Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ Family Ties ❯ Primary Bond ( Chapter 1 )

Evangelion Fanfiction

By Otaku D-Man

Standard Disclaimer.

I'm not really sure how many times I'm expected to write this. I never have, presently don't and undoubtedly never will own the rights to Shin Seiki Evangelion. If, by some chance the current owners feel I have transgressed and infringed upon their rights, I will scorch the data from The Wired.

Hell, if any of you ask nicely enough, I'll remove my stories regardless. I'm not all that happy with them anyway.

Author's Pre-Rant -

Not much to say except this is completely AU (Alternate Universe). Things will have little in common with the actual series with regard to most things. Even some character backgrounds and personalities will be altered, simply to try something a little different. If you like, consider it a pathetic attempt to take Evangelion's familiar cast and throw them into a world without Angels or Evangelions (sort of)

As established in my previous works -

"Indicates the Spoken Dialogue"

<Implies unspoken thoughts>

Family Ties

Primary Bond - Back to Square One Again

The Outskirts of Tokyo-3

"Shinji ……….. Shinji, wake up. We're here." The soft voice, accompanied by the gentle shaking stirred the slender boy from the depths of his slumber.

Stifling the yawn that threatened to escape his lips and blinking away the vestiges of his sleep, Shinji Katsuragi looked up from his reclined position to find his familiar indigo haired companion of the last four years leaning over him. "Wha…….Already?" He blushed heavily and turned his eyes away from the ample cleavage that hung suspended directly above his eyes. Although unsure of his own actual age, he was fairly certain he was somewhere in his mid-teens as he had become increasingly aware of just how stunningly attractive his older sister truly was.

While he knew that Misato wasn't his actual sister, not even a blood relative as far as he was aware, she was the closest person in his life and he often felt ashamed at the indecent thoughts that he occasionally had seemingly fuelled by the hormonal flux of being a teenaged boy.

Misato Katsuragi smiled at her younger brother's continued embarrassment from her premeditated antics, enjoying how easy it was to unsettle him. "You slept for nearly nine hours." She chided, making an overly dramatic display of fatigue and weariness.

Startled at just how long he had been asleep, Shinji sat up, staring at Misato in sheer disbelief. "Why didn't you wake me earlier?"

"Why? It's not like you could take over driving." She said, slumping forward over the steering wheel. "Besides, you looked really cute sleeping like that." Misato turned and grinned wickedly at the now wide-awake and slightly irritated boy beside her. She had to admit he did indeed look extremely cute when he slept, but the main reason was it was one of the rare occasions where his sleep wasn't plagued by the terrors of his life before they had met.

Shinji's face became overly serious, his brow furrowing at how irresponsible she could be. "Misato-neesan."

"Couldn't help myself." Misato jokingly apologised. "It's the truth though." She added, winking broadly at the still flustered young man.

Pointedly ignoring Misato's blatantly obvious attempt at teasing him, most likely intending to provoke him into another verbal sparring session about uptight young men and care-free, erratic women, Shinji instead turned his gaze out over the city below. "So I'm finally back where it all started." His expression, much like his thoughts and emotions, jumped between elation, anger, sorrow and hope, finally settling for something in-between.

Seeing her brother caught up in his own thoughts, Misato opened the car door and walked over to the outlook to better appreciate the view. Turning back towards Shinji, she smiled, beckoning him to join her. "That's right. You we're born here in Tokyo-3 weren't you?"

Grimacing in pain, Shinji struggled out of the car, his left leg dragging slightly as he limped over to join her. "Yeah, but I don't remember too much about it." Reaching down, he massaged the knee joint, carefully avoiding the overly sensitive areas. "Only what they bothered to tell me."

"How is it today?" Misato asked, unable to hide or conceal her concern. She completely ignored his reference to who 'They' actually were. There were only a few things that Misato absolutely detested and her younger brother's previous foster family topped the list. While she had never met them and Shinji rarely spoke about them, she had seen the evidence of just how well they had treated him in the years he was left in their care. She had sworn to herself that she would find them one day and thank them properly for their time and effort.

Shrugging indifferently, Shinji leaned against the safety rail, enjoying how the breeze felt against his face. "It hurts a little more than usual, but then I suppose I stayed in the one position for too long." He smiled wanly. "My own stupidity I guess."

Moving behind him, Misato placed her arms around the smaller boy and hugged him, resting her chin on his shoulder. "I'm sorry Shinji," she whispered, closing her eyes to prevent the tears that were welling up from escaping, "maybe I should have stopped more often or -"

Shaking his head, Shinji interrupted Misato, preventing her from taking responsibility and blame needlessly. "It's not your fault Misato-neesan." He assured her. "It's been with me for so long now that I can barely remember what it would be like without it." He chuckled at how easily he had forgotten what it was like to have full freedom of movement or to live without the aches and pains that were a constant reminder of his early years. Since he had come to live with the often flighty, young woman, he had slowly forced a lot of his unpleasant past into the dim, dark recesses of his mind. Now if he could only get through a night without waking up in panic and fear, he knew his recovery would be practically complete. <One day at a time Shinji.> He reminded himself. The mantra had given him a sense of security that each day held the possibility of improving, even when things had only worsened.

Releasing her hold, Misato walked back towards the car. "Let's get going then. We need to find our where our new apartment building is." Trying not to make a show of it, her eyes followed his pained movements, noting how each step was followed by a clenching of his jaw.

Joining Misato in the car, Shinji straightened his seat and buckled himself in. Sleeping through Misato's adventurous driving escapades was one thing, surviving the ride while fully conscious was another. "You said it was a small, privately owned place."

"That's right." Misato nodded, gunning the engine of her beloved blue Renault Alpine. "Miyuki knows a relative of the people that own and run the place. She put a word in for me and arranged it."

Shinji looked across at Misato warily. "Your cousin? You mean the one that makes a living as a …….." His voice faded, once again feeling familiar blossoming warmth spread across his face.

"A Dominatrix?" Misato asked, seemingly nonplussed by the admission. "Yeah. She enjoys her work and the only people that get hurt are the ones paying for it." She shrugged nonchalantly at what her younger cousin did for a living. She knew most people frowned upon the lifestyle choice but to Misato, it didn't really matter. She found her cousin to be quite intelligent and easy to get along with. It probably explained why the younger woman often stayed with Misato and Shinji during her brief vacations away from work instead of with her immediate family.

"It really does take all kinds I suppose." Shinji sighed. When he had discovered what Misato's cousin did for a living, what her work actually involved, he had been stupefied. The thought that people were willing to pay to be treated in such a fashion had completely astonished him.

Smiling at Shinji's naiveté, Misato leaned across to whisper in his ear. "Miyuki asked me to say hello to you. I think she's quite taken with you." Laughing at how bright red he turned, Misato didn't have the heart to tell him just how true it was. Her cousin Miyuki had confided to her that she was genuinely enamoured with the young boy, regardless of how inappropriate it was. "Miyuki mentioned that she'll catch up with us once we're settled in. If you ask her nicely, she may even take you on a guided tour."

Assuming that Misato was simply teasing him once again, Shinji crossed his arms and frowned at the woman driving. "I'm not really into that sort of thing Misato-neesan." In all honesty, he did enjoy the carefree abandon and exuberance that Miyuki displayed, it was just that she was so direct and to the point that she completely overwhelmed him. The more he reflected on it, the more he could see the comparisons between the two women, even if nearly eight years separated both Misato and Miyuki.

"Let's get going then." Misato declared, flooring the accelerator as she navigated another tight bend in alarmingly reckless fashion. "Can't sit around talking about what kind of sex you prefer. I need to get up early tomorrow for work. It wouldn't do to show up late on my first day."

"Why change the habits of a lifetime?" Shinji muttered, ignoring the lurid comments and suggestions Misato made concerning his love life.

***

NERV International - JapanHead Branch

"Is there anything else Akagi-kun? I have another board meeting to attend." Gendou Ikari, current Managing Director and Company President for NERV Enterprises' Japan Branch, looked out his window and at the impressive view of Tokyo-3 his executive office had. Most visitors he entertained remarked at the spectacular view of the rapidly growing city, amazed at how indifferent he was to it. But then Gendou had become largely indifferent to most things over the last decade.

"Nothing of any real importance I suppose." Ritsuko Akagi replied, finalising her notes of their recently finished discussion. "Oh there was one thing. An old acquaintance of mine will be starting here tomorrow in the Public Relations Section."

Gendou looked across the table at his personal assistant, an eyebrow arching at her rather out of place statement. "Why are you bringing this to my attention? I hardly think it deserves my-"

Placing Misato's personnel dossier on his desk, Ritsuko recited some of the details from memory. "Misato Katsuragi, daughter of Professor Katsuragi. Head of the initial research team. I'm sure you remember him." Ritsuko smiled despite her inner voice warning her against such a foolish action. Her own mother had also participated in the early research and development programs that had helped establish NERV as an international success, with it's hand in everything from cosmetics and computers to state of the art military weapons.

"Is that so." Gendou leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table and hiding his face behind his interlaced hands. "Katsuragi's daughter." He mused to himself, recalling his early days working along side the esteemed academic. "Is she as troublesome as her deceased father?" He asked, his eyes flickering over to his still smirking assistant.

Coughing at her indiscretion, Ritsuko recovered from her lapse in propriety. "Misato presents a different kind of trouble than that of her father." Noting the severe expression that Gendou was developing, she moved to allay his concerns. "Nothing serious mind you. Although I'm sure that Public Relations Manager Kaji will soon disagree." Ritsuko recalled with some amusement the school days that she had spent with both Misato Katsuragi and Ryouji Kaji, wondering how her two oldest friends would interact after all these years. "She apparently has become involved with a man some years younger than herself." Shaking her head, Ritsuko shrugged in defeat at her old friend's continued lack of discretion. "Misato always did have an incredible predilection for the inappropriate."

Convinced that the daughter would be nowhere near the trouble that the father had been, Gendou allowed himself to relax. "The personal lives of NERV's employee's are irrelevant. As long as the company's image is not tarnished by their activities." Closing the dossier, he focussed his full attention on Ritsuko. "How is Project E developing?"

Realising that any further small talk would not be tolerated, Ritsuko gathered her thoughts on the recent reports concerning NERV's latest research project and it's less than satisfactory results.

***

Horaki Apartment Complex

"I thought we'd never make it." Shinji slouched forward in his seat, freeing his body from the strain and tension that the last two and a half hours had inflicted on him. "And in one piece no less."

"What are you complaining about?" Misato asked, her fingers still tightly gripping the steering wheel. "We made it before the sun went down." She slowly came down from the adrenaline high that high speed driving always managed to induce.

Scratching the back of his head, Shinji decided to throw one final verbal barb. "Only just." He smiled, raising his arms in surrender before Misato could launch into a stinging tirade of her own. "But we're here and no one was injured." He offered in way of an apology. "We better find the Apartment Manager and let them know we're ready to move in." He said, hoping to distract his sister from seeking compensation for his teasing. He knew better than most just how devious Misato could be when exacting revenge.

Stepping out of the car, Misato threw her arms up and stretched out tired muscles. "Well all of our stuff should have arrived here yesterday, so we've still got quite a task ahead of us." Slumping forward in resignation, Misato envisaged a full night of sorting through year's worth of accumulated junk. <Kami what I would do for a decent nights sleep before starting work tomorrow.>

Standing beside Misato, Shinji reached up and placed a comforting hand on his older sister's shoulder and squeezed gently. "It should only take me about twenty minutes or so to unpack." He smirked at her amazed look of confusion. "At least everything I own anyway." He said gesturing to the guitar in the back of the car.

"Which means that when you're done you can help me." Misato grinned, trapping Shinji in a headlock that forced his face into her breasts.

Before Shinji could even pretend to complain, a young, female voice called out from inside the apartment complex. "Nozoumi! Get back here right now and clean your room. You can't just run off and play until your chores are-" There was a brief pause followed by the sound of a door being slammed. "Nozoumi!"

A young girl of about nine or ten appeared in the entryway and quickly ran down the concrete path towards Misato and Shinji. "I'll do it later." She called out over her shoulder. "I promised Mari-chan that we'd play in the park until dinner time."

Releasing Shinji, who in turn staggered back grasping for breath, Misato watched with fascination as the small blur rapidly approached them.

"Ahh!" Shinji cried as he was knocked backwards by the impact of the young girl barrelling straight into him. In a jumble of arms and legs, Shinji landed heavily on the sidewalk with the young girl landing on top of him.

With surprising speed, the young girl leapt to her feet and left Shinji sitting on the pavement. "Watch where you're going." She called out before quickly racing away.

With their eyes following the disappearing girl, both Shinji and Misato were startled when an almost identical, older version of the girl appeared beside them. "Nozoumi! What are you doing? Nozoumi! Get back here and apologize."

"I'll see you later Onee-chan." A young voice called from down the street.

Taking Misato's proffered hand, Shinji climbed to his feet, grimacing in pain. "It's okay. No harm done."

Turning on him immediately, the girl, a young brunette of a similar age to Shinji, gave him a cursory once over. "Are you sure?" Her sceptical eyes took in the pained expression and the way he seemed to favour one leg over the other. "You look like you're in pain."

Staring in surprise, Shinji followed her gaze to his left leg. "What? Oh you mean this." He smiled, patting the leg and ignoring the fresh jolt of pain that shot through his nervous system. "Just an old injury that never healed quite right."

"Regardless," Her gaze lost none of its scepticism as she continued to stare at the leg, "Nozoumi should know better than to just run off after knocking someone down." The girl rubbed her temple in frustration. "I just don't know what to do with her anymore."

"Do you live here?" Misato asked, interrupting the conversation.

Looking at the young man's companion, her eyes widened slightly at how stunning the woman was. "Yes. Why?" Without realising, her eyes drifted to glimpse the near perfect proportions of the older woman. Sighing in envy, she wondered what a girl had to do to develop similar attributes. <If I can only manage to look half as good, maybe Touji->

"We need to speak to the Manager." Misato said, interrupting the young girl's internal contemplations. Carefully supporting Shinji with her arm, she pointed at the apartment building. "We're moving in today."

Blinking at how comfortable the couple appeared with each other, the girl blushed at how her mind contrived various inappropriate scenarios. "Katsuragi-san?" She asked, knowing the answer but still needing confirmation.

"Yep." Misato smiled. "That's me."

Still flustered by the fact that the older woman was apparently partnered with someone so young, it took several moments before she managed to compose herself. "Where are my manners." She bowed to the older woman and the young man. "My name is Hikari Horaki." Standing back up, she waved in the general direction of the small apartment complex. "My family owns the apartment complex. My sister's and I are essentially the Manager's here. Pleased to meet you." Hikari smiled, genuinely happy to have two more people moving in.

"Misato Katsuragi." Misato waved her hand. "I spoke on the phone with your older sister, Kodama I think." Pulling Shinji into a tight embrace, Misato leaned her chin onto his shoulder, pressing her cheek against his neck. "This is Shinji. He's sharing the place with me."

"Oh my." Hikari covered her surprise expression with her hands, but could not hide the scarlet colour her cheeks developed.

Seeing that the girl was obviously falling for Misato's game, Shinji managed to dislodge himself from his sister's overly intimate embrace. "Horaki-san, it's not like that! Misato-neesan is my older sister."

"Oh my." Hikari repeated.

"Please. You have to believe me." Shinji pleaded, hoping to rectify the obviously ludicrous first impression that Misato was creating. "Misato-neesan, tell her-"

Hikari stepped forward, breaking Shinji from his desperate plea. "It's not that, Katsuragi-kun. When we heard that you were both moving in, we naturally assumed you were, "Hikari turned her head to the side in embarrassment, "a couple."

"It's not like that." Shinji declared, wondering if there was any way possible to salvage the situation.

"That's not the problem." Hikari replied.

"Then what?" Misato asked, clearly confused by the girl's reaction. If the ruse was exposed, she failed to see what the problem could be.

The sigh of exasperation that escaped Hikari's lips was one of frustration. "The only apartment we had available is a one bedroom place." Her eyes lifted to encompass her two new residents. "That's why we were happy to rent it to you both."

"One bedroom?" Misato repeated, her eyebrows lifting at the revelation.

"And there's no other rooms available?" Shinji asked incredulously.

"No. I'm sorry." Hikari apologised, bowing deeply.

"Don't apologise Horaki-san." Shinji exclaimed, moving forward to raise the girl from her bow. "It's not your fault." He smiled gently, hoping to reassure the girl that nothing was her responsibility.

"Shinji's right." Misato explained, moving to stand next to Shinji. "We'll work something out. It'll be like old times Shin-chan." She said happily, pulling him into another inappropriate bear hug.

"Misato-neesan." Shinji managed to say. "We haven't slept in the same bed for nearly four years. I'm not a little kid anymore." He declared hotly, unable to break free of the larger woman's hold.

Misato winked at Hikari. "I had noticed." She whispered seductively into his ear, pinching his behind.

"Oh my." Hikari smiled, surprised at the interplay between the older sister and her younger brother.

"Misato-neesan!" Shinji shouted, finally freeing himself from the embrace. He watched his sister warily while rubbing his sorely abused posterior.

Misato laughed at his predicament. "You're just so easy to tease Shinji. It's almost no fun." Turning to face the young brunette, Misato shrugged nonchalantly. "It won't be a problem Hikari-chan. Perhaps if we could borrow a futon? That should satisfy the requirements for decency. Can't have everyone thinking that Shin-chan's my boy-toy." Her evil smile told Shinji that this topic of conversation would last for a good while to come.

"Horaki-san. Please ignore Misato-neesan." Shinji wondered whether his plea would fall on deaf ears, but he felt it necessary to at least try.. "She enjoys teasing me at every opportunity, especially if there's other people around to complicate things."

"It's okay Katsuragi-kun. She reminds me of my older sister." Hikari explained wearily, wondering how the apartment complex and its residents would cope with two such similar personalities.

***

Katsuragi Apartment

Having been shown their apartment, Shinji thanked Hikari for all her help and apologised for any trouble they had caused and under his breath, "and will more than likely cause.". Once inside he turned on Misato, who had the audacity to look innocent, as if everything was fine. "I can't believe you said something like that Misato-neesan." Shinji tried to keep his voice at a reasonable level. They were living in a new apartment complex and it would look unseemly if the neighbours were to hear them arguing on their first day. "What if she believed you? How will people react to us whenever we go out.?" Shinji had resigned himself to some of his sister's more unsavoury habits over the years. He had conceded ground time and time again on her drinking and slovenly attitude. He had all but given up in trying to encourage her to at least dress decently at home. With each complaint, Misato appeared to grow bolder and more outrageous with her antics, practically feeding off his shock and dismay. Looking at it from another perspective, he realised it was almost the foundation of their relationship. That and the fact that she had saved him from the depths of despair. It was probably this one fact that caused him to accept her for who she was, more so than anything else. For the person he knew lay beneath the façade she often portrayed was the person he truly loved and admired.

Misato waved a hand, dismissing Shinji's concerns as nothing more than inconsequential. "Does it really matter what other people think?" Inspecting the apartment, she smiled, approving at how relatively spacious it was for a single bedroom place. "If you're too busy trying to be what everyone else expects, you forget to be who you really are." Misato directed an especially sultry smile at the young boy, knowing that he was at an age where it would have an almost devastating effect.

Blushing fiercely, Shinji turned away from Misato, hoping to salvage something of his side of the discussion. "You're too laid back about things." He murmured, his voice barely audible. "You're meant to be the responsible adult."

Misato skipped over to stand beside him and leaned around to lock him with her wide, dark eyes. "I think you've noticed just how much of an adult I am." By thrusting her breasts out she managed to distract him, providing her with the opportunity to begin tickling his ribs. "Besides, you're responsible enough for both of us. Where does that leave us." She asked, knowing that his defences were fast crumbling against her assault.

Throwing his hands in the air, Shinji stalked across to the front door. "With a heap of unpacking to do. What if we just order some take-out for dinner. We passed a restaurant a few blocks back. I'll go get some food while you sort out what needs to be unpacked first." He knew he had to get some fresh air or Misato would soon have him doing everything for her under her expert supervision. Time and experience had taught him that Misato had a knack for getting her own way.

Misato turned to consider the numerous boxes, packed with all their worldly possessions. "How will I know?" She asked, daunted by the prospect of wading through so much at once.

"I labelled all the boxes before we packed." Shinji knelt down to slip his shoes on. "Just put the ones we'll need straight away to one side and we'll do those first." With his shoes on, he stood up and opened the door. "We can leave the others for when we have free time."

Misato turned to look at her young brother, and for the first time she saw hints of the man he would one day grow up to be. And with that insight, she realised that eventually she would lose him to another woman. "What would I do without you, Shinji?" She asked, pushing the sad thoughts deep down into her mind. <Let's worry about the here and now. Shinji will be with me for a while yet.>

"Let's hope we never find out." He answered, unable to consider his life without his older sister, the woman that had saved him. "The world probably isn't ready for the answer." He added, unable to resist the opportunity for one last jibe.

"Just go buy the food, smartass." Misato scowled, slapping his behind playfully.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Just keep your hands away from my ass okay?" He replied, swatting her hands away.

As the adult responsible for their well being, Misato placed her hands firmly on her hips and in a show of absolute adult grace and superiority, she poked her tongue out. "Make me."

"You're hopeless Misato-neesan." Shinji laughed, walking out the door to go get food for the night.

***

Kirishima Family Restaurant and Take-away

Even though he was walking unfamiliar streets, Shinji couldn't help but feel a sense of nostalgia. <This is the city I was born. Where I lived with my parents.> He frowned, trying desperately to remember anything of his mother and father. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember anything of who they were. His earliest memories were of fear and pain. Memories that stretched for years and years without changing. Until he had left the pain and fear behind, but still the memories remained with him, haunting him night after night. <I wonder if I'll find a clue to who I am, who my parents were.> It wasn't until a young, cheery voice woke him from his dark thoughts that he realised he was standing inside the restaurant.

"How can I help you?" A young girl, similar in age to himself he supposed, with bright emerald eyes and short brown hair greeted him with a wide, friendly smile.

It was at that moment Shinji glanced to his side to find another young girl standing there, an apparent look of impatience on her face. What really caught his attention was how pale her skin was, almost alabaster in colour (or lack thereof). Coupled with her crimson eyes and short, pale blue hair, he wondered how out of it he had been to not have noticed her straight away. "Uhmm, actually I think this girl was here before me." Shinji said, inclining his head towards the young girl in question. "You should probably serve her first."

"Ohh, Ayanami." The brunette behind the counter remarked coldly. "I didn't see you there. You're always so quiet and austere. If you want people to know you're there, you should really speak up." Her green eyes narrowed dangerously as she glared at the girl.

Ayanami returned the less than friendly gaze with one of almost complete indifference. "I provided you with my order several times Kirishima. Perhaps you're hearing is as faulty as your cooking." A wry smile passed quickly over her pale features, vanishing almost as soon as it had appeared. "That would explain why you're family has you work the counter."

"Mana, instead of arguing with the customers, just take their orders." A gruff, male voice called from the kitchen.

Mana spared an annoyed glance over her shoulder before returning to stare at the other girl. "Whatever. So was that Miso and Butter Ramen with extra roast pork?"

"My mother and I are vegetarians, Kirishima." Ayanami stated unequivocally. Her eyes moved to the small notepad on the counter. "I notice you have written the orders correctly. Perhaps you should simply pass that onto your father."

"Of course Ayanami. Wouldn't want our precious number 'TWO' getting sick from eating real food." Mana made a display of tearing the page from the pad before passing it through to the kitchen.

Examining her nails, the action intended to infuriate the girl behind the counter, Ayanami buffed them on her dark blue blouse. "The last test scores had me seated as our groups' top ranked candidate."

Mana felt the bile rising from her stomach. "You only just managed to beat her Ayanami." Mana snapped, obviously upset with the other girl's display of superiority.

Staring up at the clock behind the counter, Ayanami frowned as she noted the time. "You are hardly any more friendly with her than you are with me, I do not understand your animosity."

Leaning forward, Mana rested her jaw on one hand. "Because both you and Sohryu think you're too good to even associate with anyone. But at least Sohryu flaunts it. You pretend to be all nice and serene, when really you lord your supposed superiority over everyone else just as much as she does."

"Two orders of Garlic Ramen, vegetarian style and two vegetarian side order specials." A friendly looking man said, placing a large plastic bag on the counter. "Pleasure as always Rei-chan. Please say hello to your mother for me."

"Of course I will. Thank you as always Kirishima-san." Turning to look at Shinji, Rei paused to regard the surprised expression on his face. "Thank you for allowing me to place my order first………….." Her voice trailed off as she waited for Shinji to introduce himself.

Startled that he was now the centre of attention, Shinji smiled, embarrassed by the open stare being directed at him. "Katsuragi. Shinji Katsuragi. Pleased to meet you………….."

Taking the pause to properly introduce herself, Rei inclined her head towards the young boy. "Rei Ayanami. If you will excuse me, I have to return home." Rei paused, glancing back at Mana. "I assume you will still turn up to tomorrow's activities? We still have not fini-"

"Of course I'll be there." Mana muttered, unhappy with how the exchange with the other girl had gone.

"Bye Ayanami-san." Shinji offered, pleased when the azure haired girl had returned his wave. "Nice smile." He commented to himself, catching a small, embarrassed smile gracing her face before she closed the door.

"I wouldn't advise it." Mana cautioned. Her eyes were still glaring at where Rei had stood.

Shinji gaped at Mana, nonplussed by her angry demeanour. "Huh?"

"The girl is a total freak. Not worth the effort at all." Mana ran an appreciative eye over Shinji, liking what she saw. "Shinji-kun wasn't it?"

Nodding his head, surprised that the girl had even bothered to remember his name amidst her fierce confrontation with Rei. "Uhmm yeah. Pleased to meet you ………"

"Kirishima. Mana Kirishima. Please, call me Mana." She insisted, smiling openly and warmly, almost in stark comparison to how she had treated Rei. "My dad owns this restaurant." Mana explained. "I help out every now and then."

"Is that what it's called?" Mana's father called out from the kitchen. "It'd be nice if you did any actual helpi-"

Turning around, Mana clenched her hands into tight fists and shouted back at her father. "Shut up dad." Turning back, Mana felt her cheeks burning as she observed Shinji's panic-stricken expression. "Anyway, I can't say I've seen you around here before." She inquired, returning to her normal, friendly tone. "Get lost or something?"

Surprised at how similar to Misato she seemed, Shinji suppressed the urge to laugh, realising that to do so would probably be misinterpreted and only hurt her feelings. "Oh, I just moved here today with my older sister. She got a job at NERV International."

"And fate brought you here." Mana whispered dreamily, nodding her head at something only she could understand.

"Huh?" Shinji was unable to fathom what the girl was going on about.

"Don't worry about it." Mana assured him, waving his concerns away. "So which school are you going to attend?" Leaning forward, Mana eagerly waited to hear his answer, already hoping for the impossible.

"Tokyo-3 Municipal High School. I'll be in the Ninth grade." Shinji replied, falling backwards as Mana squealed in delight and began clapping her hands.

"Incredible." Mana shouted, unable to conceal her joy. "That's the school I go to and we're the same age and everything. It really must be fate."

Recovering from his initial shock at how openly expressive the girl was, Shinji unconsciously began slowly clenching and unclenching his right hand. "Uhh, I guess so."

"Mana, stop harassing the poor boy and take his order." The man, obviously Mana's father, appeared in the kitchen doorway, watching his daughter in weary resignation. "If he's only moved here, he's definitely got better things to do than stand around giving you his life story." Having said his piece, he conveniently ducked back inside the kitchen before his daughter could direct her fury at him.

"Dad!" Mana shouted, throwing her notepad at where he had just been standing.

"No. It's okay." Shinji conceded, hoping to stave off any potential trouble.." It's kind of nice to meet friendly people in the neighbourhood, especially since we've just moved here."

Mana bowed her head a little, embarrassed at having appeared so uncouth. "Thanks Shinji-kun. Dad thinks I just goof off but I'm really just trying to promote good will with others. Especially with cute guys." She winked suggestively.

Flustered by Mana's blunt words and actions, Shinji rubbed the back of his neck, searching for something to say in return. "Uhmm, thanks I guess. You're, uhmm really nice too." Shinji blanched as soon as the words left his mouth. <Kami. What am I saying? She'll think I'm a complete idiot.>

While Shinji felt things steadily spiralling out of control, Mana beamed at his words. "Thank you very much Shinji-kun. Let me take your order. We can talk a bit while we wait for dad to get it ready. You can tell me all about yourself."

"Okay. Uhmm that sounds good." Shinji responded, his world still spinning chaotically around him.

"Promote good will?" Mister Kirishima muttered as he watched his daughter drag the confused young man away. "What sort of crap is that girl going on about this time?" Shaking his head he returned his attention to preparing the orders for the dine-in section of the restaurant.

***

Katsuragi Apartment

"I'm home." Shinji's resigned voice sounded through the apartment.

Having managed to find the box into which Shinji had packed her alcohol; Misato hadn't progressed much further during his absence. "Where have you been Shinji-kun? I'm starving." She asked, her voice now having the distinct quality of someone not quite drunk but well on the way.

"That would be my fault Onee-san." Mana apologised cheerily, jumping into view with one flustered Shinji Katsuragi in tow. "I'm sorry I kept Shinji-kun out so long." She offered, her arms still firmly wrapped around Shinji's.

"Shinji-kun? Why is there a girl attached to you?" Misato wondered aloud, amazed at the odd sight of her normally recalcitrant younger brother standing arm in arm with an attractive young girl.

"Uhmm, Misato-neesan. This is Mana-san." Shinji said warily. "Her family owns the restaurant that I went to." He explained, using his only free arm to hold up the plastic bag containing dinner. His eyes flickered towards Mana then back to Misato. "She kind of-"

Mana briefly released Shinji's arm so she could bow politely, latching on again before he could range too far away. "Shinji-kun told me all about how you just moved here, so in the interests of promoting our neighbourhood's 'Let's Be Friends' policy, I offered to come over and help you settle in."

"Isn't that nice." Misato's devious smile caused Shinji's heart to skip a beat. "Pleased to meet you Mana-chan. I'm Shinji-kun's older sister -"

"Misato-neesan." Mana finished for the older woman. "Shinji-kun told me all about you."

Misato glanced at the heavily perspiring boy, her inquiring look warning him of terrible things to come. "Did he now. Just what has my Shinji been saying behind my back?"

***

End Initial Bond

Tbc

Authors Post-Rant -

Well, as you can see, the EVA world no longer resembles the Canon world you are accustomed to. I thought it was time to branch out a little and try a completely original setting for this work.

Things are not as they seem and in all honesty I think it will take a few chapters before everyone of substance is introduced and the primary concepts (there are multiples) are revealed.

Expect to see some drama, a little tragedy and comedy in here. But like most of my work, I try to balance everything together.

BTW - Why have Mana show such an intense interest so early? There's more than meets the eye. It's part of a sub-plot that will develop along with a number of others I have planned for this.

As always, post your reviews here at FFN (Or where ever you find this).

Any other comments, thoughts etc are welcome at -

otaku_dman@yahoo.com.au.

Ja Ne