji?"

Determined to finally move forward with his decision, Shinji told Asuka, "Three dates. I'll decide after that."

Asuka giggled, accepting, "I can't wait. I hope that means what I think it does."

Pleased and content, Asuka finally had what she wanted. She was finally with the boy Kaworu had directed her to after so long. It took time but to her it would be worth all of the trouble and holding back she had to do. The reward for her pursuit was ultimately going to pay off in the end.

No! Why?! Just kill me now! Stop this, I don't want to live anymore! You all know this isn't me! I don't want to be this thing!

A/N:

Hey everybody, it is finally that time after being a little bit overdue. We have reached 100 favs after this many chapters from TheUnholyMessiah who made that final tip over into the goal. I did want to get this out earlier, but zlatanbaranovic got held up by life for a bit. Hope in spite of whatever anticipation there might have been, this chapter is finally available for your reading enjoyment and I hope you look forward to seeing where this takes us afterwards.

So, the end of this chapter was pretty crucial to everything I have been building up to now. Essentially Shinji's ultimate choice of whether he'll face reality with Misato or unknowingly hurt Asuka in his desperation to avoid facing it. If you've been following along up to now though, you might be able to tell there is going to be something that will challenge his choice pretty soon.

Probably the biggest challenge for me this chapter was to avoid making any number of Barbie Girl references through the Shinji and Asuka exchange. There's this old AMV set to the song where Asuka is in it and I read this comment pointing out how famously in End of Evangelion she proclaims she didn't want to be a doll. I just found the idea pretty ironically funny for the longest time and I realized I almost effectively took it out in this exchange.

Another elephant in the room: yeah, Misato's mother is alive in this continuity. Not sure how much of a contradiction it is to the actual canon of the original anime or the Rebuilds though. Not only does she not seem to be named but the most we seem to be left with is that she was just unable to care for Misato for whatever reason there might have been. I figured the best circumstance for her being alive but still having Misato sent to GEHRIN would be to have her essentially be a near worst-case scenario version of what Misato might have ended up becoming given her character.

I was originally thinking about naming her after the mother of Kotono Mitsuishi but I couldn't find any info about her anywhere. So I named her after Usagi Tsukino's mother from the Sailor Moon franchise just to save myself the trouble. Pretty sure most people know the connection Misato has to the franchise at this point so why not build on it?

That's pretty much everything that went into this chapter. Next time, I can confirm that Shinji's choice of Asuka is going to be seriously tested. Won't say anything yet, just know that I have a plan of where it's going to go. Hope this chapter tides you over until next time.