Those Orcs being MEAN! like big....MEANIES.... and when I told them to stop in the name of the lord they ignored me... so I bashed their heads in with an axe *nods*
Ok, if you guys are wandering off to talking about FFT characters, and not mentioning the Healing Shiv from 8-Bit Theater, I'm clearly going to have to get you back on track. Update time!
Chapter 4.5
Before the Storm
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Rei stared at the red and white pills in her hand and hesitated. This was new.
Her eyes had snapped open at precisely 0640, just like every morning. She had never needed an alarm clock. She had gone through her morning routine automatically, no thought required. She got dressed, prepared a bland lunch bento, and took out her daily medication dose. But then she had halted, conflicted.
'Doctor Akagi instructed me to take these daily. She stated the Commander had required them. She implied they were essential to maintain my body's stability,' one thought argued. 'Doctor Akagi talks at me, not to me like the Commander or Ikari-kun do. She does not care for me. Even the Second Child cares for me. She asked me 'please' not to do this. And my current research confirms her description; most of the medication in these pills is sedative and dissociative in nature,' the other side argued back. Disobeying the Commander, even by proxy still felt... wrong. Rei had never done it. But Ikari-kun and Pilot Soryu... they had taken her to buy clothes to help her be more like them, cleaned her apartment out of concern for her state of life, and warned her against taking medication that apparently clouded her mind. They... cared about her and her well-being?
'They fight beside me in battle. They risk their lives for each other because they care for each other. They have done so for me. Ergo, they care for me too.' Logic had always come easily to Rei. It made things simple, clear. Something she liked, since her thoughts often felt... muddied, slowed, unclear. If Pilot Soryu was correct, this medication might even be the cause of that.
She closed her hand and pocketed the pills. She would confirm once more with research at school. She could always take the pills later in the day if her concerns proved unfounded.
She walked to the door and picked up her schoolbag. She had just enough time to meet the Second and Third Children at their residence if she left now.
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"Hee hee... Mmm. Rrowl..."
"Shhhh!"
"Come on, one more..."
"This is dangerous..."
"That makes it more fun!" Asuka pouted at him. "Misato can't see us in here. And I want every bit of you I can get, Third Child. We're going to be stuck with Wondergirl all day long again. I'm going to have to spend all day acting like I don't want to get back into bed with you right now and keep doing what we were doing last night."
"We can't, we used up the last one," Shinji said mock-mournfully. He brightened. "You're getting that implant thing from Doctor Akagi today, right?"
"Yup!" Asuka gave him a sly, wicked grin. "So I get one more good kiss before we go out there and I have to pretend to be angry at you. Gimme."
Shinji really found it hard to argue, and not just because Asuka had her tongue halfway down his throat. Her arms came up to gently wrap around the back of his neck and pull him close against her. His rose automatically to hold her by the hips. 'This... mmm. This is the way to leave home in the mornings. Wait, what was that noise? It was kind of a bing-bong... DOORBELL!'
He and Asuka sprang apart just before Misato's voice called from the dining area. "Is that Rei-chan? Get going you two!"
Shinji glanced at Asuka, who was rapidly smoothing out mussed hair and clothes before nodding to him. He hit the door open button to reveal Rei standing placidly on the doorstep, face as blank as always.
"Good Morning."
"Good morning, Ayanami. You're here pretty early!" Shinji said with a nervous laugh. He desperately hoped he didn't have any signs of Asuka's affection visible on his neck.
Asuka examined Rei's face carefully. "Did you...?"
Rei still had no expression. "I have not. I will conduct research before any further action." She did meet Asuka's eyes and nod slightly. "Thank you for... being concerned about me." She looked at Shinji too. "And you as well, Ikari-kun."
With that she turned to walk back towards the elevators. Sharing a worried look, Shinji and Asuka followed after.
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"Hi~, Ikari-kun..."
"Hi~, Ikari-san..."
Shinji waved and smiled weakly at both girls. He very carefully did not glance in Asuka's direction. He could feel the murder-aura pouring off her from where he sat.
Asuka clawed another set of slashes into her desktop and added Megumi Ogata and Rie Kugimiya to the 'Must Kill Them Later' list she was rapidly compiling in her head. There had been a few girls lying in wait in the schoolyard to 'accidentally' run into Shinji that they'd managed to evade by careful use of cover, but half the female portion of their class had turned to watch like hawks as they walked into the classroom, several visibly undressing Shinji with their eyes. That alone had started Asuka on a slow boil. Fortunately, she'd managed to make it look like her old 'angry at everyone' routine.
But nearly all of those girls had found excuses to walk by Shinji's desk and say a personal hello to him this morning, more than a few putting a flirtatious lilt in it, or a bit of extra hip action to their walk. On the last two, both. Asuka put them at the top of the list.
"Hi~, Shinji..." Touji imitated as he walked past his friend's desk. He ran his fingers up Shinji's arm. "You busy later? I've heard sooo~oo much about you!"
Shinji swatted at his hand. "Knock it off," he grumbled.
"Didya change your cologne or sumthin'? The girls are all over you this mornin'!" Touji marveled. "Kensuke, you been gettin' all this on tape for later, right?"
Their spectacled friend nodded with a grin. "Oh yeah," he said, waving his mini-camera. "The Story of Shinji's Harem, Volume One, already started."
"I didn't do anything, guys. I have no idea what's going on. As usual," Shinji muttered. "They just started coming after me this week like all of a sudden I smell like a freshly cooked steak dinner. It's just in the last few days. I don't know why."
Asuka permitted herself a tiny smirk. 'I know why...' The thought did make her feel a little better. All the girls wanted him all of a sudden because she had him. They didn't even know why he was acting more cheerful, or that they'd already lost the game. 'He's mine. I'm his. None of you are ever going to beat that.' She narrowed her eyes at Tanaka and Hayashibara, whispering suspiciously together in their seats in the far corner of the classroom. 'Though I bet a bunch of you are going to get on my nerves trying...'
"C'mon, Shin-man, you've gotta tell us what you're doin' different, so we can get in on it! I could finally get one of these hot babes to notice my studly, well-muscled bod-OW!" Touji's paean to his handsome form was cut off by the impact of a well-aimed piece of chalk to the middle of his forehead.
"Sit DOWN, Suzuhara!" Hikari roared at him. "And shut up!"
"Alright, alright, Class Rep! You don' gotta hit me!" He moved back to his own desk and flopped into it. "Yeesh, why's she gotta pick on me like that?"
Asuka rolled her eyes. 'Jock-Stooge, sharp as a brick as always. I have no idea what you see in him, Hikari.'
She glanced at Rei. The bluenette had her laptop already open and was busily typing away at some search page. Asuka crossed her fingers. 'I really hope she listens. No one should have their mind mucked with like that, not even Wondergirl.'
Their elderly sensei finally arrived, and class began.
also I could still see some of the meds ARE from Gendo - Hormone, Metoblism, Tissue rejection or what ever you would need to keep her stable. So perhaps she can decide some of them are not doing anything other then messing with her brain?
Had a thought: Rei not having the normal withdrawal symptoms from cutting back on her meds would be a good way for Shinji and Asuka (possibly Misato too, maybe even Rei herself if she doesn't know all the details of her own existence) to realize that there's something deeply strange about Rei beyond her mental state.
As for the effects, I'd go with Rei having unconscious emotional responses to things and then trying to consciously analyze them. It's also likely to frighten her, since she won't be used to her mind doing things without an exercise of willpower.
Given that at least some of her ability to feel emotions was probably in the chunk of soul she left in Unit 00 when Rei I died, the effect of independently regenerating that soul chunk on her synch ratio is unpredictable. It should strengthen her AT field to an impressive extent, though, given how weak her sense of self is while medicated.
I asked LilithPrime, who once upon a time was a teenage girl herself: "Confidence looks good. If they already thought he was kind of cute, him suddenly standing up straighter and smiling would generate a surge in interest."
Had a thought: Rei not having the normal withdrawal symptoms from cutting back on her meds would be a good way for Shinji and Asuka (possibly Misato too, maybe even Rei herself if she doesn't know all the details of her own existence) to realize that there's something deeply strange about Rei beyond her mental state.
I asked LilithPrime, who once upon a time was a teenage girl herself: "Confidence looks good. If they already thought he was kind of cute, him suddenly standing up straighter and smiling would generate a surge in interest."
Edit: So wait... they are after him due to the way he acts after getting a girlfriend.... >_< its like they now they can try sampling him without worrying about needing to buy the lot!
(Asuka: MINE!!! *snuggle*)
LOL my place of work is having an event on Wednesday... WITH CAKE
. Altho P.D.Q. Bach may have written something.
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