Gendo: ...

(He is seating in a metal chair in the center of a circle of light.)

Voice: Who are you?

(The Commander lifts his head, his glasses firmly in place.)

Gendo (calmly): I am he who brings new life to the world.

Voice (sneer): Or its new destruction.

Seele: Can you guide the hand of Man, Ikari? Are you so arrogant?

Gendo (hands folded in his lap): I make things happen. Without guidance, we would fall into chaos.

Voice: Some of which you have created...

(Gendo Ikari finds a table before him and braces his elbows on its surface. His hands fold before his face and he gazes at nothingness.)

Gendo: When necessary. Sometimes a...catalysis is required to start the predicted reaction.

Voice: Even at the cost of your wife...

Seele: ...your son...

Rei: ...your soul?

Gendo (very still): ...yes.

------------------------------------------------

(Outside the door of Major Katsuragi's apartment, Misato is half-supporting, half-carrying a bandaged, tired Asuka Langley Soryu. Hikari Horaki is hovering around the two with a concerned look on her face.)

Misato: Careful...careful...Hikari, can you get the door? Really, Asuka, I don't know why you didn't just wait until you could walk on your own!

Asuka: Humph...I hate that hospital, Misato! Whenever I'm there...

Misato (looking over at the girl): ..."Whenever you are there"...?

Asuka (her bangs hiding her eyes): I can't get a wink of sleep...

Misato (quietly): ...I see.

Hikari (determined to be cheerful): Well, soon we will have you settled back in your own room! You can rest there.

(The Class Rep reaches for the access button to Misato's apartment and she jumps when the door opens without her touching it. Shinji, still sleepy from a night of tossing and turning, finds himself gazing at the three females outside the door.)

Shinji (eyes snapping wide): ...! Oh...

Hikari (looking nervously between Asuka and Shinji): H-Hi, Ikari.

Shinji (shaken): H-Hi.

(His eyes look at Asuka for a moment before he looks away.)

Shinji: I-I was off to get some groceries for dinner tonight, Misato. I...I guess I had better get enough for three, huh?

Asuka (scowling): Disappointed, baka?

(Young Ikari bites his lip, not looking at the angry girl.)

Shinji (turning his head away from Asuka): I-It's not that...

Asuka: ...

Shinji (his eyes lowered and stepping to the side): I...I'll be back in about an hour.

Asuka (her eyes narrowed): Running away?

Shinji: ...

(The boy moves past the three and heads for the elevator. Asuka looks over her shoulder at his back, her free hand fisted at her side.)

------------------------------------------------

Voice: Angels, Seele, nothing scares you.

Gendo: Fear is an irrational response to the unknown. A throw back to Man's primitive ancestors. Understand the unknown and the fear will vanish.

Voice: You lie.

Gendo: ...who are you?

Ikari (stepping into the light): I am you.

Gendo: ...!

Ikari: Can you face yourself, Gendo? Can you look me in the eyes?

Gendo: You are nothing but a figment of my fevered imagination.

Ikari: ...Are you sure?

Gendo: As I can be of anything.

Seele: You betrayed us, Ikari. You worked, but only too well.

Gendo (quietly): As always, I aim to please.

Ikari: Sarcasm, Gendo? You cannot block the truth here.

Gendo (gazing steadily at his mirror image): What truth do you speak of? The world is made up of many truths combined into one giant montage of emotion and logic.

Ikari: What is your truth?

Gendo: The one closest to reality.

Ikari: Is there only one reality, or many, like truth?

Gendo: ...

Ikari: What of the truth about yourself? Do you know yourself?

Gendo: I am true with myself.

Ikari: Are you sure of that?

Gendo (his eyes flashing behind his tinted glasses): Yes.

Shinji (shouting): I thought you didn't want me! Why did you call for me, father?!

Ikari: Because I have a use for you.

Gendo: ...!

Voice: Did you say that?

Gendo: ...

Voice: Why did you say that?

Gendo: ...because it was the truth.

Voice: When you said, "I love you" was that also one of your "truths?"

Gendo: ...!!

------------------------------------------------

Touji: I think that you should stand up to her. You let her knock you around too much, Ikari.

(Shinji sighs as he searches through the small tubes of spices, looking for ginger. The market is pretty empty except for a very few strained citizens of Tokyo-3. The constant attacks had chased away many that did not have to be there.)

Kenseke (pushing his glasses up on his nose): Touji's right. You can't spend your life afraid of a girl! Though, there are times when I wonder about Asuka-

Shinji: The matter of Asuka's gender is not in question-

(He wishes he had not said that. The two other boys' heads snap toward him, their eyes huge...then sly...)

Touji (shouting): WHAT?!

Shinji (waving his hands in front of him): N-No! It's not what you think!

Kenseke: When did this happen, Shinji? Hmmm?

(Shinji's eyes turn away from his friends and stares at the tube of ginger in his fingers. It had been when the Sixth Angel had attacked the U.S.S. Over-the- Rainbow and the escort fleet of Evangelion Unit 02. It had been when they (Touji, Kenseke, and Shinji) had first met Asuka Langley Soryu. When the Angel had attacked, Asuka, determined to prove her military prowess to young Ikari, had dragged him into an isolated part of Unit 02's transport ship and had started changing into her plug suit. The boy hadn't known what she was doing and had peeked around the corner. His ears still burned when he thought of the incident...and the choice German curses Asuka had screamed at him... Little had he known just how well he would come to know those very phases!)

Shinji (tucking the vial of ginger in his shopping basket): You guys have a one-track mind!

(Touji and Kenseke weren't ready just yet ot let Shinji off the hook. They both dart around so that they block his way, grinning at him.)

Touji: Oh, come on, Ikari, tell us! What is her best part...?

Kenseke (leering): Her breasts?

Touji: Her legs?

Kenseke: Her butt-?

Shinji (face very red, shouting): Cut it out!, both of you!

(The boy stalks away from his two friends who look at each other.)

Touji: Man, what's his problem?

Kenseke (scratching the back of his head): Touche´

------------------------------------------------

(Asuka falls to the floor on her back, throwing her arms away from her.)

Asuka: Arghh! Enough already! I should't be forced to work on this stupid homework while I am recovering!

(Hikari, now used to Asuka's violent mood swings, blinks over at the girl calmly.)

Hikari: But it was your idea.

Asuka (throwing an arm over her eyes): So shoot me! I must have been crazy!

Misato (looking over at the girl from the kitchen table): Asuka...

Asuka (loudly): I know, I know. If I don't keep my grades up like that time, I don't get that new dress I wanted. You don't have to remind me.

(The EVA pilot glares at the major out from under her arm.)

Asuka (muttering): But, it seems like blackmail to me...

Misato (looking over the rim of her beer can): What was that?

Asuka: Nothing, Misato. Just thinking aloud.

Hikari (quietly): Um...Asuka?

Asuka (sighing): Yes, Hikari?

Hikari (her cheeks pink): C-Can I asuk you a favor?

(Her curiosity caught, the redheaded pilot lifts her arm.)

Asuka: What?

Hikari (playing with the folds of her skirt): Could I, that is if you aren't using it, could I use your Lavander perfume?

Asuka (brows lifting): What? Why?

Hikari (pressing a hand to her burning cheeks): I-well-I just-

Asuka (groaning): Oh no...don't tell me you want to wear it for that dumb jock, Touji! How many times do I have to tell you that he is no good for you?! You most definitely could do better!

Hikari (crawling over to peer down at Asuka): Oh, please? I promise, I will do whatever you ask! I will forever be in your debt!

Asuka (covering her eyes again): Okay, fine! Oh God, I feel a headache coming on again...

------------------------------------------------

Voice: Do you rmember me, Gendo?

Gendo (his eyes lowering): How could I forget?

Voice: Do you remember what you did to me? To us?

Gendo: .........yes.

(The darkness around Gendo Ikari began to move and shift.)

Gendo: I...

(The distant roar of Unit 01 echoes through the darkness.)

Gendo: ...do not...

(Red flows from eyes filled with inhuman insanity.)

Gendo: ...wish to...see...this...

(The sound of a woman's horrified scream hits Gendo like a spear, making his folded hands tremble.)

Gendo: ...again!!

Voice: But you must....

(The light around Gendo begins to become brighter, flooding the Commander's vision.)

(Soft laughter and a gentle face appears before him.)

Gendo (choked): Yui...

(The woman doesn't seem to hear him as she depresses the vaccum switch on her wrist. Her plug suit suddenly hugs itself to her slender frame.)

Yui: God, I will be happy when all these tests are over! They are really wearing me out.

Gendo: Don't go!

Yui (her eyes flashing): Don't think I'm lazy or anything! A person can only do something so many times before it starts becoming routine.

Gendo (bowing his head): Don't let your guard down...you don't understand! I didn't either...I just didn't know.

(Yui suddenly looks down and there is such a look of delight on her face that Gendo's heart aches. Then, a young boy appears between the two, looking up between them.)

Yui: Oh, Shinji...come to see mommy off?

Gendo (thinking): Shinji!!

Young Shinji: M-Mama!

Yui (chuckling, picking up her son): Ohhh, you are getting so big, son of mine!

(She pauses and studies her son carefully, seriously for a moment, then)

Yui (looking up): He looks more like you every day! But I don't care what you say, his hair color is mine!

(Gendo could only gape at his wife.)

Yui (giggling): He'll be so handsome when he grows up. A real lady-killer! But he will be kind...so that's okay.

(Young Shinji turns toward Gendo and he feels his heart stop. The boy had such innocence in his face. His eyes were bright and his smile is like his mother's.)

Shinji (reaching): P-Papa!

Gendo: ...!

Yui (moving forward): Okay, little love, go to your father.

(Gendo finds the boy in his arms and can only stare down at him in shock. Shinji gazes back at his father, studying the older man.)

Gendo (holding Shinji tight to his chest): Yui-

(The young woman is walking away, into the blinding light at the end of the corridor.)

Yui (waving): I'll see you after the test! Then...we'll do some private celebrating...

Gendo (shouting): YUI!!!

(The light from the end of the corridor blinds him and he is lost for a time.)

(Gendo finds himself in the metal chair again. His arms are empty and the blackness is around him once more. He clenches his jaw and wipes his face of emotion.)

Gendo (quietly): A memory.

Ikari: Yes.

Seele: You live in memories, Ikari. It is what drives you.

Yui (her form appearing beside him, her face so emotionless...like Rei's): It allows you to move forward where others would have crumbled.

Ikari: But you were destroying yourself in the process.

Fuyutsuki: Your sins are eating you alive.

Gendo: ...

Fuyutsuki: You are not invincible...

Gendo (folding his hands): This is irrelevant.

Fuyutsuki: So this justifies everything. Think of nothing but the end product.

Gendo: Correct.

Fuyutsuki: ...I see.

Yui: But do you believe this is right?

Gendo: It matters not what I believe. I only follow the course of my destiny...

 Fuyutsuki: And the so-called destiny of Mankind.

Seele: Are you truly so heartless, Ikari?

Gendo: ...yes.

Shinji: I don't believe you.

Gendo: ...!

------------------------------------------------

Seele: This is interesting.

Seele: And dangerous...

Seele: Ikari tried to cover it up again.

 Seele: We all know of Ikari's tactics. Besides, it would have mattered not, considering that we left the bread crumbs to be followed.

Seele: Should Ikari found out, there will be hell to pay.

Seele: We are running out of time. We are behind schedule as it is. We can no longer trust Ikari to do what is necessary.

Seele: There are rumors...

Seele: Rumors...but no solid facts. Perhaps the Professor is not as foolish as he appears...

-------------------------------------------------

Maya (gazing up): My God, look at all that damage!

 Ritsuko (looking down at her clipboard): At least this one is underground, out of the sight of the public. It has never been pleasant to clean up all the blood in the open.

Maya (sighing): Yeah, but there is something about...blood standing and pooling on the floor that is very disturbing. You once told me that I would get used to getting my hands dirty, ma'am. I'm still waiting.

Ritsuko (smiling slightly): It does take some time.

(The older woman looked over at her young companion. Maya blinked and took a step back

when Ritsuko took a step closer and gazed deeply into the young woman's eyes.)

Maya (blushing pink): W-What?

Ritsuko (shaking her head and stepping back): Nope, still too bright.

Maya: ...

(There is the loud groan of servomotors and the two women turn to see several heavy-duty cranes levering Unit 02's arm onto a over-sized flatbed truck.)

Maya: ...will we be able to reattach it, or will we have to regenerate it?

Ritsuko: ...regenerate it. That is simply for spare parts now.

Maya: ..."spare parts?"

Ritsuko (walking toward the silent Angel): ...

------------------------------------------------

Fuyutsuki: Do you remember this place?

Gendo (very quietly): ...yes...

(A room appears. Several rows of computer consoles sit before a thick pane of tinted glass.)

Fuyutsuki (arrogant tones): It is amazing what a coat of paint and replacement glass can do to a place. What did it take? A day for you to have everything repaired and cleaned? You didn't want any sort of reminder to remain.

Gendo: You didn't even want to come to this room after...that day.

Fuyutsuki (softly): ...I wasn't so willing to shut everything down. I survived, but in my own way.

Gendo: Humph.

Fuyutsuki: ...everything started here.

Gendo: Yes.

(Blood drips. There is pounding and the scream of metal pushed past its limit.)

Gendo (his eyes closed): My sins relived. You always enjoyed being the thorn my side.

Ikari: You did this to yourself. It doesn't matter that you have blocked it out. This has always been there, at the center of your soul. Can you hear it?

Gendo (hand pressed to one side of his face): ...

Ikari (his face calm and indifferent): Are you ready?

Gendo: ...no...

(Light flashes and the room comes to life...)

--------------------------------------------------

Shinji: ...

(The sky is bright and warm. He watches the wisps of clouds drift overhead, shading and lighting different parts of the city before him. Slowly, the boy lowers his head towards his knees. He loses himself in thought, with the ingredients for dinner sitting beside him in the grass.)

Shinji (very softly): ...too late.

 (The boy wraps his arms around his knees and stares at the grass at his feet. Again, the memories are there, waiting for him, like always. Sometimes, he is able to stop them, block the voices out with his Walkman. But now...there is nothing. The breeze is gentle and quiet. Downtown Tokyo-3 is far enough away that the urban noise is cut down dramatically.)

Shinji (thinking): Why did I come here?

(His eyes look over at the bag of ingredients at his side.)

Shinji (thinking): I should be cooking now. For Asuka and Misato. If nothing else, that is something...I can do right.

(The sun is setting, casting the city in gold.)

Shinji (thinking): EVA, a creation of Man, yet not a creation of Man.

 (FLASHBACK: The underground assembly tables, where the failed EVAs had laid. Misato had stood beside him, her face grim. Ritsuko had stood on the other side of him, a little crazy. Then came the heart of the Dummy System. The System Gendo Ikari tried to kill Touji with.)

FLASHBACK: Shinji: Oh God, Father, stop! Make it stop!!

Shinji (softly): Father...

-------------------------------------------------

Gendo: ...

Tech A: Twenty seconds to Borderline!

(Looking around the Command Center, Gendo noted the familiar faces from his nightmares.)

 Gendo (softly): It was not...meant to be this way...

Fuyutsuki (hands behind his back): Another one of your scenarios?

Gendo: ...we had no clue-

Ikari: You understood what was at stake. You decided that it was...necessary.

Gendo (shuttering): W-We had planned, we had learned so much-

Ikari: It was this event that gave you insight to the Evangelions. It was this event that set the whole Human Instrumentality Project on track.

(The tech is eagerly looking at the Borderline chart.)

Tech A: 3, 2, 1, Borderline! ...!

(Outside the glass, there is stirring.)

Ikari: Can you watch? No? Then look at that...

(Gendo looks up and see that Shinji is looking out the observation glass, his face pressed against it.)

Gendo (shouting): My GOD, Shinji!! Don't look!

(The boy looks back at his father, his eyes bright.)

Young Shinji: Papa?

(Gendo begins running toward the boy, pushing past awed techs. He got to the boy just in time to see it all begin.)

(There is a sudden scream, a scream that seems to echo. Yui's scream. The last sound that Gendo ever heard her make. Unwillingly, Gendo lifts his eyes from his son's innocent, confused face. Outside the control center, the purple Evangelion twists and writhes in its restraint harness. Its growls are primal and chilling. Its face and neck warp and curve at strange angles. Its hands clench and suddenly, the EVA breaks free of the metal restraints.)

(Thick cables and shrapnel flew in all directions, sprinkling the entire containment chamber.)

Gendo (shouting): YUI!!

(The EVA suddenly breaks the last of the restraining cables, tearing its arms forth and lashing the armored walls of the test chamber with the shredded wires. One of the wires slam into the observation window, making the reinforced glass spider-web in all directions.)

Gendo (whispering): No, please...don't-

(The EVA grabs its head and staggers about the containment chamber, slamming into a nearby wall and shaking several stunned techs to the floor. The EVA seems to have be something terrible building inside it and Gendo trembles, his fingers digging into a twisting Shinji's shoulders. Then...It went BERSERK...)

(The EVA throws back its head, opens its mouth, and roars, sending flakes of armor raining down from its jaw. Suddenly, the Evangelion wraps its arms about its shoulders, seemingly trying to contain the horrible rage inside it. The EVA trembles as it seems to draw inside itself, fighting with itself. Abruptly, it throws back its head again and buried its fingers into the top of the brain-case. With a howl that is as inhuman as the Angels themselves, the EVA drags its fingers down the face of the mecha. Blood splashed across the white walls of the containment chamber and Gendo could only stare on. The EVA's concealed green eyes are suddenly visible and the EVA leans close to the observation center. Shinji is crying, pressing his face against Gendo's leg. Gendo could only stare at the EVA, his eyes meeting the green, hate-filled, gleeful ones of the horrible creation.)

Gendo (whispering): In the love of God...Yui?

(The EVA only grins, blood draining from the eight deep scars in its head armor...)

Gendo (pounding his fist on the table): Why?! Damn it, someone tell me, why?!

Seele: You know the answer to that.

Fuyutsuki: You sought the power that was not yours.

Rei: ...and so I am.

Yui: Your wife is dead...because of your arrogance...the arrogance of Man.

(Gendo, with his head bowed, feels his psyche began to break down...)

---------------------------------------------------

Girl: Such a sad look for such pretty eyes.

Shinji: Huh?

(The young pilot looks up and finds himself staring into a pair of violet eyes. They watch him with easy curiosity that seems to belong.)

Shinji: What? Who-

Girl (laughing): Where? When? What are you thinking about?

(Shinji blinks, trying to understand what is happening. He is in the middle of a grassy hill, one moment he was alone, then, suddenly this girl is standing over him.)

Shinji: ...life?

Girl: You don't sound sure.

Shinji (sitting up, his back to the girl): Every...Every time I think that I almost understand what I am here for...something happens.

(The girl makes a thoughtful sound and comes to sit next to Shinji. Her light tank-top stirs in the breeze. She is wearing a pair of shorts that remind Shinji of school...specifically track. The boy blushs and turns his eyes away.)

Girl (slowly): You are trying to understand where you fit in, huh? That's not hard. You fit where you make your place.

Shinji (blinks): Huh?

Girl (smiling over at him): You don't think about it. It just happens. Everyone has their place in this world.

(She turns her head toward the small group of birds darting across the sky. She sighs, closing her eyes.)

Girl: Everything has its place. Wonderful things...horrible things...everything. That's what makes this world so unique, so vital.

Shinji: ...

(The girl suddenly turns towards Shinji and brings her face close to his. It looked for the world like she was about to kiss him. The boy jumps, but he can't make himself move away. Her eyes are lazy and there is a laughing grin on her lips.)

Girl (softly): You will find your place...this I promise. You might already have a place, you just don't know it yet. As for living...take it a day at a time. That is all anyone can ask, right?

Shinji: Uh...er, yeah.

Girl (giggling): You are so cute when you blush!

Shinji (looking down, trying to hide the color in his cheeks): ...

Girl (more seriously): But I mean what I said. Everyone has a place in this world.

(Her eyes close and she seems otherworldly for a moment.)

Girl (dreamily): I have a talent for these sort of things. (Big smile, open eyes) Trust me!

Shinji: Y-Yeah.

Female voice: Hikaru? Where are you, Hikaru?

(The girl, Hikaru, flinches and looks regrettably over her shoulder.)

Hikaru (softly): Damn! She's so fast!

Shinji (looking back toward the voice): Who?

Hikaru: My guardian. Uh-

Female voice: Hikaru! How many times-

(The woman officer stops when she sees who she's with.)

Female officer: ...!!!

Hikaru: Yeah, yeah, I know Ms Natasha.

 (The girl stands up and begins walking toward the blond officer. The woman is still staring at Shinji with this strange look of horror on her face.)

Shinji (waving nervously): Uh...hi...

(The blond woman slaps her forehead and curses brutally under her breath. The woman sort of sounds like Asuka when she was on a rant.)

Natasha (whispering angrily): Hikaru! How could-

Hikaru (throwing her hands in the air): I surrender. Take me back. Geez, a girl can't even jog without a person jumping down her throat.

(The foreign woman grits her teeth and takes the girl's arm.)

Natasha: We have a few things do discuss, young lady! And you!

Shinji (pointing a finger at himself): Me?

Natasha: Yes! Forget all about this, understood?

Shinji: ...?

Natasha: Humph! Come along, Hikaru!

Hikaru (waving cheerfully over her shoulder): See you later!

Shinji (scratching the back of his head): Uh...yeah...

------------------------------------------------

Fuyutsuki: Humph. It's almost like they were waiting for this in order to get a foothold in NERV.

Ritsuko: There's not much we can do. The Sixth Child is Japanese, but she has been studying abroad in Russia. She is the designated pilot for the first of Mascow's production Evangelions.

(The sub-commander and Ritsuko are in the Gendo Ikari's office. The light coming in from the wall of windows behind the sub-commander paint the room in blood-red light. The sub-commander is seated at the single desk, his hands folded on its hard surface. Ritsuko is on the other side of the desk, her hands buried in her lab-coat's pockets.)

Fuyutsuki: Can this Child be trusted? Could she-

Ritsuko: No. Up to three years ago, she was attending a normal Elementary school, with friends, family...everything checks out.

Fuyutsuki (quietly): ...and then, three years ago?

Ritsuko: ...there was...an incident.

Fuyutsuki: An incident?

Ritsuko (looking away): There is no scientific proof. But...

Fuyutsuki (looking down at the file before him): This is...disturbing. Why is it that these Children always have something like this?

Ritsuko (sighing): I don't know if it is a blessing or a curse that she does not remember anything.

Fuyutsuki: Will this effect her abilities?

Ritsuko: No. She remembers nothing. Her first activation test with her EVA had her sychro-ratio at 23%...before...well...the incident.

Fuyutsuki (his eyes scanning over the read-out): Is that possible?! Other than young Ikari-

Ritsuko: She increased this ratio through out her career so far. The Russians have been...careful.

Fuyutsuki: Well, perhaps it is a blessing that Ikari is having...problems. We could surely use all the help we can get.

Ritsuko: ...

Fuyutsuki (looking closely at the doctor): ...I see.

------------------------------------------------

Shinji: I'm home!

Asuka (shouting): About damn time, you dork! We're starving! Where were you?!

Shinji: Sorry, sorry! I got...caught up.

Asuka (poking her head around the corner): "Caught up?!" How does a dummkopf like you get "caught up?!"

Misato (soothingly): Asuka...calm down. The thing is he's home now.

Asuka (snorting): Yeah, hours later. He probably got lost.

(Shinji feels his cheeks burn, but he quietly takes off his shoes and walks toward the kitchen. He feels Asuka's eyes on him and glances over at her. She has a strange look on her face, but a second later, it turns into a scowl.)

Asuka: What are you looking at?

Shinji: Nothing!

Asuka: Are you saying I'm nothing?!

Shinji (flinching): I-I didn't say that!

Asuka: You-

Misato: Asuka...

Asuka: -idiot.

(The girl lays down on the pillow in front of the TV, ignoring Pen-Pen who stares at her with a cocked head.)

(Misato is in the kitchen, pulling another can of beer from her personal horde. Shinji frowns.)

Shinji: Misato...we haven't even had dinner, yet.

Misato: Don't you start.

Shinji (sighing): Yes, ma'am.

(Misato opens the beer can with an expert flick of her finger and lifts the can to her lips. In mid-motion, she reaches out with her other hand and plucks a stalk of grass of his shoulder.)

Misato: Hmmm? Where did you lay in grass?

(Shinji sees the grass and blushs as he sets the bag on the counter.)

Shinji (stumbling): Uh-er-well, it was such a nice day that I thought I would go to a peaceful spot I knew of outside the city.

Misato (frowning slightly): You left the city?

Shinji (pulling noodles, dry rice, ginger, water chestnut, and several other ingredients out of the bag): I-I stayed in...sight.

Misato: ...

(The Major studies Shinji and wonders at his colored cheeks. He didn't make a habit of lying to her...about anything. She wondered...)

Misato (slowly): Shinji?

Shinji (sweating a little): Y-Yes, Misato?

(Misato leans close and looks her young charge right in the eyes.)

Misato (suddenly grinning widely): Did you go to see a girl?

Shinji (eyes snapping wide): What?! No!

Misato (laughing): Oh, you are so fun to tease!

Shinji (gritting his teeth): ...

(Misato keeps the smile on her face as she leaves the kitchen. Asuka continues to watch TV with Pen-Pen, even when the major steps over her. Once inside her room-)

Misato (picking up the phone, dialing, thinking): What could it be?

Misato (into the phone): It's me...

------------------------------------------------

Seele: Monstrous

Ikari: Unforgivable.

Fuyutsuki: Pathetic.

Yui: Your fault.

(Gendo Ikari is still in the metal chair, but he is no longer the calm , composed Supreme Commander of NERV. Gendo's head is bowed and his hands are now clasped together, pressing against his forehead as if in desperate prayer.)

Gendo: ...

Seele: You failed us. You are of no more use to us!

Fuyutsuki: You failed NERV. You are of no more use to us.

Yui (bleeding scars on her face): You failed me! I care nothing for a monster who sends his wife to die...alone.

Shinji (calm and cold): And now you continue with me. You torture me. You hate me. You watch gleefully as my soul is ripped out of me time and again!

(Gendo seems to draw in on himself as the voices batter his shredding sanity. For too long, he had locked them away, ignoring them and hoping secretly that they would go away.)

Gendo (softly): ...I have...failed...Yui...Rei....Shinji!

Fuyutsuki (raising a cynical brow): You disgust me. You are no better than your son.

(Gendo shuts his eyes, but he sees his son's sobbing face. The face that the boy had so many years ago.)

Young Shinji (barely understandable): P-P-Papa! D-Don't l-leave-me!

Gendo: ...kill...me...

Fuyutsuki: You want release?

Seele: The great Gendo Ikari is a small man after all.

Yui (smirk on her bleeding face): You are no better than Shinji.

Gendo: ...yes..

------------------------------------------------

(Misato has a grim look on her face that she usually reserves for Angels, but this is one of the few cases where she is willing to make an exception. Her arms are crossed under her breasts and her eyes are cold.)

Misato: Just who do you think you are? I was only informed thirty minutes ago of your arrival and you let your charge go about her business?

(The lean, hard military woman before her lifts a blond brow.)

Natasha: Is there a problem with that?

Misato: Damn right, there is a problem. I realize that there are parts of the world that practice a ridiculous lack of protocol, but you are in Japan now. It would be wise to remember that before you go over someone's head, Lieutenant Karpov.

(The Russian woman's fists tighten violently behind her back, but her face remains completely cold and composed.)

Natasha (mocking): I didn't realize that NERV was afraid of little girls, Major Katsuragi. I will take that into account next time.

Misato: ...I see that you aren't here to make friends.

Natasha (her voice a shade softer): In war, it is never wise to make friends or lovers. I'm sure that you...can relate.

(Misato jerks as if the woman has slapped her. For a moment her eyes turn away toward the giant NERV insignia painted on the gun-metal gray wall next to the two of them. She has never really noticed that the emblem was entirely red...blood red.)

Misato: ...It would be wise not to get too familiar with me, Lieutenant.

(Natasha's eyes return to their former chilled gaze.)

Natasha: Yes, ma'am.

Misato: ...For better or worse, you are under the employ of NERV. Any loyalties to your former government or agencies are void as of now. Before you even consider going over my head again, know that you are being watched! You are here under the command of the Committee...do not disappoint them, or me!

(Misato turns and begins walking away.)

Misato: Dismissed.

Natasha: Yes, ma'am.

Misato and Natasha (thinking): Bitch.

------------------------------------------------

(The classroom is noisy as usual. Shinji looks around and wonders.)

Shinji (thinking): My place...my place is here?

Touji (wrapping his arm around the pilot's neck): Hey, Shinji! Where the hell did you go after the market?! I thought you said that you would be right back!

(Shinji jumps and looks up with guilt written all over his face.)

Shinji (stammering): S-Sorry, Touji! I-I just...forgot-

Touji (snorting): "Forgot?!" What sort of lame excuse is that?!

Shinji (waving his hands in surrender): Sorry! Sorry, I have been under a lot of stress lately!

Touji (glaring for a moment, before sighing): You EVA pilots are so weird.

Kenseke (sitting on the desk next to Touji): You disappeared so suddenly that I didn't get to tell you about the big news!

Shinji (looking over at Kenseke, eyes confused): "Big news?"

Kenseke (nodding excitedly): Yeah! The big news about the new EVA that just arrived! I haven't been able to get any pictures or anything, but my Dad's lab was the one responsible for the new EVA's relocation into NERV!

(Kenseke suddenly clasps his hands tightly before his chest.)

Kenseke (tears in his eyes): Oh! Oh, maybe they have finally decided that I am worthy of being an EVA pilot! They brought this one all the way from Mascow!

Shinji (drawing back slightly): Mas...cow...

(The image of Hikaru's guardian flashes in the boy's mind.)

Shinji (thinking): Could it be...?

(Just then, the old teacher came shuffling into the classroom. Usually, this was totally ignored by the class until Hikari would take command. But this time, there was something to gape at. This time, the young, smiling Hikaru is walking in behind him.)

Shinji: ...!

Touji: Wow!

Kenseke (frowning): Hmmm.

(Hikaru's eyes roam the classroom and she spots Shinji. Her eyes went big and she waves discreetly at him. Shinji blushes as his two friends look between the pilot and the new girl. Touji and Kenseke aren't the only ones to notice this. Asuka stops mid-conversation with Hikari when she spots the subtle, silent exchange between Shinji and Hikaru.)

Asuka (thinking): ...What the hell?!

(The teacher make a stumbling, vague introduction. When his students just gaze blankly at him, he sighs and gestures to Hikaru. The girl bows respectfully to the teacher and turns to her new class.)

Hikaru (smiling warmly): Nice to meet all of you! My name is Sohma Hikaru!

(There was a general hush of awe over the class as the girl walks to her new seat...right next to Shinji.)

Hikaru (looking over at Shinji out of the corner of her eye, whispering): Hi!

Shinji (smiling nervously): H-Hi...

(Shinji suddenly becomes aware that he was being watched. He looks around and sees that a few of his classmates are looked on with confused interest in their eyes. This isn't what has snagged Shinji's attention. He looks to his right and finds Asuka with death burning in her eyes.)

Shinji (jumping a little in his seat): ...!!

Asuka (turning violently away from him, scowling out the window, thinking): Dummkopf!!!

(The pencil she has been sketching with snaps between her fingers.)

------------------------------------------------

Voice (soft, gentle): Don't die...

(Gendo feels a small hand on his clasped ones. The faces of his inner demons are gone. The spotlight has merged into a greater, gentler light. He finds himself looking up into eyes too familiar.)

Gendo: Who...?

Little Girl (giggling): Someone you will love very much.

Gendo: ....!!

Gendo (whispering): ...you are...

Little Girl (smoothing the hair from his forehead): Only when the time is right.

Gendo (bowing his head once more): My scenario...has faded away. It is no longer possible to control the outcome...

Little Girl: Is this so bad?

Gendo: I...can't see the future anymore.

Little Girl: Do you know what you want?

Gendo (softly): ...yes.

Little Girl (resting a tiny hand on his head): Then that is good enough...

------------------------------------------------

(The ceiling is odd. He has never seen it before. It is dark, but not pitch black. There are no windows...no sound. Rather, until the person beside his bed moves. Turning his head slowly, he sees a pale form sitting in the chair next to him.)

Gendo (groggy): ...Rei...

Rei: ...yes.

Gendo: ...you survived...so the Angel...

Rei: ...Units 01 and 02 stopped the Angel. Unit 02 received severe damage to its left arm. Unit 01 had severe structural damage to its torso. Both are operational on a limited bases.

Gendo: I see...

Rei: ...

Gendo: ...

Rei: ...what did you dream?

Gendo (turning weakly toward the girl): What?

Rei (did not look at Gendo): You...were in pain...

Gendo: ...I...received an answer to a long asked question.

Rei (standing): ...that's good for you.

(Rei slowly walks to the door. She presses the open button, revealing the startled face of Ritsuko.)

Ritsuko (blinking): ...?!

Rei: ...excuse me.

(Ritsuko steps to the side and the girl walks past and heads down the lonely hall. Ritsuko looks from Rei's receding back to Gendo who stares at her with a fading gaze.)

Ritsuko: ...Ge...sir.

(Struggling with herself, Dr. Akagi steps into the room and adjusts the lights a little so that she can see.)

Gendo: ...Dr...Ritsuko.

(The doctor jerks when the Supreme Commander says her name. Her hands ball into fists within her lab-coat, but she forces her face to remain distant.)

Ritsuko: I just came to check on you.

(Ritsuko comes to Ikari's side and sits down in the chair Rei has just vacated. She calmly takes Gendo's unresisting wrist and begins taking his pulse.)

Gendo (his eyes drawing closed): ...Ritsuko...?

Ritsuko (gazing at her watch): Yes, sir?

Gendo: ...I'm...sorry...

Ritsuko: ...!!

(Her wide eyes turn to the Supreme Commander's face, but he is asleep. Her hands are trembling violently and she is slowly shaking her head. When she cannot hold back any longer, she wraps her arms around herself and begins to sob.)

------------------------------------------------

(Lunch time comes and Shinji is just getting his packed meal out when Hikaru comes up to him.)

Hikaru: I thought we would meet again! I just didn't realize it would be so soon!

(Shinji looks up at the girl and can only stare. Her face seems to glow as he watches it.)

Hikaru (reaching out and touching Shinji's arm): I had this...feeling about you and my feelings are never wrong!

(A hand suddenly grabs Hikaru's and jerks it away from Shinji. Hikaru turns toward the furious, blue glare of Asuka Langley Soryu.)

Asuka (snarling): Just who do you think you are?! Walking in here and grabbing people like that?!

Hikaru (her eyebrows lift): Who are you?

Shinji (standing up, trying to stay calm): O-Oh, yeah, you two haven't been formally introduced! Hikaru, this is Soryu Asuka. Asuka, this-

Asuka (turning on Shinji): I'm not stupid, baka Shinji! I heard her introduce herself at the beginning of class!

(Her eyes narrow dangerously.)

Asuka (deathly quiet): What I do want to know is just how you know her?

Hikaru (tearing her hand from Asuka's tight grasp): Don't talk to Shinji that way! You are a very rude person!

Asuka (setting her hands on her hips): Oh really, new girl? Well, no one cares what you think! You see, I'm a legendary EVA pilot around here!

Hikaru (a "so-what" look on her face): So? I'm an EVA pilot, too.

Asuka and Shinji: What?!

Asuka: Y-You mean-

Shinji (thoughtfully): The new transfer from Mascow...

Asuka (turning on Shinji again): You knew about this?!

Shinji (backing up, hands up, trying to soothe Asuka's temper): I-I didn't know until just now-

Asuka: "Just now?" What are you, stupid?! How could you forget?!

Touji: So...there's a new kid in NERV, too, huh?

Hikaru (cautiously looking over at the lean, athletic student): ...yeah. I was under the impression that people already knew.

(At everyone's blank looks, Hikaru flashes a smile.)

Hikaru: Well, now you know.

Shinji: ...yeah.

Asuka: Humph!

Kenseke (sighing): Oh, well.

Touji: ...

Hikari (looking at Asuka to check her temper, then): Well, welcome to our class. If you need something or need to know something about the city, don't hesitate to ask.

Hikaru (her face relaxing into its former smile): Thank you...oh, yeah! I almost forgot!

(The girl digs into the side pocket of her school skirt and pulls out some instructions written in Russian.)

Hikaru (looking over at Shinji): Shinji, if it wouldn't be too much trouble...could you walk me home? I don't know the city streets yet, so-

Asuka (exploding): ARRGHH!!!

(Her slap seems to echo throughout the entire school...)

------------------------------------------------

(It is after school and the children are going their separate ways. Hikaru looks over at Shinji sadly.)

Hikaru (quietly): I'm so sorry.

Shinji: ...why?

Hikaru (her hands folding in front of her): I...well...I knew that there was a good chance of Asuka...um...going off like that.

(Her shame made her bow her head slightly.)

Hikaru (quietly): I...just didn't realize that you would...shield me...like that.

(Shinji's left cheek is still red from Asuka's vicious slap. He would never forget Hikaru's shocked gasp or Asuka's look of complete horror when she realized who she had struck.)

Hikaru: Shinji...you shouldn't have done that...I can defend myself.

Shinji (shaking his head): Don't worry about it. You couldn't have known about how far Asuka can go when she's mad. I do. She's slapped me before, so I knew what to expect.

Hikaru (shocked): She's slapped you before?! Why?!

(Shinji looks away from his companion's wide-eyed stare, feeling the rest of his face go red. There is no way he could tell her about that without seeming like a pervert!)

Shinji (nervously): I-It was a silly, little misunderstanding. Nothing to worry about now!

Hikaru (looking down at the sidewalk in front of her again): Oh. Well, I meant what I said before... Shinji, I-I knew that Asuka was going explode. I wanted her to do that!

Shinji (stunned): Why would you do that?

Hikaru (her hands clenching): Well, I thought it was so mean how she was picking on you! I-I wanted to...punish her.

Shinji (sighing): Hikaru...

Hikaru (looking over at him): Yes?

Shinji: ...its nothing.

Hikaru: ...

(The two of them walk in silence for a few moments, then,)

Shinji: Uh...so you are going to be an EVA pilot-

Hikaru (giggling, her bright nature returning): I already am an EVA pilot, Shinji! I have been for about three years now!

Shinji (blinking): Oh.

Hikaru: It's an interesting experience...something to keep me occupied.

Shinji (confused look): "Occupied?"

Hikaru: Yeah, you know, something to challenge me.

Shinji (blank): "Challenge" you?

Hikaru (laughing): Are you going to repeat everything I say?

(Shinji blushing)

(The girl chuckles to herself and turns to look up at the small apartment building that looms before them.)

Hikaru: So this is it.

Shinji: Um...yeah.

(Taking his hand easily in hers, Hikaru tugs Shinji after her.)

Hikaru: Come on. I'm sure that Ms Natasha has got some tea from the local store by now. She's very good with staying on top of things.

Shinji (hesitating a little): Yeah...I'm sure she is... Are you sure that this is okay? Last time-

Hikaru (waving him off): Oh, she was just under a lot of stress. Don't worry about her. She might have a vicious bark, but she's really a kitten underneath.

Shinji (gazing at Hikaru with an incredulous look on his face): If you say so.

(They take the elevator to the fifth floor of the building and they come to the door of Hikaru's apartment. She opens the door.)

Hikaru (calling): I'm home!

Natasha (calling back): Great. I'm getting hungry.

(Then, there is the sound of Natasha grunting. Shinji looks at Hikaru who smiles and walks into the apartment. The boy follows nervously and looks around the girl's shoulder.)

Hikaru (taking off her shoes): Did you get green tea, Ms Natasha?

Natasha (breathing heavily): Yeah, yeah. I got it. I don't understand how you can stand that stuff.

(Shinji cautiously follows Hikaru's lead and walks after the girl as she enters the main room. There are boxes piled around with Russian text on them. In one corner, a TV sits on one of the boxes, its sound turned low. The next thing Shinji sees is Natasha, clad only in a dark tank-top and briefs.)

Shinji: ...!

(The woman had been doing push ups until she heard the boy's gasp. She looks around her sweaty shoulder.)

Natasha: What the hell is he doing here, Hikaru?

Hikaru (unfazed by Natasha's sharp tone): Shinji was nice enough to show me the way home. I invited him up for a cup of tea.

Natasha (snorting and returning to her exercise): You and your courtesies..Goddamned Japanese.

Hikaru: Would you like some, Ms Natasha?

Natasha: Hell, no. I'm busy and I don't feel like being sick to my stomach right now.

(Turning to Shinji.)

Hikaru: Please excuse Ms Natasha. She's never in a good mood when she is working out.

Shinji: ...yeah.

------------------------------------------------

(Misato opens the door to her apartment with a tired sigh.)

Misato (calling): I'm home.

(Silence)

Misato (calling): Hello? Shinji? Asuka? Anyone home?

(Misato frowns as no answer comes back. She walks into the apartment, slips off her shoes, and walks into the main room. The silence is eerie and unnatural. She looks back and sees Asuka's shoes in the hallway.)

Misato: Asuka?

(She looks in the kitchen and when she doesn't find her there, she heads towards the girl's bedroom. She finds the door shut.)

Misato (softly): Asuka? Are you okay in there?

(Silence)

Misato: Asuka?

Asuka (very quiet): ...leave me...alone...

Misato: ...? Is there something-

Asuka: NO!! Just leave me...alone! ...please...

Misato: Oh.....do you know where Shinji-

Asuka (shouting): Why would I know where that idiot is?!

Misato: ...

Asuka (quietly): ...just...go away...

Misato: ...okay...I'll be here...if you need me.

Asuka: ...

(Misato sighes and walks toward the kitchen, having a sudden craving for a cold beer.)

------------------------------------------------

(Ritsuko and Maya are overseeing the final tasks of EVA Unit 04's relocation.)

Maya: ...well, that's that.

Ritsuko: Yep, one more EVA to look after. We should be so lucky.

Maya (looking over at Ritsuko): I feel a little nervous about working with someone else's project. Especially after that first activation test.

Ritsuko (folding her arms): It seems to be a stigma with the Evangelions that dead and suffering follow their every step. It would seem that it is just their lot in life.

Maya (wrapping her arms around her shoulders): I can't believe that the Sixth Child doesn't remember anything.

Ritsuko (making a note on her clipboard): I am not so shocked. We have had the same thing happen with the Third Child.

Maya: B-But, ma'am. It is just so horrible-

Ritsuko: I think that worst part of it all was that the Project Director was the Sixth Child's older brother.

Maya: ...! My God...

(The two women look up at the EVA before them. Unit 04's emotionless eyes stare back, set within the black and red shell of its face...)

------------------------------------------------

(Tap...tap...tap...tap...)

(The Supreme Commander of NERV walks slowly toward his inner sanctum. While the doctor at the infirmary had urged him to use crutches, Gendo had refused to be reduced to such a state. Rather, he uses a simple black cane he had received so many years ago. He never thought he would have had to use it.)

(The door to his office slides open with a soft hiss and he looks within. The cryptic, taunting pattern of the Tree of Life is sprawled across the ceiling and floor. At the opposite end of the room, Fuyutsuki stands beside the desk, waiting.)

Fuyutsuki: I see that you refused the advice of the medical staff.

Gendo: You expected anything else from me, Professor?

Fuyutsuki (brow arched): Perhaps I have come to know you too well, sir.

(Gendo began limping slowly toward his desk.)

Gendo: Complete understanding of anything, especially something as complex as a human being, is an impossibility.

Fuyutsuki (arms folded behind his back): I see that while your body is still recovering, your mind is in top form.

Gendo: ...

(He comes to his chair and sits down heavily. The Supreme Commander's eyes turn toward the file on his desk.)

Gendo: ...what is that?

Fuyutsuki: ...While you were recovering...we had an addition sent to us, courtesy of Seele.

Gendo: How...considerate of them.

(He picks up the file and begins to read. After a few moments, his fingers tighten slightly on the file.)

Gendo (very quietly): I see that they...have been busy.

-----------------------------------------------

(Night has fallen upon the city of Tokyo-3. Shinji has finally managed to make his exit of Sohma's apartment. He isn't looking forward to facing Asuka at home, but he knows that he has to come back sometime. The image of her stricken eyes keep haunting him at strange moments. Hikaru hadn't wanted him to leave so soon and Natasha...well, she just didn't care one way or another.)

Shinji (thinking): A new EVA pilot. Will she help us...or will she be against us...like him?

(The streetlights of Tokyo-3's streets wash over him in gentle waves as he heads toward Katsuragi's apartment. The city is almost completely silent now. There are not many who party anymore. Shinji briefly wonders if Misato would be waiting up for him, then dismisses the thought. She isn't his mother. It is her responsibility to make sure he didn't get himself killed...nothing more.)

(Shinji is so intent on his inner thoughts, he doesn't notice another small shadow merge with his own.)

Rei: Pilot Ikari...

(Shinji gives a shout and turns toward the voice. Rei stares at him, not a foot away.)

Shinji (rubbing the back of his neck): You gave me a scare, Rei. You have to stop doing that!

Rei: ...doing what?

Shinji: Well...um...stop sneaking up on me.

Rei: I did not sneak up on you. You were too deep in thought to notice my presence.

Shinji: Oh, yeah...sorry.

Rei: ...

Shinji (looking determinedly cheerful): Is there something I can help you with?

Rei: ...he has awoken.

Shinji: Huh?

Rei: You asked me to watch over Commander Ikari. He has awoken.

Shinji: ...how is he?

Rei (looking away): He suffered. He met himself.

Shinji (trying to understand what the girl was saying): He met himself?

Rei: ...yes.

Shinji: Is he okay now?

Rei: ...he is...not without suffering...

Shinji: ...

Rei (looking right into Shinji's eyes): He is sorry. He will not fail again.

Shinji: ...?

(Rei turns away from Shinji and begins walking away into the darkness.)

Shinji (suddenly): Rei?

(The girl stops under a streetlight, but doesn't look back.)

Shinji: T-Thank you.

Rei: .....you are welcome...

(She continues on silently while young Ikari watches after her.)

-----------------------------------------------

Seele: Our Trojan Horse has arrived and has been accepted.

Seele: Ikari will be brought to heel this time.

Seele: When will it begin?

Seele: Soon, our scenario is proceeding as planned.

Seele: Then, soon our final chapter will be written.

Seele: It would be wise to make extra precautions. Is the woman trustworthy?

Seele: She will serve herself and in that, will serve us. It will win our hand without us having to show our cards.

Seele: Caution is still vital. No matter how wounded Ikari may seem, sometimes it's the wounded ones that do the most damage.

Seele: ...and the Lance is still outside our influence.

Seele: All in good time...

------------------------------------------------

(The front door opens and Shinji steps inside. It is very late. He now wishes that he hadn't let Hikaru talk him into staying so long. It is going to be a rough day tomorrow at school.)

(The apartment is dark and Shinji carefully takes off his shoes. There is no need to wake everyone up. In the back of his mind, he knows he is more concerned about one of his roommates being awakened than the other.)

(Shinji slowly tip-toes across the floor, making his way for his own room.)

Asuka: You are late.

Shinji (turning toward the voice with a start): A-Asuka! What are you doing up?

(The girl is at the kitchen table, her head resting on her folded arms.)

Asuka (softly): I was...up.

Shinji (moving to her side): Are your injuries hurting you? I could get some pain-killers-

Asuka: It wasn't that! I was...I was...

(Asuka makes frustrated sound. Shinji stands there for a moment and his hands move nervously at his sides.)

Shinji (gently): Asuka...you must be tired. Why don't you go to bed?

Asuka (looking up at him from under her bangs): Who are you, my mother?

Shinji (feeling his cheeks burn): N-No, I-well-I...you should be resting...

Asuka (watching Shinji carefully): ...why do you care?

Shinji (his shoulders moving uncomfortably): I...um...well...

(Shinji sighs, calms himself, and speaks softly.)

Shinji: I don't like seeing you in pain, Asuka. Please, go get some rest.

Asuka (closing her eyes): Shinji?

Shinji: Y-Yes?

Asuka: Think I will need help getting back to my room. My leg is aching horribly.

Shinji (nodding): Of course, here give me your arm.

(Asuka feels Shinji's hand gently touch her arm and settle it over his lean shoulders. It is the gentleness that makes Asuka flinch.)

Asuka (thinking): Why does he always have to be so gentle with me?! I'm not fragile! I'm strong. I can...take care of myself! I don't want...to depend...on someone else...

(Shinji is totally unaware of the war going on inside his companion's head. He can hardly get past the feel of Asuka's warm side pressed against his. He looks over at her out of the corner of his eye. She is wearing that cream colored, baggy shirt she always wears when she sleeps. The V-neck of the shirt gives the boy an elusive glimpse of Asuka's soft skin underneath. Shinji blushes and looks away, thankful that they are almost to the redheaded pilot's room. If she catches him in this condition...he doesn't even want to think about the consequences...)

Asuka (softly): ...Shinji?

Shinji: Y-Yes?

Asuka: You...were with that new girl the whole day...weren't you?

(Shinji jerks and looks longingly at Asuka's door.)

Shinji: W-What do you mean?

Asuka (her hand tightening over his shoulder): Don't play stupid with me now. You were with that Hikaru Sohma. I saw...the two of you walking away together.

Shinji (sighing): Asuka...she needed to be shown the way home.

Asuka (turning her face away from his): And you were only too eager to help her! It happens every time! A man gets a look at a pretty face and forgets everything else!

(Shinji looks over at Asuka. It was strange, hearing this come from her.)

Shinji: Uh...Asuka-

Asuka (glaring over at him): What, Third Child?

Shinji (ducking his head): N-Nothing-

Asuka: You are always saying that! What do you do, walk around all day thinking about nothing?!

Shinji: ...

(Asuka turns her head away as the two of them came to her door.)

Asuka (quietly): ...Shinji?

Shinji: Hmmm?

(He opens her door and begins walking her inside.)

Asuka: Do you think that I'm pretty?

(Shinji stumbles.)

Shinji: What?

Asuka: Do you think I'm pretty?

Shinji: I...well-um...every boy in school-

Asuka (fuming): I didn't ask about every boy in school! I asked about you!

Shinji (cheeks burning in the darkness): ...how could ask me that?

Asuka: ...?

Shinji: Y-You know that you are one of the most...beautiful girls I know...

(Shinji abruptly shifts so that he was helping Asuka sit down on her bed. His eyes are turned away and Asuka's eyes are very bright in the darkness.)

Asuka: ...

Shinji: ...you shouldn't put all your credit in you looks, though...Asuka...

Asuka: ...?

Shinji: You are more than a pretty face...but you don't like thinking about that...because it...hurts.

(Asuka turns her head away.)

Shinji (his voice different, in a tone Asuka has never heard from the boy before): You don't offer your soul to others because it hurts too much when that is rejected. You don't want to know that kind of pain...

Asuka: ...what do you...know?

Shinji: ...I know what I see...

Asuka: ...Shinji?

Shinji: Yes?

Asuka: ...do you...hate me?

Shinji (eyes snapping wide): Huh?

Asuka: Do you hate me?

(Shinji silently shakes his head.)

Asuka (suddenly taking his face between her hands): Good...

(And she kisses him.)

------------------------------------------------

To be Continued....

Author's Note:

Well...that's done! Yeah, I know, some of you are going to hate me for leaving off this chapter like that, but sometimes it's nice to leave something up to the reader.

First things first, yes, I did get the idea of the little girl from Axel Terizaki's fan fic, "Child of Love," but remember that the future is never set. I might be playing with your minds... I'll leave that for you to decide. I was also inspired indirectly for the Gendo part of this story by TOH's fan fic, HERZ.

One last thing before I wrap this up. I did make Ritsuko a little emotional in this chapter. I will reveal more about that as time goes on.

That's all for now. Coming soon: "Fight to the Finish!" Watch for it!

If you have C&C, please email me at gargoyle64@hotmail.com!!