Chapter 3: Close and Closer Orbits
If there's anything I've learned on my travels, it's that the greatest defense against the darkness that can invade the mind and the soul is companionship. Closeness to someone like a friend, a family member, a lover. With that aegis, regardless of how hopeless things are, there is always a chance, a candlelight in the hours just before the dawn.
Shinji might have missed it before I arrived, but such wouldn't be the case long after he arrived in Tokyo-3.
- Where I've Been, 7th Entry
NERV-HQ, Geofront, March 19th, 2015
Shinji Ikari didn't know where he was, running, running, running down the halls of an empty space he only vaguely recognized. "Daniel! Misato! Where are you?" he shouted, his voice seemingly unheard as desperation forced him to his limits.
"Father!" he cried out. "What's going on?"
Still, there was no answer. But there was a door. An entirely out of place, wooden door that stood out against the steel gray of the corridor he fled through, but there must have been some sort of answer behind it.
After what felt like forever, he finally reached the door, wrenching it open.
His eyes went wide as he saw a singular eye, massive in how it took up the space of a rapidly expanding door. It was utterly green, a dark green iris in a bright green eye, with four irises, three surrounding a central one in a triangle shape.
It was the eye of a monster. But it was his eye, too. He could feel it. And it also belonged to someone else. Why could he feel it?
He turned and ran. But the Eye saw him, followed him. Why wouldn't it leave him alone?
He looked back. And the Eye filled his vision.
Shinji's eyes flashed open, squeezing shut again from the blinding whiteness of the room. Slowly, he peeled them open again, looking around himself. He was in a hospital room, wearing a hospital gown, and an EKG monitor beeped steadily beside him. Besides that and two chairs, the room was bare. A window next to him, covering the top half of the wall to his left, showed a view of trees, a forest running all the way to what looked like a wall made of mirrors.
He heard the door open to his right and looked over to see Ritsuko and another woman come in. Ritsuko wore a blue zip-up vest and pencil skirt now, with dark pantyhose covering her legs that terminated in a pair of low heels. Her companion wore a tan uniform jacket with orange bars on the shoulders, a pair of white tights under a tan skirt and tan boots completing the outfit. She regarded him with curious, concerned brown eyes from under an almost boyish cut of brown hair, a striking contrast from the cool look Ritsuko gave him.
"Good," Ritsuko said. "You're awake."
"Where…" Shinji began as Ritsuko unhooked him from the EKG monitor. "Where am I?"
"You're in the medical center of the Geofront," Ritsuko said as her companion pulled over the two chairs. "And right now, we're here to ask you about your experiences fighting the Third Angel."
Ritsuko nodded over to her companion. "This is First Lieutenant Ibuki, head of the InfoTech branch of the Science Division and my second-in-command."
Ibuki waved. "Hello, Shinji. Nice to meet you."
Shinji nodded as he sat up in his cot. "What should I tell you?"
"Simply what you experienced, felt, and thought inside of the Entry Plug," Ritsuko replied as she took her seat next to Ibuki, who readied a tablet she'd been carrying.
Shinji did his best to describe what he could up until he stopped remembering… wait. Why couldn't he remember the end of the battle? His arm and head still hurt, but his memories…
"Thank you, Shinji," Ritsuko said as Ibuki deactivated her tablet. "Your experience in synchronization is typical of one's first time, though I do regret the circumstances that we had to deploy you into. You must understand our desperation then."
Shinji nodded slowly, and Ritsuko and Ibuki stood. "What happened after I stopped remembering? How did the battle end?"
"Right now, Shinji," Ritsuko said, "that can come later. You still require rest, having just woken up from unconsciousness. Misato will pick you up in the lobby once you're ready."
With that, she turned and walked out of the room. Ibuki lingered a little longer. "Shinji," she said quietly with a slight nod. "Thank you for what you've done. I understand it can't be easy."
Shinji nodded, and Ibuki followed Ritsuko out.
He sighed quietly, slowly getting out of bed and accepting his clothing from a nurse who stopped in a few minutes later. They smelled of dried blood, a smell he'd been too busy to notice while piloting the Eva, but they were all he had at the moment as he put them on.
He exited the room, coming into a long hallway with a window along the wall he faced. It showed more trees and a view of the lake that NERV-HQ sat by. He walked over to the window, taking in the view for a moment.
"Ah. Good to see you up and about, Shinji."
Shinji looked to his left to see Flynn, in a uniform somewhat like Ibuki's, but with tan pants instead of tights. "First Lieutenant… Flynn, right?" he said slowly.
Flynn smiled warmly. "Glad to be remembered, Shinji. How are you feeling?"
Shinji sighed quietly. "Not good. At all."
"I'm sorry," Flynn said with a sympathetic grimace. "If nothing else, I'm glad you made it out alive. That could have ended badly."
"What happened?" Shinji asked. "I asked Ms. Ritsuko, but she didn't tell me."
Flynn looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well, after that nasty hit you took, Unit-01 shut down for a moment. Then, it seemed to go… well, berserk is the only way to describe it, really. It tore the Angel apart before it wrapped itself around Unit-01 and exploded. It was pretty mangled afterward. After it shut down again, we found you passed out in the Plug."
Shinji nodded, hazy memories, moments snapping into focus for a second or two while passing through, beginning to surface. "I see."
Flynn nodded, then looked past him, Shinji following her gaze to see a gurney rolling down the hall. As it passed them, Rei, still in bandages, looked up at the both of them. There was still no emotion evident in her expression, but she regarded them more intently than when Shinji had seen her in the bay for Unit-01. An intentness that might have been curiosity. Then, she passed on, going to another part of the hospital no doubt.
"Well," Flynn said, "I know it's not much, but…"
Shinji's focus turned to the chocolate bar in Flynn's hand, held out to him. "Consider this a 'welcome to Tokyo-3' present. And a little taster of what's waiting for you when you land wherever you go."
Shinji took the chocolate bar, a decent one at that, and regarded it for a moment. "Thank you, Ms. Flynn."
"Of course, Shinji," Flynn said. "Well, my break's about to be up, so I need to get going. See you around."
She turned and began to walk away. Shinji watched until she turned a corner out of sight, mulling over the simple gift he'd been given. Then, he sighed and tried to find his way to the lobby Ritsuko was talking about.
He found it, taking a seat and waiting as he idly ate the chocolate bar. It was good. At least the smell of it offset the stench in his clothes somewhat.
He stared at his arm, the pain starting to go away but still present enough to ache. Was this what he was supposed to do? Go out and get beaten senseless by Angels until his Eva… took pity on him? Protected him? What was going on?
"Lucky you. Where did you get the chocolate?"
Shinji blinked as he looked up to see Misato, standing in front of him. "I got it from Ms. Flynn. She's part of the Engineering Branch, working on the Evas. She helped me… last night, I guess?"
Misato smiled slightly. "I see."
Shinji nodded. "Have you been waiting here long?"
Misato shook her head, her smile fading. "No, Shinji. Let's go get you a place to stay. You're going to be here for a while."
Shinji nodded as he stood, finishing off the chocolate bar and making sure he didn't have any stray smears of the stuff while he followed Misato.
As they made their way out of the medical center, they came to an elevator. As it opened with a ding, the doors opened to reveal Gendo, standing in the elevator car before them. He said nothing to either of them as he simply stared at Shinji.
For a moment, Shinji wanted to look away from that gaze of naked disappointment and annoyance that the man gave him. Then, he remembered how he used Rei as blackmail, sent him off into combat with barely any hint of compassion or regret. So, he returned the gaze, indignation pulling his brow slightly down.
As the doors began to close, Gendo frowned slightly. Then, just before he disappeared behind the doors, Gendo began to look away. And Shinji wondered if he saw another emotion on his father's face.
. . .
As they made their way to wherever they were going, Shinji continued to ponder on the moment, the world blurring by him as he followed Misato. Eventually, they ended up in an office in that thin, white tower that loomed over the glass pyramid of the HQ and gave a commanding view out of the window of the diamond-shaped artificial lake that it sat at a corner of and the more natural lake beyond, the ends of the tower bending gently towards it.
The man in front of them, apparently in charge of housing, sat at his desk. "We've assigned Shinji Ikari to a room in Block 6, somewhat near the gantries, here in the Geofront," he said matter-of-factly.
Misato's eyes went wide. "You mean he'll be living alone?"
The man, his expression unchanged, nodded slightly. "Yes. Right now, there's no one occupying Block 6, though with things being what they are according to my contacts in engineering, that might change somewhat soon. It shouldn't be a problem."
Misato looked at Shinji, and he found himself somewhat surprised at the look of genuine concern she gave him. "Are you really going to be okay with this? Being alone?"
Shinji considered the question at length. "Well, right now, at least… yeah. I don't mind the solitude, really."
Misato continued to regard him, and Shinji wondered how dissatisfied she was with his answer. He saw confusion, wondering, and no small amount of sadness dart across her expression until it seemed to settle into resolve as she looked at the man. "He can live with me."
Shinji's eyes widened slightly, while the housing director merely arched a brow silently.
"It'll free up that housing for those engineers you and I are sure about needing, and it would cut down the immediate costs of having a whole housing unit down here in use," Misato said the words firmly, and stared at the housing director silently afterward, seeming to challenge him to prove her wrong.
Eventually, the man shrugged. "Well, if there's any universal language this organization speaks, it's monetary savings."
He paused for a moment as he typed on his computer. "If you'll give me, say, two to three days to make sure the changes stick, I'll have the records reflect your choice. In the meantime, I'll have Mr. Ikari's luggage sent to your apartment."
Misato smiled, a slight, satisfied thing, as she nodded. "Thank you for your assistance, First Lieutenant Morrison."
The lieutenant looked back at Misato, his own lips turning up a fraction. "And I'm sure that the budget will thank you someday, Captain," he replied, and Shinji heard the hint of amusement in his voice.
Misato nodded sharply before looking over at Shinji. "Well, Shinji," she said as her smile grew wider, "let's get you where you need to be."
Shinji, still somewhat shocked at the turn of events, followed Misato out in a daze as he tried to process what had just happened. A call to Daniel was certainly in order soon if only to achieve that single point of stability in his now rather insane life.
As they made their way to Misato's car, she pulled out her phone, dialing quickly as she walked. "I've got one more person to tell about this, Shinji," she said somewhat absent-mindedly as she waited for whoever she was calling to answer. Shinji simply nodded absentmindedly as he listened to the quiet ringing of her phone.
"Hey, Ritsky," Misato said brightly after a moment. "I've got some news." a pause, then a sigh. "Good news, Ritsuko. Shinji's going to be staying with me."
"What did you say?" Shinji heard clearly as Ritsuko apparently shouted into her receiver.
"You heard what I said, Ritsuko." Misato enunciated. "Instead of Shinji living all by his lonesome, he'll live with me close to the school he'll be attending. Everything's being sorted out now."
More words he could not fully hear, clearly agitated, before Misato sighed. "Oh, don't worry. Besides, I'm not desperate enough to try anything funny with him."
Shinji blushed somewhat as Misato held her phone away from her, the device seemingly alight with Ritsuko's raised objections and warnings. After a moment where Shinji was glad they were alone in the hallway, Misato hung up the phone with a heavy sigh. "Man, forget I said anything then," she muttered.
She looked over at Shinji, who regarded her archly even as his blush still tinged his cheeks. "I'm a woman of my word, Shinji," she said sternly. "No funny business while we're together. Promise."
Shinji nodded uncertainly as they got into Misato's car, checking to see his bag still in the back with the worrying amount of batteries as they began to drive off. "Are these a… permanent fixture, then?" Shinji asked.
"Nope," Misato said with a slight smile. "I've got a guy here in Tokyo-3 who can have this car shining by week's end."
The drive out of the Geofront passed Shinji by, his focus now more on how Misato's excitement seemed to grow. "Man, we're going to party tonight!" she said in a completely relaxed tone that seemed utterly at odds with how she'd spoken the night before."
Shinji's brow furled slightly. "Because we defeated the Angel?" he asked slowly.
Misato shrugged as she glanced over at him. "Well yeah, of course that, but also because I have a new roomie moving in!"
Shinji nodded slowly, the headache returning for an entirely different reason now. Maybe he needed to call Daniel tonight instead and try to figure out what to expect of Misato Katsuragi with some help.
They stopped at a grocery store first, picking up some essential foods and a concerning amount of beer. Shinji couldn't help but hear the conversations the people around him had. They were about him, after all. What had stopped the emergency last night? What kind of disaster needed bomb shelters? Was the city safe?
Shinji wondered about that last part himself if he really was the last, best hope for victory against the Angels.
As they got onto the road again, Misato's expression became thoughtful. "Before we go home, I'd like to show you something."
Shinji wondered what it could be, and why they exited the city to do it. Now, his curiosity was piqued.
With the setting sun a backdrop to the city, they stopped at a viewing spot well on the outskirts of the city, Misato getting out as Shinji followed her lead. As they stood at the railing, Shinji studied the city for a moment, a flat, forlorn, and barren thing, like the ghost of where one once stood.
The sight of it made Shinji sigh quietly as he looked over at Misato, who looked down at a wristwatch. "I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be seeing here. It just looks… empty and sad."
Misato said nothing for a moment before looking up. "And… it's time," she said with a slight grin she aimed at Shinji.
Sirens broke the silence as they began to echo from the city, drawing Shinji's attention as he watched panels in the ground open up. Then, his eyes went wide and his jaw dropped as, one by one, skyscrapers, surely the one he saw in the Geofront, rose from the ground like a forest of bamboo, massive clunks signaling them likely locking into place.
After several minutes, the towers finished their impossible growth, lighting up the city skyline that they had made all the more majestic with its transformation.
"This is the city built to be a fortress against the Angels," Misato said quietly, breaking the overawed silence. "This is Tokyo-3. Our city, Shinji. The one you helped save."
Shinji watched as the city began to come to life, lines of light coinciding with shops and traffic, the lifeblood of the city.
"Well," Misato said after a moment, an unmistakable note of pride in her voice, "much as I would love to keep watching, the groceries need to get home. Come on."
. . .
After a while, they arrived at a building that Shinji knew was built after Second Impact, a squat thing even as it reached several stories into the air that was built seemingly exclusively out of right angles, concrete, and glass.
They made their way to the second-highest floor of the building and stopped for a moment in front of a door with a placard marked 'M. Katsuragi' in English and Japanese. Next to the door was the rest of Shinji's belongings, bedding and clothes, and the cello in its gleaming black case.
"Well, look at that," Misato said with a smile as she slid her keycard through the reader next to the door, pressing a button to open it. "Morrison's quick at his job." She stepped through the door as she continued. "I'll be honest, I haven't completely unpacked myself yet, so it's still a bit of a mess. Come on in."
Shinji, however, hesitated at the door for a moment. All of this still felt… unreal, somehow. Like he'd wake up from the dream at any moment now. "Um… I… thank you for having me, Ms. Misato."
Misato sighed quietly, her head dipping slightly before she turned to regard Shinji with a patient look in her eyes. "Remember, Shinji, this is your home too, now. I'm glad I can have you."
After a moment, Shinji stepped across the threshold of the door to the apartment. No, he had to remind himself. The door to his home. "Well, then," he said as a small, unsure smile flickered to life, "I'm home."
Misato's smile was warm and soft. It was a smile Shinji found was the best one she'd given him. "Welcome home, Shinji."
The warmth that Shinji felt from that moment, at having a place here to call home, cooled somewhat as Misato flipped the light switch at the end of the entry hall, shining light onto what was perhaps one of the biggest messes that Shinji had seen in his life. Crushed beer cans and empty bottles, empty food packets and cartons, and a tower of moving boxes on one wall that went nearly to the ceiling were only some of the 'decorations' he could see scattered across what he thought was the kitchen and dining room.
"Like I said," Misato said somewhat guiltily as she weaved through the mess with a practiced ease, "it's a little messy at the moment, but don't worry about it just yet."
As Misato disappeared through a set of sliding doors at the far end of the dining room, Shinji continued to ogle the utter disaster that surrounded him. "A little?" he said rather incredulously, his sense of cleanliness urging him into action as he began to throw the beer cans and bottles into the recycling, clearing off the table as he tried to bring some order to the space.
"By the way," Misato said as she peeked from behind the sliding door, "don't forget to put up the food we bought. I'll be right out." with that, she disappeared around the corner of the door again.
"Got it," Shinji said absentmindedly as he finished throwing the trash that cluttered the counters away, pulling himself from his task as he began to put the groceries away.
Having made his way, somewhat carefully, to the fridge, he found that Misato, true to what the trash around him hinted at, had a rather… limited diet. Snacks, instant meals, and several different kinds of alcohol took up most of the space in the fridge and freezer.
What he didn't expect was the packet, rectangular and deep brown with a sticky note on it, in the door of the fridge. As he finished packing the fridge to the best of his ability, he took out the packet, studying the sticky note.
'Here's the rest of your welcome, Shinji! Thank you for your bravery, and I hope you're able to settle in nicely. Good luck, E. Flynn.'
'Was Misato simply holding the chocolates for Ms. Flynn,' Shinji wondered, 'or did she somehow know I'd end up here?'
It seemed a little far-fetched, and the groceries still in need of putting away drew his attention back to them as he looked around at the cabinets. In looking around, he saw what looked like another refrigerator, a dark gray thing that stretched from floor to ceiling. "Ms. Misato?" he called out. "What about the other refrigerator?"
"Oh, don't worry about that," Misato replied from what he assumed was her room. "That might get old sleepy-head grumpy if you mess with it."
Old sleepy-head? What could that possibly mean? For now, Shinji took it as that space, whatever it was, being for something else, doing his best to squeeze everything else into the pantry and cupboards.
After a few moments, Misato emerged into the dining room once again, wearing a loose yellow tank top and shorts cut nearly to her hips, much like in the picture she'd sent him. "Ah," she said with a grin, "I see you've found Lieutenant Flynn's present for you. You're a lucky guy, to already have admirers here after only a day."
Shinji blushed slightly, and Misato's grin widened. "But that's enough talking. Let's get dinner ready!"
It was a rather simple affair, simply reheating instant meals and pulling out cold water and beer from the fridge. It made Shinji grateful for the spices and cooking utensils that he'd accrued before now and packed up for this journey. But, they would come later, as they began to eat in earnest.
Misato ate with gusto, guzzling the beer in her hand like he could have done to his water, finishing it off with a loud, contented sigh. "Man, this is the life! After a hard day's work, this makes it all worth it!"
After a moment more of reveling in her satisfaction, she noticed that Shinji lacked her bombast. "What's up? Aren't you hungry? I know it's only instant meals, but it still works for now."
Shinji nodded. "Yeah, I know. It's just that I'm a little more used to cooking for myself, is all."
"You can cook?" Misato shouted incredulously, leaning over the table and coming almost nose-to-nose with him. "Of all the things to say, why didn't you mention that? We could have been eating like kings!"
"I wasn't trying to hide anything!" Shinji stammered as he recoiled, shrinking as far as he dared into his chair. "I… uh…" he began to stammer again, taking note almost against his will how close Misato was to him. Again.
Then, as if a switch had flipped, Misato smiled slightly. "Well, then," she said, remaining where she was for a moment. "Isn't this fun? I've missed sharing meals like this."
Shinji nodded slowly, his cheeks still flushing against his will. "Sure."
She finally sat back down, digging into her carton of ramen, and Shinji took up his chopsticks again with a sigh. "Man, when Daniel hears about this…" he muttered, mostly to himself.
Misato paused as she looked back at Shinji, her eyes gleaming even as her mouth was stuffed with noodles. "Mmful Fmfmmn?"
Shinji gave her a somewhat puzzled look, and Misato blinked before slurping up the rest of her noodles and clearing her throat. "Daniel Theisman? A little taller than you, blue eyes, blond hair and a beard, served in South America among other places?"
Shinji blinked, then his eyes lit up as she described Daniel to a T. "Yes, that's him. I didn't know he served in the military, though. He didn't talk much about his past. How did you know him?"
Misato smiled, grinned really. "He came to NERV-2 in Germany about… 3 years ago now. He became the head of the Engineering Division for the Production Evangelion there, the one that's going to be Unit-02. He's great! Kind, patient, a good listener… a real gentleman when he takes you home after too much to drink…"
Shinji's brow quirked at the description even as a smile grew on his face. It felt good to know that they had some sort of initial connection between them, at least.
Then, after what Shinji guessed was long moments of happy recollection, she gasped dramatically, her eyes going wide. "Wait a minute! He talked about you! I caught him talking to you on the phone a few times, and he always said you were like a little brother to him."
Misato let out an almost girlish squeal, almost jumping around the table to take Shinji by the shoulders, Shinji jumping a little as she shook him somewhat. "Another thing to celebrate! This calls for another beer!" she crowed, walking over to the fridge and soon adding another empty tin can to a stack that, in Shinji's opinion, was growing at a worrying rate.
However, dinner was finished off quickly afterward, and they divided their chores with a quick game of rock paper scissors. With that done, Misato leaned back in her chair with a quiet, contented sigh. "Remember, this is your home now, Shinji. So settle in and relax a little, okay?"
Shinji nodded. "Yes, Ms. Misato."
Misato sighed heavily as she began to cross the tabletop again. "'Yes, ma'am, yes ma'am' this, 'Ms. Misato' that. I told you to relax, alright?" she paused for a moment as she roughly ruffled his hair. "It's just Misato here at home, okay?"
The ruffling continued until Shinji raised his hands slightly. "Okay, okay!" he said in a harried voice.
Misato stopped, lifting her hand from Shinji's head as she sat back down. "You know what helps with relaxing after a day like this? A nice, warm bath! It's the washing machine of life, after all!"
Shinji simply nodded wearily. A bath did sound like a good idea at the moment. After retrieving the rest of his things and moving them into the other bedroom at the end of the hall, he dressed down in the washroom adjacent to the kitchen. As he did so, he noted the hanging underwear above his head, yet another sign of the bachelorette life that Misato must have been getting used to.
He sighed quietly, something he found he was doing a lot of recently. Even with Misato's injunction, this was still going to take a little while to get used to. He looked away, and slid open the door. The sight that greeted him as he looked down at it took a moment for his brain to fully process.
A moment was all that the small, fat bird with a metal harness that read PEN2, a pink towel round its neck and vibrant plumage that looked like angry red eyebrows, needed before it began to shake its flippers and head wildly, warbling and squawking as it did so.
Shinji shouted, and without thinking, charged to the washroom door and opened it. "Ms. Misato!" he stuttered out after a moment. "There's a… a… uh…"
As Shinji struggled with his description of the bird he'd encountered, the avian in question casually waddled past him, walking towards the gray fridge-like machine. Misato's eyes lit up with understanding. "Oooh. That's Penpen. He's a hot-springs penguin I rescued."
As Penpen stopped in front of the fridge, Shinji watched him use one of his claws, a feature that Shinji didn't remember any penguins he knew of having, to push a button, and a door about his height slid open. Before he entered, Penpen regarded Shinji with what must have been a rather unamused stare, disappearing into the fridge afterward.
"Penpen?" Shinji managed to say incredulously.
"Yep. He's our other roommate." Misato replied glibly. Then, she grabbed the package of chocolates that was Ms. Flynn's gift, checking it for a moment before tossing it to Shinji. "Here, take the chocolates, enjoy the bath you're ready for a little more," she said with a slight smile as she picked up her beer and took a sip.
Shinji regarded the chocolates with some confusion, then remembered where, exactly, he'd run from. Along with his state of undress. Using the chocolates as best he could to regain some modesty, he closed the washroom door.
As the door clicked shut, Misato finished her sip, a thoughtful look in her eyes that Shinji never saw. 'Maybe I shouldn't lay on the cheer and relaxation so thickly. He might start seeing through it. He's perceptive enough to, I think.' With that, she set the beer can down with a quiet clink.
Shinji, doing the best he could to keep his fingers dry, took one of the chocolates and popped it in his mouth, chewing slowly as he looked at the ceiling, lost in thought as his embarrassment began to wear off. 'Misato Katsuragi.' he mused, pondering on his time with her thus far. 'She seems nice enough. She's hiding something about the Angels, though. At least, I think she is.'
He continued to stare at the unfamiliar ceiling as his mind worked. 'These last few days have been… weird. At least there are some people who have been nice to me.' he mused as he thought of Ms. Flynn and Ms. Ibuki and their interactions with him.
'But I can't help but think of how terrifying some of the things I've seen around here are.' he thought as his mind rattled through the uncomfortable, tense moments that he'd been through. 'Things like Father. Or the Angel.'
'But there's also the mysterious here. Like Rei Ayanami.'
his mind slowed as he considered his few, all too brief interactions with her. Well, interaction might have been a strong word for it. If anyone embodied the description he'd thought of at the moment, it was her. Even with barely a word to him, a few glances, he found himself intrigued.
As he stepped out of the bath, securing the chocolates beforehand, he dried himself off and began to put on his nightclothes, looking for a moment at a comfortable, well-worn brown shirt with a strange snake-like symbol in the middle of it, encircled and with a hornlike shape beneath it that was inlaid with the word 'INDEED'.
'And then there's Daniel.' Shinji thought appreciatively as he put on the shirt, a gift given to him on a birthday after watching some of the show the shirt referenced. Even with everything else going on, Daniel still managed to be a rock of stability, even a surprising connection, far away as he was.
His mind turned to happier days as he prepared for bed. He likely had cell service now, he realized as he brushed his teeth. He could call Daniel now if he wanted to, seeing as it was likely nearing his lunch break.
But, Shinji decided as he went to his room, he was tired. He needed tonight to recharge. He could call Daniel in the morning. Besides, it would give him more time to talk to Daniel about everything that had happened. And ask the questions that he had.
So, he lay in the cot that Misato said would be there until they got him a proper bed, put in his headphones, and turned on his music as he lay resting in the rather cluttered room that was now his, laying there as he listened to the guitars and keyboards of yesteryear serenade him. The songs his father had put together. For him or someone else, he did not know.
But they weren't his father's songs anymore, Shinji realized. Not really, anyway. Daniel had enjoyed them, made them something new to Shinji as he did his best to play along with them. They were their songs, now, Shinji thought with a small smile.
A moment after this realization, he heard a light knock on the door. "Shinji," Misato said in a quiet voice, "can I open the door?"
Shinji paused the music as the door slid open. "I forgot to say something earlier." she continued, her voice calm. "You did well yesterday. People will remember and be grateful for how well you did. Keep it up. Good night, Shinji."
The door slid closed, and Shinji pressed play again, the music returning him to his thoughts. How was what he did commendable when the Eva had killed the Angel for him? How could he keep it up if that was the case?
Slowly, slowly, now, he began to remember fully what had happened that night after the Angel had 'killed' him. Now, he remembered how he'd seen the Eye.
The memories kept him awake long into the night. Finally, though, he drifted to sleep, wondering what Daniel was doing on the other side of the world.
. . .
Deep within the Geofront, in a ruined control room that had yet to be fully attended to by the maintenance crews, Gendo Ikari stared at the orange and white form of Unit-00. It was stuck in place by a massive buildup of Bakelite around its legs, the Evangelion frozen in place with a fist driven through the wall near the shattered window where he stood. Past its bowed head, he could see the massive Shutdown Plug, a massive cross emerging from the solid object in the nape of the Eva's neck.
He heard footsteps behind him that interrupted his musings, not turning as their owner approached. Few people could find him here. Those that could would likely have something important to say to him.
"How was Rei, sir?"
It was not the question that he'd expected Doctor Ritsuko Akagi to ask, and he thus remained silent.
"It's my understanding that you visited her in the hospital today." Ritsuko continued. "Should I prepare another?"
"No." he finally said. "According to the doctors, she will be ready to return to duty in 20 days or so. We'll need to have Unit-00 up and running within that time to be ready for her."
"I will try my best to make that possible," Ritsuko said, "but I can't make miracles happen every time. Nor can the Engineering Branch."
"Even then," Ritsuko continued after a moment, "whatever comes next will be rough on these Children. Shinji, I think, especially."
Shinji. The boy had surprised him, and not necessarily in a good way. His performance in combat was far beyond expectations, but his attitude, at the very least, left Gendo…
"The Children are the only ones able to pilot the Eva," he said, focusing on the conversation at hand. "As long as they are able to, that is what they must do."
"Even if they feel otherwise?" Ritsuko asked archly.
Damn. She had him thinking about the boy again. "For the sake of humanity," he said after long, silent moments, "we cannot afford to not use the Children."
That was all he wished to say, and after several minutes of silence, Ritsuko turned and walked away.
As her footsteps faded, Gendo's thoughts doggedly returned to the boy. The boy was not what he should have been, and the allowance for any interference on the Azuma's part still couldn't explain the whole of it. After all, Daiki Azuma, as he knew him, would, among other things, hardly push the boy to become at least somewhat trained in hand-to-hand combat.
No, there was someone else at play here. And Gendo Ikari intended to find out who it was.