Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ Restart ❯ Suspicion ( Chapter 2 )
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Anime/Manga: Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Hentai / Adventure / Action | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 02.25.2009 | Pages: 1 | Words: 4.8K | Visits: 1.2K | Status: Work In Progress
Restart By: Kuroi-Yasha Episode 2: Suspicion
'The more I see, the less I know. The more I'd like to let it go...'
-Snow ((Hey Oh)) by the Red Hot Chili Peppers
'Well… could be worse… I guess.' The pilot of Evangelion Unit 01 sighed as he kept his shoes on in order to explore the apartment that had been assigned to him. A thick layer of dust covered the floor in every room he entered, causing small clouds to raise with every step he took. Wrinkling his nose in distaste he dared a peak in the bathroom and found, much to his relief, that though just as dusty as the rest of the house, it was at the very least not filthy and covered with human waste as he remembered some of the other apartments being when he'd been searching for Asuka after she was removed from the pilot roster. Sighing in defeat, he reluctantly made his way to what he chose to be his bedroom. His personal belongings had been delivered earlier in the afternoon, mere scant hours after he'd defeated the third angel Sachiel. Looking in a closet he managed to find an equally dirty broom and quickly closed off his room and opened a window as he set about the epic quest that was making his new place of residence inhabitable for human life. As nightfall finally came, Shinji Ikari let out a small sound of self satisfaction as the apartment was now significantly cleaner than it had been when he arrived, with the exception of a second closet where he'd found several species of spider that he felt he should not mess with until he was properly equipped.
Rubbing his neck in thought, he decided he might as well unpack his scant belongings and had just opened the first box when a knock came at his door. Gazing with surprise at the metallic object he cleared his throat and uttered a small “It’s open.” And felt his surprise increase as a shout of surprise was declared as Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi with Maya Ibuki in-tow entered his apartment. “M-Misato-san, Akagi-hakushi, Ibuki-chūi? W-what are you guys doing here?” A look of complete satisfaction crossed Misato's face as she and the other women entered his home, “Oh well, we just thought we'd drop in and throw a little celebration party in your honor, what with you being the city's savior and all.” The nonchalant-ness in her voice caused a small frown to cross his features even as a small blush made itself known, “I… really didn't do that much.” He muttered as he kept his former self in mind, 'No need for them to get suspicious…' Chuckling at his behavior the faux blond of the group whistled appreciatively as she looked around his apartment, “Nice job you did on cleaning Shinji-kun. I should pay you to do my place; I can only imagine what it must have been like before.” Her complement caused a small smile of contentment to grace his features, “A-arigato Akagi-hakushi, I'm good at stuff like cleaning and cooking… if nothing else.” He muttered the last part purposely to make sure that everyone got the wrong grasp on his personality, no one expected anything from the poor little harmless boy with the low self-esteem.
It was working perfectly as far as he could tell, by the small glances the women gave each other. “A-anyway, we brought some food and drinks so you don't have to cook Shin-chan!” Misato loudly exclaimed as they made their way to Shinji's dining room. Shaking his head slightly at Misato's happy-go-lucky attitude, he quickly went into the kitchen and removed some dishes and cups he'd washed earlier and everyone quickly began to eat and generally enjoy each other's company with much teasing at both Shinji's and Maya's expense. Finally, when everyone had had their fill, as Shinji finished cleaning up, he sat back down at the table to find all three women looking at him intently. Growing nervous under their stares Shinji cleared his throat before he spoke in a small voice, “I-is s-something wrong?” As Misato turned to Ritsuko she gave her friend a small nod, taking the chance to clear her own throat the blond Akagi spoke slowly, “Well, no, not exactly Shinji-kun. You see today when you fought the Angel we noticed a couple of odd things.” Shinji felt his intestines turn into lead as dread began to fill him, “L-like w-what A-Akagi-hakushi?” He didn't need to fake the stutter this time as genuine fear gripped him.
The blond haired doctor smiled at him reassuringly as she attempted to calm him, “Nothing bad Shinji-kun I can assure you, just a bit… weird.” A look of uncertainty was visible on the young pilot's face at her words, “Well, for example when you first got into the Eva your Sync ratio was abysmal, but seconds later it soared to an astounding sixty-four percent. We're not talking one or two points Shinji, we're talking about fifty percentage points of sudden difference.” The cerulean eyed boy looked away from the questioning looks of the three women. How was he supposed to tell them that he'd begged his mother's soul which was currently trapped inside that purple monstrosity for help so that he could fight all those 'angelic' bastards all over again? So, he did what was quickly becoming easier and easier, he lied. “I-I was scared… I didn't want anybody to get hurt… I don't kn-know how it happened, but whatever it was it worked! I just remember asking for help and then…” He trailed off expertly as a soft smile crossed the blonde's facial features; there was no doubt in his mind that she believed every word he'd just said. 'That's one down…' He couldn't afford to relax however as Misato took over the questioning, “Yes Shinji it worked, and believe me we're all thankful to you, but something bothers me…” He turned to her, feeling something akin to shame when she looked at him with those chocolate eyes as memories of her death and the kiss they'd shared flashed thru his mind. He felt bad lying to her, but for Rei…
Clearing those thoughts from his head he turned his attention back to her just as she began to speak, “…Its just that well… when we saw you fighting the Angel well… how can I say this?” She looked at him suspiciously as he realized what she was going to ask and began to think up an excuse, “J-just w-what M-Misato-san?” Her eyes softened a little as he used his most pathetic tone to try and give himself some more time, 'I'm so fucked up… I'm so sorry Misato.' “It’s just that, well, when you fought, you fought a little too well… I mean not that its bad or anything, but you took out that Angel really quickly and efficiently for someone who's never piloted before.” He looked away with a look of defeat on his face, 'Crap! I can't think of anything… I guess I'll just have to tell them the truth…' Taking a deep breath he turned back to the women before him, “W-well to tell you the truth…” Suddenly, an idea came to mind it was a stretch, but right now he'd take his chances and hoped that his silver tongue would hold out, “To tell you the t-truth I… well… I took a couple of m-martial arts lessons when I was living w-with my s-sensei… b-but I quit really early… I-I guess I just didn't have the willpower to hurt another human being.” He replied in what he hoped was a convincing excuse, 'Well technically it’s not a lie… I did have some old self-defense tapes that I watched and later threw away after I hurt my hand punching the wall.'
Misato thought this over before nodding in acceptance, even Ritsuko seemed satisfied, however he wasn't certain but he believed that he saw doubt in the eyes of the young lieutenant before it vanished only to be replaced by a warm smile when he looked attempted to look closer. Keeping that in mind he told himself he would have to be more careful around the young Ibuki. “Well now that that's been cleared up, I think we should get out of Ikari-kun's hair don't you senpai's?” Nodding both of the elder women began to rise, grabbing their coats the bottle blond smacked her head as she turned to face Shinji, “I nearly forgot, here you are Shinji-kun.” Reaching into her pocket she produced a small plastic card with the NERV insignia and his name and rank with a small picture of him in the back as well as his level of clearance. Taking the card the young Ikari studied it before placing it in his wallet. “Arigato Akagi-hakushi.” The doctor smiled as she turned to the door to follow her fellow traveling companions when she turned to look at him again, “Oh yes, forgot to mention. That card also works as cash. You won't ever receive a paycheck, in paper at least, every week you'll receive a certain amount of yen as pay for piloting, also any bonuses will automatically be added.” At that the young Ikari gave her a confused look, “B-bonuses? I never heard about that…” He was going to say 'I never knew about that in the past.' but quickly realized that might blow his cover, so instead just feigned ignorance and decided to play along.
“Yes well, mainly they are for promotions and such, but pilots receive a 100,000 yen bonus for defeating an Angel without major damage being sustained to both the city and the Evangelion. As such, I believe you currently have around 145,000 in your account.” The blond misread the stunned look on the boy’s face, “I know it doesn't seem like much but…” The young boy shook his head, “No, not at all. It’s just that I'm a little shocked that I have so much money for doing so little…” Misato smiled at the comment and gave him a quick embrace before leaning down to look at him face to face, “It might feel like you haven't done much, but believe me saving the human race from destruction is pretty high up on the heroics list. I'm actually surprised you aren't getting more, I sure as hell would have demanded more.” The 'depressed' young man smiled happily at her, “It’s alright Misato-san… I'm not a very needy person. Plus I don't pay rent or bills so I think it’s only fair.” The last part of his statement made him wish he hadn't mentioned that as a vein began to twitch in Misato's temple, he'd often heard her complain about how ridiculously high all her bills and rent came to.
Before a rant could begin however, the merciful Ritsuko Akagi came to the rescue and pulled Misato away just in time much to Shinji's relief, he mouthed a thank you to the blond scientist to which she nodded and winked before they left, leaving the Ikari to his thoughts. Outside however the women weren't spared the rant as the purple haired captain complained all the way to her car, while the captain vented her anger and the blond tried to calm her, a certain brown haired lieutenant looked up at the apartment she had just left with her eyes somewhat shadowed with doubt, 'Was it just me… or did he seem like he wasn't entirely truthful when Katsuragi-taisa and Akagi-senpai were questioning him?' Deciding to look up Shinji's file once she had the time, she got into the Captain's car and remembering to put her seat belt on this time and quickly gripped the sides of the door hoping that this time they didn't go down a one way street going in the opposite direction.
Back inside the apartment, Shinji had finally finished cleaning everything up after his guests had left and was getting ready for bed when he pulled out his NERV card. Turning it over, he saw a small number on the back that said to call to find out the balance. 'Hm, I wonder if I can afford everything I'm going to need in order to stop father and third impact.' So far he had a small plan of action, most of it however revolved around getting Rei free from his father's control. This would have to be done carefully because if his father suspected that at anytime he was losing control of his 'doll', he would kill her and just replace her. A small shiver of a mixture of fear and arousal coursed thru his body as he remembered the tank full of Rei clones. A frown crossed his features at his emotions 'I really am fucked up… but then again I guess I'd have to be, I mean she is made of my mother's DNA and that kinda makes her… my sister?' The feeling of arousal only increased at the thought of something forbidden like that.
Shaking his head, he cleared his mind of such thoughts, 'No, Rei-chan is her own person. She was just made to look like mother by father because of his own perverse desires. Just another thing I will have against him when the time comes.' Sighing as all the excitement of the day finally caught up with him, the young Ikari closed his eyes and let sleep take him to dreams of the future he hoped he would have this time around.
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Morning came all too quickly for the young pilot. Rising slowly, he made his way to the bathroom for a quick shower before Asuka woke up and drained the apartment of all the hot water in the building. It was only until after he was almost done with his five minute shower that he remembered that there was no Asuka living with him, nor was there any Misato that he had to prepare any breakfast for. Chuckling at his mistake, he turned the water back on and allowed himself a rare bath to help relax his fatigued muscles. Twenty minutes later he emerged refreshed from the bathroom and set about preparing a quick breakfast from yesterday's party leftovers. Though the concept of curry-flavored instant ramen did not appeal to him, his stomach demanded some form of sustenance and as long as he prepared it, there was no way it could poison him like Misato had inadvertently done at one point. After the quick meal, he checked his watch and saw that he had about an hour before he had to go pick up Rei at the hospital. Remembering what traffic was like, the young Ikari made his way out of the apartment and onto the streets towards NERV headquarters.
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Rei Ayanami sat on her bed and quietly read the philosophical book in her hands. Looking up from the pages, she spared a glance at the clock on the hospital's otherwise bare walls. 'Nine-forty-five. Five minutes have passed since the last time.' She did not quite understand why she was so obsessed with the time. Normally she would be in the hospital for days on end without once glancing at the clock on the wall. Yet for some reason, today seemed very different; she found herself glancing at the plastic appliance and could almost feel herself frown at how slow the time was passing. There were times when she was tempted to call the nurse and ask for confirmation as to whether the object was correctly working. Yet she refrained from such trivial actions; the Commander had taught her to not engage in actions that were unnecessary. As such she merely sat, summoning as much disdain as she could towards the infernal object of time keeping. 'I dislike waiting.' There were few things that she could say she disliked or even hated for that matter, but among the short list were things such as meat, blood, the color red… and waiting. How she loathed waiting.
Despite this however, Rei was the perfect embodiment of a slave. She could hate or dislike as many things as she wanted, but if ordered, she would comply without hesitation. Yes, she was no better than a puppet; an expendable doll that could be replaced at any time for her master's convenience. She didn't mind because he'd given her life and purpose and it was only fair that he be given the right to decide when her time was over wasn't it? A shiver ran through her as her throat tightened, vague memories of her past death running through her mind.
Yes, she was but a doll… a living doll. She hated waiting.
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Shinji cursed as he ran down the hall of the hospital. Despite his early departure from his apartment he'd forgotten that Rei's, now his as well, apartment was further from NERV and that no real form of transportation was available. Now here he was, sprinting like his life depended on his getting to Rei's room before the clock struck ten-thirty. 'A whole half-hour! Rei is going to be so pissed at me in her quiet sort of way, but pissed nonetheless! Fucking funeral processions… the streets are for the living!' He chose to ignore the fact that he'd been quite unfair to the poor mourning souls of the relatives to the deceased because to him, Rei's happiness was more important!
Finally coming to a stop in front of her room, he took a moment to collect himself before walking into the blue-haired love of his life's room. “Ohayo Rei-san! Sorry I'm…” The look her single un-bandaged eye gave him was enough for the words to die in his throat. 'Oh yeah… she's pissed.' Rei however said nothing as she gave the young Ikari a nod followed by a soft, “Ohayo.” and turned her attention back to her book. Nothing was said by the either of the two, but Shinji could tell that Rei was not reading and she knew that he knew that she wasn't reading. The meaning was quite clear, it was Rei's way of saying, “I am quite displeased with you at the moment and it would be best if you said nothing lest I become more displeased.” Yes, she was pissed. After a few minutes, Shinji decided that he'd given her enough time to cool off and risked a question, “S-so, did you sleep well Rei-san?” Smooth Ikari, very smooth. Rei seemed to think the exact same thing and chose not to respond to his question. Taking a deep breath Shinji willed himself to relax and think before he opened his mouth, “Well, I don't know about you Rei-san, but I feel like getting out of here. Would you like me to get your discharge papers?” This seemed to get her attention as she turned to look at him and gave him a brief nod before returning to her book. This time however he noticed that her body had loosened and she was actually reading again. Letting out a sigh of relief, the young Ikari left the room and headed for the reception desk to get Rei released. 'One step at a time, I'm getting better at understanding you Rei.'
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For the hundredth time that morning Shinji inwardly cursed as he helped Rei into her apartment. The place was absolutely filthy. Then again, he'd forgotten that he'd yet to clean her apartment as he had in the previous time-line. As such he kept his shoe's on as he slowly walked Rei to her bed, which was thankfully free of the blood stained rags that he remembered from his first visit. Easing her onto the filthy mattress Shinji frowned at the state of the entire apartment. “Is something wrong Ika… Shinji-san?” Her soft voice questioned after she noticed the frown on his face. Just as quickly as it appeared however, it was replaced by a soft smile as he looked at her causing a small blush to paint her cheeks and warmth to fill her. “Ie. It’s nothing too important Rei-san. It’s just that well… your apartment is…” This time there was no blush as she looked at him with an eyebrow raised, “What is wrong with my apartment?” She questioned clearly confused at to what he was referring to. He felt his hand go to the back oh his neck again as he looked about the room, 'He is doing it again. Does that action mean he is thinking? It… bothers me.' Tiring of watching the action, she grabbed the arm in question and looked at the young man again, “I dislike repeating myself Shinji-san.” Blinking at her action, he figured he must have irritated her for her to stop him.
“Well… it’s filthy.”
Her eyes narrowed at his response, “It serves its purpose. I have not been ordered to do anything in regards to the state of my apartment. As long is it is pest-free it is acceptable.” His look of shock at her disregard sent a small pang of shame thru her. “I apologize.” She muttered as she lowered her eyes, for some reason his look of disappointment filled her with a very unpleasant feeling. He noticed her reaction and quickly shook his head, “It’s okay Rei-san. I know that you're not use to things like this, so why don't we clean up when you start feeling better?” After several moments of silence a small nod was the only response he got from the quiet albino. Smiling softly, he quickly rose to his feet. “Are you hungry Rei-san? I don't know if they gave you anything to eat at the hospital. Then again even if they did that's not saying much is it?” Turning to face him the crimson eyed girl nodded, Shinji took that as a yes and quickly made his way to the kitchen to see what he could make.
Fifteen minutes later Shinji returned to Rei's side with a small bowl of mild miso, a bowl of white rice and two slices of toasted wheat bread. Helping her into a sitting position Shinji began to help her eat, and ten minutes later he took the dishes back to the kitchen. After a quick wash he returned to find Rei still sitting in the position he left her. “Is there anything else you would like Rei-san? A nap, a book, a… s-shower?” He couldn't help the blush that burned his cheeks at the last thought. He remembered the last time he'd seen her naked, and he had to admit that she was incredibly attractive. However, luck was against him as she shook her head and merely continued to look at him. Remembering that Rei wouldn't really do anything if he didn't question her and find out what she really wanted, he decided to make the best of this opportunity. Sitting next to her, he sighed as he thought of what to say, “So, would you like to talk Rei-san?” She said nothing at first, but turned to him and gazed at him. “About what?” She questioned after several moments of silence. He frowned as he looked at her, “I don't know…” he muttered as he looked towards the ceiling, “How about something about you?”
The blue haired enigma said nothing as she followed his gaze. Finally just when he was about to give up she spoke, “I enjoy reading.” It was a simple sentence, and something he already knew, but it was a step in the right direction. Nodding he turned to look at her again. “Anything in particular?” He questioned as she looked at him. “No.” It was not a response he wanted, but at least she was talking, right? Sighing he was about to admit defeat when she spoke again. “I dislike the color red.” She spoke softly, almost as if she was talking about a murder she had committed. Turning to her, his cerulean orbs locked with her crimson colored eyes as a smile formed on his lips. “Then you're not gonna like…” he stopped himself before he blew his own cover. But his response was enough to draw her interest however as she looked at him expectantly, quickly thinking he turned to her, “…dinner. I was planning on making steaks.” He watched in relief as she wrinkled her nose in distaste, placing a quizzical look on his features he questioned her, “Is something the matter Rei-san?” Her eyes narrowed a bit she replied simply, “I dislike the taste of meat.” Sighing in relief that he'd avoided suspicion he smiled at her, “Well then, I guess I'll have to make vegetarian meals from now on.” At her nod he guessed their conversation had ended, and it was confirmed as she slowly laid back down on the mattress. 'This is going to be harder than I thought.'
Kuroi-Yasha: Well, glad you read the chapter and hope you enjoyed it. Short, yes I know, but the next one will definitely be longer cause there will be more plot and other fun stuff. Preview: Episode 3: Cracks The smashing of glass quickly alerted Shinji that something was wrong. Slowly he approached the door and opened it being careful to make as little noise as possible and quickly made a search of the surroundings. As far as he could tell, nothing had been taken, so perhaps it wasn't a burglary. A jolt of fear gripped him as another conclusion came to mind, if someone had broken in and didn't take anything perhaps it wasn't material possessions they were after. 'Rei...!' Rushing forward despite every fiber of his common sense screaming at him to be careful he charged thru the thin paper door that separated Rei's main room from the cleaner recovery room he'd moved her to. Splashes of crimson stained the carpet in generous amounts near the window, equally stained shards of glass littered the surrounding area and the small form of Rei Ayanami lay curled in the corner closest to the now obliterated window. “REI!!”