A man walked along the platform of a train station, followed at a short distance by a small boy. The man's hands were thrust deep in his pockets, and dark circles hung under his eyes like dead men from a gallows. He was slouching, and his dusty black suit was rumpled and looked like he had worn it for weeks. He was unshaven, a dusting of whiskers surrounding a beard kept neatly cut at most other times.
The boy, while looking as if he was but a moment away from bursting into tears, looked almost infinitely better than the man he was shadowing. His clothes were clean, for one thing, and he had a much better posture, standing up straight. He was clean, as was his clothing, but his hair was still slightly damp from a bath. The small backpack hanging from his shoulders looked worn but was not dirty.
Both were trailed by a man dressed in a black suit and dark sunglasses despite the heavily overcast day. He was carrying in each hand a small suitcase, one for himself and one for the child. He looked uncomfortable but remained silent as he followed behind father and son. It was not his job to speak or pass judgment. His job was to escort Shinji Ikari to the man who would be the boy's guardian from then on.
Shinji was silent, his throat choked with emotion. The last three months had been hard. For one thing, Mommy wasn't around anymore, and no one would tell him why. Father (it was never Dad or Daddy or Poppa, but always Father) barely talked anymore and was barely home. Auntie Naoko was almost always crying but wouldn't say why. She hadn't been around for the past few days, either. Father and Auntie had been shouting (Father rarely shouted, ever) at each other at dinner one night, and one of the Men In Black Suits That Should Always Be Obeyed, No Matter What, had come into the apartment and had taken him from the table.
He hadn't seen either Auntie or Father for two days, but the Black Suit had been there the entire time and had made food for him, and there had been extra applesauce. He had been good, quiet, and did as he was told, just as he had been taught. His obedience was rewarded yesterday when Father returned to take him home, but the older man had been quieter than usual.
The train's whistle shattered the silence, startling Shinji. He looked at the train, and when he turned his head back towards the silent figure of his father, he found the man looking down at him, a frown cutting deep lines in his face.
"It's time to go Shinji. You're not wanted here anymore."
Shinji blinked in confusion as he stared up at Gendo. "Wha?"
"It's over. I'm done with you. I don't want you anymore. Nobody does. Go away."
Shinji reached out a trembling hand for his father's pant leg, but the man pulled away sharply. "Don't touch me. I'm leaving now."
True to his cold and uncaring words, Gendo spun on his heel and strode away, head down and not looking back. The young boy stood stock still, agony written all over him as his face screwed up in sorrow, and he began to wail, his arm still outreached towards the retreating form of his father.
Shinji heard the heavy footsteps of the Black Suit, who had followed them as the train whistled again.
Shinji woke up, sitting upright suddenly, drenched in sweat. He looked over at his clock, the red numerals telling him it was the middle of the night. He sighed and reached out for the glass of water sitting on the nightstand, and after taking a deep drink, he reached under his pillow for the bottle of over-the-counter sleeping pills he had obtained last week after he had started having nightmares over and over again.
Tossing back two small white ovoids, he took another drink of water, nearly emptying the glass. Sleep had been hard to come by for the past month for some reason, but he was not about to discuss the issue with anyone. He figured as long as it didn't look like he was trying to drug himself, the security detail wouldn't interfere with his purchase. He threw the sweat-soaked sheets off onto the floor, pulling off his shirt and balling it up so he could use it to wipe off most of the moisture clinging to his body. His trouble sleeping only made things worse for him, as he had been extremely clumsy of late.
It had started not long after the party and, at first, had been a minor annoyance. He had tripped over his feet more often and started knocking his knees and elbows into cabinets and tables. Then, the trouble with his artificial leg had started, and he had begun falling in earnest. When he asked Dr. Akagi about it at the start of the monthly physical, she frowned, took a few measurements, and then started swearing.
Shinji was going through another growth spurt.
While entirely normal for any teenage boy and annoying on its own, it meant a world of issues for Shinji as one of the Evangelion Pilots.
He had put on two inches and ten kilos and had outgrown two different plug-suits in the space of a week. His synchronization ratio with Unit-01 was now haphazard and random, and it had been decided he would have to make do with using a set of crutches to get around with, as Dr. Akagi was not going to fit him for a third custom prosthetic leg he was likely going to outgrow in a matter of days.
His increased clumsiness at home and his general shortcomings as a pilot had caused Asuka's opinion of him and her attitude in general to worsen. He reacted to this the way he normally did to such social pressures by withdrawing into himself, this time to a level unseen by his friends and coworkers. Not even Rei, who had made it publicly clear she would help him carry his school bag around now that he was stuck with crutches, could barely get him to talk.
Then, the nightmares had started.
They weren't the same, and they involved various subjects, but mostly, they were from the early childhood years he could remember and then from the battles with the Angels.
After the fourth sleepless night, he had hobbled his way to one of the nearby shops and bought the bottle of sleeping pills.
Still thirsty, he grabbed his crutch and made his way to the bathroom, taking care to move as silently as possible, not wanting to wake the other inhabitants of the apartment, most of whom were light sleepers. After draining two glassfuls of water, he stared at his reflection in the mirror, studying himself.
While still slimmer than most other boys in his class, his frame had widened, his shoulders broader. His face also seemed to be a little broader and square now, and the softness of his features was more muted. He also had a more muscular definition, although he had always been more 'cut' than the other boys, even if they were bigger than him. The pilots' training exercises had seen to that, though he would never be as adroit in his movements as the girls. Despite this, he never seemed to draw as much attention from the girls as Rei and Asuka did from the male population at school. Part of this was due to his lack of presence and partially because it had become evident to everyone that Rei had set her sights on him. None of the female population wanted to test Rei's patience, as she had more nicknames than "Ice Queen". "Psycho" was probably the most polite of the names she had been called over the years. While it wasn't anything the girl had said or done, it was how she could make a person feel as she stared at them in bored silence. That, and the books she considered suitable for 'light reading' for the literary book club. Where most people picked novels or, at most, autobiographies, she devoured books on subjects like advanced mathematics and quantum physics. Granted, she did not discuss what she read or thought about the books in very verbose terms, but the fact remains that these things were of casual interest to her.
But where Kensuke occasionally bemoaned his own 'lack of prospects', Shinji wasn't bothered by it much. He certainly wasn't bothered anymore that his entire social circle existed in one way or another due to his status as a Pilot. It was just life. It was how things were, as immutable as the sun and the moon, as constant as gravity. NERV, in one way or another, was his life now, and it looked like it would be that way for the foreseeable future.
Shinji sighed and hobbled back to his bed, flopping onto his back and staring at the ceiling, waiting for the pills to kick in. Today was a Saturday, and he had no school. He also had no responsibilities at NERV, as he had been taken off the roster because his usefulness in battle was unreliable due to his haphazard synch ratio. His next set of tests wasn't until next week, when Lieutenant Ibuki would run further tests on him to see if the situation was normalizing. The hormonal and chemical changes induced by the growth spurt were detrimental to synchronization. Asuka had told him they knew this due to tests that had been performed on her. She was incredibly proud of the fact, but the conversation confused him. He did not relish being Dr. Akagi's experimental lab rat at all. Asuka relished being the subject of battery after battery of tests.
Yawning, Shinji closed his eyes and drifted into a chemically induced slumber. His breathing became steady, and he was untroubled by further dreams.
Eins, Zwei, Drei, Vier!
Gendo sat outside the changing room, waiting. Thankfully, his son was being occupied elsewhere, so he could talk without worrying about upsetting the boy. After all, he was a sensitive child, quick to pick up on the negative moods and emotions of those around him.
The door opened, and Gendo forced a smile onto his face despite the ball of ice he felt growing in his stomach. The modified suit for today's test incorporated a helmet, as the neural interface required was intricate and delicate. The helmeted form, undeniably female under the skin-tight plug-suit, nodded at him.
"Do we need to do this? Isn't there another way?" He asked, standing up. "I'm sure if we put the experiment off for a little while longer, we'll be able to come up with an alternative."
The helmeted figure shook her head, and the mechanically filtered voice was flat and emotionless, sounding nothing like the woman who wore it. "There is no other way. It has to be like this. You worry too much. Everything will be fine. It'll work out in the end, trust me."
Gendo shook his head as they walked down the empty hall towards the test bay. "At least let's do it without involving Shinji. He doesn't need to see this. It'll be hard enough for him as it is."
There was no hesitation in the response, and it came immediately. "No. He needs to see this happen. We will build a better place, a better world, and a better being. What's the point of a brighter future if nobody knows about the dark past?"
As they entered the observation room, their young son came rushing to greet them, smiling. Dr. Naoko Akagi followed behind, wearing a strained grin. Her fears and apprehension about the day's test were mostly hidden but still visible to those in the know.
Yui Ikari knelt and hugged her son, picking him up and taking him over to the window, where the half-completed form of the Evangelion stood, pale gray flesh and metal cybernetics mixing with harsh florescent lights to create a picture that was more nightmare than a hopeful dream.
"We're going to make a better, brighter future, Shinji. Are you ready to see history in the making?"
The boy nodded vigorously. He had grown up in the labs of GEHIRN, and the horror that stood before him was nothing to fear. It was what his Mommy and Father spent all their time working on. It was... family.
Gendo watched, a forced smile on his face, as his wife set their son back down. She moved to the elevator without another word and left her family in the observation room as she went down to the fate she had engineered for herself.
Moving to the window, he stood beside his son as they watched the helmeted form walk daintily towards the waiting Entry Plug. Just before boarding, the figure turned, shot a jaunty salute toward the observation box, and got in.
Shinji fidgeted as the plug was taken up and over to the waiting socket, but once the white tube was locked in place and the intercom sounded with his mother's voice, the young boy turned back to the incomplete giant before them.
A holographic screen display built into the plexiglass window snapped into focus, showing them the video feed from inside the plug. Yui waved to the camera, unable to see her audience but playing to them anyway.
She always had a flair for the theatrical. Gendo mused to himself, his heart pounding in his chest. He resisted the urge to wave back. It was an urge Shinji gave in to, however, grinning as he did so.
"Engaging the primary contacts. All systems read online and stable."
One of the uniformed technicians spoke into his microphone, counting off the readings relayed to his station. "All life signs are being reported and recorded. Brain waves are steady, and the Ego-Borderline is defined."
Yui nodded. "Flood the compartment with the fluid. We'll engage secondary contacts after complete submersion."
"Beginning the LCL flood now."
Swallowing hard, Gendo forced himself to keep watching. She knew full well what she was doing, not only to herself or to him, but to their son and the plans of SEELE for the world. If she could go through without flinching, then was it not his duty as her husband to watch this without flinching?
"Engaging the secondary contacts, in three... two... one... now."
Almost immediately, red lights switched on, and alarms began to sound as things started to go wrong, all according to the plan.
"There's a problem with her Ego-Border! The waveform is collapsing!"
The corpse giant before them trembled, shaking in its restraints like a rabid dog. The camera feed flickered, vanished into static, and then returned to crystal clarity, but it was not Yui's helmeted form on the display screen.
Gendo gasped and recoiled as he saw his son, beaten, bruised, and bloody, sitting in the cockpit of the Entry Plug. Empty eye sockets stared at him, blood weeping down the boy's face to drip onto the white and blue plug-suit. Shinji smiled with split lips, his mouth a ruined wasteland, the broken shards of teeth sticking out of torn, bleeding gums. He reached up with a hand, a withered and burnt limb, blackened by a heat unimaginable towards the camera.
"Father..." the boy rasped, coughing up saliva but still smiling that horrible rictus grin, "Do you have a use for me now?"
Gendo Ikari woke up with a start, sitting at his desk, an unread report sitting before him. He turned to his computer and called up the security camera for his son's room. His breathing slowly normalized as the sleeping figure of his son appeared, stretched out on his narrow bed. His shorts hid the point where his leg ended above the knee, but he looked fine.
"It was just a dream. Nothing more," he whispered to himself, watching his son sleep. He paged through the camera feeds, showing him the locations of the girls. Asuka was sitting in bed reading, but while he couldn't see the book's title from the picture's angle, he was sure it was one of the many textbooks she owned. Rei was sleeping on the couch in Misato's living room, having taken to staying there as much as possible, intent on nursing Shinji back to health despite the boy not being sick. Taking off his glasses, he rubbed his eyes with his hands, wiping sleep from existence. Squinting, he looked again at the report without putting his glasses on. Another report from Massachusetts discussed the latest proposed changes to the main production models. It was long, it was dry, and it was ultimately unimportant.
Gendo left the oppressive office, intent on securing caffeinated refreshments and a change of scenery. While it was close to the point where he would usually go to bed, the unsettling nightmare was more than enough to keep him from wanting to go back to sleep for the foreseeable future. As he stalked through the empty corridors, he tried to put the dream out of his mind by thinking about the current situation and the latest set of messages from Lorenz.
While brilliant in his evil way, the old man did not understand there was not much that could be done with the Third Child to stabilize his synchronization abilities. It was one of the things that had been considered when the Scenario had first been laid out, but as the entire thing sat on the boy's shoulders, SEELE was hesitant to let things run their course without sticking their fingers in.
This close to godhood, they would not, they could not just stand by and watch the keystone to their plans crack and crumble into dust. However, though their attempted micromanaging was annoying, at the same time, it was reassuring, for it meant they would be the same way should the boy's life ever be in danger from unacceptable sources. Unit-01 was the key to becoming God, and as far as they were aware, Yui was Unit-01, and Shinji was the key to Yui.
However, they could not simply counteract the chemical changes triggered by the body's genetic instructions. It would end sooner or later, and everything would slowly return to normal. Gendo chuckled to himself as he entered the abandoned cafeteria. Shinji would need some time to become accustomed to his new height, and Gendo doubted this was the last such growth spurt. He was five foot eleven, several inches taller than average for Japanese men, and Yui had also been tall. Ritsuko had also thrown an interesting proposal across his desk, speculating on the effects of long-term exposure to the nutrient-rich LCL on the growing bodies of the pilots. The primordial soup's regenerative effects helped repair the pilot's bodies when fed to them intravenously or via the gel-cap medication. Still, now the doctor was investigating whether or not it would add more fuel for the boy's body to turn into mass. There had been other concerns during the girls' various growth spurts in the past that had kept this particular issue from the study, and at any rate, boys and girls developed differently during puberty. As he was their only male pilot, and with the current lull in Angelic activity, Ritsuko was looking for ways to amuse and occupy herself, and this seemed to fit the bill.
But even if the Third Child tacked on several inches and more than a couple of kilos to tower over and outmass the rest of his class, he doubted his son would change much in the personality department. He would still avoid confrontation for the most part and would probably become more miserable because he stood out even more. After all, if nobody noticed him, nobody could hurt him. Security through invisibility was his modus operandi.
Gendo sipped his coffee as he looked at the sandwich selection, trying to decide if he was hungry enough to warrant a snack to accompany the sleep-banishing elixir. It was three o'clock in Tokyo-3, and Gendo knew where his Children were. The most pressing thing on the mind of the most powerful man in Japan was what sort of sandwich he wanted.
Eins, Zwei, Drei, Vier!
Kaji yawned, dropping the small flashlight he had held in his mouth as he rifled through the contents of the filing cabinet. Sighing, he reached in and picked it back up, wondering if he should call it quits for the night and go home to sleep.
He was currently in the financial offices of one of the tertiary companies attached to the Marduk Institute, but he had yet to find out what precisely the "Belham Group" did. A lot of money seemed to pass into and out of the company, judging by the expenditure reports, but he had been unable to find any invoices not covered in cryptic alphanumeric codes. He hadn't even seen the pay sheets for the employees.
He was supposed to hang out with Asuka later today, and the girl would be cross with him if he fell asleep during lunch. Kaji sighed again, wondering what had gotten the girl's knickers all in a twist this time. She had sounded highly irritated when they had last talked, even if she tried to mask it with a syrupy, sweet 'seductive' voice. Having dealt with her for the past four years, he knew when something was bothering her, but it could be from any number of things. He just hoped that the day wouldn't devolve into another attempt by the girl to get into his pants. As much as the teenage girl might be enamored of him, she didn't meet his age limits, a holdover from being a pre-impact child.
Besides, he was much more interested in the girl's flatmate. Misato might not be receptive to his romantic overtures now, but she had been one of the only two women he had ever really loved, the other being the blond doctor, who was more interested in her work and her boss now than him. Truthfully, he was tired of the carefree love 'em and leave 'em bachelor lifestyle. He wasn't ready to settle down and start a family, but he could certainly do with a more stable relationship.
Putting the files back in order, he slid the drawer shut and tested it to ensure it had locked itself upon closing. Attention to little details separated the pros from the amateurs, and Kaji was no amateur. Adjusting the janitor's cap on his head, he grabbed his pushcart and left the office, emptying the wastebaskets. He made his way back towards the ground floor and nodded to the security guard as he passed. The guard frowned and squinted at the unshaven man, not recognizing him, but there had been a note at the desk about the cleaning agency sending a new guy tonight, and Kaji had a matching ID badge.
The irrepressible spy whistled a jaunty tune as he left the building, tossing the trash bag and his uniform into the dumpster. Carefully arranging the stained tie to be casually undone against his untucked shirt, he splashed a little vodka onto himself from a shooter bottle and gargled the rest for a minute before tossing the small glass vessel after the uniform. Sticking his hands into his pockets, he strolled down the street, still whistling, another office worker going home after a late night at the bar.
He was getting nowhere with investigating the Marduk Institute. The mysterious collection of businesses, research firms, and think tanks was supposedly tasked by the Human Instrumentality Committee of the UN to locate potential Evangelion Pilots, among other things. In theory, it was supposed to have a second oversight committee appointed by the HIC. It turned out there were a lot of connections via subsidiaries between the entities of the different organizations. Many companies turned out to be nothing more than puppets of NERV. Almost all were privately held companies without public information about the people who ran them. Some didn't even maintain public websites but still kept ownership of several domain names, each one a seemingly arbitrary combination of letters and numbers.
He could ask Ritsuko, of course, but it was doubtful she would give him anything other than one of her looks. He could always try pumping her little assistant for information, but the mousy tech and he didn't exactly travel in the same social circles, so he'd have to come up with some plausible reason to chat her up. Still, it was an angle worth looking into.
In the meantime, he could bug Misato when he came around to pick up Asuka for lunch. He doubted she knew anything about the Marduk Institute or its selection criteria, but if he could spark some interest in her, who knew what she might dig up? Once she got a notion into her head, she wouldn't stop until she had what she wanted.
That matter settled for the time being; he turned his thoughts to another problem as he climbed the stairs to his apartment. SEELE wanted to know more about the Third Child's current issues with synchronizing with Unit-01. While his handler hadn't come out and said anything definite, it seemed to the spy they were inordinately worried about the boy's performance. Shinji was extremely important to them for some reason, but he didn't know why.
As it stands, it seems to be nothing more than what Ritsuko said before on Monday. I mean, everyone knows the body and mind undergo a lot of changes during puberty, and after all, wasn't that one of the reasons why they had to use pubescent and prepubescent kids as pilots? Perhaps they were worried about losing a third of the pilot corps if his problems were permanent instead of just temporary issues.
However, Asuka has undergone similar synchronization issues, each coinciding with her growth periods. She bounced back and stabilized each time without fail, so why should Shinji be any different? I wonder if Ritsuko has anything on Rei from during her growth spurts.
At least it's been quiet for the past few months, the spy thought as he unlocked his door and went inside, kicking his shoes off. There hasn't been any hint of Angelic activity anywhere, and the repairs to the defensive lines and the intercept system are complete. Even the work on extending the sensor network is ahead of schedule. Why are the old men getting antsy now?
Kaji, a slightly neater person than Misato when it came to housekeeping, tossed his clothes in the general direction of his laundry hamper, where they landed at its base on the small pile of discarded clothing. He flopped down onto his bed, rolling the blankets around him into a cocoon, and pushed all thoughts of work out of his mind as he drifted off into sleep. There were other, more pleasurable, things he wanted to dream about than the shadowy men of SEELE and their paranoid ideas.
Mmmm, Misato...
Eins, Zwei, Drei, Vier!
The morning was bright and warm despite being late in winter, but Toji had not been alive to know the chill of seasonal change. Only at the polar caps and at higher altitudes did it get chilly anymore. Second Impact had altered the world in ways that still weren't completely understood, but none of this was on the athletic boy's mind as he sat at the park table watching his younger sister skip around and play with Nozomi. Despite the near miraculous recovery his sister had undergone, she would forever move with a limp, and no matter how slight it was, it was clearer to Toji than the burning sun in the sky. It left a foul taste in his mouth.
But he didn't hold a grudge against Shinji over this. It wasn't because the boy had torn into him or because he had rescued them, but because of what little he knew for sure about how the Evangelions worked and how little training Shinji had. If there was a fault to be placed, it did not lie on his friend's shoulders but on NERV.
But NERV was an organization and, as such, had no shoulders. No one stood up and said, it's my fault the boy was sent out untrained. It's my fault this happened. Besides, his father and grandfather worked for NERV, one as a technician and the other in one of the research labs. Did the blame fall on them?
NERV had also seen to it that Mari had received excellent medical care, even if the official apology from the public relations office was a generic letter despite the 'human' touches. He knew how these things worked, after all.
Shinji was brand new to the whole thing. A complete rookie going up against a monster that had laid waste to anything that had stood in its way. It had shrugged off some of the most powerful weapons available! Shinji, the rookie, the newbie, had gone up against it and had won.
Asuka was always quick to explain how lucky the boy had been and how fortunate they were that he had somehow managed to fumble his way to victory after victory until her arrival. After all, he hadn't received the years of training she had. But the redhead's exposition at the sake of Shinji's hard-earned fame left a bad taste in his mouth, too, despite Shinji's protests that it was okay and she was right.
Toji wished for a moment that he had never gotten mixed up with the pilots and hadn't befriended the slender boy who seemed to be such a bundle of contradictions. But it was just momentarily, and he hated himself for the selfish thought. Still, his life would be so much simpler if the trio of pilots wasn't in it.
He sighed again as he checked the time on his phone. Kensuke was supposed to have been here thirty minutes ago, the boys having decided to meet at the park. Toji was watching the younger girls for the day, as he liked to spend as much time as possible with his sister, and Hikari had errands to run she couldn't take Nozomi on, so he had agreed to watch her for a few hours as well. Kensuke and Shinji were supposed to show up and hang out, giving him someone to talk to while the girls played and getting the introverted pilot out of the house. If left to his own devices, Shinji would stay at home.
But so far, neither one had shown up yet, and there had been no word from either that they were canceling. Scowling, he began to call up the contact info for his geeky friend when the boy came walking down the path, waving to the younger girls with a smile.
Toji shifted the scowl to his friend. "You're late. Not cool, man."
Kensuke adopted a hurt expression. "I'm not late! I've been here just as long as you have!"
"Really."
"Yup! I followed you all here!"
Toji blinked, confused. "You... followed us here? From where?"
"From Hikari's place when you picked up Nozomi. Although to be honest, I followed you and Mari from your house. I didn't want to hang around your girlfriend's place waiting for you; that'd be a little creepy."
Toji threw a flabbergasted look at the other boy. "And following us, wasn't? What were you doing?"
"Um... isn't it obvious? I was practicing my tailing skills. You mean you didn't notice me at all? That's great!"
"Yeah," Toji said with obvious sarcasm, "That's great. Are you insane?"
"Oh, come on. It's not as bad as you're thinking. It's not like I stood around all morning waiting for you two to leave. I happened to show up in time to see you walking down the street on the way to Hikari's and decided to do some impromptu stalking." The bespectacled boy made a face. "Wait, that sounded bad."
"You're nuts. Don't do that again. Practice your creepy shit on someone else."
"On who? It's not as if I have a wide social circle, Toji. Besides, you can start practicing to see if you're being tailed."
"Why on earth would I care about practicing that?"
"Well, you're friends with the three Pilots, right? You could get picked up as a hostage! You know, as a way to get to them."
"Great. Just what I needed to worry about. Look, go follow Asuka or something. I'm sure she'd love having a stalker if she doesn't already."
"Right, because if she doesn't castrate me, her security escort will."
Toji opened his mouth to reply with an equally sarcastic comment but bit it off as Shinji rounded the corner of the path, a look of concentration on his face as he carefully hobbled towards them on his crutches. "Shit, Shinji's here. Don't say anything about kidnappings or stuff like that."
"I'm not dumb, Toji," Kensuke grumbled to his friend before smiling and waving to the slowly approaching boy. "Yo, Shin-man! Over here!"
Mari and Nozomi looked up from where they had been running around at the sound of the boy's name. They hadn't seen him since the Halloween party and were first among his fans.
"Mr. Shinji!" they cried in unison, rushing over to him, drawing up short as they saw he was without his prosthetic. Mari found her voice first as the pair of girls stared at him. "Um... are you okay?"
Shinji managed a smile; while it wasn't bright, it was honest. "I'm fine. Just outgrew my leg. Nothing to worry about!"
Toji called out to the girls to get back to playing around as Shinji sat down on the park bench with a sigh. "You alright, man? Where's Rei? I thought that you two were attached at the hip these days."
Shinji shook his head as he leaned back, resting against the table. "She and Asuka got called into headquarters for some new test."
Kensuke shook his head wistfully. "Man, what I wouldn't give to have a hot girl waiting on me hand and foot like that..."
"It's not like that!" Shinji protested as Toji smacked their friend upside the head. "I mean-"
"Dude, you can't tell us Rei doesn't have the hots for you. There's no way that you can deny it. She goes with you everywhere during the day and sleeps at your place on the weekends."
"Yeah!" Kensuke added, rubbing the back of his head, "And what was Asuka saying the other day? That Rei's not letting you cook when she's there? That she's been making your meals?"
As embarrassed as he was about the good-natured teasing, Shinji couldn't deny he did enjoy the fact that Rei was trying to 'see to his needs while on convalescent leave' despite also feeling bad about enjoying it and that it was taking up all of her free time. She showed up in the early morning to wake him up if he wasn't already, make breakfast if he wasn't already eating, and carry his schoolbag for him as they walked to school. She also made lunches for him at her apartment and would make dinner for the apartment's inhabitants before leaving later in the evening. She had taken to staying over on the weekends, sleeping on the couch (wearing pajamas, at the insistence of both Misato and Asuka).
Asuka, who had grown accustomed to the lunches Shinji had been making her in addition to his own, had complained about having to obtain her midday food again, leading to some interesting conversations during the lunches when the pilots ate together.
"Well, okay," Shinji admitted. "But we're not like you and Hikari."
Toji shrugged. "So what? You've gone on a couple of dates, and you two spent a lot of time together even before... this." The boy waved at the crutches halfheartedly. "As far as everyone's concerned, you two are a couple."
"But isn't it wrong to just assume something like that? I mean, you know, without asking her to... um..."
"Go steady?" Kensuke suggested, bored of the turn the conversation had taken. "Jeez, man, what else is there for you to do?" The boy began to count items off on his fingers. "One, you've rescued her from death and danger. Two, you've been to a fancy restaurant with her. Three, she devotes all her spare time to helping you when you're... um... not at a hundred percent. Four, making out. Five,"
Shinji blushed as he held up a hand, interrupting his friend. "Um... we haven't done the last one."
Both boys stared at Shinji as he tried to stare off into the distance nonchalantly.
"What do you mean you haven't made out with her yet? You've slept together!"
"Well, yes, but... I mean..."
Toji clapped a hand to his face, sighing hard. "Right. You've slept together, but it was more like passing out in the same bed after the party. That's what Ken meant. But still, you mean you haven't kissed her yet?"
Kensuke shook his head sadly. "What is the world coming to when I get more action than an Evangelion Pilot?"
"A horrible world," Toji replied. "Not even like a peck on the cheek? That's part and parcel of caring for someone when they're hurt or sick. I'd have thought she would have at least gone in for something like that." He narrowed his eyes as he studied the beet-red boy, finding it hard to believe the two pilots hadn't kissed yet. "Are you sure you didn't make out or anything at either of the parties? What about on your dates?"
Shinji shook his head again. "Nothing."
"Dude, that's... Okay, I don't know what that is, but it's something."
"Maybe she's waiting for you to make the first move."
"But what if she doesn't want to kiss me? I'll ruin everything!"
Toji smacked Shinji upside the head. "Idiot. If she doesn't want you to kiss her, then she shouldn't be sleeping over at your place. Especially since it's not like you live alone. Helping you out while you're on sticks is one thing, but practically becoming a live-in maid? That's something else altogether."
"Yeah, he's right, Shinji. You gotta take the lead here. You can't wait for her to fall into your lap any more than she's already done, ya know? I mean, I know that neither of you is very forward, but not even the slutty chicks would volunteer to play nurse if their boyfriends got banged up the way Rei does for you. She's practically screaming at you to take her in your arms and lay a big wet one on her."
Toji chuckled at the image Kensuke had painted for them. "Yeah, I wonder where she got the idea to do that from. I mean, it's like Kensuke said, most other people wouldn't do something like that, and Rei's never been one for public displays of, well, anything."
Vier, Drei, Zwei, Eins!
Rei stood at the door to Dr. Akagi's laboratory in the lower levels, the secret one that housed the Machine and was neighbor to the Reiquarium. It was not yet the appointed time for the image download into the massive array of mechanical and biological components. Still, the blond-haired hussy had sent her a message telling her to come down early.
"Ah, Rei! You're here." Dr. Akagi said cheerfully as she looked up from a clipboard and checked off readings on several displays. The chamber was one of only a few completely isolated from the MAGI, with no data links to the outside world. What went on in this den of Science and Madness was meant to stay a secret, with no chance for information spillage. All notes had to be taken by hand, and none ever left the room except as a fine ash. Only four people had access to it, Gendo, Kozo, Ritsuko, and Rei.
Rei stepped inside the room, the hydraulics groaning as the heavy blast door slid back into place, effectively sealing them inside. Should the sensors built into the door register it being breached, almost five hundred pounds of C4 would be detonated, erasing all that had gone on in here from history.
"You instructed me to report early for the image download, Doctor."
"Yes, I did. I wanted to have a little talk with you, Rei. Go ahead and sit down." Ritsuko motioned to the small table and collection of plush chairs in one corner of the room, looking out of place amongst the sinister and oppressive machinery. A small lamp sat on the table, bathing the small sitting area in comforting light, and a tray of snacks and a teapot waited next to a pair of mugs. All three pieces were white with a cat motif. It was obvious to anyone who knew Ritsuko that these were her items, not merely something borrowed from one of the cafeterias.
Curiosity aroused, and Rei sat in one of the chairs, smoothing out her skirt and looking on expectantly as her host put down her clipboard and settled into another chair. The older woman sighed and removed her glasses as she leaned back, studying the clone. Ritsuko knew the only way to deal with the girl was to be direct, but sometimes being direct and to the point, especially around troubling and embarrassing issues, was harder than it should have been.
"Rei, why do you like Shinji?"
Rei blinked, obviously surprised by the question. "Is this pertinent to the image download?"
"No, Rei, it's not. But it's pertinent to other things. Why do you like Shinji?"
He is an interesting subject. He makes me feel warm inside when he is near, and I worry for him when he is in danger more than I do others. Because he likes me. Because we have a Bond. Because the Commander told me I should be nearer to him. Because he is mine. But none of that is any business of yours.
Rei opened her mouth to verbalize a response, but the doctor held up her hand, cutting her off before she began.
"Rei, I know that you're smitten with him. There's no denying it. You're a healthy young woman who has already had a few developmental cycles. I know you've read enough about biology to know what I'm talking about. I need to know about this because just like everything else that affects the physical and mental states of the pilots, it will affect your synchronization with the Evangelions."
"If it is self-evident that I am indeed smitten with Pilot Ikari, how does the source of the emotional attachment matter?"
It was with great self-control that Ritsuko didn't choke on her tea. That wasn't quite the response she had been expecting. Sighing, she set the cup back down on the table. "Rei, if this is merely a case of minor infatuation, it could blow over before things get very serious between you two, but if you get into it pretty heavily, when you break up, it will result in heavy emotional fallout."
The doctor shifted in her seat and picked up the mug again, idly turning it around in her hands. "So you see, this is a serious issue. If you are serious about liking him, then you should take steps to verify that he likes you as well, and this is something you both want to pursue. Pining away for someone is just as bad as a breakup, even one that ends fairly amiably."
Rei nodded, thinking about the woman's words.
What she is saying is not without merit. While I am reasonably sure we are mutually attracted to each other, it would not hurt to further ascertain his intentions towards me. Oh, is she still talking?
"-and of course, honesty is important in any relationship, no matter how shallow. It's better by far to go into things with your eyes wide open, fully aware of what each person expects to get out of the relationship. Communication is important, both verbal and non-verbal. I know you both talk to each other more than you do anyone else."
Rei digested this new information in silence. Much of her research had been done to not alert Shinji to her intentions, but of late she had done away with trying to keep her distance from her subject in favor of a more... personally satisfying approach, even if it meant she had to scrap plans for certain future experiments. However, one of the things that remained true was the lack of information deliberately flowing from her to him.
Perhaps it is time to change things and rebalance the equation. But he must have some idea about my intentions towards him. I did give him a thank-you gift as was appropriate based on empirical evidence gathered over time from our age bracket. It is only unfortunate that the second child was present. I do not doubt that her presence influenced the data I gathered.
"But you know, he must be having a rough time of it, what with his growth spurt. You know how Misato and Asuka depend on him for almost everything, and he can't even get around without crutches right now!" Ritsuko made a tsking sound before pouring herself more tea and some for the teenager. "Don't you think so?"
Rei regarded the drink ambivalently, mulling over the doctor's query. She reached out and picked up the cat-covered mug and took a tentative sip, discovering that it was a peach and pomegranate-infused white tea, both sweet and tart at the same time. It was not disagreeable.
"Yes." Rei shifted her crimson gaze to the doctor, the intensity of her stare making the blond scientist feel like she was under an electron microscope. "Perhaps he needs..." she paused, looking for the right word, "a break?"
Ritsuko smiled at the girl from behind her cup. "Yes, a break. But you know he won't take one on his own. Someone would have to be there to ensure he doesn't over-exert himself. He's always putting others before himself, but I don't need to tell you this, now do I?"
Rei shook her head slightly, drinking more of the steaming pink liquid as her nemesis continued.
"He's quite a bundle of contradictions, Shinji is. He can be very indecisive most of the time, but sometimes he bursts into direct action without thinking, doesn't he? He's done rash things before without thinking about how he could get hurt, but never for himself. Always for others. For another." Dr. Akagi repeated, stressing the last word. "Left to his own devices, I do not doubt that he will still try to help other people and make them happy." Ritsuko looked at her watch suddenly, setting her cup down. "Well, Rei, it's time to start the download. Go ahead and prepare, and I'll finish my preparations."
As the doctor went back to work, puttering around the various output monitors, Rei stripped and mounted the steps to the plexiglass tube that would soon be flooded with LCL, and in which her brainwaves, thought patterns, and memories would be scanned, read and copied to vast databanks sat overhead in the metaphysical miracle that could give birth to a new soul in a cloned body.
The course of action before her was as obvious as a ten-lane highway through a forest, and her decision was reached far before the eight hours the tedious process took. This was fine, however, for she had other things on her mind besides Shinji.
Rei closed her eyes and thought hard about the train that ran its endless loop around an empty Geo-Front bathed in the light of a permanent sunset, switching from halogen-lit tunnels to reflected yellowish-orange light bathing the underground cavern. She thought about the train but wasn't interested in boarding it from within the Machine today. She was much more interested in something that was considerably closer.
Red eyes opened again, peering through the orange liquid and the glass beyond it at the hazy figures moving about just beyond her ability to discern their identities in the LCL. There was no appreciable difference, but she was undaunted. She closed her eyes again, thinking hard, focusing. She opened her eyes again, trying to see through the lighted tank into the gloom beyond her petri dish. A white-gloved hand coalesced out of the darkness to rap repeatedly on the tube, closely followed by the impassive visage of the Commander.
Eins, Zwei, Drei, Vier!
Shinji woke up from his light doze as Asuka plopped down onto the couch, drawing her lengthy hair, still slightly purple from the dye she had put into it for the Halloween party, up into a ponytail with a red scrunchie, holding a soda between her legs. She narrowed her eyes at him when she noticed him watching her curiously.
"What do you want, Third? Where's the First?"
"Ah, she's in the shower."
Asuka snorted as she turned on the television and began to flip through the channels. "I'm surprised she didn't drag you in with her."
Shinji turned bright red at the suggestion, but his cheeks were the only part of his body that saw increased blood flow, as he and Rei had a bad history with showers. It wasn't a situation he daydreamed about, and besides, he had much pleasanter memories of the pair of them elsewhere in more titillating if stranger circumstances.
"Ah... that wouldn't... Uh, it wouldn't... Err..." Shinji stammered before deciding to clamp his mouth shut and stare at the television. That was not a conversation he would have wanted to have with Rei, let alone his abrasive roommate. Instead, He focused his attention on the television, wishing he had his old SDAT, his faithful shield from the world, and his various worries and neuroses. Music was safe, comforting, and right. It, alone amongst the chaos and uncertainty of life, could be perfectly put to paper and then played out repeatedly. But now that he had been woken up, his mind ran back through the day's events, and certain conversations floated to the top like pond scum.
He watched her carefully, but not very surreptitiously, for a few moments before opening his mouth.
"Asuka, ah... well, have you... I mean, well, what I mean is-"
"Spit it out already, Third! Jeez, no wonder you two hang out together. Neither of you can talk right." The girl shook her head as she sipped her soda before grumbling again. "Makes you wonder what the selection criteria is like if you two made the cut."
"Never mind, it's not important. Sorry." Shinji apologized, causing the other pilot to roll her eyes.
"Gott in Himmel, just say it!"
Shinji swallowed nervously, incapable of running away from this conversation that was quickly escalating into a confrontation, which only made things worse for him.
"Well, you've kissed someone before, right?"
Eins, Zwei, Drei, Vier!
It was lunchtime, which meant the boys and Rei were clustered around a set of desks pushed together for the hour. Hikari was off running some errand or another for the teacher, and Asuka was eating with another clique of girls and boys down in the cafeteria, so it fell to Toji and Kensuke to try to move the conversation along in between eating.
Shinji was eating as if he had a hollow leg instead of a missing one, his usually small appetite having been boosted by the new caloric demands of his rapidly growing body. Rei had made them sandwiches for lunch, and their friends had been morbidly shocked by the huge pile of plastic-wrapped goods she had stacked in front of the boy. But the pile was decreasing at a steady rate, accompanied by several thermoses of milk.
"So Shinji, milk? I didn't know you were such a fan." Kensuke commented before popping the top of another energy drink. "I don't drink that much of it, but lactose intolerance runs in my family."
To save her charge the trouble of answering, Rei spoke. "Milk is highly nutritional and is considered a vital source of easily assimilated minerals, fats, and proteins, all required in large amounts by the human body, particularly during developmental stages, such as puberty. Numerous scientific studies have shown those whose diets include increased amounts of milk develop stronger bones than those who do not." Pausing, Rei handed Shinji a fresh thermos. "Lactose intolerance is caused by the lack of lactase, the enzyme required to metabolize lactose, a sugar. Lactose intolerance is prevalent amongst Asians, but it does not run in the Ikari bloodline. His being a fan of it does not enter into its presence as part of today's meal."
It was a testament to man's adaptability that the boys were not thrown by the impromptu science lesson, being only one of several such lessons Rei doled out every so often, whenever it seemed to suit her. Hikari had been after her to talk more and to open up, but no one had seen it coming when Asuka spoke about one of the tests done with the Evangelions, and Rei had corrected her mathematics and science. Since that fight, Rei would now and again 'enlighten' their group with such tidbits.
Kensuke shook his head. "How about that? What about you? Does it run in your bloodline?"
Rei blinked, not expecting to be questioned so. Despite Hikari's and Shinji's supportive comments, she was mostly ignored, and the others casually dismissed what was being said.
"I have no difficulties in metabolizing any manner of food."
Toji looked up from his meal, another boxed lunch from the absent class representative. "But you're a vegetarian."
"That is because I dislike eating meat, not because my body lacks the capacity to break it down to derive energy from it." Rei looked pointedly at one of the empty energy drink cans sitting in a neat row in front of the bespectacled nerd. "Also, I would like to point out the folly of a 'calorie-free' energy drink. A calorie, or, to be more accurate, a kilocalorie, is the measurement of the energy used for nutritional purposes. When you ingest that concoction, what you feel is not energy, but a chemically induced illusion."
That caused all three boys to stare at her. Scientific fact was one thing, but it was still rare for her to go so far as to offer her own opinion on something.
Shinji shrugged and went back to his pile of food. Toji chuckled and waved to Hikari as she entered the classroom, making a beeline for them.
"Hi everyone. What'd I miss?" she asked, sitting beside Rei.
Toji laughed again. "Ken's not getting energy from his energy drinks, and the Shin-man can metaba-something lactose. I think."
"Metabolize?" Hikari suggested, pulling her bento box out of her bag, followed by a bottle of juice. "You're not lactose intolerant, Shinji?"
Shinji shook his head as he swallowed the last mouthful of sandwich. "I guess not. I've never really thought about it before." He picked up another sandwich, neatly unwrapping it. "Still, good to know, I guess."
Kensuke drained the last bit of energy drink with a flourish. "Well, I sure enjoy this chemically induced illusion." he quipped, lining the empty can up with its brethren. "So Hikari, What'd the teacher have you do?"
"Nothing too important." the girl replied, biting into a cooked egg. "Just getting the trip request forms."
Shinji slowly unwrapped his last sandwich. "Trip request forms?"
"Yeah, for the winter class trip," Toji replied, scraping the last bit of rice from his box. "I think we're supposed to go to Old Tokyo, right?"
Hikari nodded. "Yeah, this year it's Old Tokyo. Everyone's excited about it." She frowned, looking at the boy. "How come you didn't know about it? It's been discussed several times in class."
Shinji shrugged. He couldn't remember it ever coming up, but he habitually zoned out during class discussions that weren't actual lessons. Of course, he also zoned out during several actual lessons as well. However, he would not let the draconian class representative know about that.
"Must have missed them somehow. But it's not like it matters much, anyway."
Kensuke quirked an eyebrow at the comment. "NERV business scheduled?"
"I don't think we'd get to go on a trip like that. What if an Angel attacked while we were gone?"
"It is doubtful that Pilots on the active duty roster will be permitted to go," Rei commented. "However, if you have not been returned to regular status before the trip, I foresee no difficulty in you being allowed to participate in such structured revelry. It is one of the things Captain Katsuragi would want you to do to further strengthen your social bonds with our classmates."
"I'm not going to go if you two can't." Shinji protested, taking a large bite of his sandwich to stave off other conversations.
"Why not?" Kensuke asked, curious. He could guess at a handful of reasons why not, but he wanted to hear them from his friend.
"Well, Old Tokyo's mostly a beach resort. I'm bad enough at swimming normally, let alone with only one leg. What would I do? Besides, it wouldn't be fair to Rei or Asuka if I went and they were stuck here."
Hikari coughed nervously. "Um... Asuka might not know that she can't go. We went shopping the other day for stuff for the trip."
"What additional supplies would one need to acquire for such a trip?" Rei inquired, curiosity aroused. She had never been on vacation before; the farthest she had ever been from Tokyo-3 was the Matsushiro site.
Hikari turned bright red. "A-ah... nothing much. Just some clothes and other items." She stammered out, wishing she hadn't said anything. She knew Rei wouldn't get what she was saying, and it was a fair bet the boys wouldn't either, but it was still embarrassing.
Hikari and Asuka had gone shopping the other day, and while they had looked at new clothes, the trip's primary focus had been on the various swimsuit sections of the stores they visited. Old Tokyo was a beach resort destination, and the ruined remains of Tokyo-1 and Tokyo-2 were molded into a popular vacation spot for the working class by several entrepreneurial businesses. Where Tokyo-3's beaches were dominated by shipping docks and defensive emplacements, Old Tokyo had beaches of sparkling sand made from recycled concrete and brick from its parent cities. Swimsuits were not often worn in Tokyo-3, at least not outside the various indoor pools.
Before Rei could further inquire about the shopping trip, Hikari was rescued by the bell ringing to signal the end of lunch.
Eins, Zwei, Drei, Vier!
Misato looked across the table at Asuka. The girl's hair was slowly returning to its normal red, but even its copper sheen was overpowered by the girl's face, flushed with anger.
"C'mon, Asuka, did you think we'd let the pilot corps go on vacation?"
"I got to go on vacation in Germany! Why not here?" Asuka huffed angrily. "Besides, it's not like the First or Third want to go. And it's only for a couple of weeks. You got by with just those two dorks before!" The two dorks in question didn't look up from eating. Shinji was trying to avoid being dragged into the fight, but Rei was watching surreptitiously from the corner of her eyes.
Misato groaned, already tired of arguing with the teenager. "You weren't on active duty in Germany, and we're not letting any of you out of our sight now that we've got you. You're too important to the fate of the world. Look, if it's any consolation, I can't go on vacation either."
It was not any consolation, and Asuka made this clear, continuing to argue for the rest of the meal before storming off to her room. Misato sighed again, slumping down in her chair, clapping a hand over her eyes in exasperation.
"Geez..." she muttered, before lifting the hand and looking at the other pilots. Shinji was trying to help Rei with the dishes, but the girl wasn't having any of it. "You two don't want to go on this trip?"
Shinji shook his head. "I didn't think we'd be able to go anyway."
"I have never traveled on similar excursions with my classmates before." Rei offered, plucking a dish and cloth out of Shinji's hand and drying it herself, shooting the boy a slightly disapproving stare. Shinji sighed and scooted his chair back towards the table and away from the sink, but Misato noted with a smirk that he kept sneaking at the girl wearing his apron.
Rei had tied the white apron tightly over her school uniform, and Misato had to admit the effect was quite fetching. The girl had taken to wearing it when cooking or cleaning up after meals, not wanting to get her uniforms dirty. It seemed to the woman to be the only clothing the girl owned, apart from a few strange items.
The nurse's outfit, for instance.
It had been the third day after Shinji had been taken off the active duty roster. Misato had come home late that evening due to another one of the endless meetings she had to attend. Asuka was drinking heavily, several cans of Yebisu were already stacked on the table, and the girl was watching her copilots with morbid interest and disbelief.
Rei was wearing the uniform of one of the nurses from the Geo-Front hospital and was busy taking Shinji's vital signs. The boy had looked up from the blood pressure cuff on his arm towards his guardian, unable to say anything because of the thermometer in his mouth.
Misato had almost died as Rei, sensing the shift in the boy's attention, also looked up at her. Unkempt blue hair spilled out from underneath the cap perched on her head, hiding the earpieces of an actual stethoscope, the other end disappearing (along with one of the girl's hands) under Shinji's shirt, no doubt pressed against his skin.
Misato's first thoughts were not on how surreal the scene was but on how fast the poor boy's heart must have been hammering.
"Well, thanks again for the meal, Rei. You're getting to be almost as good as Shinji in the kitchen!" Misato said, changing the subject but switching right back to it. "Don't mention it to Asuka just yet, but I am trying to see if we can work in a little break for you three. Nothing major, a few days with nothing scheduled, so you can relax a little."
Misato shot a warning look at Shinji. "Of course, I would suggest some of you buckle down and work on your schoolwork, especially since he's already not on the active duty roster. Don't think that I don't read your report cards."
A chagrined expression spread across the boy's features. "Yes, ma'am." he softly muttered, his face red.
"Good boy!" Misato chirped before turning to Rei. "You know, you might want to ask Rei if she wouldn't mind tutoring you. She does very well on her tests, even if her homework scores are atrocious."
Rei didn't turn from the sink to look at her commanding officer. "Homework serves as a way to practice and reinforce what was taught in the lesson. I do not need the practice, so I do not do it."
Besides, our attendance at school serves only for socialization purposes. What difference does it make if we pass or fail on an arbitrarily selected course of instruction? And what of the Second Child? As annoying as she can be about her formal schooling, there is no denying that she is far beyond the limits of the class. There is not even a pretense of further instruction being needed for her.
"You still should do the work and turn it in, Rei," Misato said. "The universities won't take that as a valid reason for not doing the homework assigned if you get accepted into one with the grades you have. You're getting seventies and eighties where you should be getting nineties and hundreds. That will make a big difference when it comes for you to apply for higher education."
Rei shrugged but said nothing.
If Shinji wants to play the game and improve his schoolwork, I will gladly assist him in this endeavor. But I fail to understand the Captain's obsession with continuing our education outside the Evangelions and NERV. Even if I can change the Commander's plans enough to ensure our survival, I doubt we would need a college education. Depending on what happens during Third Impact, it could be all for nothing.
Misato grinned as she watched Rei put away the last dish into the cabinet. Obviously, the girl didn't agree with her, but to Misato, it meant either she was getting the hang of reading the still largely silent girl, or Rei was getting more expressive.
Her grin deepened as she watched Shinji watch his friend as she selected a damp towel to wipe down the surface of the table, clearing it of the last little bits of trash from dinner.
They are neat freaks, both of them. But God only knows that me and Asuka aren't. I know I wouldn't bother to wipe down the table after dinner. Misato dutifully lifted her beer from the table, allowing a pale hand to pass underneath, leaving only a little lemon-scented moisture behind. They're so perfect for each other. But still... it's not good to be so quiet. They talk to each other more than anyone else but clam up when anyone enters the room. But it's cute how Rei wants to help him out. Being stuck on crutches like that has to suck.
Misato went to drain the rest of her beer but started coughing violently when Rei's elbow brushed the back of Shinji's neck as she passed behind him on the way back to sink, causing him to jerk forward suddenly. Misato knew her handiwork when she saw it, as the girl was too precise in her movements and adverse to unnecessary contact to bump into someone.
After pounding on the table while trying to gain control over her breathing, Misato stood up. "Well, I'm going to go watch some television. Have fun, you two." She winked lecherously at her ward and was rewarded by him turning bright red.
Eins, Zwei, Drei, Vier!
Asuka looked up from the notes she was compiling on the effects of a male growth period on synchronization as her phone chirped, signaling she had received a message. Flicking it open, she grinned as she read Maya's message.
Off tomorrow afternoon. No tests are scheduled. Want to get ice cream?
They had only met a handful of times since the Halloween party, trying to keep their dalliance under wraps as much as possible, what with her security escort and the nigh omnipresent observation the MAGI had over the city and Geo-Front. But they still found time, and there were ways around the watchful eyes of men and computers, as they both put in more hours than was necessary for the various labs that revolved around working on the Evangelions.
While Asuka had sworn off chasing other men after a heated lecture that an extremely disappointed Kaji had given her after he walked in on her and a handsome (if not as brilliant as her) technician back in Berlin, deciding then he was the only man for her, she did not regard her fun with Maya as 'cheating'. If half the stories she had heard of the handsome man were true, he'd be the first to commend her.
Besides, it's not like we're in a regular relationship yet anyway. I can do whatever I want until he gives in to the obvious.
She thumbed out a response promising to meet up with the technician and then tossed her phone back onto the desk, turning back to the small notebook filled with information gathered on the subject of the Third Child. After a few minutes, she closed the book with a disgusted snort. She was tired of dealing with the Third, but for whatever reason, her Sempai had some new interest in him, even going so far as to put other tests and experiments on the back burner. While she had her work to do, being the doctor's intern meant that when the doctor said to work on something, she had to work on it. But she didn't have to work on it right now. Today was Friday, which meant the First would be sleeping over, which meant she needed to shower now before the rush to the bathroom began.
Grabbing her towel and robe, she flung them over her shoulder and went towards the kitchen, intent on warning the others to stay out of the bathroom. Rei had walked in on her one evening to brush her teeth, citing to the outraged redhead there had been no notification of someone using the bathroom.
She passed Misato on the couch, who was already sleeping, with Pen-Pen slumped over on one side. Shaking her head, she passed into the kitchen, knowing she would find the pair in there, as Misato had passed a moratorium on girls (but everyone knew that it was meant for Rei) being in Shinji's room unsupervised. Since both of them always dutifully obeyed orders, having as much will as a pair of marionettes, Asuka knew where to find them. She just hoped they weren't doing anything perverted on the table.
She stopped in the doorway, finding the other two pilots as she had suspected. Shinji was slumped over the table, head resting on his arms, while Rei stood with her back to the door, hands working on the boy's shoulders.
Rei and Shinji flinched away from each other when Asuka spoke, eliciting a knowing grin from the redhead.
"I'm going to take a shower. Don't walk in on me."
She returned to the shower and wondered if she should record the event in the notebook but decided against it. It wasn't relevant to his growth spurt in any way she could tell, and Dr. Akagi would only complain about intra-pilot relationships again.
But if the two were busy with each other, it kept them both out of her hair. She detested how the boy was such a pushover, constantly apologizing for things and never standing up for himself. Rei's silent obedience to everything she was told by their superiors was just as bad. She never questioned anything and never evaluated the situation on her own. The only things going for the girl were that she could synchronize with the Prototype, and was the Commander's favorite. The only things the boy had going for him were that he could synchronize, he was the Commander's son, and he could shoot. Asuka didn't begrudge him his status as the expert marksman, having seen the time he put in on the ranges at NERV, both in person and in the Evangelion simulator. But he lagged far behind her in all other parts of actually using the bio-mechanical war machines. A high synchronization score meant one could use the giant as if it was one's own body, but if one didn't know how to do that, move, fight, and think, it meant nothing.
She had seen that he had the highest initial synchronization score but was still far behind her. Rei was right behind him; both were horrible on the battlefield without someone telling them what to do. Granted, Rei would carry out her orders with dogged tenacity, ignoring the damage to herself and Unit-00. At the same time, Shinji, usually very skittish about getting close to the Enemy, tried to use his skill with the various projectile weapons. But they had problems seeing opportunities and taking the initiative.
But if she could coax them into taking the initiative more outside the Evangelions, perhaps they would shape up there.
I can't forge them into a team as things stand now. I need to figure something out to make them perk up. Something to get a fire under their asses.
She smiled as she lifted her face into the streams of hot water and whispered her motto, chant, and catechism.
"All Glory to the Brave."