Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ The Nephilim Complex ❯ Impossible Odds ( Chapter 8 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Chapter Eight: Impossible Odds - Angel Droppings and Hikari's Proposal

It was the first time in a long time that the city of Tokyo-3 had what could only be called a break. After the fall of Matariel and the power outage that had struck every building in the city, things actually seemed peaceful.

Of course, in Tokyo-3, nothing good can last for long.

"The Commander and Vice Commander are still within the southern continental range, Major Katsuragi, and out of contact range," Maya said from her station as the door opened revealing the Major's presence. "We are still working on confirming visual, but preliminary status tells us that it is an Angel."

"Misato will do fine, Maya," Misato said with a forced grin as she walked forward to stand in the centre of the bridge. "What do we know so far?"

"So far, Major, we know it is an Angel," Ritsuko said, coming up beside her and smiling at her friend. "It seems to have found a new use for the AT Fields, too."

"What do you mean?"

"Have a look," the doctor suggested, fishing around in her lab coat for the pictures that had been taken earlier. "The first attack landed in the ocean. The second was over the Cocos Island Station."

"It's getting closer."

"There is no doubt about where it is going, is there?" Maya asked, turning around in her chair to face the other two. "Given all the information we have thus far, it should be over us and ready to drop its full mass in roughly 4 hours 13 minutes, 12 seconds, according to the Magi."

Ritsuko cut in before Misato could reply. "The destruction that the full mass could cause will destroy Tokyo-3, and most of Japan with it. The Magi is recommending a total evacuation of the city, with warnings to go out across Japan."

"It suggests abandoning everything?" Misato asked in surprise. "There is no way?"

"Not that makes any sense at all. The only plan that it has come up with thus far has our dreaded 0-9 figure attached to it," Ritsuko explained.

Misato nodded, and then turned to Maya. "Evacuate all nonessential personnel from the base, and tell all citizens to either evacuate or get to the shelters," she said firmly. She then turned back to Ritsuko. "Call for the pilots, then fill me in on the details of the plan."

"You seriously want to go with a plan with the 0-9 chance?"

"It hasn't failed us yet, has it?" Misato asked with a smile that she in no way felt. "Besides, it's not zero. I just trust the Evas." Without any way to reach the Commander, it did her conscience no good to realize that the outcome fell on her shoulders. But she wasn't going to let her city fall because of inaction.

"You are risking the three Evas, the pilots, headquarters, and everyone who stays behind, you realize that, don't you?"

"And you would rather abandon the Magi System?" Misato asked.

Ritsuko smiled and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet."
-----------------------
Shinji barely took in any of his surroundings as he entered the large, dark room that held the planning centre for battles. They had only used it once before, but he knew the room anyway. He just couldn't concentrate on much around him suddenly. There was far too much on his mind.

As he took his place between Rei and Asuka, he shook his head to clear it and looked to Misato. He was immensely glad that he was wearing his plug suit already, as it covered his hands and arms, which had started to glow even more brightly than before. He didn't need the extra problem of her questioning him later about it.

"Is there something wrong, Ikari?" Rei asked, looking to him slowly. There was an obvious emotion in her voice, but it wasn't quite the right one. "Is everything alright?" That time was closer.

He shook his head and looked to Misato. "It's nothing," he lied, ignoring the looks he received from both his fellow pilots. Just because his mind was wandering and racing at the same time didn't mean anything.

"The tenth Angel has been sighted above the city, moving into position," she explained slowly. "Switch on the Obsat-6 visual," she added. On the screen behind her appeared a large orange object that was stretched out, and looked like it had three massive eyes - one on the centre of its body, and one more at either end. "It is a living bomb."

"What do you mean?" Asuka asked.

"It will be dropping itself onto the city within the hour," Misato said. "If it lands, then there is a good chance that not only Tokyo-3 will cease to exist, but all of Japan could be wiped out by the shock waves."

"It is still in the atmosphere, isn't it?" Shinji asked slowly, not taking his eyes off the Angel. "Sahaquiel is too high up for us to attack..."

"That's right, Shinji," Misato said, not sure how the boy knew what she had just been about to explain. "Which means we will have to try something a little risky."

"What do the Magi computers suggest?" Rei asked calmly.

"Total evacuation," Misato replied instantly. "But I'm not willing to give up that easily." As she paused, the screen showing the Angel changed to show a map of the city. "We'll position the Eva Units into three different drop zones, to cover most of the city."

Asuka looked from Shinji to Rei, back to Shinji, and then finally back to Misato again. "So how are we going to fight it?" she asked. "Because so far it doesn't sound easy."

"Are you scared?" Misato was surprised to hear the objection from the fiery red head.

"Not for my sake," Asuka scoffed. "I just don't think baka Shinji and Wondergirl could handle it if it's too bad."

Misato ignored her comment and just started in on the plan itself. "Once the decent begins, there will be less than a fraction of a second to correct for errors. Maintaining your Eva AT Fields at full strength, you will have to catch the Angel, and then drive one of the knives into its core before any of it touches the surface."

"Catch it? With what, or hands?"

"Do you know of any catching mitts that would fit any of our Units?" Misato asked, trying to bring some humour to the dejected looking pilots. She then sobered again. "I will not lie to you. This is a dangerous job. If you fail..."

"The great Asuka Soryu Langley never fails."

"We will protect the city as we have to this point," Rei said logically.

Misato looked to Shinji, who looked like he was staring off into space. When he saw her gaze, he nodded. "We'll do it."

Misato smiled to them slowly, and then sighed. "This is a dangerous mission. One of the most dangerous I hope I ever have to ask you to undertake. But it's not until we've done everything we can to cause a miracle that such a thing becomes viable."

"This is sounding worse and worse, Misato," Asuka pointed out. "Maybe you should just stop now, since we've already agreed to try."

"Procedure for the dangers requires me to ensure that you three have all filled out your wills. Have you done that yet?""

"There is no need," Asuka said, shaking her head. "Because we aren't going to die today."

"There would be nothing to leave behind, and no one to leave it to, if we all fall," Rei said, her tone a little shaky as she looked away from Misato and to the shy boy next to her. "So I do not intend to fail."

"After this is all over, I'll take the three of you out to some fancy restaurant, alright?" Misato suggested. "My treat, of course," she added.

"Sounds great, Misato," Shinji said as she turned, leaving the three pilots to go to the cages on their own. He sighed as he turned to the others. "Ready?"

"Does she really think some expensive dinner could buy us off?" Asuka demanded.

"I guess she thinks its supposed to impress us," Shinji replied softly. "She can't help it. She's just trying to help."

"I know," Asuka said. "But you sounded a little too eager there, baka..."

Rei shook her head slowly, until she noticed Shinji look over to her, and then she stopped and looked him in the eye. "I do not think I will be attending the meal."

"Why not?" he asked, surprised. "It is meant for all three of us, after all."

"If it is your wish, Ikari, then I will join you." Without another word, she turned and walked to the cages to open the elevator for the three of them.

Asuka put a hand out to stop Shinji before he could take even a single step. "What does she think?" she asked, looking at him directly. "Does she have any suggestions?"

Shinji shook his head. "I haven't heard from her yet," he explained.

"But..." Asuka trailed off for a moment before he moved her hand and started walking to where Rei was waiting with the door for them. "But you knew the Angel's name. Sahaquiel, right?"

"She didn't tell me, though. I just knew..." he trailed off, looking over to her. "I can't explain how I knew..."

"You can tell me," Asuka promised him. "I told you before, I'm not going to..."

"I don't know how," he repeated, stepping onto the elevator. Rei pushed the button to descend once all three were within it, and then looked down to the Units far below them. After a few moments of silence, Shinji looked to Asuka again. "Why do you pilot?" he asked slowly.

"I told you before," she reminded him. "To exhibit my talent to the world, of course."

"You mean to prove that you exist?"

"More or less." She then motioned to Rei. "Why not ask Wondergirl?"

"I asked her before, too," Shinji said.

"I pilot because I have to," she offered. "There are no others who can."

"So you asked both of us," Asuka said suddenly, as though she ignored Rei's comment entirely. "But never told us why you pilot."

Shinji sighed and looked away from both of them. The motion was to hide himself from them, but also to hide the fact that he was clutching at the necklace that was once Nephilim's. "I don't know why..."

"It does you no good to hide from the truth, Ikari," Rei said quietly. "If something is troubling you, I would like to remind you that I am available to listen. I will do more, too, if that is what you would like..."

"What?" Asuka demanded, whirling him around before Rei's words could sink in. She didn't want to be thinking about them, and she suddenly found that she certainly didn't want him to, either. "If you can't think straight today, then how are we supposed to defeat this thing? We all have to be in perfect form, remember?"

Shinji shook his head, not meeting her eyes. "I'll be fine, don't worry." He then walked to the doors as they opened. "It is just something I have to work through on my own," he added. He didn't really want to tell either of them about his dream with Nephilim the previous night. It was much shorter than the last one, and did not include either of the other pilots. She just warned him again that he would be betrayed by the one he least expected. He couldn't stop wondering just what she meant. Who did he least expect?

"Just what are you offering him?" Asuka whirled on Rei before she could take a single step out of the elevator. "He can talk in his own house, you know?"

"I would not be willing to talk with you," Rei explained. "If you did to me what you did to him."

"Would you stop throwing that in my face, Wondergirl?"

Rei didn't reply at once, and when she did, it was on a different matter. "I would like to speak with you again some time about not being a doll," she said as Asuka started to walk away. "I think I misunderstood what you said that last time."

"I didn't think you could trust me enough, remember?" Asuka said bitterly as she stalked towards her red Unit-02. She sighed and smiled at her Unit as she made her way into her entry plug. Shinji wasn't the only one who wasn't concentrating, she supposed. Hopefully they could all focus once they were taken to the surface.

Once the startup sequence had finished and all three Evas were in the launching positions, Misato pulled up the map to the city again, to show them the terrain. "Since we can't tell exactly where it is going to drop, I have had the Magi give us an estimated worst case scenario zone." A large circle appeared on the maps, and Asuka gasped as she examined it.

"It's that much?"

"The distance across is wider than the city itself!" Shinji objected. "How are we supposed to get from one side to the other in time?"

"Given the size of the target and the power that it appears to possess, dropping anywhere in this region will annihilate headquarters. Beyond this zone, NERV will remain safe, but most of the rest of the country will be in jeopardy," Ritsuko explained.

"Why would we be safe if it can destroy Japan?" Shinji asked.

"NERV is within a geodome, remember?" Misato asked. "It is both a strong point and weak point for the country. It is hard to destroy, but if it is, then the country will tremble." She then looked to all three pilots before nodding to Maya to give the three dropping points. "Here is where each of you will be waiting."

"How are the drop points determined?" Rei asked almost at once, seeing where each of them where. She knew at once where she did not want the Angel to fall. If it fell to the north, then Shinji would be alone with the Angel for the longest period of time. It had to fall south, for his sake...

"Intuition," Misato replied in an off handed manner.

"That's it?" Asuka demanded angrily. "You know, that miracle you were talking about keeps slipping further and further away..."

"You really have no need to complain, Asuka," Misato reminded her. "If the worst should come to pass, being within the Eva Units will be the safest place. You have the greatest likelihood of survival."

"Then why did you suggest we make wills earlier?" she pointed out.

Misato looked away from the monitor quickly. "Greater odds don't mean much with the numbers we are working with." She nodded to Maya, and then to the pilots. "Good luck. Launch!"

Once all three Eva Units were on the surface of the city, Ritsuko's voice came over the comm system. "The Magi system will guide you until the Angel has descended to 10,000 feet. From there, go by what you can see," she suggested.

Both Rei and Asuka nodded, but Shinji didn't give any indication that he had heard at all. "Hey, baka!" Asuka called to him, but did not receive a response.

"Shinji?" Rei called. Again, nothing.

As the two watched him, waiting for some sign, the signal from headquarters sounded, saying that the Angel had started to fall. Shinji snapped his head up and nodded to both of them. Both girls started running right away because the Magi were directing them, but that didn't mean that they didn't notice something strange about Shinji.

When he had looked up, his eyes were as red as Rei's.

"What are you waiting for, Shinji?" Misato shouted into the microphone. "Get moving!" She could see on her monitors the other two Eva Units running north, to try and pass his still unmoving position. It looked like the Angel was coming down to the north of Shinji, far enough away that if he didn't start to move soon, then no one would reach it in time. "Move!"

[It is time, brother.] The eyes of the purple Unit-01 glowed bright green suddenly as the massive biomechanical machine looked up. The power cord jettisoned itself without warning, and before anyone could even blink, Shinji was moving. Though moving was far too weak a word for it.

"Major! He's reaching higher synch ratios again!" Maya called. Misato didn't even take her eyes of the screen that showed the current position of each of the Evangelions. Units 00 and 02 were moving up in steady blips across the screen, while Unit-01 was a straight line. It was as though he was in multiple places at once, he was moving so quickly.

"What's going on?" Misato breathed to herself. Beside her, Ritsuko had dropped her clipboard.

"Shinji!" Asuka shouted as she watched the trail left behind by the purple Unit. Dust and great winds were swirling in his wake, making it almost impossible to see the ground where she was running to meet the decent of the Angel. She had almost reached his position when he started to move, so it didn't make any sense how he was moving so much faster than she was.

Chancing a glance to her side, she saw Rei coming up alongside her as well. Both were moving at an equal pace to the mountain ahead. "I will not let you face this terror alone, Shinji!" Rei shouted. If not for her high synch ratio, Asuka probably would have faltered, hearing the doll speak Shinji's first name for once, rather than his last. "We will make it in time!"

The two were still miles away when Shinji dug the feet of his Unit into the ground to stop his advance. His computer guidance system was off. Almost as soon as Ritsuko had told them that the computer would guide them to start off with, he had pushed the screen aside. In his heart, he knew what was coming.

Inside the control room, the cameras were back up and running, and showed the steady position Unit-01 had taken. He suddenly reared back as though flexing the muscles on the behemoth machine, and then thrust one hand into the air. A shimmering blue and orange field appeared above him just as the Angel smashed into his hand.

A moment later, he brought his other hand up to support himself, holding the massive Angel back all on his own. Misato chanced a glance at the screen showing her young ward, and jabbed Ritsuko in the arm, motioning to the camera. Shinji was glowing again. The glow was so bright this time that nothing else could be seen in the entry plug.

Shinji screamed and he pushed upwards. He felt one of his feet buckle beneath him at the tremendous weight that was literally resting on his shoulders, and he baulked to one knee as he fought back the growing pressure. With another scream, he pushed up hard, and a white glow surrounded his Evangelion Unit, pushing up on the entire Angel rather than just the one point.

"We're coming, Shinji!" Rei's voice was loud in his ears, but he still blocked it out. "Unit-02, activate AT Field to maximum strength!"

"What do you think I'm doing, Wondergirl?" Asuka demanded through gritted teeth as she skidded to a halt on the mountain, adding her support to Shinji. A moment later, Rei appeared at his other side, with her hands up to hold up a different part of the Angel.

"Ayanami, nullify the Field by my right hand. Soryu, the opening should be enough for you to destroy the core. Got it?" Shinji demanded in an almost detached voice.

"What's with the distance?" Asuka asked as she released her hold with one hand to draw her knife. "I've been Asuka to you ever since... well, forever."

"And I have been Rei for some time as well," Rei said, still holding up the Angel with both her hands.

"Just do it, please?" Shinji said quickly. "I can't hold this up much longer... I can't see anything right now. I need you to finish this before I can't hear my own voice."

"What do you mean, Shinji?" Asuka asked in surprise. She didn't wait for his response as Rei released her hold on the Angel and gripped at the empty space above the purple Unit-01's right hand, and her blue Unit-00 tore a hole in the invisible fabric of space.

As soon as the hole formed, Asuka drove the progressive knife forward with a mighty battle cry. As she felt the satisfying bite of the blade into the red core that was the Angel's S2 engine, she couldn't help but make some comment. "Take that, you pop-eyed freak!"

There was an ear piercing wail suddenly, and Shinji dropped both his hands. "Get down, now!" he shouted. When there was no immediate response from the other two Units, he put a hand on both shoulders and pushed them to the ground hard. Standing tall himself still, the white light etched out from his form and surrounded the two fallen Evangelions as the remains of the Angel Sahaquiel flopped down around them.

The explosion that followed tore apart the mountain, but that was the full extent of the damage to the terrain. It could have been a lot worse. "It appears that your foolish plan has met with some success," Ritsuko said softly in the silent command room. Misato said nothing as she continued to watch the screen that showed where the Units had been.

"Please be alright," she whispered to no one around her as the dust started to settle.

A groan met her ears before anything else, and then Asuka's screen came back on. "We win?" she asked in a small voice.

"You sure did," Misato said with a smile.

Asuka smiled back. "Thought so. No Angel can stand up to my might." She then looked down, toggling her other switches to show the other pilots. She nodded to Rei, who said nothing back in return, and then flipped Shinji's switch again before looking up to Misato. "What's with Shinji?" she asked.

"I can not raise Shinji on my monitor, either, Major Katsuragi," Rei said. The worry in her voice surprised herself, but not as much as it surprised both Misato and Ritsuko.

"Eva Unit-01..." Maya said softly. "Is Off-line."

"What?" Asuka demanded in a loud voice. "That baka didn't follow his own advice?"

As the dust settled, showing a crumpled red Unit-02 and blue Unit-00, the purple Unit-01 was further in the distance. Maya zoomed in on in at once, and there was a great sigh of relief as they found it to be relatively intact. "The entry plug is showing no signs of damage," she offered.

"Get a rescue team out there, stat!" Misato ordered. "And send a team out to retrieve Asuka and Rei." She nodded to both pilots and turned off the screens and comms to them. She then turned to Ritsuko. "Can you try to get through to the Commander again? I think he would like an update."

"And just what do you intend to tell him?" Misato turned in an instant as she heard Kaji's voice from behind her. "That your plan was a complete success, though Unit-01 did sustain damage, and the status of the pilot is unknown?"

"I will wait to contact him until we're sure Shinji's alright," she corrected with a nod to Ritsuko. "And after I tear a strip out of him for not moving when he was supposed to. He cut our chances down even more when he did that!"

"But whatever he did do seems to have been a success," Kaji pointed out. "I think that without his aide, the pilots would have failed."

"His synch was 280%," Maya said from her station. "Though his harmonics were still only 73."

"Let's keep that to ourselves, shall we?" Misato suggested. "Because, though I'm sure Asuka will be thrilled to know she's still beating him in harmonics, I don't want a synch war going on right now."

She turned and made her way off the bridge to head to the hospital wing. She was sure that Shinji would be arriving there shortly, and that Rei and Asuka would join her there as soon as they were ready.

The footsteps behind her caused her to stop and turn. As soon as she had, she groaned and turned to keep walking again. "Wanted: Baby-sitter," Kaji said with a smile on his face. "Must also be able to plan tactics against giant flying freaks." He was walking at her pace beside her by this point. "If that isn't a fucked up job description, then I haven't heard one."

"I don't really feel like fighting with you right now," Misato said dully as she continued along the corridor. He stopped her gently and pointed to the left instead of the right. She followed his direction without a second thought. He had to know his way around better than she did. "Do you think he's alright?"

"You want my opinion?" Kaji asked in surprise. When she glared at him, he held up his hands in defense and defeat. "Sorry. I'm sure Shinji's fine. He's got a guardian angel, after all. The... the good kind, not the bad," he added at her look.

"What do you mean?" she asked quickly as they entered the elevator to go to the lower levels, and the hospital within.

"This will not go in your reports," Kaji said, his voice almost threatening. "Or I will say nothing further."

"Why not?"

"Because no one else is supposed to know. Shinji would be crushed if it was spread through NERV. Or if his father ever found out and used it against him," he explained. Misato finally nodded.

"If it will help him..."

"Her name is Nephilim," Kaji said softly, after making sure no one else was around to hear them. "And she died against the underwater Angel. The one Shinji called Gaghiel." When Misato stopped walking and looked to him, he shook his head and motioned for her to keep moving. "I can't tell you much more. I won't, either. Just know that if you need him, desperately, and there is no other option, tell him that Nephilim is waiting for him. It will only work once, though."

"Asuka told you, didn't she?" Misato asked after a moment. "That's how she hurt Shinji, by telling you. She betrayed his trust. And now you're doing the same. You really are despicable!"

Kaji shook his head slowly as they came to a stop outside the room with Shinji's name on the door. The other pilots were coming down the hall without talking. He leaned in close so he could whisper to her, and no one else could hear. "He knew I would tell you eventually. Just don't abuse the information."

"I wouldn't dream of it!" she said harshly, pushing him away from her as Rei and Asuka came up beside them. Asuka immediately threw herself on Kaji, who tried to avoid the embrace, but failed.

"How is he?" Rei asked in a quiet voice.

"I don't know yet," Misato admitted. "We haven't been in the room yet, either."

"That baka had better not die on us now," Asuka said fiercely, letting go of Kaji, much to his relief and surprise. "Because he's got a lot of explaining to do."
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Pale blue eyes blinked in the intense light that greeted their opening. Shinji groaned a bit and raised a hand to block the source of light from blinding him.

"So, the creature my daughter keeps speaking of is finally awake..." Shinji tried to look around to find the source of the voice, but everywhere around him was simply too bright for his senses to handle. "Ah... sorry about that."

With a suddenness that caused him to gasp, the light dimmed, and focused on one part of the room alone. The rest of the room was darker suddenly, as though devoid of a presence that had once filled it. "What's going on?" Shinji asked, trailing off any number of other thoughts as he heard his voice echo a dozen times in the small room. It seemed so out of place it almost made his head spin.

"You used a bit too much of your energy, and so I brought you here to protect you," the voice replied. "Though it did take a little bit of convincing. He doesn't usually let me do this sort of thing. It's almost a miracle He let me do it this one time."

"Who let you do what?" Shinji asked.

"Mind you," the voice continued as though Shinji hadn't spoken at all. "Technically anything He does is considered a miracle, so think of it what you will."

"You really haven't explained what's going on..." Shinji pointed out as quietly as he could. His voice still sounded loud and harsh to his ears, even though he was cowering backwards from the light, which was where the voice was coming from.

"No?" the voice asked. The light dimmed more, and a figure appeared in the corner, a man. A tall man. The light seemed to focus in one his hands, feet, and face, while the rest of him was covered with clothes, blocking the light from view. "No, I suppose not. I am saving your life, Ikari Shinji," the man explained calmly. "While your doctors are fussing over your condition, I am keeping your soul stable. With a stable soul, your body will be able to survive any trauma that they might put it through in trying to revive you."

"Sahaquiel did that much damage to me?" Shinji asked in surprise.

The man nodded and sat down at the end of the bed Shinji suddenly realized he was lying in. "That he did. It was a very noble thing you did, too, protecting your friends like you did. I doubt they would have survived the crash otherwise. You are lucky that you are going to be able to."

"I'm still not sure what's going on, but I'm trying to follow..."

The man seemed to smile at him, and Shinji felt himself relaxing against his will almost at once. "I know this must be confusing. It is what comes when you deal with a child like mine. She really is quite sweet and means well, but she is unaware of her power over lilims."

"A child like yours?"

The man reached into his pocket and pulled something out slowly. "I have taken a liking to many lilim traditions," he explained. "Which is probably how it happened in the first place." He passed the object to Shinji, and he looked at it carefully.

It was a photograph, though it was very old. The edges were yellowing and curled, but the image was still bright and vivid. The man beside him was standing there, the bright light still blocking his face and hands from view, though it was obvious that he had an arm around a human woman. The woman had long red hair and a very calm appearance about her. In front of the two of them, with a hand on either shoulder, was... "Nephilim?" Shinji breathed in surprise, staring in disbelief at the picture. "She is your daughter?" He looked back up to the man, who nodded to him. "Is she alright?"

The man nodded and took the picture back. "Of course she is," he explained. "She just isn't allowed to be here right now. She is not permitted to see you any longer. Surely you have realized that by now."

"Why not?" Shinji demanded, almost angry with the man. "Why won't you let her come and be with me any longer? I will do everything I can to protect her, I swear to you in the name of..."

"Be careful, Ikari Shinji," the man said, holding up a hand. "It does not do to swear by the one in whose house you are sitting." He waved his hand as soon as he said it, and continued on quickly. "But I digress. You have very little time left that I can speak with you. I wanted to warn you."

"Warn me? About what?"

"The necklace that you wear about your neck was once that of my little girl," the man explained. "And it is also granting you many of her strengths while on Earth. I must implore you not to rely on those powers, though. Do you remember the words of your father when you first arrived in the establishment known as NERV?"

Shinji frowned. "How do you know about that?"

"My daughter was there, remember?"

Shinji nodded. "He said that I was humanity's last hope. That the select few who can pilot the Evangelion Units are all that stand between salvation and destruction."

"And continuation," the man added. "Your father was right, in more ways than he himself realizes, I'm sure. What you are doing is very dangerous."

"Fighting the Angels?" Shinji surprised himself when he snorted at the man. "Tell me something I don't know."

"The stars are true Angels, living within their homes. The method that you as lilims can detect them are flaming balls of gas," the man said at once. "Or, if you prefer something lighter, a giant asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs."

"Come again?" Shinji asked.

"You asked me to tell you something you didn't know," the man replied logically. "But you missed the intent of my message. What you do is dangerous, not because you are fighting what you have called Angels, but because of the power that you are drawing on. That power is not your own."

"I know," Shinji said weakly. "I can't do anything on my own," he added in a whisper that was quiet in the odd room.

The man placed a hand on Shinji's bare shoulder, and Shinji sighed before the man spoke again. "You have your own strengths, Shinji," the man said softly. "Her strength will be important when the time comes, but do not belittle your own courage. You will not be able to rely on her forever."

"I miss her," Shinji offered.

"She misses you, too," the man replied. "She speaks very highly of you. It was one of the only reasons I was allowed to bring you here, actually. She convinced Him, in the end, that it was worth it. You were worth saving."

Shinji sighed again and laid back slowly, suddenly feeling heavy and weak at the same time. "Say goodbye to Nephilim, for me..."

"Lisa will be glad to hear your words, Shinji. She was the last Nephilim allowed to visit the world in a very long time."

"Lisa?" Shinji whispered.

"Nephilim," the man confirmed. "The name we gave her was Lisa. The name she chose was Nephilim." As Shinji closed his eyes, the man spoke again. "Remember, do not be afraid to do what is needed. You are strong, Shinji, son of Yui and Gendo Ikari."

As his world went dark around him, Shinji found himself lost in conscious thought again. He looked around himself at the emptiness around him, and was startled by the soft voice in his ear. "I wanted to see you again, brother, but it was not to be."

"Nephilim?" he whispered into the darkness. "Or should I call you Lisa?"

"Nephilim is fine. That..." she giggled. "Or sister, like usual."

"Why did you give me this necklace?" he asked after a moment of silence. "Besides trying to convince me to trust Asuka again, I mean."

"I wanted you to be safe. I used my powers to protect you, but now that I can't be with you anymore, I wanted to give them to you," she replied softly.

"Was your death painful?" he whispered.

"No," she replied. He could tell she was smiling, even though he couldn't see her. "What you would consider my death was not painful. Though the illness was not a lot of fun, as I fought to stay with you."

Shinji sighed. "Was using your powers what caused the illness?"

"Yup," she said happily. "But it was worth it, to protect you."

"I'm... I'm not going to get sick because of this, am I? I'm not going to die like you did, right?" He asked the question almost in a rush.

"Of course not," she reassured him. "It is not an illness humans can get."

"What was your father's name?"

"I think most people I know call him Michael," she said after a moment. "But I'm not sure. I just call him daddy."

"Goodbye, Nephilim."

"Goodbye, brother. See you soon."
-------------------
Asuka was the first one in the room, and took a seat right next to Shinji's bed, looking at him. "He doesn't look so bad off to me," she pointed out. It was true, he looked to be in a relatively good condition. No cuts, major injuries, or broken bones. He just wasn't moving.

"What's wrong with him?" Misato asked, turning to the doctor who was still in the room.

"We... aren't entirely sure, actually," the doctor admitted. "Physically, he appears to be fine now. From what we could tell, anyway. I have to point out, though, that if he were in a more serious condition, then that plug suit could have cost him his life."

Misato looked back to Shinji, and only noticed then that he was wearing a hospital gown. "The suits are necessary for what they do," she explained calmly to the doctor. "But I will mention your concerns to Dr. Akagi. She may be able to work out a quick release system for emergencies."

"That would be in the best interests of the children."

"Are you suggesting that Shinji might not wake up?" Misato tore her eyes away from the doctor in surprise, to find Rei sitting opposite Asuka, looking at Shinji. Before she could reply, though, Asuka spoke up first.

"First of all," she said harshly. "Since when have you ever called anyone by their first name? And secondly, what happened to that great faith you had before when he was out like this?"

"Wait," the doctor interrupted before Rei could reply. "He was out like this before?"

Asuka shrugged. "At least, something like this, anyway. After the last Angel. He woke up and emerged a few minutes after the battle was over."

The doctor looked harshly to Misato. "And why wasn't this included in the report?"

"I believe Major Katsuragi was not aware of the situation," Kaji stepped in. "So there is no need to blame her for the omission."

"I don't need your help, you know," she muttered.

Rei leaned a little across the bed towards Asuka. The motion did not go unnoticed by the girl, who looked sharply over to her. "I thought that one was supposed to use the first names of those you care about," she pointed out.

"The term is friends, Wondergirl," Asuka muttered.

Rei did what could only be explained as a half frown, and shook her head. "I do not know, Soryu," she said slowly. "For I do not feel comfortable addressing you by your first name, or anyone else for that matter. He is the only one who has expressed a concern for my well-being, without having another motive, like whether or not I would still be able to pilot."

Whatever Asuka was about to say died in her throat as she felt a cold hand around her wrist suddenly. Looking down at once, she saw Shinji's face contorting, as though he were in great pain. Seconds later, before she could even react, he calmed down and slowly opened his eyes.

"Baka!" Asuka cried, tearing her hand free and slapping him across the cheek.

"Now really, this is a sick room!" the doctor objected, but Asuka kept going as though he hadn't said anything.

"How dare you do something so stupid?" she demanded. "Despite what you might think, you are not invincible, Shinji! You can't survive something like that on your own, just like we couldn't! What were you thinking?"

Shinji swallowed and looked away from her accusations, and found himself staring into Rei's soft red eyes. Before that moment, he didn't think he would have ever been able to call her eyes soft, but the look she was giving him could only be described as such. "I was trying to keep you two alive."

"NERV requires all three pilots at this time still, Shinji," Rei said in her monotone again. Her voice softened as she leaned in a bit. "I am glad that you are alright."

"Don't think you can start babying us just because you can do something that we can't!" Asuka said fiercely, turning away from him as he looked back to her.

"She made me do it." His whisper caught her ears, and she turned back quickly. The question that she was begging him with her eyes went ignored, for he couldn't answer it in front of everyone else. "I take it the mission was a success?" he asked quickly before anyone could comment on his words.

"Somehow, Misato's miracle was pulled off," Asuka nodded.

'Misato's miracle, huh? I wonder if anyone was pulling some strings for that, too, or if it would fall under the same miracle...' He smiled to his guardian at the end of the bed, who probably didn't realize that Kaji's hands were on her shoulders, there for support. She seemed tired and happy at the same time. "So that means you're taking us to supper, right?"

"I'll come too," Kaji offered almost at once. "God knows Misato couldn't afford a full meal is Asuka has any choice in the restaurant."

"It would be so dull without you, Kaji!" Asuka said at once, jumping up and trying to take one of his arms again. He stepped forward next to Shinji's bed at the last moment, making it look like he was just checking on the boy and not avoiding her.

"You feeling alright now, Shinji?"

"It is just the little things, you know?" Shinji asked him in return. Kaji smiled slowly and nodded after a moment.

"Shinji." Misato's voice was harsh and firm suddenly. When he looked to her in surprise, he saw she was frowning at him. "Your hesitation earlier today could have cost us any chance we had of success. You are very lucky that I am in a good mood right now, or I might have to add a strike to your name. Do you understand?"

"Perfectly, Major," he stammered. "I'm sorry."

Misato nodded. "Now, according to your fellow pilots, as well as what I heard and saw myself, a few strange things happened this time that I would like an explanation of. You told them that you couldn't see partway through the battle, and that you wouldn't be able to speak soon. What did you mean?"

Shinji shrugged. "I couldn't see," he explained. "And it wasn't just total darkness, but total light. Everything was blocked out by it. As for not being able to talk, I thought I was about to pass out..."

The Major nodded again. "Alright, two more questions, and then we're done for now - though I do expect to talk to you again later about this. Are you aware that it appeared that you were glowing out there, and that, for a brief moment anyway, your eyes were as red as Rei's?"

Shinji looked to Rei, and then Asuka, in alarm, and then held his hand to his forehead and took a deep breath. "I was not aware that I was glowing at all," he lied to her. "And I was certainly not aware that my eyes were red for any amount of time."

"They're blue now, baka," Asuka offered, much to the surprise of everyone else.

Shinji sat up slowly in his bed, and was startled by Rei's hand on his arm, and he looked to her quickly.

"If you need any assistance..." she began, only to be cut off by Asuka.

"Get dressed, Shinji!" she said quickly. "Because I'm hungry and want to get going. We'll all wait outside." At her words, she started to usher Misato and Kaji out of the room, and shot a glare towards Rei, who got up slowly, almost reluctantly, and followed. The doctor was the last one out, and he flipped the blinds closed as he emerged.

"I had his clothes brought down from the locker room," the doctor said as he left. "I have to write down a few things that I noticed today. Please excuse me."

Misato looked down as her cellphone started to ring, and turned away from the others as she answered it. Not that such an action did much good, for the voice on the other end was loud enough to be heard anyway, even though it didn't sound angry.

"Report, Major Katsuragi." The cold voice of Gendo Ikari was obvious, and Rei stiffened almost at once.

"The tenth Angel has been defeated," she said. "Although I must admit that Unit-01 did sustain damage from the attack. It was my fault, and I wish to apologize for my rash actions at this..."

"The mission was successful?" his voice cut her off.

"Yes."

"Then it does not matter. The Evangelions were created to combat the Angels. Damage is to be expected. Is the pilot of Unit-01 stable?"

"He was injured in the attack as well, but he appears to be unharmed at this time," Misato replied.

"He can still pilot, correct?"

"Yes sir."

"Then the rest does not matter. I expect a full report on my desk when I return. That is all, Major," the voice said. The dial tone suddenly sounded loud in Misato's ear, and she shut her phone as she turned back to the others.

"As full a report as I can give," she muttered as she tucked her phone away. "So, Asuka, have you decided where we are going, yet?"

"I'll let you know once we are headed there," she explained. "We still have to wait for Shinji."

Kaji chuckled behind her. "I'll admit, those are some of the last words I ever expected to hear from your mouth, Asuka."

"What do you mean, Kaji?" she asked, turning to him. Before he could reply, though, the door to the room opened and Shinji stepped out. "About time, baka!" she said harshly, turning to start walking towards the exit. "I told you I was hungry, and then you take your time getting dressed..."

Shinji started to follow her directly, but stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Rei and Misato continued, but he looked up and found Kaji standing next to him. The man appeared to be waiting for the others to get slightly ahead before starting to follow as well. "I must admit, Shinji, you are a stronger man than I am," he said softly.

"I doubt that," Shinji objected at once.

"No, I think you are," he said with a smile to the boy. "You appear to have forgiven Asuka completely, after all. I don't think I have yet, and I'm not the one she hurt."

"You could forgive her," Shinji offered. "I don't mind."

"But I do," he replied. "Although a part of me appreciates what she did, thanks to my unending quest for the truth, a larger part hates her for it. She betrayed you, when you were at your weakest state. And yet, to have the strength to forgive her shows you have more power than I do."

"I couldn't help it."

Kaji looked down to the boy with a sly smile on his face. "Oh, so that's how it is, is it?"

Shinji blushed once he realized what the man was suggesting. Two images flashed through his mind quickly before he had a chance to reply. The first was the night that he had kissed her while she slept, and the second was from the bizarre dream he had had a few nights earlier. "Not exactly," Shinji mumbled, not meeting his eye.

"You've saved her life twice, while she's protected you once," Kaji said after a moment. "I'll admit that I'm surprised she's not still screaming at you about it."

"So am I," Shinji admitted with a grin as he looked up to the man again. "But I'm glad."

The two stopped their conversation as they caught up with the others, who were holding the elevator doors open for them. "About time you got here. What did you do, follow Misato's directions?" Asuka asked.

"Just had a couple of things I wanted to discuss with Unit-01's pilot," Kaji explained deftly. "Nothing to worry about. A couple of quick questions, and now that we're done, we can go enjoy an excellent meal."

It was only after the meal that Shinji realized that he remembered very little about it. It wasn't that it wasn't a memorable experience, it was more that the food had nothing to do with it. It was the fact that he seemed to be having a good time with those he could consider friends. The only thing that really stuck in his mind was that Rei ordered the same thing he did, even though she had told him earlier that she didn't like meat.

He was very happy that it was Kaji who was driving the group home. Once he had dropped off Rei, the car turned to continue to Misato's apartment. She was really in no shape to drive after the amount of beer she had had at the table. He doubted she would even remember that she hadn't paid for it, but Kaji had.

"Asuka," he said softly, causing her to look to him suddenly, as though he had interrupted her train of thought. "Do you still want to know why I pilot?"

"Oh, so now you're willing to tell me?" She sounded annoyed at the fact that he hadn't said it earlier when they had been discussing it. Inside, though, she was pleased that he wanted to tell her, but not Wondergirl.

Shinji sighed and looked out the window as the buildings zipped by. "I don't think I really knew earlier," he explained. "But I pilot for two reasons, I guess. I pilot for continuation, and to protect my memories. Those memories worth protecting, anyway."

"That's pretty deep... Shin-man..." Misato slurred, looking back at him. "I'm impressed..." She trailed off as her head lulled to the side and she passed out.

"Your memories of her, right?" Asuka whispered to him, trying to keep her voice from carrying to the front.

Shinji smiled but shook his head. "He knows the full story, Asuka," he said softly, not meeting her eye. "But yes, those are some of the memories I want to keep in tact."

When they finally pulled into the parking lot of the apartment building, Kaji stepped out of the car slowly and made his way around as the two children got out as well. "I'll carry her up," he offered, opening Misato's door and picking her up carefully. "If you two could open doors for me, anyway."

As the first one inside, Shinji was the one subjected to the furious pecking at the shins by the warm water penguin Penpen. "I guess we did sort of forget about you, didn't we?" he asked, searching the fridge for the container of fish he had picked up for the bird. After feeding it, he stopped just inside the kitchen as he heard Asuka and Kaji's voices from further down the corridor.

"Kaji?" Asuka's voice was softer than Shinji had heard it in a long time. In fact, he could only ever remember hearing it like that once before, and that was when she was asleep and talking of her mother.

"Yes, Asuka?" Kaji's normally gentle, easy going voice seemed harsh next to hers.

"I... I wanted to apologize to you, too," she said quickly. "So I'm sorry, ok?"

There was a silence for a moment, until a door slid open. Shinji assumed it was the one that lead to Misato's room, for Kaji probably was still holding her. "I understand, Asuka," Kaji said after another moment of complete silence. "And I know that you are sorry." He sighed before going on. "If Shinji can forgive you, then I suppose that I should as well, but what you did was unusually cruel."

"I know," she said in a whisper. There was the sound of movement, and Shinji almost stepped away from the exit of the kitchen in case either of them saw him. He figured out after a moment that it was just Kaji setting Misato down on her bed. "Are you staying the night?" Asuka asked him.

"I'll admit, I was considering it," Kaji admitted. "I want to make sure Misato's alright. She should be, I've seen her take more beers in one night than she did tonight, but still..."

"Treat her well, okay?" Asuka said in a rush as she turned away and started to walk down the hall away from the room and closer to the kitchen. Shinji backed away quickly, and Penpen squawked at him. The sound apparently went unnoticed by the other two who were still awake, though, for which Shinji was very thankful.

"Thank you, Asuka," Kaji said softly as the door to Misato's room slid closed.

Shinji waited a few minutes longer, until he heard the bathroom door open and close, the toilet flush, and then the door to Asuka's room slide closed as well before he darted from the kitchen into his room as quietly as he could. The full events of the day caught up with him as he sat down on his bed to think, and he laid back and fell asleep almost at once.

Asuka stood up from her bed again almost as soon as she had sat down and walked into the hall once more. She was wearing her nightgown again, but she had her blanket wrapped around her to keep her warm, and slightly more covered than she had been before. As she walked passed Shinji's room, she stopped for a moment.

"Thank you, Shinji," she whispered, knowing that he couldn't hear her. As she started to walk away, back to her own room again, she noticed an odd light eeking out from under his door. She slid it open slowly, and gasped when she saw that his hands, arms, face, and feet were glowing a soft white, just like his hands had been before. The glow was spreading. She entered the room quickly, more than a little confused by it, and shook him gently to wake him and ask.

As soon as he was awake, the glow died from everywhere but his fingertips. When she saw that, she slapped him. He raised a hand to his cheek in surprise and stared at her in shock. "And just what was that one for?" he asked. "It's not like I was staring at you or anything! I mean, you're in my room this time, even!"

"You were shouting in your sleep again," Asuka lied. She stood up quickly and walked to the door of his room. "I guess you were having another bad dream. I don't know about you, but I'm sleeping in the living room again. If you decide to join me, then that's your business, but you had better not try anything when I'm asleep!"

Shinji stared after her, more than a little confused by her actions. He didn't remember his dream at all, and usually he remembered the bad ones without question. As he thought about that, he remembered the one dream that he had had that could be considered a good dream, and immediately hoped he didn't dream that way again that night. Especially if he was going to be sleeping in the same room as Asuka.

He stood slowly from his bed and, dragging his blanket behind him, entered the living room and found Asuka sprawled in the middle of the floor, her blanket wrapped around her tightly for warmth and comfort. He smiled at her sleeping form for a moment before setting his blanket down at the side of the couch and picking up a pillow.

Biting back his fear, he gently eased her head off the ground and set the pillow beneath it before standing and backing away quickly. Seeing the peaceful expression on her face, he hesitated while he was right next to her for a moment, as though he was thinking about trying to kiss her again. On that thought, he remembered the sinking feeling in his stomach he had the last time, and backed away quickly. He picked up his blanket again and curled up beneath it on the opposite side of the room, his back to her.

On the other side of the room, Asuka smiled to herself, and rolled over to try and actually get to sleep.
---------------------
"So?"

Asuka turned to her friend in confusion, an eyebrow raised asking the question she voiced moments later. "So... what?"

"So what did Shinji say?"

Asuka's mind started to race as she went over the passed couple of days. Hikari had asked her to do something... but with all the time that she had spent tutoring Shinji, she hadn't actually taken a break to ask. "He said he didn't know," she shrugged.

"Really?" Hikari asked, peering intently at her friend. "Or it is that you didn't ask him yet?"

"I forgot how well you can read me, alright?" Asuka groaned. "I'll ask him tonight, I swear." She then shook her head. "No," she corrected herself, stopping next to her locker as the two came upon it after school. "On second thought, why don't you ask him yourself?"

Hikari reddened almost at once and looked away. "I couldn't talk to Toji like that..."

"I meant you could ask Shinji, but that's an even better idea. Just ask him what he thinks of you. Or, better yet, just ask him on a date or something. Go see a movie."

"But..." Hikari stammered. "But, the guy's supposed to ask the girl, right? And besides, what if he says no?"

"Then he says no. Big deal. He's a stooge."

"Asuka!"

The German girl sighed and looked to her friend. "Fine, fine, I take it back," she said. "For now," she added in a whisper as she turned the locker combination and opened the door. "Mein gott, again!" She pushed the stack of letters that had been shoved into her locker onto the ground and stepped on them as she put her books back. "Will they never learn?"

"All love letters?" Hikari asked, looking at the pile that was being ground into the tiled floor. She then looked back up, a odd look on her face. "Tell you what, Asuka. I'll ask Toji out... but if I do, then you have to ask someone out, too."

Asuka simply pointed at the ground at her feet. "Pick one," she suggested.

"No," Hikari said, shaking her head. She pointed to a locker further down that had papers sticking out of the edges and the air slits. Dozens more letters were taped to the front of the locker, making it obvious that it was already full. "I'm not picking one from that pile. You haven't received any letters from him, I'm sure."

"Shinji?" Asuka laughed. "You want me to ask Shinji out on a date? With me?"

Hikari grinned. "You said it yourself. I can read you better than anyone else."

"So..." Asuka mussed quietly. "If you ask Toji out, then I would have an excuse to ask Shinji? A double date, you mean?"

"Is it a deal?" Hikari pressed her friend.

Asuka looked away from Hikari in surprise as Rei's pale hand suddenly appeared in front of her face. "I would like to request that you do not involve Shinji in such a radical form of action," she said almost angrily.

"And just why not?" Asuka demanded. "Why shouldn't I accept Hikari's challenge?"

Rei looked at her for a moment, trying to decide on the best phrase to use. She had heard a lot in the passed couple of days as she listened closely to conversations in the hallways during lunch. Staring Asuka straight in her blue eyes with her crimson ones, a small grin appeared on her lips. "Hands off. He's mine."

"What?" Asuka said fiercely. "Who gave you permission to claim him like that?"

"I was unaware that I needed to obtain permission," Rei said in a surprisingly low undertone. It wasn't her usual calm monotone, but was much darker. "And, in fact, I know that that is not the case. I do not need your approval, either. He has shown great interest in me in the past, and I feel it an appropriate time for me to follow up on said actions."

"And just what is that supposed to mean?"

Rei turned before she answered and started to walk away. Then, in a move that Asuka would only have assumed herself to have been able to pull off, she flipped her short blue hair back and looked over her shoulder. "You would not understand."

"I understand things a lot better than you might think, Wondergirl," Asuka snarled at the retreating blue haired pilot. "And I know that he would never be brave enough to show any interest in anyone like that."

"As I have learned very clearly, you are free to think as you wish, Soryu," Rei said without turning around.

Once the girl was completely out of sight, Asuka turned back to Hikari angrily. "You have a deal, Hikari," she said harshly. "But I'm going to ask him out before you get a chance to ask Toji."

"You're not doing it just to beat Rei are you?" Asuka shot a glare at her friend, who held up her hands in defeat. "Sorry, I thought I'd make sure. I couldn't agree to it in good conscience if you were."

"I did say I wouldn't betray him again, didn't I?" Asuka said softly as she turned with her friend to leave. When Hikari nodded, so did Asuka. "That's what I thought."
-------------------
"Hey Asuka!" Shinji called from his bedroom after staring at his books for almost an hour. Supper had been over and dealt with for quite some time, and he was sure he had heard Misato go out earlier, but he didn't care. When she shouted back, he went on. "You know about centripetal force, right?"

His fiery roommate appeared in the doorway moments later, leaning against the frame. "Of course I do, Shinji," she said with a nod. "But Misato's been gone for hours now. Don't you think you could give it a rest now?"

"But I really need to learn this stuff..." he pointed out. He didn't bother to point out that he knew she was reading the kanji a bit better ever since they had started working together on his problems, as that wouldn't help anything.

"Don't you ever get bored of sitting there working all the time?"

"What?"

"You know how they say work before pleasure?" Asuka asked slyly, looking up to him. "Obviously they never read the dictionary..."

Shinji grinned back, but shook his head and looked back down to his textbook. "I've got to deal with this first, Asuka," he countered. "As soon as I get this worked out..."

"We'll spend all night tomorrow if you want to, alright?" she suggested. "Right now, I just want to do something different. You up for it?"

His curiousity peeked, he closed his book slowly and looked over to her. He almost wished he hadn't when he saw her wearing the short shorts and tube top that she had tricked him in before. He knew it was a warm night, but he had hoped not to see her wearing them again for quite some time. It reminded him all too well of the part of him that had been disappointed.

"What..." Shinji fumbled before going on again. "What are you thinking of?"

"Nothing much, just a little game," she replied nonchalantly. "We'll start in the living room, and go from there. Sound good?"

"What kind of game?"

Asuka smiled to him. "One that a coward would never play." He just looked at her for a moment longer before she sighed. "Fine, it's called Truth or Dare, alright?"

It was very much to Shinji's own surprise that he found himself sitting on the floor across from Asuka a few minutes later. She was just sitting staring at him for a moment, before she cleared her throat. "What?" he asked her.

"You're going first," she explained.

"Oh..." Shinji replied. Another minute of silence passed before Shinji looked away from her. "Could you... uh... remind me how to do this?"

"Verdammt, baka..." she muttered under her breath. With a sigh, she looked back to him. "I should have guessed. Look, you ask the other person if they want to take a Truth or a Dare. A Truth means you can ask them any question in the world, and they have to answer in all honesty. If they don't know, truthfully, then that's acceptable. But if they won't answer, then they have to accept the Dare. The Dare can be chosen, or forced, depending on the Truth. The Dare is asking them to do something that they normally wouldn't do. For example, I'll take Dare first."

Shinji frowned. After hearing the explanation, he had hoped she would take Truth. He looked around for a moment before a small smile spread across his face as he noticed the warm water penguin waddling out of his fridge. "Alright," he said slowly. "I dare you to tickle Penpen."

If was just as well Asuka's jaw couldn't unhinge like a snake's, or it would have hit the ground. "You're... you're pretty good at these dare things..." she breathed, looking behind her to the penguin.

"Give up already?" he asked slyly. Two could play the game like she had suggested.

"I would never give up!" she declared, standing quickly. "I should add, though, that if the dare proves impossible, then it is forgiven."

"That makes sense, I guess," Shinji admitted. "But it shouldn't be that hard for someone as great as you, right?" She looked back in surprise, and saw the thin smile on his face.

'Mocking me, are you?' she thought to herself as she turned back to the penguin, which had stopped walking and was just staring at the two of them. 'I'll show you...' She walked into the kitchen calmly and opened the fridge, taking out one of the fish set aside from the bird. "Here you are, Penpen," she said sweetly, setting it down in the food dish.

A loud squawk followed her declaration, and Shinji stood to watch from the entrance of the kitchen. Asuka stood behind the penguin as it dipped down to eat the fish, and then she darted in, dancing her fingers around beneath the flippers. Another loud squawk followed immediately, and the penguin started to shiver almost violently, batting at her hands helplessly with its flippers as little chirps were emitted from its mouth.

After a minute, Asuka let up and backed away quickly. Penpen turned at once and squawked at her again, and then waddled forward and started pecking at her leg. She shouted at it, and Shinji stepped forward quickly, laughing too hard to actually say anything. He tapped the food bowl, and the bird looked back to it, reminded of the fish that had been left for it.

Shinji followed Asuka back to the living room, still laughing silently as he sat down again. When he saw Asuka watching him again, he fought to get his amusement under control the best he could. "Your turn, Shinji..." she reminded him.

He smiled to her and nodded. "You were right. This is better than homework. I guess I needed the break..." He sat back slowly as his mind raced. He didn't dare pick a dare from Asuka. He was sure it would be something horribly difficult and embarrassing... "I'll take Truth, then."

"Do you love Rei?" It was as though the question had been on her lips for ages, and she had just been waiting for the perfect opportunity to ask it.

Shinji closed his eyes slowly. 'I should have know that she would only want to play this to ask me things like that...' When he opened his eyes again, he found that she was looking away from him. "What I feel for Rei..." he said slowly, causing her to look back to him as he trailed off. "What I feel for her... it doesn't go with words. It's as if... she's a part of me that was torn away a lone time ago... if that makes any sense," he finished, looking back to her again.

"Not really," Asuka said, shaking her head. 'It just told me what I had to know, though.' "That's it, though? Nothing concrete? Not even 'Well, she's a friend, I guess...'?"

"Alright, I guess she is a friend," Shinji admitted. "But I figured that was obvious, so I didn't bother saying it."

"Ever thought it could be more than that?"

Shinji frowned. "I thought it was only one question at a time," he pointed out.

Asuka waved his concern aside. "Alright, alright," she conceded when she saw he wasn't going to budge. "Fine. I'll take a Truth too, just to show you how it should be answered."

The boy nodded slowly and sat back. "Okay," he said after a minute passed. "Alright, I've got one." He sat forward and looked straight into her deep blue eyes with his own lighter blue ones. "Do you hate me?"

"Why would you think that?" Asuka asked in response. She then caught herself. "Oh, sorry. It's the game... can't answer like that, can I?" She trailed off seeing the intense look in his eyes. "No. I don't hate you, Shinji Ikari."

"Oh," Shinji said. He sounded almost surprised.

"Why would you think I hated you?"

He shrugged. "It sure seems like it most of the time. I mean, you're always yelling at me, calling me names, insulting me..." He shook his head. "The list just goes on and on..."

"But I don't do that because I hate you!" she objected. "I do that because you're too weak. You don't stand up for yourself. I figured you needed something to fight against, to get stronger."

He nodded. "Thanks... I guess," he offered after a moment.

Another minute passed, and Asuka cleared her throat again. "If you aren't going to start picking right away, then I'm just going to start demanding one or the other, without your pick..."

"Dare, then," he said quickly. He had forgotten it was his turn again.

"Hide all of Misato's beer stash in the bathroom," Asuka prompted.

Shinji looked in the direction of the kitchen and then back at her. "You're kidding, right?" he asked. Before she could answer, he went on. "Because not only would it take all night, but she'd kill me!"

"That's why it's a dare, baka," Asuka chided. "But if you don't think you can handle the pressure, I could just ask a Truth..."

"Go to, then. I'll hear my options."

"No way. If you want the truth, then you have to answer it."

He didn't like the way she said that. Something about her tone told him that he didn't really want to answer whatever question was going through her mind suddenly. With a sigh, he got to his feet and made his way to the kitchen. "Promise me that you won't let her kill me..."

"Just beat you to within an inch of your life," Asuka said solemnly.

"Thanks," he muttered. "I feel so much better now..." He opened the fridge and took out three cases of beer. Staggering under the load, for it was more awkward than anything else, he made his way to the bathroom and set the boxes down in the bathtub. He returned for six more trips, and when he was done, he flopped down in the living room again, and Asuka sat down as well, a smile on her face.

"Not bad, baka," she said softly. "I didn't think you had it in you."

"Do you have to always call me baka?" he asked.

"Can I treat that as my Truth question?" she replied with a grin.

"No!" Shinji said at once, sitting up quickly. When he saw he smile, he sighed. "Fine, you got me," he admitted. "But you're taking Truth, then?"

"Yeah."

"Did you mean what you said at school today?"

Asuka frowned. "When? I said a lot of things at school today. I tend to do that, you know..."

"When you were arguing with Rei," he added. "When you said I was too cowardly to show any interest in anyone... interest that might lead to, well, me finding a girlfriend." he said that last part in a rush.

"How did you hear about that?"

"Kensuke," Shinji admitted. "I guess he set up a tape recorder in my locker at some stage, which burns what it hears into his computer. I don't know why he did it... but he told me about it today, and what he heard you say."

"Remind me to kill the stooge later," Asuka said darkly.

"Oh, so you're taking the Dare, then?" Shinji asked, almost angrily.

Asuka shook her head. "I'm not backing down, Shinji," she said. "I was trying to think of how to say it." She paused, and then leaned in a bit. "I suppose I just haven't seen any evidence that you would try something like that, baka," she said softly. "Because I notice that you take the time to reject all the love letters that keep getting stuffed into your locker."

Shinji sat back as though that news surprised him. "Oh." He smiled to himself and shook his head. "I guess that is a bit foolish, as no one seems to get the point. But how do you know the right girl hasn't dropped something in, yet?"

"Nobody worth our time would go through something as foolish as that!" Asuka said. "Well, no one worth my time, anyway. Face to face is the only way to go," she added.

"Well, I guess that counts as an answer," Shinji admitted. "And I'm taking Truth this time, but I want a drink first. Can I get you anything?" he asked as he got to his feet.

"An orange juice, please," she said with a nod. He returned a moment later with two cans of orange juice, and tossed her one before sitting down again. "And as for your Truth, I'll go easy on you this time because you just got me a drink. What do you think of Misato's drinking?"

Shinji thought for a moment before answering. It was much more of an in-depth answer than Asuka had obviously counted on. "I think she drinks because she needs an escape from her life. She faced horrible things in her past, as have I, and I think it is her method of coping with the pain. That, and I think she likes the taste. Personally, I wish she would cut back a bit, or at least start eating healthily too, but I don't think either thing is going to happen any time soon."

"A painful past is easy to understand," she whispered, not looking at him suddenly. When she looked back to him after a minute, there was an odd glint in her eye. "But with you around to cook suppers, we know she'll eat at least have one good meal a day, right?"

"Thanks."

"I'll take a Dare this time. And if you try anything with that penguin again, then..." She left the threat hanging in the air.

"Alright..." Shinji said slowly. It was only a second later that he looked to her again. "Does all clothing have opposites?" he asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Like socks and shirts, pants and blouses, that sort of thing?"

"I could think of something, I'm sure. Why?"

"Rearrange Misato's clothing so she will have the hardest time possible finding the clothes she wants. But everything must go where clothes are supposed to go in there," he added.

Asuka nodded and stood, and he followed suite. When they arrived at the door to Misato's room, she looked back to him. "You aren't coming in, though," she said simply.

"What?" Shinji demanded. "And why not? How will I know you actually did it?"

"You'll have to trust me," Asuka said softly. "Can you do that?

Shinji looked into her eyes for a moment when she looked back to him, and he nodded slowly, turning away from the room. "Yes, I trust you. I'll keep watch, just in case." He looked back from the end of the hall. "Oh, and I'm counting that as a Truth, by the way."

As much as she wanted to object, she found that she couldn't suddenly. He had just told her, point blank, that he trusted her again. Once she was inside the room, she shut the door quickly and started to work right away. She knew if she didn't, then she might just break her vow a second time right then and there.

She emerged after half an hour of work, and found Shinji sitting with his back against the door to the apartment, his eyes closed. "Hey, Shinji?" she called to him.

"Done already?" he asked, looking at his watch. The time was around 10:15 at night. "I'm impressed. I figured it would take a lot longer."

"Trying to get rid of me, are you?" she asked with a grin.

"Nope," Shinji admitted. "Just saying, that's all."

"Give me another Dare," she suggested. "I want to see what else you can cook up."

Shinji got to his feet and walked with her back to the living room. He stopped in the doorway of the kitchen, though. "Alright. I dare you to cook supper for a week," he suggested.

"You can't do that!" she objected. "I have to be able to do the Dare now, without Misato around."

"So I take it you don't want that Dare?"

Asuka glared at him for a moment. "I think I taught you too much about this game already..." she admitted slowly. "Gimme a Truth."

"What's your favourite food?" he asked simply.

"Verdammt!" she exclaimed almost at once, turning away from him. "I think I'd rather take the cooking..."

"Why?" Shinji asked. "I didn't think it would be that hard a question..."

"You want my favourite food that was my favourite for the longest, or my favourite food right now?" she asked in return.

"Uh..." He hadn't thought of that. "I guess right now."

She swore again before looking back to him. "I did mention that nothing that is said here can leave here, right?" she pressed him.

"Why is this such a hard..." he started, but she cut him off.

"It's your noodles, alright?" she said harshly, an odd edge to her voice. "But if you dare tell anyone else that I said that..."

"It doesn't leave here, you just said that," Shinji pointed out. "And, truth be told, I'm happier that way. I don't want some of what we've done getting out..."

"What, you don't want Wondergirl to know how you feel about her right now?"

"Actually, I'm more worried about Misato's reaction when she finds her beer sitting in the bathtub..."

"Speaking of that, what are you taking this time? I'm feeling particularly vindictive after taking two in a row from you..."

'Crap...' Shinji thought to himself. "I... I think I'll take a dare."

"Oh?" Asuka asked with a grin. "I thought you'd take a Truth after a threat like that. Don't want me asking something?" she prodded. Before he could reply, she shook her head. "Alright, I want you to short sheet Misato's bed."

"Short sheet?"

Asuka groaned. "You really are a baka, aren't you?" She grabbed his hand and pulled him behind her to Misato's room, and opened the door. "Alright, basically, you take her sheet and fold it a third of the way up, underneath of course, so the top looks the same. However, when she gets into the bed, the pocket formed by the folding makes it so she can only get halfway down the bed." She showed him what she meant with her hands, and he nodded. "Then you cover it up with her blanket, and she'll never know until she tries to get in."

Shinji made very short work of that dare, as he was often the one who made his bed and hers each day anyway. Asuka had never let him into his room to do hers, but still, doing two beds a day made it very easy to make one a second time, even if it was done a little unorthodox.

"Just where did you learn dares like that?" Shinji asked once they were sitting in the living room again.

"I went to college, like I said," Asuka explained simply. "Best spot in the world to learn pranks of all kinds..." She then looked back to Shinji. "I'll take a Truth."

"Ok..." Shinji thought for a minute or two before Asuka cleared her throat again. "Alright, alright. Who is Kaji to you, really? I mean, what does he mean to you?"

Asuka groaned again. "Another tough one, huh?" she asked. "I guess I should expect that in this game, though..." She trailed off for a minute before sighing. "I guess you could say that I had a mad crush on him."

"Had?" Shinji asked in surprise.

Asuka nodded grimly. "Had," she repeated. "Even if he doesn't still hate me for what I did to you, that whole episode did do one good thing, I guess. It showed me that he cared for Misato more than anything else..."

"Glad it was good for something, anyway," Shinji said darkly.

"Look, I said I'm sorry," Asuka said harshly. "But if you are going to keep bringing it up and..."

"I'm not," Shinji objected at once. "And I wasn't blaming you this time," he continued quickly, before she could start yelling at him again. It had been a very peaceful, enjoyable evening, and he didn't want it ruined, especially not because of something that had ruined so much in the past. "It happened. We've moved on. That's all there is to it."

"Can I... quote you on that later?"

"Why?" Shinji asked, confused by the odd request.

"Just because."

"Fine," he conceded.

"All he is now," she went on talking about Kaji as though she hadn't stopped a few minutes ago. "Is a distraction. I can use my so called infatuation with him to avoid other issues..."

"That's enough," Shinji said softly. "You don't have to say anything else." When she nodded, he smiled to her. "Alright. As loathe as I might be after that, I'll take a Truth too."

Asuka nodded. "I hate to ask a question this hard, but after that, I think I have the right. Do you still miss her?" she asked softly. "Nephilim, I mean..."

Shinji turned away from her, and if she didn't know him any better, she would have sworn he had snorted at her question. "You have to ask?" he asked softly. "Of course I still miss her. Everyday... she was with me for only a few months, but she made a world of difference, you know?" he asked, turning back to her. "More than anyone else can believe possible, I guess."

Asuka shook her head. "No... no I think I can understand," she said, not meeting his sad gaze. She was remembering all the times recently she had been visited by the child, and she knew what a difference the girl could make. "Well, I'm going to take Truth again. Save you the trouble of thinking up another good Dare..."

'She'd kill me if I used the only one left I can think of anyway...' He smiled to her softly. "Don't kill me for this Truth, alright?"

"Why would I?" she asked. "You've asked some pretty tough stuff so far, haven't you?"

"Why do you hate Rei so much?"

"What's not to hate?" Asuka replied rather than answer his question directly. "I mean, she's too quiet, has no emotions to speak of, does whatever the Commander tells he to do without question, and..." She trailed off, not wanting to say the last reason, the most recent reason she started to dislike the doll.

"That's not true," Shinji countered. "Yes, she's quiet, I guess," he admitted. "But she's not the only one. I am too, unless you haven't noticed. Not as quiet as I was, but still..." He sighed before going on. "She has emotions, she's just not that good at expressing them. And as to being a doll... answering everything my father tells her to do..." He looked away from Asuka. "I once would have given anything in the world to be looked on by my father like she is on a regular basis."

"Why?"

"Because I needed a father!" Shinji said fiercely, but softly at the same time. "At least, I thought I did... but I think she helped me with that, too."

"And how would Wondergirl help you with..." Asuka trailed off, and then smacked herself in the forehead, causing Shinji to look up in surprise. "Nephilim helped you with that..." she corrected herself. When Shinji nodded, she sighed. "Fine. Look, I guess I only hate her because she always seems to be trying to show me up, and it never looks like she even tries at anything." 'He's got to buy that as enough... I can't believe I'm not telling him everything... I've never broken the rules of the game before, and now I'm doing it with the one person I swore never to lie to again...'

"Alright," Shinji accepted. "I guess the question was a bit unfair. There's a lot of things to cover under that topic, and I suppose scratching at the surface is enough for now," he offered, to which she could only smile half heartedly and nod.

"So..." Asuka said slyly, leaning forward just a little towards Shinji. "What are you taking now. Truth... or Dare?" Something about the way she asked made Shinji look back to her in surprise, and found himself looking straight into her eyes.

"I... I'll take Truth again," he said. He cursed himself as he did so, as he wanted to see a few more pranks, or whatever else she had up her sleeve, but he wasn't sure what she might be planning, and decided to play it safe. He could always answer questions, if given no other easy choice.

"Do you... hate me, Shinji?" she whispered, looking down at the carpet between them.

Shinji sat up as she asked the question, and his movement caused her to look up as well. "I thought I told you before... I don't hate you," he said softly. "I can't."

"Well why not?" she asked.

"I don't know," he admitted. "I wanted to for a while, but I'm glad I couldn't, even then," he added. After a couple of seconds of silence, during which time he thought she might speak up again, he went on. "I just don't hate you."

"Do you think you like me... like as more than just a roommate or friend?" she asked.

Shinji felt his heart beating very loudly in his ears, and he forced himself to shake his head. "I've already answered two questions, Asuka," he said. He didn't exactly trust himself to say much else.

She nodded, and sighed. "I knew I should have asked that one first..." she muttered. "Alright," she said, looking up. "I'll take a Dare. Any Dare you can think of." The way she stressed the word any made Shinji look to her again, and he saw her staring deep into his eyes again.

"I dare you to..." he trailed off as he looked at her, and, closing his eyes, he rushed forward with the only other dare he could come up with. "Pull your tube top down." He crunched down a bit, bracing himself for the blow that he was sure to come, and when he felt nothing, he opened one eye slowly, looking for some type of reaction from her.

She was actually smiling at him. "And here I said I didn't think you had that type of thing in you..." she said with a grin. "Remember? I even said as much before. Serves me right, now, doesn't it..."

"You don't have to if you don't want to!" Shinji said quickly. "I won't even ask you a Truth in its place..."

He trailed off as she tugged at the sides of the dark pink top, pulling it down over the edges of her red strapless B cup bra. Once it was down around her stomach, she took a deep breath, holding her chest out towards him. "Like what you see, do you?" she asked, noticing that he was, without question, staring at her. "Just what I should have expected from a pervert, I guess," she said.

"I... I'm sorry," Shinji said, looking away from her almost at once, covering his face so he wouldn't even be tempted to look in her direction. "I shouldn't have suggested something like that... I wasn't thinking clearly, I'm so sorry..."

Asuka smiled to herself as she pulled her top back up over her breasts and adjusted it slightly until it felt like it was fitting properly again. "Don't worry," she said softly in reply to his continued stammered apologizes. "I wouldn't have done it if I hadn't wanted to."

"Still, I shouldn't have..."

"Look, you're a guy," Asuka interrupted him. "And, though I could blame you for that... I don't think I want to. I want to know if you are going to take a Truth or a Dare right now, though."

Shinji closed his eyes, finding the image of her sitting in front of him wearing just the bright red bra on top burnt into his mind. He wasn't complaining, but he knew that he didn't really want to take Dare, just in case she asked for him to take something off. Suddenly he wasn't feeling too comfortable with just how much blood was rushing south. "I'll... I'll take Truth..." he managed after a moment.

"Do you like me as more than just a friend?" Asuka asked at once. "Like, if I were to ask you out, outside of this game, would you turn me down, or accept?" 'After the way he's reacting to my little show, I'm sure I know the answer... but I have to hear him say it anyway...'

Shinji kicked himself mentally. What he had just seen had made him completely forget about what he knew she would ask if she was given another chance. "I... I would rather not answer that inside a game like this," he said after an uncomfortable silence, during which time he was very aware of keeping his eyes either on her face or away from her body entirely. It was true that he had seen much more of Rei before, but it was so long ago, and she hadn't meant for it to happen. "So... I guess I'll take Dare," he conceded. She had said that whatever happened wouldn't go outside the room, so he knew he was safe... but he certainly didn't feel like it all of a sudden.

"You won't answer my question in the game?" Asuka asked. When he shook his head, she sighed. 'Verdammt!' "Alright, after this Dare, the game's over, alright?" When he nodded, as he knew it was getting quite late, she smiled and leaned forward. "I've got the perfect ending Dare, then."

"What..." Shinji started, but a small shake of her head silenced him.

"Kiss me."
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