Act I, scene VI: The days at school
The dialogue in {curly brackets} is in German. I decided to apply the translation convention instead of using German and providing translations as I did in past stories. I hope it works better. For those familiar with German: assume the characters use the T-form (du) here.
The dialogue in [square brackets] indicates a language different than the conventional Japanese and {German}.
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The morning classroom was not as lively as it would be during the lunch break, but it was far from silent – especially due to the rumors circulating around about the newcomer.
To nobody's surprise, Etsuko Arai – the girl who managed to grab the new boy first – was currently being subjected to an interrogation as brutal as only teenagers are capable of exercising.
"How is he like?"
"Where did you go to?"
"Was he behaving properly?"
"What did you talk about?"
"Is he letting you talk?"
Etsuko did her best to answer the questions, but she had preciously little to say: she admitted that Timmy was very gentlemanly, not too talkative, and very curious about life in school and Tokyo-3 in general – to a degree that made her woefully underinformed about him, because every time she asked a question, he answered politely – and then turned the conversation around to ask his own. She did not mind, enjoying his curiosity – but at the end of the day, she realized she knew preciously little about him.
Some of the girls who were in the dating queue turned ponderous; this sounded like a proper challenge – at that was something at least some of them enjoyed. Their determination was tarnished only by the fact that the subject of their focus was absent. Was he going to come? Did they scare him off? Or maybe his father got recalled suddenly and he–
The door slid open and Timothy Siebel entered, greeting everyone with a soft 'hello' and a warm smile. The gossip of schoolgirls moved to intercept him – but stopped in their tracks the moment the school bell chimed, announcing the start of the first lesson; about ten seconds later, the teacher entered, prompting the Class Representative to invoke her usual greeting routine.
Timmy sat down at his desk, trying his best to hide the small smirk.
'Punctuality is a very important virtue for Japanese people, isn't it?'
***
'Let's give them something to hang onto during the lunch break… and me something to stop me from falling asleep', Timmy thought after yet another stifled yawn.
'Before I need to be sent to nurse's office to be laughed at by dear Auset.'
He took a closer look at the screen of his laptop. The local operating system was quite similar to those used in the Western computers he was familiar with from his previous life; he opened a console and ran a few commands, confirming his suspicions.
'Must be one of those not-so-open exports… or maybe an unofficial cooperation', he concluded before filing this thought for a later check.
'Just makes things easier…'
One MMC discreetly inserted into his laptop, a few dozen keystrokes, and a few moments later, he started to notice some signs of distress among the students – but not anything resembling the disruption he was hoping for.
'Let me guess, one of those… cultural things? None will disrupt the class? I guess I have to be more overt than that… Damn it, it's not my style–'
"Teacher?" he suddenly heard a voice and saw a raised hand; his salvation came from the unanticipated, but logical direction: the only person who was not afraid to cause disruption.
"Yes, Soryu-san?" the teacher stopped narrating to her 'How to Use a Text Editor' presentation and turned her surprised gaze towards the girl. "Is something unclear?"
"My laptop's gone crazy and I can't do a single thing you're talking about", Asuka explained. Several mumbles followed her, confirming discreetly – and with relief – that this was a more widespread issue.
The teacher approached the redhead, doubt in her eyes – and quickly realized the girl was telling the truth; the laptop was working, but it was incredibly slow – and the task list sent from the teacher's computer was displayed in some illegible font. The teacher frowned. "I am going to call the support", she decided after a few seconds. "Until then, open your handbooks–"
"Ma'am?" Timmy chimed in, trying his best to contain his smirk. "Maybe I can help?"
The woman narrowed her eyes at him. "You're the newcomer, correct? Siebel-kun?" she recalled a name.
"Yes, ma'am, Timothy Siebel", he confirmed. "I have some experience with computers. If you would let me try to take a look at your terminal?"
"Why mine?" her frown returned.
"Well, it seems that the list broke, and it is provided from your computer, correct?" he replied. "It makes sense that it is the prime suspect", he reasoned.
"Hm", her frown deepened; Timmy started to wonder whether that woman had any other expressions. "But be careful not to break anything else", she stipulated.
"Don't worry, ma'am, I know what I'm doing", he flashed the teacher a smile and went over to her desk, tracked by about every pair of eyes in the room – with a remarkable exception of Rei Ayanami, who was – as it was in her habit – just staring out of the window at the blue sky.
'Okay, she's going to be a tougher nut to crack… I'll have to find some other hook. Fortunately, it's unlikely that the boss gives her case to me…' he mused as he approached the desk, sensing the teacher following him closely.
'Don't trust me, ma'am, do you?' he smirked.
'And you're right not to, but this time, this time I really intend to fix it.'
He leaned over the screen and requested the list of processes. It was very easy to find the one his little script introduced. He had to pretend he was not aware of the reason – and at the same time, doing his best to fix the problem. Fortunately for him, despite this being the class closest to Computer Science they had so far, the teacher was at best at an average user level.
About three minutes later and another MMC with a small backdoor-installing script discreetly inserted, activated, and removed, he let out a semi-convincing 'ha!' – and 'identified' the offending process. A quick kill command removed it. "Soryu-san, is the problem gone?" he requested a check.
The redhead shook off her absentmindedness and turned her annoyed glare at the screen. "Yeah, it's gone. Nice", she remarked with a shadow of appreciation passing through her face – a shadow quickly replaced by her usual disdain.
"Kasai-san?" he turned to one of the girls he was supposed to date in the incoming days. "Can you confirm?"
"Yes!" the diminutive girl exclaimed. "Everything is fine!"
"The floor is yours, ma'am", the boy bowed and stepped away from the desk. "The process feeding the list was doubled and scrambled the output as a result", he explained helpfully, if completely falsely; the teacher's nodding reaction told him that he did not need to worry about his backdoor being detected, at least not by her. "Should not happen again anytime soon."
"Thank you… Siebel-kun", the teacher frowned again. "Return to your desk, we will resume."
"Yes, ma'am", he smiled and complied – once more tracked by almost all the eyes in the classroom.
'Ah, the sweet attention', he mused as he basked in the appreciative gazes.
***
As the lunch break began, he found himself once more lacking nothing, be it company, attention – or bentos.
'Wise of me that I didn't buy anything. Joke's on them, though, I can eat a lot…' he chuckled to himself.
'And there's no boy in the class I should be mean to at the moment', he concluded as he smiled to all his benefactors – and carefully chose the box that came from Yorika Ueda, a girl he was supposed to date today, the second would be from Etsuko Arai – and the third from Momoko Matsubara, the girl he would see tomorrow.
'Careful with favorites and playing', he reminded himself.
'You're working here. But there's no reason not to gather some more information before moving to the targets proper, is there?'
***
There were several things a demon could dislike. Holy symbols were often such a thing – if the demon in question was so psychologically inclined. Bad weather, if they paid too much attention to the sensation of their corporeal form. Being corporeal, for that matter, was on that list as well.
But Azazello did not care for any of those, quite the opposite in some of the cases. His service in Voland's retinue was often nothing but pleasure; he enjoyed being embodied, the various sensations – even the ones humans considered unpleasant – were a source of variety for him. As for the holy symbols, he did not care about them; he was older than most of those still in use, he saw the power of many grow and fade across the centuries, so he could easily assume that none of the current ones would last – so why should he accept their power over him?
And yet, he was not free of dislikes and hatreds; he particularly hated one thing that was in abundance in the place he was sent to assist at – the noise of the people. And young people, or as they were called in this age, 'adolescents' or 'teenagers', were only a little bit less loud than small children.
'Master sends me to assassinate those screamers far too rarely', he mused with annoyance that grew with every moment he had to spend in the crowd.
'I know that the elders are usually more important targets, more challenging enemies, and those… brats…' he looked with disgust at a mischief of schoolboys loudly bragging about some idiotic activity.
'Those brats are "low priority, low risk" targets left to apprentices…' he let out an inarticulate growl; to his satisfaction, the boys looked at him with worry and moved behind the corner to continue. '
As if the Master really needed me here, the witch and the charmer are doing just fine…'
He crossed the courtyard and entered the school building via a service entrance. His presence here felt completely pointless – the students were cleaning the place by themselves, and all he had to do according to the person that introduced him to his duties – in replacement of the regular janitor that inexplicably fell ill – was to 'maintain the infrastructure'. So here he was, on the lookout for any infrastructure in need of maintaining – and trying his best to avoid the louder groups of students.
'Maybe I can take a few of those brats off this world, I'm sure it would make this place quieter…' he mused as another exclamation from some excited schoolgirl bit into his ears.
'But no, Master's will comes first, and we can't have this operation messed up', he concluded with a heavy sigh as he decided to check whether the school did not have some kind of a fortified shelter; such a place was likely to have
some sort of soundproofing, even if it was going to be coincidental.
***
The ambush Timmy spotted at the gate yesterday was there now, too. He let out a sigh – and took a step back to melt into shadows – only to notice a familiar face on a man crossing the courtyard; he usually avoided this particular demon, be it home or on operations, but he knew that weird fang, that balding head, and that cataracted eye all too well.
'Doesn't boss believe in us?' he mused, his pride hurt.
'We just started, and they send someone to watch our moves?' he pondered as he took a step back into the bushes, not letting himself be seen by the faux maintenance guy.
'On the other hand, maybe he's just another vector… like, three pilots to watch, three pair of eyes… even if one of those eyes is somewhat broken?' he chuckled to himself.
'I have to ask someone… I guess Natasha would know', he decided and refocused on the matters of today.
'Yoriko-chan, here I come', he smiled to himself and took a step in the darker shadow behind the tree.
The ambush failed once more, increasing the despair of the three shy girls with a not-so-impeccable plan.
***
Next morning
"Hello, Ikari-kun", Timmy approached the boy after surviving the first wave of attention and deflecting it towards the clearly happy Yorika Ueda, his yesterday date.
"Hi", Shinji replied, his voice subdued. "I…" he tried before falling silent. "Never mind."
"Don't worry, I don't want anything from you", the newcomer reassured him. "You seemed… sad, though."
"I'm sorry", Shinji apologized, as was his habit. Timmy eyed him carefully, clearly waiting for a follow-up – but receiving none.
"If you want to talk, just say so", he added in a soft tone.
"Thanks, but… I always worked it out alone", Shinji replied.
'Damn it', Timmy remarked to himself.
'I always was better with girls. Maybe Auset will have more luck with him.'
***
Two classes later
"Get him on the bed, Auset!" Chisaki Toiguchi, the school nurse commanded as she eyed the boy that shuffled into the room, resting his arm on the shoulders of another. "What happened?" she asked as the intern nurse guided both newcomers; she had her suspicion, considering both boys were wearing P.E. uniforms, but getting details could be important, especially that the boy did not have any visible injury.
"I was inattentive", the boy responded meekly as he sat on the narrow bed. "I'm sorry."
"Don't worry", Chisaki's response was almost automatic. "We'll take care of you. What's your name?"
"Ikari. Ikari Shinji", the boy replied, his voice still low and pained.
Auset ears perked up immediately.
'Oh. Lucky me', she remarked to herself, trying her best to contain her enthusiasm on the chance to observe the boy. She retrieved the notepad and waited for further commands.
"What happened?" Chisaki kept inquiring in the meantime.
"Nothing. I didn't dodge", the boy shrugged and winced as the movement clearly caused him some pain.
"Bullshit", the taller boy chimed in, his voice indignant. This one she remembered all too well – Touji Suzuhara, a regular in her office, a good athlete, and a boy with incorrigible rushing hands. The kind she reserved the extra thick needles in case of injections and the kind that made her regret that corporal punishments were discontinued; on the other hand, knowing him, he would likely
enjoy receiving it from her.
She shook this line of thinking off. "So, what happened, Suzuhara-kun?"
The boy visibly beamed at being recognized before composing himself and reporting. "The damned newcomer kicked the ball directly into Ikari's chest", he grumbled. "An inch more and it would've been his face. Bloody American."
"He's German", Ikari boy remarked. "And it was not his fault."
"That's for the teacher to decide", Chisaki declared. "Please remove your shirt, I must listen to your breathing", she requested. "And you can go", she addressed the taller boy.
"But I should bring him back?" he tried to protest.
"Either he's fine in a few moments and can walk by himself, or he's staying here for the rest of the class – or of the day", Chisaki explained. "Either way, it is no reason for you to skip class. Thank you for bringing him. Now, please leave."
"Yes, Toiguchi-sensei", the boy sulked, shot Auset something that was likely supposed to be a flirty look, patted Ikari on the back – and left.
"Now", Chisaki turned her attention to the boy. "Breathe deep", she commanded as she put the stethoscope to his chest. The bruising was fresh and not too heavy, but it was clear that the ball hit rather hard. The redness of the ears was another of the boy's symptoms to disregard; Chisaki was used to boys reacting to her like that. She did not realize that the reaction was actually the result of a sweet smile, cast at the boy behind the nurse's back by her young charge. "Okay, your breathing seems fine…" she paused. "No sign of arrhythmia, either", she concluded and gestured to Auset to make notes. "I need to check your ribs, though, so would you please lie down?"
"Yes, ma'am", the boy nodded and followed her directions.
"Toiguchi-sama, can I do the check?" Auset chimed in. "I could use the practice."
Chisaki's brow furrowed. The girl had a point, but… "All right, but you understand I will double-check your diagnosis?"
"Of course, Toiguchi-sama", the girl chirped.
"Go ahead, then", Chisaki gestured.
Auset put the notepad away and approached the patient. "Don't worry, Ikari-kun, I will be gentle", she reassured him as she rubbed her palms together. "Ready?"
The boy nodded – and stifled a gasp as the warm hands touched his side. His blush turned incandescent.
"Did I hurt you, Ikari-kun?" Auset asked, her voice clearly worried.
"No, no, I'm fine, I just got surprised", he rattled out, trying his best to control himself.
***
Shinji Ikari was not exactly a
stranger to a woman's touch. After all, he was a subject to medical examinations in the past; he also suffered the unfortunate incident with Rei Ayanami a while ago. But there was touch and there was
touch – and while the young nurse's ministrations were nothing but professional, there was
something in her warm hands and her caring expression that turned his skin to fire under her touch – and his brain to mush.
"Ikari-kun?"
"Y-yes?" he did his best to regain his focus.
"I asked you whether it hurts here", the young nurse – nurse's apprentice? – asked.
"Yes!" he blurted out. "I mean, no, it doesn't", he corrected himself.
"Ikari-kun? Please be honest", she requested, her voice sounding like a long-forgotten, sweet melody from his childhood.
"It doesn't, I'm fine", he replied truthfully, his voice a bit hazy. His heart was racing and his breathing was rapid, but this had nothing to do with the accident. "It's just a bit tender, nothing more."
"All right", the girl nodded. "And here?"
***
Chisaki watched the scene from two steps away, her will focused on not facepalming. Either the girl was unbelievably innocent and unaware of her influence – or she was consciously and actively torturing the boy. The former seemed more probable, though, considering her caring expression and the accompanying soft smile, not to mention her behavior towards Chisaki herself. She decided not to intervene – but she knew she definitely had to share a word with her afterward.
***
Auset, of course, was perfectly aware of what she was doing – and of the fact that the current situation spiraled a little bit out of control. She was also worried that this situation was starting to skirt the issue of consent:
technically, she was doing nothing wrong, just performing her medical duties – but she knew this was a bit off. Embarrassing – or at least mildly confusing – the boy was definitely necessary for him to lower his defenses so she could sink her probes in – but it worked better than she thought it would.
She could not read his mind – this was hardly her specialty, and pretty much beyond her skill – but it was also not necessary. His soul
screamed at her to a degree it was difficult to focus on the physical part of the examination. All the emotions and feelings: wistful loneliness that could easily make her cry, boiling carnal desired typical for a teenager, resignation to his situation that was slowly turning into apathy, sad awareness of his own inexperience in human relations that he saw no way of improving on – and the powerful, blinding dichotomy of the constant fear of rejection starkly contrasted by the sheer
need to be just
close to someone…
"[Enough, you showed me enough!]" she blurted out in a language nobody else in the room could understand as those final emotions proven to be too much to take in; it took her a few seconds to realize that both pair of eyes stare at her in confusion. "I'm sorry, Toiguichi-sama, Ikari-kun, I thought I hurt you. There seems to be something wrong here?" she indicated a spot near the solar plexus.
"Yes, the bruise", the older nurse confirmed, her eyebrow raised. "Please step aside, I will examine him myself."
Auset took a step back, her ears red. This was a mistake; she was lucky she had the habit of reverting to her native language in moments of stress: saying this in Japanese would have been not just embarrassing; it was more likely to be dangerous.
***
Chisaki Toiguchi completed the examination far quicker; under her hands, Shinji seemed to be less tense, even if his blush did not diminish at all.
"There seems to be no serious damage", she concluded. "What you likely detected, Auset, was just the minor swelling, normal in such an injury", she explained before turning to the boy. "I'll keep you here for the rest of the PE class, and then you're free to go."
"Thank you, Toiguchi-sensei", he nodded. "Can I dress?"
"Yes, please. Lie down for a while when you're done, though, and please stay put", she requested. "And you, please come with me", she addressed Auset.
"Yes, Toiguichi-sama", Auset confirmed in a small voice, her lips thin.
***
"What was
that, Auset?" Chisaka asked in a low voice the moment they were behind the door of the medical storage room.
"I'm sorry, Toiguichi-sama", Auset dropped her eyes. "I thought I hurt him and… I panicked."
Chisaka took a deep breath. She was somewhat angry at her: she seemed to have panicked doing a simple examination and could very well spook the patient – but the girl was also clearly penitent and remorseful. She shook her head. "Be careful next time, please. I can't have you yell at patients, remember that, we are to be helpful here. What was that language, anyway?" she asked, trying not to sound too curious.
"
Masri, Toiguichi-sama", the girl replied. "A form of Arabic", she explained.
"I thought you were Egyptian?" the older nurse blinked in confusion.
The girl up with confusion for a moment, her gaze still averted. "It's a complicated and contentious matter sometimes, but Egypt has been Arabic for a while, Toiguichi-sama. We have been speaking the language for over a thousand years now", she explained. "We don't use hieroglyphs anymore, too", she quipped, carefully testing the waters, aware that her charm should be slowly taking hold on the older woman again.
"Of course", Chisaka shook her head. "I get it. Now, please promise me you'll control yourself better next time?" she made the strongest demand she could force herself to make at the girl.
"Yes, Toiguichi-sama", the girl finally looked her in the eye, her gaze cheerful. "I will do my best", she added her soft smile to that equation – and the rest of Chisaka's anger evaporated, replaced by the thought of
'I need to call my boyfriend today as well' and a growing awareness of how close she was standing to her young charge. It was starting to get dangerously warm in the room.
"All right. Let's check on the boy, then", she ordered.
'Before I say or do something stupid…'
***
Later that afternoon
"{Hello, Timmy}", the redhead's voice speaking in very proper German caught him as he was about to leave the school building on the way to his next date. "{Got a minute?}"
"{Sure}", he nodded, replying in kind. "{How can I serve the fair lady?}" he smiled.
"{Cut the crap, Casanova}", she demanded, but not without a smile. "{I know you're in a hurry for another date, so I'll make it snappy: keep off Ikari's back for now, okay?}"
"Soryu-san?" he tilted his head, surprise in his voice.
"{You can call me Asuka when we're talking the language of normal people. It's a welcome change, I'm going nuts over this 'whom to address by the last name and who is a friend enough to use the first name'. I miss calling the cooler teachers by their firsts}", she let out a sigh before narrowing her eyes at him and regaining a more serious tone of her voice. "{I saw you talking to him. The fact I'm not fawning over you doesn't mean I'm blind to the wind you're sowing here. Listen: I don't
care if you want to date him or take him to arcades or maybe just talk – but take my advice: leave him for a few days}", she requested in a calm and certain voice. "{He's got a rather somber day ahead of him, and you don't want to mess with that.}"
"{Since when you're so protective of him?}" Timmy raised an eyebrow, his tone – and his smirk – mocking.
"{And since when you're not fond of having both of your balls?}" she retorted, her voice calm in a way Timmy sometimes heard from the witches when one of them was particularly annoyed.
"{Okay, I get your point}", he chuckled. There was no reason to escalate the conflict, not yet. "{Thanks for the info. When can I talk to him safely?}"
"{Next week should be fine}", Asuka replied. "{And if a single word of our lovely conversation reaches him…}"
"{You'll rip my balls off and use them for fishing?}" Timmy finished for her with an amused expression.
"{Something like that. Or maybe I'll slip a word or two about why your father had to move here, far from some other country, and it would be about you}", she supplemented while studying her own nails. "{Same happens if you ever hurt him again. I'll just call what happened today on the field an accident… and a line you should not cross. Got it?}"
"{I don't like this level of threats, Asuka. Jokes about balls are fine, but I don't like… this}", he narrowed his eyes, his smile suddenly gone, his voice turning cold. "{And I don't like your attitude.}"
"{And I don't like misunderstandings}", she retorted, refocusing her cold, blue eyes on him. "{I don't care about the streak of broken hearts you leave behind, they're asking for it by throwing themselves on you – but be careful
whose you break. Questions?}"
"{I don't think we're going to be friends}", he remarked, his voice displeased.
"{Oh, I'm crying,
darling}", she retorted, her voice an open mockery. "{I don't need any more friends}", she declared, her voice sharp and serious again. "{And I know people like you. I know your kind likes to have your boundaries clear… or at least ticks better when they are clear. So I set them for you, to save you the effort. Know my grace. So, any questions?}"
"{None, Asuka. Have a nice day}", he replied with a smirk.
"{Oh, I will}", she smiled a crooked smile at him. "{Bye!}"
His eyes followed the silhouette of the redhead as she joined two other girls on the way out.
'People like me… I wonder how you know so much about them, Asuka?' he smirked.
'Boss will want to hear about that, they're going to love this. But first, Momoko-chan needs some attention… but first, one more thing' he decided as he took a step back – and walked from behind a tree a few dozen streets away.
***
"Good afternoon, Ayanami", Timmy addressed the blue-haired girl as she walked into a side alley.
"Why are you following me, Siebel-kun?" the girl asked without any surprise in her eyes.
"I'm not
following you, I was here first", he retorted.
"This is irrelevant", she countered. "There is no reason for you to be here except your interest in me. Why is that?"
The boy's eyebrows rose. "I could be sightseeing."
"You're not interested in places. Judging from your choice of date venues, you know the city already. You are interested in people. I am the only other person here. Therefore, it is logical to assume that you are here because you are interested in me", Rei explained her reasoning.
Timmy blinked in surprise. This was the longest statement he heard Rei Ayanami speak since he met her. To his slight horror, she was also quite right in her assessment.
"Is it wrong of me to follow you?" he changed his approach, his voice inquisitive.
"It is not", she replied, her expression still unchanged. "But it is unusual and if it continues, I will be bound to report it to NERV."
"Why?" Timmy tilted his head.
"It is the procedure", she explained. He waited for her to continue – but she just kept looking at him, unmoving, her blinking and breathing being the only indicators that he is not facing a wax figure.
"And what if I do it because I'm curious of you? Is this unusual?" he finally asked.
"Yes", she replied. Once more, she did not follow up on her reply despite his waiting.
"I'm sorry to have disturbed you, then", he bowed.
"You did not", she replied. "There is no need for an apology. Were you asked to follow me?" she suddenly asked.
Timmy's face expressed his surprise immediately. "No", he shook his head; he was telling the truth, of course, stretched as it was: he was asked to
gather information about her, but him
following her was entirely out of his own initiative. "I am… curious. I mean, you don't behave like other girls in the class."
"I know", she replied. He could
swear there was a note of sadness in that statement, but reading the girl's reaction was nigh impossible, even with his sense of empathy. Most girls were like open books for him, most boys were like books with somewhat faded print. Reading Rei Ayanami was like trying to read a book that was waterlogged for a decade, dried, and then left out in the sun for another ten years – or, to use more modern parlance, printed using almost empty ink cartridge on an off-white paper. But there was
something there, something he could–
"You are going to be late for your date if we keep talking", her words interrupted his reverie. "It is considered rude to be late."
"I think I should be fine", he smiled. "I can talk to you for a few more minutes and still be on time."
"Your date is in twenty-five minutes at Odama Café", she stated. "It is about ten minutes' walk from the school. We are twenty minutes from the school, but in a nearly opposite direction. If you start running now, you are likely not to be late."
"I'll take a bus", he waved his hand, trying his best to conceal his small bout of panic and a wave of irritation washing over him. He did not anticipate the basic problem – while he was watching, he was also being watched.
'Damn. She's not as absent-minded as I thought…'
"There is no direct connection that would make this advantageous. The bus lines are sparse in this part of the city", she stated, her voice impassionate. "This is why I walk. You are being dishonest with me, Siebel-kun. Why?"
'Fuck', he clenched his jaw.
'Time for the sincere apology maneuver', he realized. "I'm sorry", he bowed his head. "You're right. I am curious about you, and I was afraid you would not want to talk with me in school. So I wanted to talk to you alone. I made sure I will not be late", he reassured her. "But if I'm making you uncomfortable, please accept my apology."
"There is no need to apologize, Siebel-kun", Rei repeated. "But I see no reason for you to be curious about me. I'm not someone you could date", she stated matter-of-factly; once more, he could swear there was sadness in her words, but washed down so much that it was perceptible only against the otherwise emotionless tone. "I will be on my way. Please do not follow me any further", she started to turn away.
"Of course, Ayanami-san", he agreed. "Will you answer me one more – well, two more questions – first?"
"Yes. What are they?" she stopped.
"You act very differently from other girls. Are you happy with the results of that behavior?" he asked.
Rei tilted her head, her expression suggesting mild confusion. "I don't know. Does it matter?"
'Damn it, it's like talking to one of the older demons. I could very well be speaking Greek to her and it would make very little difference…' he mused as he managed to subdue his own expression of confusion. He shook that thought off; there was going to be enough time to muse over that later. "Of course it does. This is why I'm asking", he smiled. "Thank you for your answer, Ayanami-san. I will see you in school."
"You said 'two questions'", she remarked.
"Ah. Yes", he chuckled. "That was for the case if you'd say 'you already did'… never mind. I have nothing more to ask of you, well, not right now. Thank you for your time."
"Goodbye", she replied and turned away.
Timmy let out a sigh as he watched her walk past him and disappear behind the corner.
'Boss won't be happy… but at least I learned something. Let's focus on asking about them, now. Lucky for me, the other girls are quite talkative if you are willing to listen', he concluded as he stepped into the shadows.
***
It was already dark when the boy emerged from the shadows cast by the ruined elements of the terrace; mere seconds after his arrival, a young woman in a nurse overcoat flew in, landed gracefully, and dismounted a plastic broom that looked like it was borrowed from the school storage.
Voland, clad in robes darker than the surrounding night, their face lit only by the lights of the city below, gave each of the two a long glance in turn.
"Report."
================================================================
And so, the school drama continues. The March update will, once more, take a closer look at NERV.
