Fan Fiction / Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ NGE - Terminator ❯ Living together ( Chapter 5 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: Steve VADER 
A new home, a greater 'family', lots of training, and a visit to Misato.
Oh, Kaji has some fun too.
Anime/Manga: Fan Fiction / Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Sci-fi / Hentai | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 08.24.2005 | Pages: 11 | Words: 9.3K | Visits: 1.5K | Status: Completed
A new home, a greater 'family', lots of training, and a visit to Misato.
Oh, Kaji has some fun too.
Anime/Manga: Fan Fiction / Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Sci-fi / Hentai | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 08.24.2005 | Pages: 11 | Words: 9.3K | Visits: 1.5K | Status: Completed
NGE - TERMINATOR
Chapter 4 - Living together
The new quarter was quite spacious. Behind the door was a little room just for welcoming guests, then came
a corridor that led to the large living room. Or more like a living hall. Compared to standard rooms, it was
enormous, with a length of over 10 meters, and four meters wide. Left and right to the corridor led two
small doors to the bathrooms. Both sides of the room had two doors, each one led to another room.
The wall opposite the entrance was entirely glass, and gave a great overlook of the lake inside the geofront.
A glass door led outside to a large terrace, which had a large table, so it was the eating place.
A part of the terrace was separated with a working plate, and parted the open kitchen from the eating area.
As Shinji saw this, he had to admit that it made a lot of sense. Rain was highly unlikely in the underground,
the open cooking area hindered the cooking smell from flooding the rest of the luxurious condo.
Each of the four rooms also had a glass front, letting as much light as possible inside.
Shinji wasn't the only one who was pleased with their new quarters.
"Finally those fuckwits understood what kind of quarter a pilot like me deserves."
Shinji didn't reply, but thought that Asuka was surely right. Compared to the cramped insides of Misato's
apartment, this was surely luxury class. Still, he would miss her. He knew that there would have been
enough place for Misato as well, and he hoped that she would move in with them after her therapy.
Fuyutsuki already told him where he was able to visit her, and when.
"Now, who gets which room?" asked the German redhead, and Maya only shrugged as answer. Grinning, Asuka
marched to one of the doors, and placed a sticker on it. It showed a cute little demon, and the text was
simple: 'Demon's lair - enter at your own risk'.
Shinji chuckled as this sticker was a present from Kensuke and Touji. Originally intended to piss Asuka
off, Hikari managed somehow to stop Asuka from maiming them, and taking it as nice joke. How the freckled
girl managed this was beyond Shinji's comprehension, but the result was surely funny.
He thought over which room he would prefer, as Mana grabbed his hand and dragged him into another room.
With a swift motion, she placed the sign he got from Misato on the door, making his decision unnecessary.
Shrugging, he entered. No wonder that Asuka was so fast with her decision, and that Mana made it so fast
as well. Their possessions had already arrived, so the rooms were de facto assigned.
Starting with the unpacking of his belongings, he was in for another surprise. Shinji knew that he was good
with household chores and that he was very well organized. But seeing how Mana unpacked her uniforms and other
belongings within five minutes, placing them perfectly outlined into her locker and thus finishing her
moving in, shocked him. He needed four times longer, and had not many more possessions than the girl from
the future.
The room itself was big, the furniture high class. Two western style beds stood on each side, accompanied
by a locker and a small desk. Beside the door stood an entertainment center with TV, DVD and video games.
At each desk was a small computer, along with a stack of PC-games.
Finished with unpacking, he went again into the kitchen, to see what the fridge had inside.
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After Asuka saw that all her stuff from Misato's apartment was in one of the rooms, she quickly declared it
to be her own. The usage of the sticker was a little tribute to Hikari. If she thought that the sticker was
funny, she would have to live in the demon lair as well.
She was in the middle of unpacking, as the door opened and Hikari came in.
"Hello."
"Hi." greeted Asuka back.
"So we are living here?"
"Yep. In the demon lair."
Hikari chuckled as she heard this. "Fitting."
Asuka raised an eyebrow as she heard this, but didn't comment on this strange statement. Hikari started to
unpack too, they worked beside each other, without conversation, but still content with the presence of the
other.
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Rei had a room for her alone. She was as fast as Mana with her unpacking, and then sat down on one of the beds
and thought over this new situation. She understood that the relocation was necessary, yet she wasn't happy
with it. It disrupted her ritualized normal life, which disturbed her. There were too many changes happening,
in a fast too rapid succession.
Letting out a small sigh, she left the room. Shinji's room was easy to find, without knocking, she went
inside. But beside Mana, who sat in front of the computer and worked on something, nobody was there.
"Shinji's in the kitchen." the redheaded soldier said without looking in Rei's direction. Wordlessly, Rei left
the room, as an overjoyed shout hallowed through the entire condo.
"Food! Real Food!"
Still going at her normal pace, a red blur whizzed around her into the kitchen, came to a rapid stop in front
of the fridge.
"And no beer." stated Asuka dryly, but with a satisfied tone in her voice.
As Rei saw that Shinji was happy, she felt an unfamiliar sensation. A strange kind of peace settled upon her,
which she didn't understand. What was that feeling? She would have to ask Shinji later. Unseen, she went back
into her room, where she waited for permission to rest.
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Unpacking her belongings, Maya had no clue what she should do. Cursing Misato for her bad timing, she was
now stuck with a duty she had no clue of accomplishing. Her contact with the pilots has been very limited
so far, she didn't know anything about them. Shinji and Rei were withdrawn and shy, Asuka a loudmouth, and
Mana was dangerous. That was it.
Originally, Misato should have moved in with them. She should have bonded the pilots closer together, forming
the new team. She herself should only have a supporting role. Now, she would have to do all of this by herself.
That meant she needed to spend some time with the pilots, to get to know them, in addition to her new duties.
Sleep would be getting very rare.
Hearing the commotion about the food, she shook her head sadly. How Katsuragi could be so low in her personal
life was beyond her comprehension.
Well, before they could rest, there was one last thing to do. Ritsuko gave her the advice to assign the
chores as soon as possible, so she went into the main room, and called them all together.
"Time to assign the chores." Maya declared, which was immediately met with Asuka's reply. "Baka-boy will
handle them."
Shinji gruffed indignantly, but didn't protest otherwise.
"No he won't. As far as I know, he can cook, and Hikari too. Is that right?" Maya asked the freckled girl.
"Yes." answered Hikari.
"Good. Then you two will be the cooks. I and Rei will be doing the laundry, Asuka and Mana, you two will do
the cleaning."
"Menial tasks are for males!" protested Asuka immediately.
Hikari shot her friend a dark look for that comment. But before she was able to give a reply, Mana made
one.
"Since everyone beside the little princess isn't complaining, she sees all of us males. Say, are you in so
much need that you want to live only with males?"
"WHAT?" shrieked Asuka.
"Why? Isn't one boy in your vicinity not enough? Do you need a gang-bang this heftily?" Mana added grinning.
Everyone beside Rei blushed, Asuka most of all. Her skin tone shot beyond the classical 'angry red', into the
sparely seen 'bloodshed red'.
"Most likely." said the calm voice of Rei, focusing all attention to the blue-haired girl. "She often said to
Ikari-kun that a boy isn't good enough for her. Maybe more than one are sufficient."
All gaped open-mouthed at Rei, only Mana doubled over in laughter.
Seeing that there was no way she could win, because killing Rei would be a bad idea, Asuka huffed. "Fine.
I'll clean." That said, she went back into her room and slammed the door forcefully.
It took Maya some time before she found her ability to speak again, then she wished everyone a good night and
went into her room. This was too weird for her taste.
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After she sent Shinji showering, Mana went again to the computer and went over more data about the upcoming
Angels. Now that she had to take command during the battles, it was extremely important to be as well
prepared as possible.
Still, she hoped that her new roommate was finished soon, as she needed the refreshment of a cold shower.
At least she wasn't sleepy, despite the turmoil on this day. Being trained as soldier surely had some
advantages.
One of her rare true smiles crept over her face, as she recalled the incident with Asuka. She surely had
a lot to learn, especially when it was better to keep the mouth shut.
It was easy to see in her the woman she became later, yet she had a long way to go. Still, she liked her.
It was the Asuka in her time line who trained her, whom she'd learned everything from. She never knew what
happened to her parents, for her, Asuka was her mother. Now confronted with a situation where she had to train
the volatile German redhead, she found it more than strange. Well, she could only hope to show her as much
patience and understanding her Asuka showed her. But first, she needed to be fit into the team.
While this stage wasn't nice for Asuka, it was better her pride was broken by her, than by Arael.
Shinji entered the room, wished her good night and fell on his bed. Without bothering to reply, she marched
to the bathroom.
The cold shower helped her brain to cope with the events of this long day. Katsuragi's performance was
more than bad, not only for the day, but for all further actions as well. The fact that now Ibuki was
solely responsible for the pilots made the further plans more delicate than they already were.
While the freshly promoted bridge-bunny would surely give her best, she didn't know the pilots as well
as Katsuragi did.
Finished with her shower, she exited the bath and went back into her room, where she sat again down at her
computer screen. Four hours of sleep were enough for her, so she could use the time to do some work.
A surprised gasp from Shinji caught her attention, especially as the boy nearly jumped out of the bed and
hit his head against the wall. She looked at him and saw his shocked expression, but didn't understand why.
Only as he averted his eyes and looked on the floor, she understood.
Like she did back at home, she hadn't bother to cloth herself fully. Especially because she used to live
in a much cooler environment, the heat was unwelcome, so she wore only her panties, and nothing else.
Sure, she was a nice sight, but not a reason for panic.
Mana groaned as she understood why he reacted this way. He was much more shy than she had ever feared.
Shinji had obviously no clue about anything concerning the female sex. She sighed. Just great.
He was their hope for a real Nephilim? But nearly faints just because he sees a pair of tits?
Her mission just got even more complicated.
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Rei had the room beside Shinji's. Not only because her baggage was there, but she would have taken it
anyway. It was her duty to protect Ikari-kun, so this would be the best choice anyway.
She lay on her bed and thought of the events during this day, as a loud bump caught her attention. The
sound came definitely from Ikari-kuns room.
Not trusting Mana to keep him safe, she immediately stood up and went hastily to his room. She opened the
door and went inside, only to be confronted with a rather odd scene.
Contrary to some of the scenarios that ran through her mind, he wasn't in danger. Mana sat at the computer
and worked, while Shinji looked at the floor, with a tomato-like face.
He looked shortly at her, only to get even redder before he looked again at he floor.
"Is he always like this?" asked Mana.
Rei didn't understand the question, so she tilted her head questioningly at the side.
"Is he always so bashful when he sees some skin from a girl."
Rei was unsure what Mana meant. He surely saw skin of girls, there were none running around in ABC-suits.
It took her some seconds before the statement made sense. Shinji's behavior, along with Mana's lack
of clothing cleared the situation up.
She recounted her only occurrence where she saw Shinji in a similar situation, then she answered.
"Yes."
"Aha. What are you doing here anyway?"
"Protecting Ikari-kun."
"From what? My lack of clothing?"
"If necessary."
Mana chuckled at this answer. "I am more clothed than you." She pointed at Rei's bald sex. "I wear at least
panties."
This was truth, but she saw clothing as unnecessary. Which made her prior statement look dumb.
"He needs to get used to it anyway." Rei stated calmy, earning an approving nod from the other girl.
After this, she went back to her own room.
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On the other side of the condo, Asuka tossed and turned around in her bed. After nearly a hour, it was
too much for Hikari, as the constant rumbling stopped her from gaining some sleep herself.
"What's wrong?"
"I can't sleep, isn't that obvious?"
"Why?" asked Hikari. She knew that there were more than enough reasons for Asuka to be irritated. She had
heard about Misato's breakdown, and that Asuka nearly died in the battle against the Terminator.
"I slept too long on those damned futons. Now its too soft for me."
The freckled girl giggled. This wasn't an answer she expected to hear. "Yep, they are too soft."
This statement was serious, she never slept in a western style bed before. She already feared the morning,
as her back would most likely be killing her. "But that's not the reason."
Asuka grumbled, then sat up. "No, it isn't."
"Then, what is it? Misato? Shinji? Me?"
"All of it." confessed Asuka.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
A silence ensued, before Asuka answered. "Yes."
"Then start talking."
Asuka told Hikari about Misato, the actions of her former guardian on this fateful day. How she broke down,
left them alone and without guidance on the battlefield. That she couldn't understand this, that she was
disappointed and felt abandoned. Asuka would never have admitted it to anyone beside Hikari, but she thought
of Misato as something akin to family, so the betrayal hurt even more.
"You need to understand that she didn't know what she was doing."
Asuka looked wide-eyed at Hikari. "What the hell do you mean? I heard her stupid orders!"
"She had withdrawal symptoms! Do you think its easy to stop drinking?"
"What would you know about that anyway?" demanded Asuka to know.
"More than I want to." came Hikari's grave reply. "After the death of our mother, father had a hard time.
Kodama took most of the chores, but he wasn't really able to cope with the loss. So he started drinking."
Asuka heard the hurt tone of Hikari and tried to stop her. "You didn't need to tell m..."
The freckled girl stopped her with a raised hand. "No secrets."
Asuka understood and listened.
"With drinking came mood-swings, later aggression. During one of his drinking binges, he hit Kodama. Hard
and often enough to send her into hospital. Next day, we were put into an orphanage while he was sent into
rehabilitation. We were four months there, until we were able to get home again.
Ever since then, he tried to be a good father, and he did it well. But that doesn't mean than Kodama ever
forgave him, or that I and Nozomi have forgotten it."
The German redhead didn't give a reply.
"Misato's breakdown was because of the same reason. It wasn't really her fault, as it wasn't my fathers.
Addicted people often do things that they never wanted to do. That's not an excuse, but it sets things
into proportion." Hikari concluded.
"And what should I do?"
"Wait some time, then go and visit her. Getting sober is hard, and she will need all help she can get."
Asuka nodded, looked then at Hikari. The sparse light from the glass front let her only see a dark silhouette
that sat on the bed, but a short glittering showed that Hikari shed tears over those sad memories.
Two days prior, she would have ignored it, as she knew no other way to deal with weak people. She still
wanted to do this, but if the message she received was right, she should start to act in another way
as soon as possible. After contemplating her options for some long seconds, she stood up and made her way
over to Hikari's bed, where she sat down and hugged the other girl.
They sat there for long moments. No words were spoken, no caresses or intimacies exchanged. They sat there,
content to not be alone, but having the support of each other.
It was a calm and serene scene that changed both considerably. Because they understood what Hikari had
already said. No secrets, no fear of being weak. They would stand together.
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After Shinji finally slept, Mana left the room and went to Ayanami's. She was sure that the pale girl wasn't
already asleep, and she needed to talk with her.
Without knocking, she entered, and was greeted with the sight of Rei laying in her bed, eyes wide open.
"We need to talk."
Rei sat up, which was the only answer.
"You don't trust me."
"No."
"Because I killed the Commander?"
"Yes."
"He deserved to die."
"Yes. But you kill easy. This makes you dangerous."
"Gendo killed way more people, yet you trusted him blindly."
"He was my creator."
"Maybe we can reach an agreement."
Rei looked at her visitor. "What agreement?"
"I have too many other things to do to along with constantly guarding Shinji. Can and will you help me?"
"Yes."
"We both know what is required to end the war. What do you think about it?"
"Why do you want to know that?"
"Because, if you don't like it, there are other ways." Mana explained.
"You want to give me a choice?" Rei asked emotionless. But contrary to her voice, she was in inner turmoil.
So far, she was always ordered, and now she was offered a choice.
"Yes. You know about your sisters?"
"Yes."
"They will be asked if they would help us in this war. As pilots too. One of them could take your place."
"We do not know if they are able to." Rei dead panned.
"But if they are, you'll have your choice."
Rei nodded.
"Another thing." continued Mana. "Given Shinji's reaction today, there is no way that he fulfills his duty
in this event. We need to do something about that."
"I will help."
Mana nodded. "That's all I can ask for." She made her way to the door, stopped before she opened it.
"I am not your enemy." Then she left the room.
Rei laid down again, her thoughts now in even greater turmoil.
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The embrace broke finally, and Hikari looked blushing away. "It's strange. So much happened in so little
time. And it started so bad."
"What do you mean?" asked Asuka.
"My message. It wasn't really friendly."
Asuka looked questioningly at the other girl.
"That was the only good part." explained Hikari fast. Hearing that answer, Asuka relaxed. "But everything
else was bad. It isn't funny to hear that all your dreams are ending in crap."
The German looked surprised at Hikari. She had never thought that the uptight class-rep would use such
language. "Why?"
"That Touji would go wrong is clear. And, I wasn't really surprised by this. He was for a long time my crush,
but nothing ever happened. We were already caught in stasis before the start of any kind of
relationship."
Asuka laughed as she heard this. "That's clear. He's as thick as a rock, and rocks don't move."
Hikari looked disapproving at the redhead. The darkness hid her nasty glare, so she had to take verbal
action. "Not funny." she warned, which made Asuka stop laughing. Then she continued.
"I dreamt of opening a cafe, which I did, in the other time. At first I worked like a horse, constantly
near a bankruptcy, then I hated the work pretty soon, but was caught in the thing no matter what.
Judgement day, the start of the war against the machines was for me a happy date, as it ended this miserable
existence, as the cafe was shredded, and the bank too. So I had nothing, which was better than having my
dream. I walked from Kyoto back to Tokyo3, where I joined NERV in the war against the machines. Where I
found you again. Great story, isn't it?"
Asuka fuzzed Hikari's hair, chuckling sad. "That's nothing."
The hollow sound of Asuka's voice sent shivers over Hikari's back. "What was in your message?"
Silence ensued for long minutes, until Asuka started to speak. "After being defeated again and again, I lost
the last battle too. But the medics were able to scramble my pieces together, so I didn't die. After long
rehabilitation, I moved again in with Misato and Shinji. Bakaboy had a slowly blossoming romance with Rei,
and naturally, I tried to compete against her. I lost again. He chose Rei, slept with her, impregnated her.
He proposed, and I snapped. Two days after the proposal, I raped him. After it, he ran away. A few hours
later, he was found. Dead. My fault. But nobody knew it, nobody beside me."
Hikari stared wide-eyed at her friend, silent. Unable to say anything, she waited for more.
"I moved then out from Misato's, but stayed in Tokyo3. Things calmed down after a while. Rei gave birth, but
we had no real contact. I was alone, fucked around, waited for something to happen. For years.
As the war against the machines begun, I was summoned back to NERV. But I was useless. Addicted to drugs,
they didn't sent me into a clinic, but threw me into a cell where they kept me for three months.
And the only one who gave a shit, was Rei. She was the only one who visited me. I raped her fiancee, killed
the father of her child, but she was there for me. She gave me the strength to gather myself together, and I
was enlisted to NERV. I started to train new pilots, and did the only thing I was proud of. A little girl, an
orphan, who trained for the war it would most likely have to fight. I took her in, trained her. I wasn't her
mother, but I gave her a home. That was the time when you came back. Only then, things went upward, made me
what I saw in the message, a woman that has found herself, that is confident in her abilities, and content
with her life. The guilt never went away, which is the only negative aspect, later. But that's a way I don't
want to go."
Tears made their way over both faces of the girls. "You don't need to." pointed Hikari out. "Mana is here,
things changed."
Asuka nodded. "Yes, they changed. The girl I raised came to help me."
Hikari's eyes widened again as she heard that.
"But this message wasn't the worst part of it."
"What was it?" Hikari asked.
"The worst part came later, hours later. As I thought over it. As I saw me doing all those things, as I
understood that I could do them as well. That's me, Hikari. What I cannot win, I will take forcefully.
No matter what."
Hikari hugged Asuka again, held her firm. "No, that's not you. You know what could happen, and you know
how to prevent it. It was just a possible future."
"You were the best part of the message, but will this change too?"
Hikari knew no answer to that question.
"Now you know everything. No secrets." Asuka finished. She backed a little off, looked Hikari in the eyes.
Only recognizable due to the glitter of tears, she looked in the darkness, hoped that she hadn't gone too
far. Slowly, she brought her face closer, placed her lips against Hikari's.
It wasn't a passionate kiss , nor was it a lust-ridden one. No tongues flinched out, no moans broke the
silence.
It was a question and a promise. For the future. And Hikari's answer was positive.
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On the next morning, while Shinji ate the first breakfast he didn't make in months, because it was Hikari's
day to cook, Kaji boarded a plane to the remnants of the former USA.
During Second Impact, both coastlines were wiped out, killing half of the country's population, and more
than 70 percent of its economy. Ever since then, religious loonies were wide spreading, and the international
politics of the former superpower gave it the byname 'Hillbillies with nukes'. Not even the strengthened UN
was willing to fight a war to remove those outdated, dirty weapons from them, as most other countries agreed
in their opinion that they would be stupid enough to use them, if such an attempt was made.
One of the biggest spokesperson of this country was Roddick, Wilfore, the man who held the meat production
of North America in his hands. Always babbling about god, playing holier than the pope, he was the first
member of SEELE who should meet his demise.
Kaji was in the best mood in a long time. He had an assignment that actually was his wildest dream come
true, and he would surely enjoy it. Mostly because it was so easy. He had detailed data about all security
systems, and where he could erase his target. Going over the date before he started his journey, he found
a very fitting way of ending Roddicks life. There was no reason to not have a little bit of fun.
Watching out of the window, he saw how the plane broke through the clouds and continued its way in the
eternal sunshine of the higher spheres.
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At the same time, Maya sat at the table, ate a delicious breakfast and had no clue what was going on.
While everyone seemed the same as yesterday, there were some underlying changes in the behavior of all of
them, that she felt more than seeing it.
Conversation was sparse, and consisted mostly of her and Mana, talking about some new technologic advancements
they would have to implement into the MAGI. The silence of the others grated on her nerves, so she was glad
as it was finally over, and the day started.
They made their way to the HQ together, which was now only a walk of fifteen minutes. At the gate, they
parted, and she went straight to her new domain, the MAGI super-computer.
Sitting behind a terminal, she sighed, and asked herself how it was possible that one of her greatest dreams
became stale so quick.
Sure, she had a convenient excuse, that it were her new living arrangements, and the fact that she was the
new guardian of the pilots, but that was only part of it. For the first time, she was the head of something.
No superior to lean on, no orders to follow. It was time to stand on her own feet, but the stress of all
the changes at once was overwhelming.
Hoping that things would getting better in the next few days, she started to work.
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The new routine for the pilots started on the training ground that was normally reserved for Section2
members. A cross-country course with artificial hindrances, a shooting range, and a modern VR-combat-
simulator were the most prominent features of this part of the geofront.
As they arrived on a small field, which was the center of the training ground, three NERV officers
awaited them. Two males and one female, clad in black training garb.
One of the males stepped forward.
"We will be your instructors during your advanced combat training. You will call us by 'One', 'Two'
and 'Three'. I am One, your physical trainer and close combat instructor."
The men nodded in the direction of the second male. "This is two. Tactics, strategy, ambushes.
And the lady is three, weapon training. You'll have two days a week with each of us. We are here
to train you as warriors. Not soldiers. Any questions?"
"What's the difference between a warrior and a soldier?" asked Shinji.
"Soldiers don't think. They are trained for their purpose, to fulfill it as well as possible. They
are part of a machine called Army. A warrior is not part of a machine. A warrior thinks for him- or
herself, and is trained to fight with all possibilities available. Tactics and strategy are giving
a foundation for advanced fighting, along with the other training, you should be able to fare better
in your fight against your enemies."
Shinji nodded, but Rei had a question too. "You are not members of NERV." she dead panned.
"That's correct. NERV officers are trained like soldiers, so they are not suited for the kind of training
you should receive. We were hired for this assignment, and while none of us ever anticipated to train some
kids, we will fulfill our job as well as possible to get our bonus. And you will play along, or we will
show you what pain means."
"Mercenaries." mumbled Asuka.
"And proud of it." stated Three coldly.
One gave them the training plan. "Monday is physical training, Thursday close-combat, both with me. Tuesday
is tactic and strategy, Friday ambush and other nice guerilla tactics, both with Two. Wednesday close combat
weapons, meaning knives, swords, lances, Saturday ranged weapons like pistols, assault and sniper rifles,
both with Three. You will come at 0700 in the morning, and training will last until 1400."
None of the three pilots was really happy with this turn of events, but they knew that they had no other
choice than to oblige to their new training regime.
"Training starts next Monday. That's all."
Hearing this, the pilots left the field and made their way back to the HQ, where they were scheduled for
some tests. Not synch or harmonics with the EVAs, but medical ones. This really wasn't their day.
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Three days later, on a plane that flew from Denver to Lima, Kaji read a newspaper and had a hard time to
not have a laughing fit. The title said all: 'Revenge of the cow'.
Considering the information he received from Mana, it was almost too easy to break into the poor security
systems and raid the data banks. The assassination was even easier, despite the fact that the fitting end was
harder to implement than an ordinary kill.
Roddick was a pompous asshole, and loved publicity more than everything else. So, it was impossible for him
to not be present at the opening of a new factory. A new robotic system killed the cows, sliced them apart
and packaged them in record time. The animals were heaved by a crane on a platform, where they were
killed before they were processed.
It was too tempting to not do it, at least for Kaji. So, he smuggled himself into the factory, and prepared
the chains that were used to hook the animals on the crane. It was easy to implant a small bomb, not bigger
than a fingernail. The rest was so easy, it was almost no fun at all.
During the presentation, Roddick stepped directly under the crane, to show how extraordinary save his
newest factory was. As this happened, Kaji pressed a button on a remote control, detonating the bomb.
And a large chunk of living meat landed exactly on Roddick.
Kaji had laughed for hours, and as he read the title of the local newspaper, he had another laughing fit on
his way to the airport. Yes, he definitely loved his assignment.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
They were strange days for Shinji. Learning about new weapons, and what abilities the next Angels possessed
would was surely useful, but hearing about upcoming events as if they were already past was strange.
Sure, he knew that this information came from the future, but knowing and accepting are completely different
kind of things. A truth that really haunted him these days.
Maya was quiet and withdrawn. She didn't tease them, nor ordered them around, which suited them well,
especially Asuka. But there was almost no interaction between the new guardian and the pilots. She would
give them their orders for their day, and that's it. He knew that she was his new guardian, which didn't
mean anything to him. The relationship hadn't changed from the time it was Misato's duty to be responsible
for him.
Asuka hadn't changed at all. Bossy, arrogant and egoist, she had often little clashes with Mana, which
surprisingly hadn't already led to violence. How Mana always managed to get Asuka riled up was surely fun
to see, especially because Asuka didn't use him to calm her temper anymore.
Now, he liked the German redhead much better than before. They even had real conversations for a few times,
where she managed to surprise him often with her intelligence and the way she looked at things.
He hoped that this would continue, as he was sure that they could be friends.
Hikari was more quiet. She cooked better than him, and she liked it as much as he did. Often it seemed as if
she was glued to Asuka, which became pretty fast teasing material for Mana, who constantly made jokes about
their closeness. Her latest joke was that she had asked if they wanted to take vacation on a particular
Greek island. Hikari blushed and looked embarrassed down, while Asuka exploded again. Shinji had no clue what
was meant with that, and he surely wouldn't ask Asuka.
He asked Mana to stop that, but the mahogany haired girl ignored this request. He didn't like to see Hikari
used as a means to anger Asuka. The freckled girl was nice and didn't deserve such a treatment. Now, that he
saw much more of her, he started to like her. So far, he thought that she was bossy and a control freak,
because of her behavior at school. Shinji had to admit that he never tried to look behind her facade as
class-rep, so it was his fault that he was blended with her sometimes rude facade, that he never realized
how nice she was underneath.
With Rei, it was quite the opposite way. He knew that she was strange, but some of her acts exceeded this
label by far. Still, this didn't surprise him.
She often had long sessions with Mana, where they talked about things he didn't understand. He knew that the
blue haired girl was much more involved with NERV than he was, so it didn't surprise him.
Rei's determination to help Mana was surprising. It was her who pointed out to him that the training was
necessary, and told him the reasons for it. And the fact that she mostly slept in his room, on a futon that
was placed between the two beds surprised him too. That she slept nude, not. If he didn't know better, he
would have sworn that Rei liked embarrassing him by parading around. She was so strange, and so beautiful.
Mana was another matter. He had no clue what to make of her. What was he to her? Was he merely a job, a
mission? A possible friend? He didn't know. The girl often teased him, and used his tendency to blush
as indicator if she was successful. That Rei helped her made it worse.
During the few days he already lived with her, he had to admit that, beside her lack of proper clothing, it
was pleasurably easy to live with her. She never made a mess, never insulted him, never acted impolite, beside
the teasing. Shinji had always expected that living with a girl would be strange, mysterious, something
completely different. Now that it happened, he was almost disappointed that it was so normal. At least mostly.
Because the most embarrassing minutes of his life happened just two days ago, and he was thankful to Asuka
that she saved him from the two 'perverted baka lady-hentais'.
Happy to have the room finally for some time alone, and with more than enough views to use for his
imagination, he gave in to his nature, and fulfilled a pleasurable and relieving action. He was in the middle
of doing it, as Mana stormed into the room to get a data-disc. Too shocked to react immediately, Mana had
two seconds to see what was going on.
"At least something looks normal." she commented dryly.
He shrieked and covered himself, embarrassed like never before. And what did Mana do? Made it worse, of
course.
"Finish it off, I want to make sure that you are really able to fulfill your little task."
His eyes bugged out, and he shook his head fiercely. At this point of time, Rei entered the room. His shriek
had alarmed her, so she wanted to make sure that everything was alright.
Mana explained to her what was happening, and what she wanted to see. Rei agreed with her logic and wanted
to look too. They were about to order him to continue, as Asuka wanted to know what was going on and came in.
Then, the redhead did something he would be ever grateful for. She smacked the two peeping girl a good one
and shushed them out of the room.
He had thought that was it, but Mana ensured that for his next medical evaluation, he would have to give a
peculiar example to ensure what she wanted to know at this particular event. That she smiled evilly at him
as she told him this little fact, wasn't very endearing.
She was as strange as Rei, and as good looking as her too. Still, considering the events in the last days,
he would have really liked if someone would have stopped the girl when her teasing became too evil.
And that's why he missed Misato so much. Sure, he knew that she was a drunk tease with slutty clothing, but
she never went too far. More important, she gave him a home, tried to support him, despite her own problems.
She would have stopped Mana, which wasn't possible anymore.
Well, next monday, after the training, he would go and visit her. Before, nobody was allowed to, but then,
he would bring her something to eat, and talk with her. Maybe she could help him to cope with Mana.
He really missed her.
Only a few days, and so many things had changed his view of the persons that were closest to him. Each night
he asked himself what the future would bring. He looked forward to it, but feared it as well.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
His second target was even easier. Alvarada, prime minister of the South American Federation, known
for his love of coffee, had expensive and modern security technology, but almost no living personal in
his immediate surroundings. Robots and sensors were surely flashy looking and effective, but needed, like
everything else, orders to follow.
All security measures were linked with a Cray Impact Supercomputer. And this fell victim to the MAGI.
The robots still patrolled the area, ready to kill any intruders, but Kaji was listed as trusted advisor
of the prime minister.
The MAGI stole all data from the computers, and Kaji slipped in and made sure that man would meet his fitting
demise. Kaji was not interested in being nice, but he had his style. And there was no better way of killing
Alvarada than using what he loved the most.
On the next day, newspapers were full with the story about the poisoned coffee the prime minister consumed.
Kaji laughed again, on his way to the next target.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
On Sunday, Shinji decided to go to the lake, where he simply wanted to relax, far away from Rei and Mana.
He sat under a tree and read a book, as he heard two voices coming closer. A short look confirmed that it
were Hikari and Asuka. The German girl spotted him, left Hikari and came closer.
"Whatcha doing?" she asked, despite the fact that it was obvious.
"Reading."
"What?"
"A science-fiction. Weird, but good."
Asuka raised an eyebrow. "I'd never thought that you would read Sci-Fi." That said, she sat down beside him.
"And what are you really doing?" she asked.
Shinji blushed. "Hiding from Mana and Rei." he admitted.
The redhead chuckled. "Afraid they'll flash you again?"
He nodded. Both girls did this regularly, even when Asuka was around. Shinji always expected an outburst
from her, but strangely it never happened.
"Your own fault."
Shinji looked disbelieving at her. "MY fault?"
"Sure. If you wouldn't nearly faint all the time, they would stop. I think." The last part, she added as
afterthought. Contrary to Shinji, Asuka knew very well why the two girls tormented the shy boy with things
any other male would die for.
"Do you at least understand why they are doing it?"
"Yes. Rei's child will end the war, and I should be the father."
"You know how a child is made?"
Shinji's eyes widened. Now he understood the obvious reason.
"Looks like you finally understand." continued Asuka.
"Yes." answered Shinji. "Thanks to you."
Asuka smiled at him and stood up.
"Asuka, why are you so nice to me?" It took Shinji a lot of courage to ask this question, but he really
wanted an answer.
Her face clouded over. "I have my reasons." she replied. "Don't you like it?" she asked playfully.
"Of course I do. And I'd like to be your friend."
"Doting at other women?" demanded Asuka to know with mocked seriousness.
"No.No.No. But...." Shinji shook his head frantically to deny this accusation.
"Calm down baka. I have nothing against a more friendly relationship with you." That said, she started to
walk off.
"Asuka?"
She stopped. "Yes?"
"Tomorrow after training, I'm going to visit Misato. Do you want to come along?"
She shook only her head, while walking away.
Shinji was happy that he'd finally come to good terms with Asuka. That she was disappointed with Misato was
something he was able to understand. She needed more time to calm down.
Sighing, he went back to his lecture, where the hero had even more problems than he himself.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
As Shinji entered the hospital, he already felt upcoming dread. The Itomasu Reha-center for addicts looked
more like a prison than a clinic. It laid on the outskirts of Tokyo3, far away to not be part of the city,
but close enough to reach it with a train in less than 20 minutes.
The area was enclosed with a chain link wall, the building itself had only two stories and was made of
concrete. Its grey appearance looked dull and lifeless.
He entered and was confronted with white walls and hard neon lights. At the reception, he asked for Misato.
An unfriendly nurse told him to go to room 2231 on the second floor, west wing. They also confiscated the
food he brought along.
Following those instructions, Shinji made his way through the clinic. The doors were thick, small windows
to be able to look inside the rooms were made of thick security glass. A few patients, who were running
around like zombies didn't increase his liking for this place either.
The entire environment grated on his nerves, so it was no wonder that he took a wrong turn end ended in the
wrong corridor. Lost, not knowing where to go, he had to ask one of the patients for direction.
He went to a young woman and asked her. As he looked in her face, he was shocked to see that she was most
likely younger then he himself, yet her eyes betrayed an age that exceeded that of a normal lifespan.
In a broken voice, she told him how he had to go, then thanked him for talking with her.
This short episode shocked him deeply, as he never thought that such young people fell victim to drugs too.
Understanding that this fate can hit everyone, even people that were as young as he, was branded into his
young brain.
Shinji found Misato's room and knocked. After receiving no answer, he hesitatingly opened the door and walked
inside.
Misato saw him and smiled at him, while Shinji had to do his best to not run away. To say that he was shocked
by her appearance would be the same to say as Asuka is mild tempered, or Rei not really talkative. A big
understatement.
Her long, purple hair was a tangled mess, her skin nearly as pale as Rei's, her chocolate brown eyes looked
dull and lifeless. The hospital gown she wore left little to the imagination, which she didn't mind. But not
because she wanted to tease him, but because she had obviously much bigger problems than her clothes.
Shinji asked her if she was ok, and received a short answer that she was alright. Her few motions were abrupt
and erratic while she talked, then, a sudden silence settled over the room.
She looked at him long and intensely, stood up from her bed and walked to him. Reaching with her right hand
for him, she hesitated and asked: "May I?"
Shinji didn't understand, but nodded nonetheless. Misato laid her hand on his left shoulder, breathed sharply
in.
"It's really you. You are real." she said unbelieving, then took him into a strong hug and started sobbing.
Originally, he had came here to get some support and some pointers how he should deal with Mana and Rei.
Instead, it was Misato who needed support. He wanted to run away, leave this sterile looking, foreboding
place, leave this woman who was his guardian, yet was so different that he felt fear.
But he couldn't. So often, he ran away, so often, he took the easy way. Now confronted with a situation
straight out of a nightmare, he didn't run. Misato needed him. More than ever. And he would be there for her.
She gave him a home, showed that life was more than learning and obeying orders. Sure, she often contradicted
herself, but it was the first glimpse of life he ever had. He was grateful for that. So, he couldn't simply
run away.
Instead, he encircled her with his arms and caressed her hair softly. Slowly, he directed her back to the
bed, where they sat down.
After a long time, at least in Shinji's opinion, Misato started to mumbling. At first, he didn't understand
a word, then he started to understand. She apologized for her actions during the battle, but mostly, it was
the reciting of the same sentence. "I'm so alone."
This sent shivers down his spine, and he held her even closer. He answered "You are not alone. I'm here."
again and again, but never knew if she really heard him.
Evening dawn set in as Misato fell into sleep. He laid her fully in the bed and drew the blanket over her
body. After a last caress over her head, he went to the small computer that stood in one of the corners.
There he placed a message for Misato. The message that he would come back tomorrow. He couldn't write a
simple note, as all pens, pencils and other pointy objects were not allowed. Then he left the room,
rushed out of the hospital. He didn't want to spend more time than necessary in this building, but he would
come back as he wrote her.
Shinji had no clue why he was so determined to not leave Misato alone. Were it his own experiences with
loneliness, or the pain he felt as he saw Misato in this state, he didn't know. He only knew that he would
help her as best as he was able to.
Caught in those thoughts, he made his way back to Tokyo3 and the geofront, escorted by two Section2 officers.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
Preread by Ezstarius
Useful comments and encouragement to write by Kuracao
Domo arigato.
Chapter 4 - Living together
The new quarter was quite spacious. Behind the door was a little room just for welcoming guests, then came
a corridor that led to the large living room. Or more like a living hall. Compared to standard rooms, it was
enormous, with a length of over 10 meters, and four meters wide. Left and right to the corridor led two
small doors to the bathrooms. Both sides of the room had two doors, each one led to another room.
The wall opposite the entrance was entirely glass, and gave a great overlook of the lake inside the geofront.
A glass door led outside to a large terrace, which had a large table, so it was the eating place.
A part of the terrace was separated with a working plate, and parted the open kitchen from the eating area.
As Shinji saw this, he had to admit that it made a lot of sense. Rain was highly unlikely in the underground,
the open cooking area hindered the cooking smell from flooding the rest of the luxurious condo.
Each of the four rooms also had a glass front, letting as much light as possible inside.
Shinji wasn't the only one who was pleased with their new quarters.
"Finally those fuckwits understood what kind of quarter a pilot like me deserves."
Shinji didn't reply, but thought that Asuka was surely right. Compared to the cramped insides of Misato's
apartment, this was surely luxury class. Still, he would miss her. He knew that there would have been
enough place for Misato as well, and he hoped that she would move in with them after her therapy.
Fuyutsuki already told him where he was able to visit her, and when.
"Now, who gets which room?" asked the German redhead, and Maya only shrugged as answer. Grinning, Asuka
marched to one of the doors, and placed a sticker on it. It showed a cute little demon, and the text was
simple: 'Demon's lair - enter at your own risk'.
Shinji chuckled as this sticker was a present from Kensuke and Touji. Originally intended to piss Asuka
off, Hikari managed somehow to stop Asuka from maiming them, and taking it as nice joke. How the freckled
girl managed this was beyond Shinji's comprehension, but the result was surely funny.
He thought over which room he would prefer, as Mana grabbed his hand and dragged him into another room.
With a swift motion, she placed the sign he got from Misato on the door, making his decision unnecessary.
Shrugging, he entered. No wonder that Asuka was so fast with her decision, and that Mana made it so fast
as well. Their possessions had already arrived, so the rooms were de facto assigned.
Starting with the unpacking of his belongings, he was in for another surprise. Shinji knew that he was good
with household chores and that he was very well organized. But seeing how Mana unpacked her uniforms and other
belongings within five minutes, placing them perfectly outlined into her locker and thus finishing her
moving in, shocked him. He needed four times longer, and had not many more possessions than the girl from
the future.
The room itself was big, the furniture high class. Two western style beds stood on each side, accompanied
by a locker and a small desk. Beside the door stood an entertainment center with TV, DVD and video games.
At each desk was a small computer, along with a stack of PC-games.
Finished with unpacking, he went again into the kitchen, to see what the fridge had inside.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
After Asuka saw that all her stuff from Misato's apartment was in one of the rooms, she quickly declared it
to be her own. The usage of the sticker was a little tribute to Hikari. If she thought that the sticker was
funny, she would have to live in the demon lair as well.
She was in the middle of unpacking, as the door opened and Hikari came in.
"Hello."
"Hi." greeted Asuka back.
"So we are living here?"
"Yep. In the demon lair."
Hikari chuckled as she heard this. "Fitting."
Asuka raised an eyebrow as she heard this, but didn't comment on this strange statement. Hikari started to
unpack too, they worked beside each other, without conversation, but still content with the presence of the
other.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
Rei had a room for her alone. She was as fast as Mana with her unpacking, and then sat down on one of the beds
and thought over this new situation. She understood that the relocation was necessary, yet she wasn't happy
with it. It disrupted her ritualized normal life, which disturbed her. There were too many changes happening,
in a fast too rapid succession.
Letting out a small sigh, she left the room. Shinji's room was easy to find, without knocking, she went
inside. But beside Mana, who sat in front of the computer and worked on something, nobody was there.
"Shinji's in the kitchen." the redheaded soldier said without looking in Rei's direction. Wordlessly, Rei left
the room, as an overjoyed shout hallowed through the entire condo.
"Food! Real Food!"
Still going at her normal pace, a red blur whizzed around her into the kitchen, came to a rapid stop in front
of the fridge.
"And no beer." stated Asuka dryly, but with a satisfied tone in her voice.
As Rei saw that Shinji was happy, she felt an unfamiliar sensation. A strange kind of peace settled upon her,
which she didn't understand. What was that feeling? She would have to ask Shinji later. Unseen, she went back
into her room, where she waited for permission to rest.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
Unpacking her belongings, Maya had no clue what she should do. Cursing Misato for her bad timing, she was
now stuck with a duty she had no clue of accomplishing. Her contact with the pilots has been very limited
so far, she didn't know anything about them. Shinji and Rei were withdrawn and shy, Asuka a loudmouth, and
Mana was dangerous. That was it.
Originally, Misato should have moved in with them. She should have bonded the pilots closer together, forming
the new team. She herself should only have a supporting role. Now, she would have to do all of this by herself.
That meant she needed to spend some time with the pilots, to get to know them, in addition to her new duties.
Sleep would be getting very rare.
Hearing the commotion about the food, she shook her head sadly. How Katsuragi could be so low in her personal
life was beyond her comprehension.
Well, before they could rest, there was one last thing to do. Ritsuko gave her the advice to assign the
chores as soon as possible, so she went into the main room, and called them all together.
"Time to assign the chores." Maya declared, which was immediately met with Asuka's reply. "Baka-boy will
handle them."
Shinji gruffed indignantly, but didn't protest otherwise.
"No he won't. As far as I know, he can cook, and Hikari too. Is that right?" Maya asked the freckled girl.
"Yes." answered Hikari.
"Good. Then you two will be the cooks. I and Rei will be doing the laundry, Asuka and Mana, you two will do
the cleaning."
"Menial tasks are for males!" protested Asuka immediately.
Hikari shot her friend a dark look for that comment. But before she was able to give a reply, Mana made
one.
"Since everyone beside the little princess isn't complaining, she sees all of us males. Say, are you in so
much need that you want to live only with males?"
"WHAT?" shrieked Asuka.
"Why? Isn't one boy in your vicinity not enough? Do you need a gang-bang this heftily?" Mana added grinning.
Everyone beside Rei blushed, Asuka most of all. Her skin tone shot beyond the classical 'angry red', into the
sparely seen 'bloodshed red'.
"Most likely." said the calm voice of Rei, focusing all attention to the blue-haired girl. "She often said to
Ikari-kun that a boy isn't good enough for her. Maybe more than one are sufficient."
All gaped open-mouthed at Rei, only Mana doubled over in laughter.
Seeing that there was no way she could win, because killing Rei would be a bad idea, Asuka huffed. "Fine.
I'll clean." That said, she went back into her room and slammed the door forcefully.
It took Maya some time before she found her ability to speak again, then she wished everyone a good night and
went into her room. This was too weird for her taste.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
After she sent Shinji showering, Mana went again to the computer and went over more data about the upcoming
Angels. Now that she had to take command during the battles, it was extremely important to be as well
prepared as possible.
Still, she hoped that her new roommate was finished soon, as she needed the refreshment of a cold shower.
At least she wasn't sleepy, despite the turmoil on this day. Being trained as soldier surely had some
advantages.
One of her rare true smiles crept over her face, as she recalled the incident with Asuka. She surely had
a lot to learn, especially when it was better to keep the mouth shut.
It was easy to see in her the woman she became later, yet she had a long way to go. Still, she liked her.
It was the Asuka in her time line who trained her, whom she'd learned everything from. She never knew what
happened to her parents, for her, Asuka was her mother. Now confronted with a situation where she had to train
the volatile German redhead, she found it more than strange. Well, she could only hope to show her as much
patience and understanding her Asuka showed her. But first, she needed to be fit into the team.
While this stage wasn't nice for Asuka, it was better her pride was broken by her, than by Arael.
Shinji entered the room, wished her good night and fell on his bed. Without bothering to reply, she marched
to the bathroom.
The cold shower helped her brain to cope with the events of this long day. Katsuragi's performance was
more than bad, not only for the day, but for all further actions as well. The fact that now Ibuki was
solely responsible for the pilots made the further plans more delicate than they already were.
While the freshly promoted bridge-bunny would surely give her best, she didn't know the pilots as well
as Katsuragi did.
Finished with her shower, she exited the bath and went back into her room, where she sat again down at her
computer screen. Four hours of sleep were enough for her, so she could use the time to do some work.
A surprised gasp from Shinji caught her attention, especially as the boy nearly jumped out of the bed and
hit his head against the wall. She looked at him and saw his shocked expression, but didn't understand why.
Only as he averted his eyes and looked on the floor, she understood.
Like she did back at home, she hadn't bother to cloth herself fully. Especially because she used to live
in a much cooler environment, the heat was unwelcome, so she wore only her panties, and nothing else.
Sure, she was a nice sight, but not a reason for panic.
Mana groaned as she understood why he reacted this way. He was much more shy than she had ever feared.
Shinji had obviously no clue about anything concerning the female sex. She sighed. Just great.
He was their hope for a real Nephilim? But nearly faints just because he sees a pair of tits?
Her mission just got even more complicated.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
Rei had the room beside Shinji's. Not only because her baggage was there, but she would have taken it
anyway. It was her duty to protect Ikari-kun, so this would be the best choice anyway.
She lay on her bed and thought of the events during this day, as a loud bump caught her attention. The
sound came definitely from Ikari-kuns room.
Not trusting Mana to keep him safe, she immediately stood up and went hastily to his room. She opened the
door and went inside, only to be confronted with a rather odd scene.
Contrary to some of the scenarios that ran through her mind, he wasn't in danger. Mana sat at the computer
and worked, while Shinji looked at the floor, with a tomato-like face.
He looked shortly at her, only to get even redder before he looked again at he floor.
"Is he always like this?" asked Mana.
Rei didn't understand the question, so she tilted her head questioningly at the side.
"Is he always so bashful when he sees some skin from a girl."
Rei was unsure what Mana meant. He surely saw skin of girls, there were none running around in ABC-suits.
It took her some seconds before the statement made sense. Shinji's behavior, along with Mana's lack
of clothing cleared the situation up.
She recounted her only occurrence where she saw Shinji in a similar situation, then she answered.
"Yes."
"Aha. What are you doing here anyway?"
"Protecting Ikari-kun."
"From what? My lack of clothing?"
"If necessary."
Mana chuckled at this answer. "I am more clothed than you." She pointed at Rei's bald sex. "I wear at least
panties."
This was truth, but she saw clothing as unnecessary. Which made her prior statement look dumb.
"He needs to get used to it anyway." Rei stated calmy, earning an approving nod from the other girl.
After this, she went back to her own room.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
On the other side of the condo, Asuka tossed and turned around in her bed. After nearly a hour, it was
too much for Hikari, as the constant rumbling stopped her from gaining some sleep herself.
"What's wrong?"
"I can't sleep, isn't that obvious?"
"Why?" asked Hikari. She knew that there were more than enough reasons for Asuka to be irritated. She had
heard about Misato's breakdown, and that Asuka nearly died in the battle against the Terminator.
"I slept too long on those damned futons. Now its too soft for me."
The freckled girl giggled. This wasn't an answer she expected to hear. "Yep, they are too soft."
This statement was serious, she never slept in a western style bed before. She already feared the morning,
as her back would most likely be killing her. "But that's not the reason."
Asuka grumbled, then sat up. "No, it isn't."
"Then, what is it? Misato? Shinji? Me?"
"All of it." confessed Asuka.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
A silence ensued, before Asuka answered. "Yes."
"Then start talking."
Asuka told Hikari about Misato, the actions of her former guardian on this fateful day. How she broke down,
left them alone and without guidance on the battlefield. That she couldn't understand this, that she was
disappointed and felt abandoned. Asuka would never have admitted it to anyone beside Hikari, but she thought
of Misato as something akin to family, so the betrayal hurt even more.
"You need to understand that she didn't know what she was doing."
Asuka looked wide-eyed at Hikari. "What the hell do you mean? I heard her stupid orders!"
"She had withdrawal symptoms! Do you think its easy to stop drinking?"
"What would you know about that anyway?" demanded Asuka to know.
"More than I want to." came Hikari's grave reply. "After the death of our mother, father had a hard time.
Kodama took most of the chores, but he wasn't really able to cope with the loss. So he started drinking."
Asuka heard the hurt tone of Hikari and tried to stop her. "You didn't need to tell m..."
The freckled girl stopped her with a raised hand. "No secrets."
Asuka understood and listened.
"With drinking came mood-swings, later aggression. During one of his drinking binges, he hit Kodama. Hard
and often enough to send her into hospital. Next day, we were put into an orphanage while he was sent into
rehabilitation. We were four months there, until we were able to get home again.
Ever since then, he tried to be a good father, and he did it well. But that doesn't mean than Kodama ever
forgave him, or that I and Nozomi have forgotten it."
The German redhead didn't give a reply.
"Misato's breakdown was because of the same reason. It wasn't really her fault, as it wasn't my fathers.
Addicted people often do things that they never wanted to do. That's not an excuse, but it sets things
into proportion." Hikari concluded.
"And what should I do?"
"Wait some time, then go and visit her. Getting sober is hard, and she will need all help she can get."
Asuka nodded, looked then at Hikari. The sparse light from the glass front let her only see a dark silhouette
that sat on the bed, but a short glittering showed that Hikari shed tears over those sad memories.
Two days prior, she would have ignored it, as she knew no other way to deal with weak people. She still
wanted to do this, but if the message she received was right, she should start to act in another way
as soon as possible. After contemplating her options for some long seconds, she stood up and made her way
over to Hikari's bed, where she sat down and hugged the other girl.
They sat there for long moments. No words were spoken, no caresses or intimacies exchanged. They sat there,
content to not be alone, but having the support of each other.
It was a calm and serene scene that changed both considerably. Because they understood what Hikari had
already said. No secrets, no fear of being weak. They would stand together.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
After Shinji finally slept, Mana left the room and went to Ayanami's. She was sure that the pale girl wasn't
already asleep, and she needed to talk with her.
Without knocking, she entered, and was greeted with the sight of Rei laying in her bed, eyes wide open.
"We need to talk."
Rei sat up, which was the only answer.
"You don't trust me."
"No."
"Because I killed the Commander?"
"Yes."
"He deserved to die."
"Yes. But you kill easy. This makes you dangerous."
"Gendo killed way more people, yet you trusted him blindly."
"He was my creator."
"Maybe we can reach an agreement."
Rei looked at her visitor. "What agreement?"
"I have too many other things to do to along with constantly guarding Shinji. Can and will you help me?"
"Yes."
"We both know what is required to end the war. What do you think about it?"
"Why do you want to know that?"
"Because, if you don't like it, there are other ways." Mana explained.
"You want to give me a choice?" Rei asked emotionless. But contrary to her voice, she was in inner turmoil.
So far, she was always ordered, and now she was offered a choice.
"Yes. You know about your sisters?"
"Yes."
"They will be asked if they would help us in this war. As pilots too. One of them could take your place."
"We do not know if they are able to." Rei dead panned.
"But if they are, you'll have your choice."
Rei nodded.
"Another thing." continued Mana. "Given Shinji's reaction today, there is no way that he fulfills his duty
in this event. We need to do something about that."
"I will help."
Mana nodded. "That's all I can ask for." She made her way to the door, stopped before she opened it.
"I am not your enemy." Then she left the room.
Rei laid down again, her thoughts now in even greater turmoil.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
The embrace broke finally, and Hikari looked blushing away. "It's strange. So much happened in so little
time. And it started so bad."
"What do you mean?" asked Asuka.
"My message. It wasn't really friendly."
Asuka looked questioningly at the other girl.
"That was the only good part." explained Hikari fast. Hearing that answer, Asuka relaxed. "But everything
else was bad. It isn't funny to hear that all your dreams are ending in crap."
The German looked surprised at Hikari. She had never thought that the uptight class-rep would use such
language. "Why?"
"That Touji would go wrong is clear. And, I wasn't really surprised by this. He was for a long time my crush,
but nothing ever happened. We were already caught in stasis before the start of any kind of
relationship."
Asuka laughed as she heard this. "That's clear. He's as thick as a rock, and rocks don't move."
Hikari looked disapproving at the redhead. The darkness hid her nasty glare, so she had to take verbal
action. "Not funny." she warned, which made Asuka stop laughing. Then she continued.
"I dreamt of opening a cafe, which I did, in the other time. At first I worked like a horse, constantly
near a bankruptcy, then I hated the work pretty soon, but was caught in the thing no matter what.
Judgement day, the start of the war against the machines was for me a happy date, as it ended this miserable
existence, as the cafe was shredded, and the bank too. So I had nothing, which was better than having my
dream. I walked from Kyoto back to Tokyo3, where I joined NERV in the war against the machines. Where I
found you again. Great story, isn't it?"
Asuka fuzzed Hikari's hair, chuckling sad. "That's nothing."
The hollow sound of Asuka's voice sent shivers over Hikari's back. "What was in your message?"
Silence ensued for long minutes, until Asuka started to speak. "After being defeated again and again, I lost
the last battle too. But the medics were able to scramble my pieces together, so I didn't die. After long
rehabilitation, I moved again in with Misato and Shinji. Bakaboy had a slowly blossoming romance with Rei,
and naturally, I tried to compete against her. I lost again. He chose Rei, slept with her, impregnated her.
He proposed, and I snapped. Two days after the proposal, I raped him. After it, he ran away. A few hours
later, he was found. Dead. My fault. But nobody knew it, nobody beside me."
Hikari stared wide-eyed at her friend, silent. Unable to say anything, she waited for more.
"I moved then out from Misato's, but stayed in Tokyo3. Things calmed down after a while. Rei gave birth, but
we had no real contact. I was alone, fucked around, waited for something to happen. For years.
As the war against the machines begun, I was summoned back to NERV. But I was useless. Addicted to drugs,
they didn't sent me into a clinic, but threw me into a cell where they kept me for three months.
And the only one who gave a shit, was Rei. She was the only one who visited me. I raped her fiancee, killed
the father of her child, but she was there for me. She gave me the strength to gather myself together, and I
was enlisted to NERV. I started to train new pilots, and did the only thing I was proud of. A little girl, an
orphan, who trained for the war it would most likely have to fight. I took her in, trained her. I wasn't her
mother, but I gave her a home. That was the time when you came back. Only then, things went upward, made me
what I saw in the message, a woman that has found herself, that is confident in her abilities, and content
with her life. The guilt never went away, which is the only negative aspect, later. But that's a way I don't
want to go."
Tears made their way over both faces of the girls. "You don't need to." pointed Hikari out. "Mana is here,
things changed."
Asuka nodded. "Yes, they changed. The girl I raised came to help me."
Hikari's eyes widened again as she heard that.
"But this message wasn't the worst part of it."
"What was it?" Hikari asked.
"The worst part came later, hours later. As I thought over it. As I saw me doing all those things, as I
understood that I could do them as well. That's me, Hikari. What I cannot win, I will take forcefully.
No matter what."
Hikari hugged Asuka again, held her firm. "No, that's not you. You know what could happen, and you know
how to prevent it. It was just a possible future."
"You were the best part of the message, but will this change too?"
Hikari knew no answer to that question.
"Now you know everything. No secrets." Asuka finished. She backed a little off, looked Hikari in the eyes.
Only recognizable due to the glitter of tears, she looked in the darkness, hoped that she hadn't gone too
far. Slowly, she brought her face closer, placed her lips against Hikari's.
It wasn't a passionate kiss , nor was it a lust-ridden one. No tongues flinched out, no moans broke the
silence.
It was a question and a promise. For the future. And Hikari's answer was positive.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
On the next morning, while Shinji ate the first breakfast he didn't make in months, because it was Hikari's
day to cook, Kaji boarded a plane to the remnants of the former USA.
During Second Impact, both coastlines were wiped out, killing half of the country's population, and more
than 70 percent of its economy. Ever since then, religious loonies were wide spreading, and the international
politics of the former superpower gave it the byname 'Hillbillies with nukes'. Not even the strengthened UN
was willing to fight a war to remove those outdated, dirty weapons from them, as most other countries agreed
in their opinion that they would be stupid enough to use them, if such an attempt was made.
One of the biggest spokesperson of this country was Roddick, Wilfore, the man who held the meat production
of North America in his hands. Always babbling about god, playing holier than the pope, he was the first
member of SEELE who should meet his demise.
Kaji was in the best mood in a long time. He had an assignment that actually was his wildest dream come
true, and he would surely enjoy it. Mostly because it was so easy. He had detailed data about all security
systems, and where he could erase his target. Going over the date before he started his journey, he found
a very fitting way of ending Roddicks life. There was no reason to not have a little bit of fun.
Watching out of the window, he saw how the plane broke through the clouds and continued its way in the
eternal sunshine of the higher spheres.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
At the same time, Maya sat at the table, ate a delicious breakfast and had no clue what was going on.
While everyone seemed the same as yesterday, there were some underlying changes in the behavior of all of
them, that she felt more than seeing it.
Conversation was sparse, and consisted mostly of her and Mana, talking about some new technologic advancements
they would have to implement into the MAGI. The silence of the others grated on her nerves, so she was glad
as it was finally over, and the day started.
They made their way to the HQ together, which was now only a walk of fifteen minutes. At the gate, they
parted, and she went straight to her new domain, the MAGI super-computer.
Sitting behind a terminal, she sighed, and asked herself how it was possible that one of her greatest dreams
became stale so quick.
Sure, she had a convenient excuse, that it were her new living arrangements, and the fact that she was the
new guardian of the pilots, but that was only part of it. For the first time, she was the head of something.
No superior to lean on, no orders to follow. It was time to stand on her own feet, but the stress of all
the changes at once was overwhelming.
Hoping that things would getting better in the next few days, she started to work.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
The new routine for the pilots started on the training ground that was normally reserved for Section2
members. A cross-country course with artificial hindrances, a shooting range, and a modern VR-combat-
simulator were the most prominent features of this part of the geofront.
As they arrived on a small field, which was the center of the training ground, three NERV officers
awaited them. Two males and one female, clad in black training garb.
One of the males stepped forward.
"We will be your instructors during your advanced combat training. You will call us by 'One', 'Two'
and 'Three'. I am One, your physical trainer and close combat instructor."
The men nodded in the direction of the second male. "This is two. Tactics, strategy, ambushes.
And the lady is three, weapon training. You'll have two days a week with each of us. We are here
to train you as warriors. Not soldiers. Any questions?"
"What's the difference between a warrior and a soldier?" asked Shinji.
"Soldiers don't think. They are trained for their purpose, to fulfill it as well as possible. They
are part of a machine called Army. A warrior is not part of a machine. A warrior thinks for him- or
herself, and is trained to fight with all possibilities available. Tactics and strategy are giving
a foundation for advanced fighting, along with the other training, you should be able to fare better
in your fight against your enemies."
Shinji nodded, but Rei had a question too. "You are not members of NERV." she dead panned.
"That's correct. NERV officers are trained like soldiers, so they are not suited for the kind of training
you should receive. We were hired for this assignment, and while none of us ever anticipated to train some
kids, we will fulfill our job as well as possible to get our bonus. And you will play along, or we will
show you what pain means."
"Mercenaries." mumbled Asuka.
"And proud of it." stated Three coldly.
One gave them the training plan. "Monday is physical training, Thursday close-combat, both with me. Tuesday
is tactic and strategy, Friday ambush and other nice guerilla tactics, both with Two. Wednesday close combat
weapons, meaning knives, swords, lances, Saturday ranged weapons like pistols, assault and sniper rifles,
both with Three. You will come at 0700 in the morning, and training will last until 1400."
None of the three pilots was really happy with this turn of events, but they knew that they had no other
choice than to oblige to their new training regime.
"Training starts next Monday. That's all."
Hearing this, the pilots left the field and made their way back to the HQ, where they were scheduled for
some tests. Not synch or harmonics with the EVAs, but medical ones. This really wasn't their day.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
Three days later, on a plane that flew from Denver to Lima, Kaji read a newspaper and had a hard time to
not have a laughing fit. The title said all: 'Revenge of the cow'.
Considering the information he received from Mana, it was almost too easy to break into the poor security
systems and raid the data banks. The assassination was even easier, despite the fact that the fitting end was
harder to implement than an ordinary kill.
Roddick was a pompous asshole, and loved publicity more than everything else. So, it was impossible for him
to not be present at the opening of a new factory. A new robotic system killed the cows, sliced them apart
and packaged them in record time. The animals were heaved by a crane on a platform, where they were
killed before they were processed.
It was too tempting to not do it, at least for Kaji. So, he smuggled himself into the factory, and prepared
the chains that were used to hook the animals on the crane. It was easy to implant a small bomb, not bigger
than a fingernail. The rest was so easy, it was almost no fun at all.
During the presentation, Roddick stepped directly under the crane, to show how extraordinary save his
newest factory was. As this happened, Kaji pressed a button on a remote control, detonating the bomb.
And a large chunk of living meat landed exactly on Roddick.
Kaji had laughed for hours, and as he read the title of the local newspaper, he had another laughing fit on
his way to the airport. Yes, he definitely loved his assignment.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
They were strange days for Shinji. Learning about new weapons, and what abilities the next Angels possessed
would was surely useful, but hearing about upcoming events as if they were already past was strange.
Sure, he knew that this information came from the future, but knowing and accepting are completely different
kind of things. A truth that really haunted him these days.
Maya was quiet and withdrawn. She didn't tease them, nor ordered them around, which suited them well,
especially Asuka. But there was almost no interaction between the new guardian and the pilots. She would
give them their orders for their day, and that's it. He knew that she was his new guardian, which didn't
mean anything to him. The relationship hadn't changed from the time it was Misato's duty to be responsible
for him.
Asuka hadn't changed at all. Bossy, arrogant and egoist, she had often little clashes with Mana, which
surprisingly hadn't already led to violence. How Mana always managed to get Asuka riled up was surely fun
to see, especially because Asuka didn't use him to calm her temper anymore.
Now, he liked the German redhead much better than before. They even had real conversations for a few times,
where she managed to surprise him often with her intelligence and the way she looked at things.
He hoped that this would continue, as he was sure that they could be friends.
Hikari was more quiet. She cooked better than him, and she liked it as much as he did. Often it seemed as if
she was glued to Asuka, which became pretty fast teasing material for Mana, who constantly made jokes about
their closeness. Her latest joke was that she had asked if they wanted to take vacation on a particular
Greek island. Hikari blushed and looked embarrassed down, while Asuka exploded again. Shinji had no clue what
was meant with that, and he surely wouldn't ask Asuka.
He asked Mana to stop that, but the mahogany haired girl ignored this request. He didn't like to see Hikari
used as a means to anger Asuka. The freckled girl was nice and didn't deserve such a treatment. Now, that he
saw much more of her, he started to like her. So far, he thought that she was bossy and a control freak,
because of her behavior at school. Shinji had to admit that he never tried to look behind her facade as
class-rep, so it was his fault that he was blended with her sometimes rude facade, that he never realized
how nice she was underneath.
With Rei, it was quite the opposite way. He knew that she was strange, but some of her acts exceeded this
label by far. Still, this didn't surprise him.
She often had long sessions with Mana, where they talked about things he didn't understand. He knew that the
blue haired girl was much more involved with NERV than he was, so it didn't surprise him.
Rei's determination to help Mana was surprising. It was her who pointed out to him that the training was
necessary, and told him the reasons for it. And the fact that she mostly slept in his room, on a futon that
was placed between the two beds surprised him too. That she slept nude, not. If he didn't know better, he
would have sworn that Rei liked embarrassing him by parading around. She was so strange, and so beautiful.
Mana was another matter. He had no clue what to make of her. What was he to her? Was he merely a job, a
mission? A possible friend? He didn't know. The girl often teased him, and used his tendency to blush
as indicator if she was successful. That Rei helped her made it worse.
During the few days he already lived with her, he had to admit that, beside her lack of proper clothing, it
was pleasurably easy to live with her. She never made a mess, never insulted him, never acted impolite, beside
the teasing. Shinji had always expected that living with a girl would be strange, mysterious, something
completely different. Now that it happened, he was almost disappointed that it was so normal. At least mostly.
Because the most embarrassing minutes of his life happened just two days ago, and he was thankful to Asuka
that she saved him from the two 'perverted baka lady-hentais'.
Happy to have the room finally for some time alone, and with more than enough views to use for his
imagination, he gave in to his nature, and fulfilled a pleasurable and relieving action. He was in the middle
of doing it, as Mana stormed into the room to get a data-disc. Too shocked to react immediately, Mana had
two seconds to see what was going on.
"At least something looks normal." she commented dryly.
He shrieked and covered himself, embarrassed like never before. And what did Mana do? Made it worse, of
course.
"Finish it off, I want to make sure that you are really able to fulfill your little task."
His eyes bugged out, and he shook his head fiercely. At this point of time, Rei entered the room. His shriek
had alarmed her, so she wanted to make sure that everything was alright.
Mana explained to her what was happening, and what she wanted to see. Rei agreed with her logic and wanted
to look too. They were about to order him to continue, as Asuka wanted to know what was going on and came in.
Then, the redhead did something he would be ever grateful for. She smacked the two peeping girl a good one
and shushed them out of the room.
He had thought that was it, but Mana ensured that for his next medical evaluation, he would have to give a
peculiar example to ensure what she wanted to know at this particular event. That she smiled evilly at him
as she told him this little fact, wasn't very endearing.
She was as strange as Rei, and as good looking as her too. Still, considering the events in the last days,
he would have really liked if someone would have stopped the girl when her teasing became too evil.
And that's why he missed Misato so much. Sure, he knew that she was a drunk tease with slutty clothing, but
she never went too far. More important, she gave him a home, tried to support him, despite her own problems.
She would have stopped Mana, which wasn't possible anymore.
Well, next monday, after the training, he would go and visit her. Before, nobody was allowed to, but then,
he would bring her something to eat, and talk with her. Maybe she could help him to cope with Mana.
He really missed her.
Only a few days, and so many things had changed his view of the persons that were closest to him. Each night
he asked himself what the future would bring. He looked forward to it, but feared it as well.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
His second target was even easier. Alvarada, prime minister of the South American Federation, known
for his love of coffee, had expensive and modern security technology, but almost no living personal in
his immediate surroundings. Robots and sensors were surely flashy looking and effective, but needed, like
everything else, orders to follow.
All security measures were linked with a Cray Impact Supercomputer. And this fell victim to the MAGI.
The robots still patrolled the area, ready to kill any intruders, but Kaji was listed as trusted advisor
of the prime minister.
The MAGI stole all data from the computers, and Kaji slipped in and made sure that man would meet his fitting
demise. Kaji was not interested in being nice, but he had his style. And there was no better way of killing
Alvarada than using what he loved the most.
On the next day, newspapers were full with the story about the poisoned coffee the prime minister consumed.
Kaji laughed again, on his way to the next target.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
On Sunday, Shinji decided to go to the lake, where he simply wanted to relax, far away from Rei and Mana.
He sat under a tree and read a book, as he heard two voices coming closer. A short look confirmed that it
were Hikari and Asuka. The German girl spotted him, left Hikari and came closer.
"Whatcha doing?" she asked, despite the fact that it was obvious.
"Reading."
"What?"
"A science-fiction. Weird, but good."
Asuka raised an eyebrow. "I'd never thought that you would read Sci-Fi." That said, she sat down beside him.
"And what are you really doing?" she asked.
Shinji blushed. "Hiding from Mana and Rei." he admitted.
The redhead chuckled. "Afraid they'll flash you again?"
He nodded. Both girls did this regularly, even when Asuka was around. Shinji always expected an outburst
from her, but strangely it never happened.
"Your own fault."
Shinji looked disbelieving at her. "MY fault?"
"Sure. If you wouldn't nearly faint all the time, they would stop. I think." The last part, she added as
afterthought. Contrary to Shinji, Asuka knew very well why the two girls tormented the shy boy with things
any other male would die for.
"Do you at least understand why they are doing it?"
"Yes. Rei's child will end the war, and I should be the father."
"You know how a child is made?"
Shinji's eyes widened. Now he understood the obvious reason.
"Looks like you finally understand." continued Asuka.
"Yes." answered Shinji. "Thanks to you."
Asuka smiled at him and stood up.
"Asuka, why are you so nice to me?" It took Shinji a lot of courage to ask this question, but he really
wanted an answer.
Her face clouded over. "I have my reasons." she replied. "Don't you like it?" she asked playfully.
"Of course I do. And I'd like to be your friend."
"Doting at other women?" demanded Asuka to know with mocked seriousness.
"No.No.No. But...." Shinji shook his head frantically to deny this accusation.
"Calm down baka. I have nothing against a more friendly relationship with you." That said, she started to
walk off.
"Asuka?"
She stopped. "Yes?"
"Tomorrow after training, I'm going to visit Misato. Do you want to come along?"
She shook only her head, while walking away.
Shinji was happy that he'd finally come to good terms with Asuka. That she was disappointed with Misato was
something he was able to understand. She needed more time to calm down.
Sighing, he went back to his lecture, where the hero had even more problems than he himself.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
As Shinji entered the hospital, he already felt upcoming dread. The Itomasu Reha-center for addicts looked
more like a prison than a clinic. It laid on the outskirts of Tokyo3, far away to not be part of the city,
but close enough to reach it with a train in less than 20 minutes.
The area was enclosed with a chain link wall, the building itself had only two stories and was made of
concrete. Its grey appearance looked dull and lifeless.
He entered and was confronted with white walls and hard neon lights. At the reception, he asked for Misato.
An unfriendly nurse told him to go to room 2231 on the second floor, west wing. They also confiscated the
food he brought along.
Following those instructions, Shinji made his way through the clinic. The doors were thick, small windows
to be able to look inside the rooms were made of thick security glass. A few patients, who were running
around like zombies didn't increase his liking for this place either.
The entire environment grated on his nerves, so it was no wonder that he took a wrong turn end ended in the
wrong corridor. Lost, not knowing where to go, he had to ask one of the patients for direction.
He went to a young woman and asked her. As he looked in her face, he was shocked to see that she was most
likely younger then he himself, yet her eyes betrayed an age that exceeded that of a normal lifespan.
In a broken voice, she told him how he had to go, then thanked him for talking with her.
This short episode shocked him deeply, as he never thought that such young people fell victim to drugs too.
Understanding that this fate can hit everyone, even people that were as young as he, was branded into his
young brain.
Shinji found Misato's room and knocked. After receiving no answer, he hesitatingly opened the door and walked
inside.
Misato saw him and smiled at him, while Shinji had to do his best to not run away. To say that he was shocked
by her appearance would be the same to say as Asuka is mild tempered, or Rei not really talkative. A big
understatement.
Her long, purple hair was a tangled mess, her skin nearly as pale as Rei's, her chocolate brown eyes looked
dull and lifeless. The hospital gown she wore left little to the imagination, which she didn't mind. But not
because she wanted to tease him, but because she had obviously much bigger problems than her clothes.
Shinji asked her if she was ok, and received a short answer that she was alright. Her few motions were abrupt
and erratic while she talked, then, a sudden silence settled over the room.
She looked at him long and intensely, stood up from her bed and walked to him. Reaching with her right hand
for him, she hesitated and asked: "May I?"
Shinji didn't understand, but nodded nonetheless. Misato laid her hand on his left shoulder, breathed sharply
in.
"It's really you. You are real." she said unbelieving, then took him into a strong hug and started sobbing.
Originally, he had came here to get some support and some pointers how he should deal with Mana and Rei.
Instead, it was Misato who needed support. He wanted to run away, leave this sterile looking, foreboding
place, leave this woman who was his guardian, yet was so different that he felt fear.
But he couldn't. So often, he ran away, so often, he took the easy way. Now confronted with a situation
straight out of a nightmare, he didn't run. Misato needed him. More than ever. And he would be there for her.
She gave him a home, showed that life was more than learning and obeying orders. Sure, she often contradicted
herself, but it was the first glimpse of life he ever had. He was grateful for that. So, he couldn't simply
run away.
Instead, he encircled her with his arms and caressed her hair softly. Slowly, he directed her back to the
bed, where they sat down.
After a long time, at least in Shinji's opinion, Misato started to mumbling. At first, he didn't understand
a word, then he started to understand. She apologized for her actions during the battle, but mostly, it was
the reciting of the same sentence. "I'm so alone."
This sent shivers down his spine, and he held her even closer. He answered "You are not alone. I'm here."
again and again, but never knew if she really heard him.
Evening dawn set in as Misato fell into sleep. He laid her fully in the bed and drew the blanket over her
body. After a last caress over her head, he went to the small computer that stood in one of the corners.
There he placed a message for Misato. The message that he would come back tomorrow. He couldn't write a
simple note, as all pens, pencils and other pointy objects were not allowed. Then he left the room,
rushed out of the hospital. He didn't want to spend more time than necessary in this building, but he would
come back as he wrote her.
Shinji had no clue why he was so determined to not leave Misato alone. Were it his own experiences with
loneliness, or the pain he felt as he saw Misato in this state, he didn't know. He only knew that he would
help her as best as he was able to.
Caught in those thoughts, he made his way back to Tokyo3 and the geofront, escorted by two Section2 officers.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------
Preread by Ezstarius
Useful comments and encouragement to write by Kuracao
Domo arigato.