- Location
- Spain
Well... someone's not sleeping tonight.
Nice update, keep it up.
-
Going forward, links to content from Twitter (now X) will no longer be embedded. Pre-existing links should not be affected.
You Are (Not) at Fault
- Thread starter MisterHalt
- Start date
Well... someone's not sleeping tonight.
Nice update, keep it up.
Looks good to me, will they be exploring the Geofront next?
I did just notice something from earlier chapters though. When Lilith is speaking to Kyoko, Lilith says she can no longer see outside of the ocean, but in the chapter before last you had both Lilith and Adam able to manifest in the real world.
I did just notice something from earlier chapters though. When Lilith is speaking to Kyoko, Lilith says she can no longer see outside of the ocean, but in the chapter before last you had both Lilith and Adam able to manifest in the real world.
- Location
- Australia, mate
Lilith said:
Lilith can't see out of the Sea (heh), but she does still have a tentative link to Shinji, one that's growing weaker every day. She sensed something bad was about to happen, and mentioned it to Adam. While Lilith might have been... resigned to Shinji's fate, Adam forced himself out of the ocean in order to protect him and ensure that whatever they were doing would continue as planned. Lilith simply followed Adam once she knew that it was possible to leave.
Lilith said:
But they're both suffering the effects of it now, and know that it's impossible for them to stay. Eventually her link with Shinji will be permanently cut off.
I'm going to add another paragraph to the previous chapter to clarify a bit anyway.
Chapter 8.2
- Location
- Australia, mate
Not much to say this time. The section after this will have a bit of time skipping, and by the end of this chapter, someone will make an appearance. Try and guess who!
******
Chapter 8.2
The last time Misato had fallen asleep without the aid of alcohol was a mystery, and she had completely forgotten what it was like to wake up without a horrible taste in her mouth. It came as a bit of a surprise to her when she was the first one up the next morning.
Since the power grid was damaged, the electric kettle was a useless lump of plastic. Misato started rummaging through the cupboards, and soon discovered what she was looking for: an old kettle she could use on the stove. She quickly set about getting some water boiling, and soon had a piping hot cup of coffee ready to shake the last vestiges of sleep from her mind.
The whistling of the kettle had apparently awoken the German girl, as Asuka soon made her stumbling way past the dining table into the bathroom, looking like she had barely slept at all and clutching something in her hand. When she came out of the bathroom a few minutes later and plopped down on a chair, a mug of coffee was wordlessly placed in front of her. Asuka mumbled something that may have been "thank you" and took a mouthful of the black liquid.
"Blech! This is way too bitter, Misato!" Asuka exclaimed, pulling a face. "Do you take your own coffee like this? It's awful!"
"Nope, we have no power, so there's no milk," Misato grinned. "Besides, at least you're wide awake now."
The redhead elected not to comment further, and the two of them drank their coffee in companionable silence. Asuka winced slightly at every acrid mouthful, but still finished her cup well before Misato.
"What's that you're holding?" Misato suddenly asked. Asuka jolted, and looked at the hand holding the piece of paper she had found last night. She unfolded the note and stared at it for a while, before slowly handing it to Misato. The woman took the paper and read it slowly, before handing it back.
"Is this why you looked so tired?" she asked.
Asuka nodded and related how she had discovered the note under her pillow. She had spent several hours last night sitting on the floor staring at the words in the moonlight. That one word had always infuriated her when Shinji had said it in the past, but now she wanted to hear anything from the boy, even an apology. Misato nodded sympathetically, also wishing that her surrogate son would awaken.
For reasons unknown even to Asuka, she decided not to mention the chocolate. After she had been awoken by the whistling kettle, the girl had hidden the chocolate in her wardrobe before leaving her bedroom.
But not before eating a larger piece of it than she had intended.
The morning passed slowly into the afternoon. Asuka and Misato occupied that time by checking the other apartments for anything useful. Since the building had been used to house both the major and two of the pilots, there had not been many rooms occupied by civilians. Most of the apartments in the building were empty, especially around the sixth, seventh, and eighth floors as a security buffer. The ones that had been lived in were used by their Section Two detail.
In one of these rooms on their floor, Misato procured a pair of NERV-issue two-way radios and a stash of batteries for them.
"Brilliant!" Asuka said when Misato showed them to her. "Now we can split up and cover more ground once we need to scavenge away from the apartment."
"Well, that's close to what I had in mind," Misato replied. "One of us needs to stay at the apartment to keep an eye on Shinji. I don't want to leave him alone for too long in case something happens."
Asuka nodded grimly as she realised that she hadn't thought of the fact that Shinji had been alone in the apartment all day. She resolved to check on him when they were done.
Apart from the radios, there was depressingly little in the Section Two apartments. It was mostly surveillance equipment, small arms and instant meals. Fortunately for Asuka they were not the nuclear curry ones Misato favoured. Misato grabbed a pistol and holster to replace what she had lost in the Geofront, and even found a smaller handgun for Asuka. The Children went through firearm training and safety courses as part of their pilot training, so she knew the German girl was capable with the weapon. Even so, she still demanded that the guns stay unloaded while in the house and to only use them in a dire emergency.
They returned to their apartment. While Misato busied herself putting away the few items they had acquired, Asuka picked up a flashlight and hurried down the hall to Shinji's room.
Shinji was shivering despite the bedsheets he was curled up under. Asuka rushed to his side and touched his forehead near the bandage, discovering it to be rather warm. She was checking under the dressings on his head and hand, revealing nothing wrong, when a memory stirred.
Shinji, frozen in fear while climbing through a window. An off-white cloth wrapped around the leg in mid air. Asuka almost tore the sheets off the bed in her haste to check the bandage both she and Misato had failed to notice the day before
The old cloth stuck to the skin as Asuka slowly peeled it away, revealing a cut halfway down Shinji's thigh. The skin around the injury was red and swollen, while the cut itself was slowly oozing pus. Asuka swore loudly and called for Misato. The woman let out a curse as well when she came into the room and saw the infected wound. The two of them carefully lifted Shinji out of bed and brought him to the living room, where the afternoon sun would provide better light for them.
"Damnit, we don't have any antibiotics," Misato groaned as she rummaged through their medical supplies. Asuka stared at the ground in dismay before suddenly jumping to her feet and running to the kitchen. She returned a moment later with a jar of honey.
"Asuka... what are you planning?" Misato nervously asked, eyeing the jar.
"Honey's a traditional treatment for infected wounds," Asuka replied. "Preferably manuka, which is what I have here thanks to Shinji."
The pair worked quickly to clean the infection as best as they could and apply a honey-coated dressing, before applying fresh bandages as well replacing the ones from yesterday at the same time. Asuka had to almost yank the jar away from Misato when they were done, as the major had started eating the honey. Shinji's sheets were brought out from his room and the boy was wrapped up snugly in them as the sun began to set.
They ate an early dinner while they watched Shinji and waited. Eventually, his shivering began to subside, and a check on his temperature revealed that it was slowly returning to normal.
"Looks like we're going to have to thank Shinji for catering to your every whim, Asuka," Misato smirked. "Then again, he's also going to have to thank you for that great idea."
"Heh, yeah," Asuka rubbed the back of her head. "I don't know where he got it, but I never thought my demands for some non-Japanese food would actually help someone like this."
"What's next, are you going to prevent a heart attack with sauerkraut?"
Asuka groaned as she palmed her face while Misato cackled to herself. Shinji was returned to his own bed when Asuka and Misato turned in. The doors to the Children's rooms were left open, and Asuka fell asleep clutching the note while looking through the walls towards where Shinji lay.
No, it's not the Easter Bunny.
******
Chapter 8.2
The last time Misato had fallen asleep without the aid of alcohol was a mystery, and she had completely forgotten what it was like to wake up without a horrible taste in her mouth. It came as a bit of a surprise to her when she was the first one up the next morning.
Since the power grid was damaged, the electric kettle was a useless lump of plastic. Misato started rummaging through the cupboards, and soon discovered what she was looking for: an old kettle she could use on the stove. She quickly set about getting some water boiling, and soon had a piping hot cup of coffee ready to shake the last vestiges of sleep from her mind.
The whistling of the kettle had apparently awoken the German girl, as Asuka soon made her stumbling way past the dining table into the bathroom, looking like she had barely slept at all and clutching something in her hand. When she came out of the bathroom a few minutes later and plopped down on a chair, a mug of coffee was wordlessly placed in front of her. Asuka mumbled something that may have been "thank you" and took a mouthful of the black liquid.
"Blech! This is way too bitter, Misato!" Asuka exclaimed, pulling a face. "Do you take your own coffee like this? It's awful!"
"Nope, we have no power, so there's no milk," Misato grinned. "Besides, at least you're wide awake now."
The redhead elected not to comment further, and the two of them drank their coffee in companionable silence. Asuka winced slightly at every acrid mouthful, but still finished her cup well before Misato.
"What's that you're holding?" Misato suddenly asked. Asuka jolted, and looked at the hand holding the piece of paper she had found last night. She unfolded the note and stared at it for a while, before slowly handing it to Misato. The woman took the paper and read it slowly, before handing it back.
"Is this why you looked so tired?" she asked.
Asuka nodded and related how she had discovered the note under her pillow. She had spent several hours last night sitting on the floor staring at the words in the moonlight. That one word had always infuriated her when Shinji had said it in the past, but now she wanted to hear anything from the boy, even an apology. Misato nodded sympathetically, also wishing that her surrogate son would awaken.
For reasons unknown even to Asuka, she decided not to mention the chocolate. After she had been awoken by the whistling kettle, the girl had hidden the chocolate in her wardrobe before leaving her bedroom.
But not before eating a larger piece of it than she had intended.
The morning passed slowly into the afternoon. Asuka and Misato occupied that time by checking the other apartments for anything useful. Since the building had been used to house both the major and two of the pilots, there had not been many rooms occupied by civilians. Most of the apartments in the building were empty, especially around the sixth, seventh, and eighth floors as a security buffer. The ones that had been lived in were used by their Section Two detail.
In one of these rooms on their floor, Misato procured a pair of NERV-issue two-way radios and a stash of batteries for them.
"Brilliant!" Asuka said when Misato showed them to her. "Now we can split up and cover more ground once we need to scavenge away from the apartment."
"Well, that's close to what I had in mind," Misato replied. "One of us needs to stay at the apartment to keep an eye on Shinji. I don't want to leave him alone for too long in case something happens."
Asuka nodded grimly as she realised that she hadn't thought of the fact that Shinji had been alone in the apartment all day. She resolved to check on him when they were done.
Apart from the radios, there was depressingly little in the Section Two apartments. It was mostly surveillance equipment, small arms and instant meals. Fortunately for Asuka they were not the nuclear curry ones Misato favoured. Misato grabbed a pistol and holster to replace what she had lost in the Geofront, and even found a smaller handgun for Asuka. The Children went through firearm training and safety courses as part of their pilot training, so she knew the German girl was capable with the weapon. Even so, she still demanded that the guns stay unloaded while in the house and to only use them in a dire emergency.
They returned to their apartment. While Misato busied herself putting away the few items they had acquired, Asuka picked up a flashlight and hurried down the hall to Shinji's room.
Shinji was shivering despite the bedsheets he was curled up under. Asuka rushed to his side and touched his forehead near the bandage, discovering it to be rather warm. She was checking under the dressings on his head and hand, revealing nothing wrong, when a memory stirred.
Shinji, frozen in fear while climbing through a window. An off-white cloth wrapped around the leg in mid air. Asuka almost tore the sheets off the bed in her haste to check the bandage both she and Misato had failed to notice the day before
The old cloth stuck to the skin as Asuka slowly peeled it away, revealing a cut halfway down Shinji's thigh. The skin around the injury was red and swollen, while the cut itself was slowly oozing pus. Asuka swore loudly and called for Misato. The woman let out a curse as well when she came into the room and saw the infected wound. The two of them carefully lifted Shinji out of bed and brought him to the living room, where the afternoon sun would provide better light for them.
"Damnit, we don't have any antibiotics," Misato groaned as she rummaged through their medical supplies. Asuka stared at the ground in dismay before suddenly jumping to her feet and running to the kitchen. She returned a moment later with a jar of honey.
"Asuka... what are you planning?" Misato nervously asked, eyeing the jar.
"Honey's a traditional treatment for infected wounds," Asuka replied. "Preferably manuka, which is what I have here thanks to Shinji."
The pair worked quickly to clean the infection as best as they could and apply a honey-coated dressing, before applying fresh bandages as well replacing the ones from yesterday at the same time. Asuka had to almost yank the jar away from Misato when they were done, as the major had started eating the honey. Shinji's sheets were brought out from his room and the boy was wrapped up snugly in them as the sun began to set.
They ate an early dinner while they watched Shinji and waited. Eventually, his shivering began to subside, and a check on his temperature revealed that it was slowly returning to normal.
"Looks like we're going to have to thank Shinji for catering to your every whim, Asuka," Misato smirked. "Then again, he's also going to have to thank you for that great idea."
"Heh, yeah," Asuka rubbed the back of her head. "I don't know where he got it, but I never thought my demands for some non-Japanese food would actually help someone like this."
"What's next, are you going to prevent a heart attack with sauerkraut?"
Asuka groaned as she palmed her face while Misato cackled to herself. Shinji was returned to his own bed when Asuka and Misato turned in. The doors to the Children's rooms were left open, and Asuka fell asleep clutching the note while looking through the walls towards where Shinji lay.
Last edited:
The honey is a good emergency fix, but someone should really have gone for some real antibiotics.
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
Hmm... Is that all there is to Shinji's note? Just "I'm sorry"? I'd hoped Shinji would say more, to give Asuka and us some more insight into his thoughts.
- Location
- Australia, mate
True, but they were in kind of a rush here (also maybe Asuka wanted to show off a little). At least Shinji's stable now, so one of them can go out and get some real antibiotics tomorrow.
Shinji's never been good at letting his feelings be known. It's partly why everything goes to shit in the end.
Problem is, I tried to think of what Shinji would say to Asuka in a note like that, but I struggled to put anything into writing. For now, I decided to leave it ambiguous rather than risk putting something terrible in.
Muphrid
Star of the Lancer
I may yet catch up on this story. We'll see.
Chapter 6:
First major scene is Asuka and her mom talking. You worried there was too much talking, and I have to agree. Part of the issue, I think, is that there isn't a clear goal for Asuka, nor for Kyoko. Why do people talk to each other? There are only a few basic reasons:
1) To avoid silence, and its associated discomfort--in these situations, usually nothing of any consequence is said
2) To deliver information
3) To collaborate, cooperate, persuade, convince, or coerce, etc.
That list isn't exhaustive, but it's a start. In writing, you tend to see the latter two a lot: people often have to deliver exposition, often have to collaborate, and often have to persuade or convince each other. But in large part, exposition is boring. Delivering information should very seldom be done by dialogue (unless the manner in which it is said, or what is left out, itself becomes important, for instance). Rather, focus on how people interact to come to agreements or force others to submit.
In this dream world here, we don't get Asuka going through a true vision of her dreams. I always felt that Instrumentality worlds should pose a significant threat of trapping people there by agreement--by people choosing to stay. It should be alluring to Asuka, and at the same time, it should be something Kyoko has to work hard against--all to persuade her to leave.
I could imagine this scene instead as Asuka getting more or less a day with her mom, only for Kyoko to break the news, at the end of the day, that Asuka has to leave--should leave. Thing is, such a long exploration would be a flashback on top of a flashback. It doesn't really belong, and we already know what Asuka chose.
Further, I feel that Kyoko's explanation about being in Unit-02 and how Shinji is similar in this respect rings a bit hollow, at least on an emotional level. It takes a lot of information--and narration explaining that information--to get to the emotional punchline there. I think you could've condensed it down to Kyoko saying, "Who do you think was at the heart of his Eva?"
But more than that, everyone seems so very focused on Shinji in this piece. It feels intrusive for him to be such an overriding element of this mother/daughter conversation. I think Kyoko should be a bit more even in terms of who all she thinks Asuka can rely on. Misato and Hikari certainly play big roles there. And even given Lilith's role in asking Kyoko to intervene on Shinji's behalf, the focus seems a bit out of proportion.
That this scene ends with Asuka finding out Shinji started Third Impact and has left--that's relying on the delivery of information to change and drive the story. It doesn't cast Shinji's character any differently from what we already know, so I feel it just lacks punch. It's more of a revelation for Asuka and Misato, but even then, so what? So what that he started Third Impact? Maybe it helps them understand him a bit better, but that doesn't impact the immediate situation. They still need to find him. They don't need to know this right now.
Might've left some stuff in after editing that you didn't mean to.
Lilith proceeds to explain her actions in minute detail. Again, I think this would've been much better left unstated. Lilith's mere presence suggests that she gave Kyoko that information. Their cooperation in itself explains Kyoko's evasiveness. That Kyoko asks about Shinji explains why she turned the conversation to Shinji in the first place.
You see, what's interesting to me about that final scene? Each question it raises. The remark about time travel suggests that that would be possible (though unwise), even though this is not explicitly said. That Lilith's answer to Kyoko is not given but instead unheard by us leaves open a lot of possibilities (even though Kyoko disappears into the crowd).
That Rei sees herself as Lilith now, and behaves markedly differently, is a surprise and spurs questions of why, how, and in what way is she different from who she was. Even the Rei who appeared to Shinji in Instrumentality (alongside Kaworu) seemed very much like Rei and not quite as robotic as this Lilith.
All of these are interesting questions, and I commend you for raising them. Keep doing stuff like that.
All in all, it's become abundantly clear that Asuka's return was more or less manipulated by Lilith to help Shinji, that Asuka and Misato's primary goal is to help Shinji, and so on. The story as it is seems very Shinji-centric, and...I dunno. For all the sweeping changes that have happened to the world, to be focused so tightly on one person feels confining, even claustrophobic. Not sure I like it, really.
Chapter 6:
First major scene is Asuka and her mom talking. You worried there was too much talking, and I have to agree. Part of the issue, I think, is that there isn't a clear goal for Asuka, nor for Kyoko. Why do people talk to each other? There are only a few basic reasons:
1) To avoid silence, and its associated discomfort--in these situations, usually nothing of any consequence is said
2) To deliver information
3) To collaborate, cooperate, persuade, convince, or coerce, etc.
That list isn't exhaustive, but it's a start. In writing, you tend to see the latter two a lot: people often have to deliver exposition, often have to collaborate, and often have to persuade or convince each other. But in large part, exposition is boring. Delivering information should very seldom be done by dialogue (unless the manner in which it is said, or what is left out, itself becomes important, for instance). Rather, focus on how people interact to come to agreements or force others to submit.
In this dream world here, we don't get Asuka going through a true vision of her dreams. I always felt that Instrumentality worlds should pose a significant threat of trapping people there by agreement--by people choosing to stay. It should be alluring to Asuka, and at the same time, it should be something Kyoko has to work hard against--all to persuade her to leave.
I could imagine this scene instead as Asuka getting more or less a day with her mom, only for Kyoko to break the news, at the end of the day, that Asuka has to leave--should leave. Thing is, such a long exploration would be a flashback on top of a flashback. It doesn't really belong, and we already know what Asuka chose.
Further, I feel that Kyoko's explanation about being in Unit-02 and how Shinji is similar in this respect rings a bit hollow, at least on an emotional level. It takes a lot of information--and narration explaining that information--to get to the emotional punchline there. I think you could've condensed it down to Kyoko saying, "Who do you think was at the heart of his Eva?"
But more than that, everyone seems so very focused on Shinji in this piece. It feels intrusive for him to be such an overriding element of this mother/daughter conversation. I think Kyoko should be a bit more even in terms of who all she thinks Asuka can rely on. Misato and Hikari certainly play big roles there. And even given Lilith's role in asking Kyoko to intervene on Shinji's behalf, the focus seems a bit out of proportion.
That this scene ends with Asuka finding out Shinji started Third Impact and has left--that's relying on the delivery of information to change and drive the story. It doesn't cast Shinji's character any differently from what we already know, so I feel it just lacks punch. It's more of a revelation for Asuka and Misato, but even then, so what? So what that he started Third Impact? Maybe it helps them understand him a bit better, but that doesn't impact the immediate situation. They still need to find him. They don't need to know this right now.
Might've left some stuff in after editing that you didn't mean to.
Lilith proceeds to explain her actions in minute detail. Again, I think this would've been much better left unstated. Lilith's mere presence suggests that she gave Kyoko that information. Their cooperation in itself explains Kyoko's evasiveness. That Kyoko asks about Shinji explains why she turned the conversation to Shinji in the first place.
You see, what's interesting to me about that final scene? Each question it raises. The remark about time travel suggests that that would be possible (though unwise), even though this is not explicitly said. That Lilith's answer to Kyoko is not given but instead unheard by us leaves open a lot of possibilities (even though Kyoko disappears into the crowd).
That Rei sees herself as Lilith now, and behaves markedly differently, is a surprise and spurs questions of why, how, and in what way is she different from who she was. Even the Rei who appeared to Shinji in Instrumentality (alongside Kaworu) seemed very much like Rei and not quite as robotic as this Lilith.
All of these are interesting questions, and I commend you for raising them. Keep doing stuff like that.
All in all, it's become abundantly clear that Asuka's return was more or less manipulated by Lilith to help Shinji, that Asuka and Misato's primary goal is to help Shinji, and so on. The story as it is seems very Shinji-centric, and...I dunno. For all the sweeping changes that have happened to the world, to be focused so tightly on one person feels confining, even claustrophobic. Not sure I like it, really.
- Location
- Australia, mate
It certainly doesn't help here that there's only three people in the world (for the moment). Once people start returning, the view will shift away out of necessity.
Chapter 8.3
- Location
- Australia, mate
Chapter 8.3
After some insisting from Misato the next day, Asuka went out and got some antibiotics to properly treat Shinji's infection. The next couple of days would see a rapid improvement in the boy's condition, but he would still not awaken. Misato was starting to worry that his body would start wasting away, as they had no way of feeding him. He was already showing signs of malnourishment, but it was too dangerous to simply try and force sustenance into him while unconscious.
On a suggestion from Asuka, the major procured a small truck and went to a supermarket warehouse, coming back with an entire pallet of canned food, and another of water. What couldn't fit in their apartment was stored next door. It took them an entire day to move all of it up seven flights of stairs, and several times Asuka wondered out loud if it would be worth the time to move their lodgings to a lower floor as she stomped up and down the stairwell.
During one of Asuka's days out scavenging, she came back with a bag full of books. Since Asuka had mostly read magazines and Misato was either busy at NERV, watching television or asleep, there was very little reading material in the house and the young girl had quickly blown through all of it. The extra books didn't do much for Asuka's boredom, however. She sorely wanted to play her video games, but the internal battery on her handheld console was long dead.
Finally, after much begging and cajoling, Misato gave Asuka some earplugs and took her up to the roof with their pistols, and they spent the afternoon shooting at the empty cans and bottles that had been piling up. It was the most fun Asuka had in weeks, even if her aiming ability was rusty.
Misato's aim, however, was perfect. Every round found its mark directly in the target's centre, sending it spiralling off the apartment building to the road down below. After a while Asuka noticed her guardian's expression twisting into one of anger, and upon emptying her current clip suggested that they call it a day.
"Is everything okay, Misato?" Asuka asked as she passed Misato a cup of coffee. "You were starting to look like you wished you had a flamethrower or something."
The shattering of the coffee cup as it slipped from Misato's grasp was impossibly loud in Asuka's ears, and she quickly regretting taking her shoes off as the hot liquid splashed around her feet. She hopped from one foot to the other as she yanked her coffee-soaked socks off.
Misato seemed to not notice any of this, however. She was leaning heavily on the table, eyes scrunched closed and shaking slightly.
"Misa-"
"Asuka... please, just... leave me alone," Misato interrupted. "I don't mean to be rude but just... go check on Shinji or something."
Asuka nodded wordlessly and stepped into the bathroom to take a quick shower. When she came out, she saw Misato sitting at the table now, head in her hands.
'Whatever happened,' Asuka thought as she moved down the hallway, 'it must have been terrible to cause this reaction in her. I should probably apologise later when she's settled down.'
She stepped through the doorway into Shinji's room, and realised there were more important matters to deal with at the moment.
The bed was empty.
It was hard to see anything in the darkness, so she quickly grabbed a flashlight and returned. The sheets were half hanging off of the bed, and there was no sign of Shinji in the corners of the room. Panic began to set in, but just as Asuka was about to yell for Misato, a soft noise from under the bed caught her attention.
Asuka quietly moved over to the bed, kneeling down beside it and pulling the sheets up. The flashlight shone onto the face of a terrified and shivering Shinji, who flinched and tried to move further away as the beam hit his face.
It slightly surprised the girl that Shinji was capable of wedging himself under the bed as far as he had, considering how low to the ground it was. She set the flashlight aside and lay down on the floor, putting her at eye level with the boy.
"Come on, Shinji." She held a hand out to him and tried to coax him out, speaking to him as one would a frightened animal. His only response was to turn his head away and start shaking violently. Asuka sighed in dismay, but kept gently calling the boy. Eventually, the shaking subsided slightly and Shinji turned back to face her.
Asuka didn't need direct light to see the fear in his eyes. Even in the shadows cast by the flashlight, she could see Shinji's cobalt orbs staring right through her, looking at something only he could see. Asuka quickly glanced behind her just in case there was something there. She had been rescued by a ghost a week ago after all. This time however, the room was empty bar the two Children.
Finally, after several minutes of staring, Shinji ever so slowly reached a hand out to Asuka's. His hand swiftly retreated when the two made contact, as if afraid that she would latch on and violently rip him out of his hiding spot. Asuka's hand simply remained stationary, waiting for him once more. His hand reached out again, slightly faster this time, and slowly wrapped around the girl's hand. There was still no movement from the girl, and this seemed to boost Shinji's nerve as his shivering body began to settle.
Her body was now starting to get sore from its awkward position on the floor, so Asuka very gently tugged on his hand. The boy slowly started to crawl towards her, seemingly drawing strength from their physical contact as the distance between them decreased.
It took a couple of long and tense minutes before Shinji was fully out from under the bed. Now that he was in close proximity to Asuka, and could make out her face, his shaking intensified once more. It got so bad that when Asuka placed her hands on his shoulders to try and calm him, she found her arms shaking along with him.
"Shinji, It's okay! I'm not going to hurt you," she quietly tried to reassure him. The sound of her voice didn't seem to help matters though. Shinji was now trying to back away towards the bed, and only Asuka's grip was preventing him from moving. His body's weakened state was taking its toll on the boy now. He gave up trying to escape, and merely closed his eyes and turned his head as if expecting to be attacked despite the girl's words.
Asuka was having none of this, however. She released her grip on one shoulder and twisted his head back to face her, demanding that he open his eyes. When he finally did, sapphire locked onto cobalt once more, and Asuka saw eyes that did not belong on a boy the same age as her. He had the same stare Asuka had seen back in Germany on soldiers that had been through the Impact Wars. His blue eyes were rapidly moving as if witnessing something traumatic and tears were beginning to form in the corners.
'He must be hallucinating.' Asuka thought. 'Oh shiesse, the gunshots. He finally wakes up and hears guns being fired. He was unconscious when we found him. All of a sudden he finds himself back home after whatever knocked him out and people are shooting nearby.'
Suddenly, Shinji redoubled his efforts to escape her clutches. Caught off guard, Asuka lost her grip on him as the boy fell to the ground. As he attempted to crawl back under the bed, the girl recovered and threw an arm around him, pulling him back towards her and placing her other hand on the back of his head. She tried and failed not to think of the fact that she was hugging him as Shinji squirmed for a few seconds, his face buried in her shoulder, but the burst of strength a moment earlier had clearly sapped whatever remained of his energy as he began to slow.
Asuka unconsciously started stroking his hair, and Shinji finally fell asleep in her arms. Something stopped Asuka from simply letting go of him and she blushed slightly as she realised the position they were both in. She was in a dark room cradling a sleeping boy in her arms, someone that she had flung numerous insults at in the past while trying to push them away. Somehow though, Shinji had withstood the barrage despite his own problems and fears, and constantly attempted to make peace with Asuka.
As Shinji's warmth slowly suffused her body, Asuka thought back to something her mother had said before she left the sea.
"Perhaps a kind word at an earlier point in time, or even something as simple as one of you holding the other that night."
Asuka closed her eyes and sighed deeply. What was happening now was close to what she had wanted back when she had made Shinji kiss her. One of them holding the other. Just that one simple act would have stopped her from trying not to cry as she pretended to wash her mouth out after nearly choking Shinji.
The sound of footsteps nearby caused Asuka to open her eyes again and look up. Misato was standing in the doorway, staring at the pair with a gentle look on her face.
"Everything okay in here?" she asked. "I heard scuffling a moment ago, and I come in to find you hugging him."
"Um, yeah, we're fine," Asuka replied, blushing again at the mention of that word before informing Misato of what had just happened. "I think our shooting practice scared him or something."
"Shit. We should have gone somewhere further away."
Asuka finally stood up, still holding Shinji, and once more laid him in his bed. She rearranged the sheets over his sleeping body before turning and walking out of the room with Misato on her heels.
"Forget about it, nothing we can do now. Let's just have dinner. The idiot's actually asleep now, hopefully tomorrow he'll be okay."
"You keep using that word. Do you still think he's dumb, or has it become an affectionate nickname?"
"M-Misato!"
Before she could be teased further, a sound that hadn't been heard for a long time echoed through the apartment.
Knocking. Someone was knocking at their front door.
They stared at each other in shock, before racing towards the apartment entrance. They worked together to almost slam the heavy metal door open, and what greeted them made their jaws drop.
"Um, hello," Maya Ibuki nervously said, looking almost as surprised as they did with a tired blonde woman leaning heavily on her. "May we please come in?"
After some insisting from Misato the next day, Asuka went out and got some antibiotics to properly treat Shinji's infection. The next couple of days would see a rapid improvement in the boy's condition, but he would still not awaken. Misato was starting to worry that his body would start wasting away, as they had no way of feeding him. He was already showing signs of malnourishment, but it was too dangerous to simply try and force sustenance into him while unconscious.
On a suggestion from Asuka, the major procured a small truck and went to a supermarket warehouse, coming back with an entire pallet of canned food, and another of water. What couldn't fit in their apartment was stored next door. It took them an entire day to move all of it up seven flights of stairs, and several times Asuka wondered out loud if it would be worth the time to move their lodgings to a lower floor as she stomped up and down the stairwell.
During one of Asuka's days out scavenging, she came back with a bag full of books. Since Asuka had mostly read magazines and Misato was either busy at NERV, watching television or asleep, there was very little reading material in the house and the young girl had quickly blown through all of it. The extra books didn't do much for Asuka's boredom, however. She sorely wanted to play her video games, but the internal battery on her handheld console was long dead.
Finally, after much begging and cajoling, Misato gave Asuka some earplugs and took her up to the roof with their pistols, and they spent the afternoon shooting at the empty cans and bottles that had been piling up. It was the most fun Asuka had in weeks, even if her aiming ability was rusty.
Misato's aim, however, was perfect. Every round found its mark directly in the target's centre, sending it spiralling off the apartment building to the road down below. After a while Asuka noticed her guardian's expression twisting into one of anger, and upon emptying her current clip suggested that they call it a day.
"Is everything okay, Misato?" Asuka asked as she passed Misato a cup of coffee. "You were starting to look like you wished you had a flamethrower or something."
The shattering of the coffee cup as it slipped from Misato's grasp was impossibly loud in Asuka's ears, and she quickly regretting taking her shoes off as the hot liquid splashed around her feet. She hopped from one foot to the other as she yanked her coffee-soaked socks off.
Misato seemed to not notice any of this, however. She was leaning heavily on the table, eyes scrunched closed and shaking slightly.
"Misa-"
"Asuka... please, just... leave me alone," Misato interrupted. "I don't mean to be rude but just... go check on Shinji or something."
Asuka nodded wordlessly and stepped into the bathroom to take a quick shower. When she came out, she saw Misato sitting at the table now, head in her hands.
'Whatever happened,' Asuka thought as she moved down the hallway, 'it must have been terrible to cause this reaction in her. I should probably apologise later when she's settled down.'
She stepped through the doorway into Shinji's room, and realised there were more important matters to deal with at the moment.
The bed was empty.
It was hard to see anything in the darkness, so she quickly grabbed a flashlight and returned. The sheets were half hanging off of the bed, and there was no sign of Shinji in the corners of the room. Panic began to set in, but just as Asuka was about to yell for Misato, a soft noise from under the bed caught her attention.
Asuka quietly moved over to the bed, kneeling down beside it and pulling the sheets up. The flashlight shone onto the face of a terrified and shivering Shinji, who flinched and tried to move further away as the beam hit his face.
It slightly surprised the girl that Shinji was capable of wedging himself under the bed as far as he had, considering how low to the ground it was. She set the flashlight aside and lay down on the floor, putting her at eye level with the boy.
"Come on, Shinji." She held a hand out to him and tried to coax him out, speaking to him as one would a frightened animal. His only response was to turn his head away and start shaking violently. Asuka sighed in dismay, but kept gently calling the boy. Eventually, the shaking subsided slightly and Shinji turned back to face her.
Asuka didn't need direct light to see the fear in his eyes. Even in the shadows cast by the flashlight, she could see Shinji's cobalt orbs staring right through her, looking at something only he could see. Asuka quickly glanced behind her just in case there was something there. She had been rescued by a ghost a week ago after all. This time however, the room was empty bar the two Children.
Finally, after several minutes of staring, Shinji ever so slowly reached a hand out to Asuka's. His hand swiftly retreated when the two made contact, as if afraid that she would latch on and violently rip him out of his hiding spot. Asuka's hand simply remained stationary, waiting for him once more. His hand reached out again, slightly faster this time, and slowly wrapped around the girl's hand. There was still no movement from the girl, and this seemed to boost Shinji's nerve as his shivering body began to settle.
Her body was now starting to get sore from its awkward position on the floor, so Asuka very gently tugged on his hand. The boy slowly started to crawl towards her, seemingly drawing strength from their physical contact as the distance between them decreased.
It took a couple of long and tense minutes before Shinji was fully out from under the bed. Now that he was in close proximity to Asuka, and could make out her face, his shaking intensified once more. It got so bad that when Asuka placed her hands on his shoulders to try and calm him, she found her arms shaking along with him.
"Shinji, It's okay! I'm not going to hurt you," she quietly tried to reassure him. The sound of her voice didn't seem to help matters though. Shinji was now trying to back away towards the bed, and only Asuka's grip was preventing him from moving. His body's weakened state was taking its toll on the boy now. He gave up trying to escape, and merely closed his eyes and turned his head as if expecting to be attacked despite the girl's words.
Asuka was having none of this, however. She released her grip on one shoulder and twisted his head back to face her, demanding that he open his eyes. When he finally did, sapphire locked onto cobalt once more, and Asuka saw eyes that did not belong on a boy the same age as her. He had the same stare Asuka had seen back in Germany on soldiers that had been through the Impact Wars. His blue eyes were rapidly moving as if witnessing something traumatic and tears were beginning to form in the corners.
'He must be hallucinating.' Asuka thought. 'Oh shiesse, the gunshots. He finally wakes up and hears guns being fired. He was unconscious when we found him. All of a sudden he finds himself back home after whatever knocked him out and people are shooting nearby.'
Suddenly, Shinji redoubled his efforts to escape her clutches. Caught off guard, Asuka lost her grip on him as the boy fell to the ground. As he attempted to crawl back under the bed, the girl recovered and threw an arm around him, pulling him back towards her and placing her other hand on the back of his head. She tried and failed not to think of the fact that she was hugging him as Shinji squirmed for a few seconds, his face buried in her shoulder, but the burst of strength a moment earlier had clearly sapped whatever remained of his energy as he began to slow.
Asuka unconsciously started stroking his hair, and Shinji finally fell asleep in her arms. Something stopped Asuka from simply letting go of him and she blushed slightly as she realised the position they were both in. She was in a dark room cradling a sleeping boy in her arms, someone that she had flung numerous insults at in the past while trying to push them away. Somehow though, Shinji had withstood the barrage despite his own problems and fears, and constantly attempted to make peace with Asuka.
As Shinji's warmth slowly suffused her body, Asuka thought back to something her mother had said before she left the sea.
"Perhaps a kind word at an earlier point in time, or even something as simple as one of you holding the other that night."
Asuka closed her eyes and sighed deeply. What was happening now was close to what she had wanted back when she had made Shinji kiss her. One of them holding the other. Just that one simple act would have stopped her from trying not to cry as she pretended to wash her mouth out after nearly choking Shinji.
The sound of footsteps nearby caused Asuka to open her eyes again and look up. Misato was standing in the doorway, staring at the pair with a gentle look on her face.
"Everything okay in here?" she asked. "I heard scuffling a moment ago, and I come in to find you hugging him."
"Um, yeah, we're fine," Asuka replied, blushing again at the mention of that word before informing Misato of what had just happened. "I think our shooting practice scared him or something."
"Shit. We should have gone somewhere further away."
Asuka finally stood up, still holding Shinji, and once more laid him in his bed. She rearranged the sheets over his sleeping body before turning and walking out of the room with Misato on her heels.
"Forget about it, nothing we can do now. Let's just have dinner. The idiot's actually asleep now, hopefully tomorrow he'll be okay."
"You keep using that word. Do you still think he's dumb, or has it become an affectionate nickname?"
"M-Misato!"
Before she could be teased further, a sound that hadn't been heard for a long time echoed through the apartment.
Knocking. Someone was knocking at their front door.
They stared at each other in shock, before racing towards the apartment entrance. They worked together to almost slam the heavy metal door open, and what greeted them made their jaws drop.
"Um, hello," Maya Ibuki nervously said, looking almost as surprised as they did with a tired blonde woman leaning heavily on her. "May we please come in?"
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
Ouch... What a thing to wake up to, Shinji...
Greek Fire
One of these days, I'll actually start writing.
- Location
- The Earth Sphere
Oh god the feels.
- Location
- Australia, mate
Okay, now that Ritsuko and Maya have shown up, I fear I've run into a small problem. Honorifics. So far I've avoided them in this story, partly because I don't really understand them properly enough, and partly because I don't like them much. However I can't think of a proper... replacement for 'senpai' and simply having Maya call Ritsuko 'Doctor' or 'ma'am' all the time won't seem right.
Or am I simply overthinking this too much?
Or am I simply overthinking this too much?
For me, you are overthinking it. As long as you're consistent it's fine.
The simplest way to think about it: What would a native English speaker in the same situation say? How would Maya address Ritsuko if the setting were America instead of Japan?
No, "snuzzlebunny" is not the right answer.
(It might not be unrealistic at this point for Ritsuko to allow Maya to call her by name.)
Last edited:
- Location
- Australia, mate
I've always imagined Maya as the type to refer to her superiors formally even if they practically demand she use their name.
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
I think leaving sempai in is apropo. As Stargrave said, it doesn't have a good parallel in English, and Maya's use of it is a significant part of her character, showing her devotion to/adoration of Ristuko. Just stay consistent, and you're fine.
Chapter 9.1
- Location
- Australia, mate
I'm starting to really hate the fact that I can't get... thinky in my writing. I can't even think of a better word to describe it.
******
Chapter 9.1
While Misato was apologetic about not having an ice pack, Ritsuko Akagi was merely grateful she could finally sit down and take the weight off her twisted ankle. Maya fussed around her, trying to make the doctor as comfortable as possible, and Ritsuko found she didn't have the heart to tell the young woman to stop.
Makoto Hyuga and Shigeru Aoba came through the door a few minutes later carrying a couple bags of food each. Maya explained that the group hadn't been sure that Misato had returned yet, but decided that the apartment block was as good a place as any to stay. The plan had originally been to take up residence in the building and wait for Misato's return. It was only when they heard gunshots and saw the empty cans on the road that they realised the major had beaten them back.
"Hang on, didn't you see the grave markers?" Asuka asked from her position on the floor. "Misato's name was on one of them. I really thought she was dead for several days."
Three of them shook their head, but Shigeru spoke up. "I saw what I think was a graveyard in the distance, but didn't have time to look. The others were already moving off the beach and I didn't want to get left behind."
"How did you know the gunshots were us though?" Misato inquired as she brought a tray of drinks into the lounge room.
"You and the pilots are practically the only residents in this building," Ritsuko tiredly explained. "And I'm pretty sure you're the only one mad enough to eat that horrible curry stuff you call food. One of your cans nearly hit poor Maya in the head!"
Shigeru and Makoto had offered to help Ritsuko up the seven flights of stairs, but Maya had surprised the doctor by refusing to relinquish her place as Ritsuko's support. She had practically ordered her two co-workers to get some food so that they weren't mooching off Misato, and the two men had run off as if it were Commander Ikari giving the order.
As Misato exchanged stories with the newcomers, the volume in the room gradually increased. When the news of the Seventeenth Angel's mysterious appearance came up and the shouting started, Asuka finally had to interrupt them.
"Quiet down, damnit!" she hissed. "Shinji's finally getting some real sleep and you're all making too much noise!" With that said, she stormed out of the lounge room. The adults looked sheepishly at each other, and Ritsuko raised an eyebrow at the girl's behaviour. In a lower tone of voice, they continued their conversation as Misato hurriedly filled them in on what happened with Shinji just before their arrival.
A couple of hours later, Maya noticed Ritsuko's head starting to droop while the doctor was speaking of their trek through the city.
"Um, senpai, maybe we should pick this up again tomorrow," she suggested. "You've been on your feet all day and you could use some sleep."
"Maya, what did I say earlier?" the blonde doctor replied testily.
"That... I should just call you by your name, Ritsuko-senpai?"
Ritsuko sighed and gave up. She had twisted her ankle only an hour after leaving the beach where all four of them had arrived, and they were all tired after walking across the ruined city. As she started to get back to her feet, Maya gently pushed her back down.
Misato left to bring out a spare futon, and after some more fussing Ritsuko curled up under the blanket, slowly nodding off. Makoto and Shigeru left the apartment, dragging a reluctant Maya with them, to bed down next door. Misato promised the female technician to keep an eye on Ritsuko.
When the door was dragged closed behind the trio, Asuka stuck her head out from her room. After checking to make sure that Shinji had not woken up because of the noise, she had gone back to her room and quickly fallen asleep.
The major waved goodnight to her as she went to bed, and Asuka slowly walked back to her bed. It was not the noise of the departing technicians that had awoken her, but rather what had been waiting for her when she closed her eyes.
The nightmares were starting to return.
They had been temporarily driven off several times before in the young girl's life, but they always came back just as she was starting to think they were gone for good. And now, because of the events of the Angel War and Third Impact, there was new material for her dreams to use against her.
Just then, it had been the mission against the Angel found inside Mount Asama. All had gone as it had before, but when her cable snapped, there was noone hanging from the other end to grab her. No Unit-01, no Stupid Shinji diving after her without protection, she had simply sunk deeper into the volcano until her Evangelion imploded and she had woken up drenched in sweat.
Asuka had always avoided speaking of her bad dreams, believing that it would be a sign of weakness. Instead she simply tried to bury them in the back of her mind and pretend she was just grouchy over getting up early.
After an hour spent tossing and turning, Asuka finally got up to get a drink of water. She walked back to her own room, but the sound of her own name being muttered almost physically dragged her into Shinji's room, where the boy was twitching and moaning in his sleep. The redhead suddenly remembered that she was not the only one being chased by demons in her dreams.
"Gott," she whispered. "I'll bet even your nightmares are stronger than mine..."
Shinji was now reaching out for something in front of him, and Asuka found her eyes focusing on the feebly waving hand, the memory of last night resurfacing. Her right hand snapped out and grabbed his, and it was almost crushed in Shinji's grip. The boy's twitches settled down immediately, and Asuka felt something surprisingly familiar in their physical contact.
It was the same thing she had felt when Shinji had rescued her from the volcano.
Even through the communications window, Asuka had found something shocking in those determined blue eyes. They told her that Shinji would not let her fall. Through her mental link to Unit-02, Asuka could feel the bones in her hand creak under the pressure of the same iron grip that now seemed to be calming Shinji down.
Asuka didn't know how long it took, but Shinji finally relaxed his grip enough for the girl to slip her now-aching hand out. She felt a little regretful at the sudden loss of contact, but her drooping eyes convinced her to return to her own bed.
She finally fell asleep once more, and was assaulted by the same dream. This time however, a massive purple fist shot out of the red murk and latched onto her flailing hand with what was now an incredibly familiar sensation.
The redhead smiled in her sleep, clenching her right fist to her chest as if it were holding something precious.
In the room across the hall, Shinji perfectly mirrored her gesture.
******
Chapter 9.1
While Misato was apologetic about not having an ice pack, Ritsuko Akagi was merely grateful she could finally sit down and take the weight off her twisted ankle. Maya fussed around her, trying to make the doctor as comfortable as possible, and Ritsuko found she didn't have the heart to tell the young woman to stop.
Makoto Hyuga and Shigeru Aoba came through the door a few minutes later carrying a couple bags of food each. Maya explained that the group hadn't been sure that Misato had returned yet, but decided that the apartment block was as good a place as any to stay. The plan had originally been to take up residence in the building and wait for Misato's return. It was only when they heard gunshots and saw the empty cans on the road that they realised the major had beaten them back.
"Hang on, didn't you see the grave markers?" Asuka asked from her position on the floor. "Misato's name was on one of them. I really thought she was dead for several days."
Three of them shook their head, but Shigeru spoke up. "I saw what I think was a graveyard in the distance, but didn't have time to look. The others were already moving off the beach and I didn't want to get left behind."
"How did you know the gunshots were us though?" Misato inquired as she brought a tray of drinks into the lounge room.
"You and the pilots are practically the only residents in this building," Ritsuko tiredly explained. "And I'm pretty sure you're the only one mad enough to eat that horrible curry stuff you call food. One of your cans nearly hit poor Maya in the head!"
Shigeru and Makoto had offered to help Ritsuko up the seven flights of stairs, but Maya had surprised the doctor by refusing to relinquish her place as Ritsuko's support. She had practically ordered her two co-workers to get some food so that they weren't mooching off Misato, and the two men had run off as if it were Commander Ikari giving the order.
As Misato exchanged stories with the newcomers, the volume in the room gradually increased. When the news of the Seventeenth Angel's mysterious appearance came up and the shouting started, Asuka finally had to interrupt them.
"Quiet down, damnit!" she hissed. "Shinji's finally getting some real sleep and you're all making too much noise!" With that said, she stormed out of the lounge room. The adults looked sheepishly at each other, and Ritsuko raised an eyebrow at the girl's behaviour. In a lower tone of voice, they continued their conversation as Misato hurriedly filled them in on what happened with Shinji just before their arrival.
A couple of hours later, Maya noticed Ritsuko's head starting to droop while the doctor was speaking of their trek through the city.
"Um, senpai, maybe we should pick this up again tomorrow," she suggested. "You've been on your feet all day and you could use some sleep."
"Maya, what did I say earlier?" the blonde doctor replied testily.
"That... I should just call you by your name, Ritsuko-senpai?"
Ritsuko sighed and gave up. She had twisted her ankle only an hour after leaving the beach where all four of them had arrived, and they were all tired after walking across the ruined city. As she started to get back to her feet, Maya gently pushed her back down.
Misato left to bring out a spare futon, and after some more fussing Ritsuko curled up under the blanket, slowly nodding off. Makoto and Shigeru left the apartment, dragging a reluctant Maya with them, to bed down next door. Misato promised the female technician to keep an eye on Ritsuko.
When the door was dragged closed behind the trio, Asuka stuck her head out from her room. After checking to make sure that Shinji had not woken up because of the noise, she had gone back to her room and quickly fallen asleep.
The major waved goodnight to her as she went to bed, and Asuka slowly walked back to her bed. It was not the noise of the departing technicians that had awoken her, but rather what had been waiting for her when she closed her eyes.
The nightmares were starting to return.
They had been temporarily driven off several times before in the young girl's life, but they always came back just as she was starting to think they were gone for good. And now, because of the events of the Angel War and Third Impact, there was new material for her dreams to use against her.
Just then, it had been the mission against the Angel found inside Mount Asama. All had gone as it had before, but when her cable snapped, there was noone hanging from the other end to grab her. No Unit-01, no Stupid Shinji diving after her without protection, she had simply sunk deeper into the volcano until her Evangelion imploded and she had woken up drenched in sweat.
Asuka had always avoided speaking of her bad dreams, believing that it would be a sign of weakness. Instead she simply tried to bury them in the back of her mind and pretend she was just grouchy over getting up early.
After an hour spent tossing and turning, Asuka finally got up to get a drink of water. She walked back to her own room, but the sound of her own name being muttered almost physically dragged her into Shinji's room, where the boy was twitching and moaning in his sleep. The redhead suddenly remembered that she was not the only one being chased by demons in her dreams.
"Gott," she whispered. "I'll bet even your nightmares are stronger than mine..."
Shinji was now reaching out for something in front of him, and Asuka found her eyes focusing on the feebly waving hand, the memory of last night resurfacing. Her right hand snapped out and grabbed his, and it was almost crushed in Shinji's grip. The boy's twitches settled down immediately, and Asuka felt something surprisingly familiar in their physical contact.
It was the same thing she had felt when Shinji had rescued her from the volcano.
Even through the communications window, Asuka had found something shocking in those determined blue eyes. They told her that Shinji would not let her fall. Through her mental link to Unit-02, Asuka could feel the bones in her hand creak under the pressure of the same iron grip that now seemed to be calming Shinji down.
Asuka didn't know how long it took, but Shinji finally relaxed his grip enough for the girl to slip her now-aching hand out. She felt a little regretful at the sudden loss of contact, but her drooping eyes convinced her to return to her own bed.
She finally fell asleep once more, and was assaulted by the same dream. This time however, a massive purple fist shot out of the red murk and latched onto her flailing hand with what was now an incredibly familiar sensation.
The redhead smiled in her sleep, clenching her right fist to her chest as if it were holding something precious.
In the room across the hall, Shinji perfectly mirrored her gesture.
Awwwwww. 
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
Should have tried that months ago, girl. You're not alone.
Chapter 9.2
- Location
- Australia, mate
Huh, I seem to be on a roll so far with this chapter. Wonder how long it will last.
Also oh god I'm gonna have to write technobabble soon. Is there a Star Trek script writer in the audience?!
I pity Muphrid. He was starting to catch up and now I'm putting stuff out this fast.
******
Chapter 9.2
The morning saw Asuka rudely awoken once more, this time by voices loudly raised in argument. When she finally rubbed the sleep from her eyes and sat up, she started to make out what was being said.
"-dangerous with Shinji in this state! How are we going to get him down a ladder?"
"We'll have to think of something. I don't have a chance of treating him up here. The general hospital is a pile of rubble, so we need the medical facilities in the Geofront. Our only other option is to travel to Tokyo-2 and hope their power generator is still working and that they have the right equipment."
That was definitely Misato and Doctor Akagi speaking. Asuka wondered what was so wrong with Shinji that they needed the highly advanced NERV medical ward for as she got out of bed and started getting dressed
"What makes you think NERV's generators are functioning?"
"The fusion generators are hardened against physical damage, just like the MAGI. Both of them will still work."
The clock beside her bed told Asuka that it was nearly ten-thirty. The two women seemed to have been debating for a while. She walked out into the hallway and almost into Misato and Ritsuko, who were standing right outside her door. The blonde woman was upright, but obviously favouring one side over the other.
"Even with everything that happened to the Geofront during Third Impact, I can guarantee the- oh, good morning Asuka."
"Mornin'," Asuka muttered in reply. "What were you just talking about? Does it have something to do with the fact that there's an immense hole in the ground where there should only be one about a kilometre wide?"
Ritsuko paused for a moment as she stared at the girl. "...Ah, yes," she finally said. "You two weren't... alive when Third Impact started. Long story incredibly short, the entire Geofront was pulled out of the ground and used by Lilith. If you weren't simply imagining things and the Geofront is back where it used to be, then the infrastructure should still be mostly intact."
"I really doubt that both of us imagined the exact same thing, Rits. The Geofront is there... and we have a great deal to talk about, Rits," Misato glared at her friend. "There were too many secrets kept from us that we needed to know."
"And with good reason. For now though, we should work out what to do with Shinji."
Asuka perked up at the mention of her fellow pilot. "Don't tell me there's something else wrong with him now!" she exclaimed.
Instead of replying, Ritsuko merely tilted her head in the direction of the Third Child's bedroom and limped back into the lounge. Misato threw an apologetic look at Asuka before following her.
Asuka had woken up feeling better than she had in years after the nightmare had been banished, but now a feeling of dread was settling over her like a heavy cloak. Crossing the threshold into his room felt like one of the toughest things Asuka had ever done. She had to force herself through the doorway. The girl had woken up expecting Shinji to be awake as well, and as she reached the bed she saw that she had at least been partially right.
Shinji was certainly awake, his open eyes were a clear sign. However, he was staring unblinkingly upwards, and even the appearance of Asuka next to his bed seemed to go unnoticed. A hand waved in front of his eyes elicited no reaction, not even a reflexive flutter of eyelids.
His eyes were just as empty as they had been on the beach, if not more so. The dead stare bored straight through Asuka as she leaned over him. Asuka groaned in dismay and rubbed her face as she stood back up.
"Alright, Doctor Genius, what's wrong with the idiot?" she demanded as she stepped into the lounge room. The technicians had arrived while she was in Shinji's room, and the adults were now eating breakfast and debating how to get into the Geofront.
"Until I have access to medical equipment," Ritsuko replied. "the best I can determine is that Shinji is in a form of catatonia. I'll need to examine his head injury as well as his brain waves to get a better idea."
"Schiesse, and here I was hoping he'd be fine after last night," Asuka grumbled to herself. She spoke a little too loud however, and Misato blinked at her.
"Last night? What happened last night? You didn't climb into bed with him did you?" she asked with a smirk.
"Misato!" Asuka and Ritsuko both yelled at the same time, causing the major to start cackling. Ritsuko continued. "That's incredibly inappropriate for children their age! Especially with the state Shinji is in!"
Her cheeks now starting to redden, Asuka glared daggers at Misato. "It was nothing like that, you old pervert! I was just getting some water when I heard him having a nightmare." She explained what happened last night, leaving out the part about having a nightmare herself, which made Misato shut up and look at the girl.
"Is that why you're holding your hand like that?" she asked as the smirk slowly widened. Asuka looked down, noticing her right hand still clutched to her chest. She immediately pulled it away as her blush deepened to almost match her hair.
"T-that's not important right now! How bad is it for Shinji?" Asuka stammered, attempting to change the subject.
"Is it anything like... like what happened to me after Second Impact?" Misato added with a small shudder as she turned serious. She could only hope that Shinji would recover far quicker than the two years it had taken her.
"Worse, I'm afraid," Ritsuko shook her head. "You were simply mute and withdrawn, but you still responded somewhat to outside stimuli. Shinji, on the other hand, isn't reacting to anything." The doctor turned to Asuka. "We can't even get him to stand up. Shinji simply collapses like a puppet that had its strings cut."
That explained the argument that woke her up. Asuka furrowed her brow in thought. "So we need to carry him. Could we find or make a harness?" she asked.
Ritsuko raised an eyebrow and glanced at the technicians. They talked amongst themselves, discussing the emergency entrances. Makoto finally spoke up.
"It's certainly possible," he answered. "Some of the passages are bigger than the others, to accommodate people carrying wounded. While there would still be ladders in case of power loss, there should also be equipment for carrying people up and down large drops. Including rope and harnesses."
"Then we head to one of those entrances," Misato declared. "Where's the nearest one?"
"All of the shelters should have them, to evacuate anyone severely injured during an Angel attack."
Maya spoke up. "Senpai, isn't there a shelter under the high school?"
Ritsuko snapped her fingers and forgot to admonish the young woman for her slip. "There is. The school is approximately fifteen minutes away so it should have survived the blast, and the shelter would be fine this far away from the epicentre."
Shigeru raised a hand. "Uh, what about the tunnels? What are we going to do if they're blocked by debris?"
All the women in the room turned to stare at the male technicians, who shrank under their collective gaze before sighing in defeat. Asuka smirked at their response before running back to Shinji's room.
The bandage on his forehead made Asuka pray that it wasn't a permanent brain injury causing Shinji's current state. It looked as if something, possibly falling debris, had smacked the boy in the head shortly before he had been found. The injury to his hand was just as mysterious. The swelling had died down a little, but the bones were still clearly out of place.
'Looks like I'll be carrying you some more, dummkopf,' Asuka mused. 'You're going to owe me so many German dinners after all this.' The trip to the Geofront would likely be more taxing to the redhead than their trip home from the crater, but she wasn't going to hand the task off to anybody else, not even Misato. For the life of her, she couldn't work out why she should be the only one to haul him around.
"Alright, Shinji," she said, speaking more to herself than the prone figure as she spread her arms and prepared to pick him up. "Get up, it's time to go."
Asuka squawked in alarm and jerked backwards as Shinji suddenly sat up and got out of bed, halting in front of the surprised girl.
"Everything okay down there, Asuka?" Maya called down the hallway.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine," Asuka stuttered as she stared at Shinji, who was standing as he always used to. Slightly hunched over, looking downward slightly as if afraid to catch anyone's eye. The same pose that always made Asuka grimace at how passive he looked. If he actually straightened up, he would have been slightly taller than Asuka. Instead, the Third Child always seemed to be just slightly shorter than her, like he was afraid of his own physical presence drawing attention away from her.
Putting aside the fact that she would have to stand on tip-toes to be at eye level with him if he ever actually kept his back straight, Asuka looked into Shinji's eyes, hoping for a glint of life. The thousand-yard stare told her that nothing had changed in that department yet.
"Shinji?"
There was no response. Asuka huffed, unsurprised. She snapped her fingers in front of his face to no effect. An idea occurred, but she shook her head to dislodge it. Nothing else came to mind after several minutes, so Asuka did the only thing she could think of.
"Shinji, raise your arm."
His right arm slowly rose up, stopping when it was level with his shoulders. Asuka swore to herself.
"I don't know what's worse, you being unconscious or you being a gott verdammte robot. A doll," she spat. "Put your arm down, you look stupid. Then again that's nothing new..."
Shinji lowered his arm, but had nothing to say on the matter. Asuka spun on her heel and returned to the lounge. Maya was checking her mentor's ankle while the doctor tried ineffectually to shoo her away. Misato and the two male technicians were out on the balcony talking quietly about something Asuka couldn't hear, but she saw Makoto gently squeeze Misato's shoulder as the major started shaking.
"Hey, doctor. How soon do you want to move Shinji?" she asked, crossing her arms and staring at Ritsuko. The woman noticed her posture and dropped her head. She knew the reason for the Second Child's animosity towards her, and in the aftermath of Third Impact she felt the guild of her own actions in bringing it about.
"As soon as possible. Are you ready to carry him?"
Asuka shook her head. "That won't be necessary." Without bothering to explain herself, she exited the lounge, returning quickly and dragging Shinji. She had yanked on his arm without giving an order, but that seemed to be enough to propel the boy after her. As soon as the force on his arm ceased, Shinji returned to his hunched state. Ritsuko got to her feet in surprise, to Maya's dismay, and rushed over to Shinji.
"Amazing, he's actually mobile! Asuka, what did you do?!" Ritsuko exclaimed.
Asuka rolled her eyes. "I talked to him."
"I did that as well, but he wouldn't respond."
"Well I don't know what you were doing wrong, but I told him to get up and he did. He's turned into a robot."
Ritsuko walked around Shinji, examining his head from every angle. "Interesting. He responds to basic commands but not to familiar voices simply trying to get his attention." The doctor ran her hands through the boy's hair, searching for any more head wounds, but there were none to be found. She walked back in front of Shinji and cleared her throat.
"Shinji," she commanded. "Raise your hand."
The boy's hand flew up as if he were signalling for attention from a school teacher. Ritsuko rubbed her chin as she watched him.
"Well, this certainly solves the problem of transporting him. Sh-"
"Shinji, slap Doctor Akagi."
Ritsuko reeled back as the open palm connected with her cheek, her head turned sideways with the force of the blow. Asuka heard Maya gasp behind her and the balcony door open, but paid no attention. She was focused fully on Ritsuko, who was now holding a hand to her cheek and glaring back at the girl.
"That," Asuka hissed dangerously. "was from both of us."
The anger faded from Ritsuko's face as the words sunk in. She nodded glumly as Asuka left, dragging Shinji behind her as the Children exited the apartment.
Misato finally broke out of her shock and exclaimed, "What the hell was that about?!"
Ritsuko rubbed her cheek, the heat almost burning her hand. "It's... nothing Misato" she replied as she turned away. "I'm just starting to get what I deserve."
Nobody spoke as they loaded up supplies for the journey.
Also oh god I'm gonna have to write technobabble soon. Is there a Star Trek script writer in the audience?!
I pity Muphrid. He was starting to catch up and now I'm putting stuff out this fast.
******
Chapter 9.2
The morning saw Asuka rudely awoken once more, this time by voices loudly raised in argument. When she finally rubbed the sleep from her eyes and sat up, she started to make out what was being said.
"-dangerous with Shinji in this state! How are we going to get him down a ladder?"
"We'll have to think of something. I don't have a chance of treating him up here. The general hospital is a pile of rubble, so we need the medical facilities in the Geofront. Our only other option is to travel to Tokyo-2 and hope their power generator is still working and that they have the right equipment."
That was definitely Misato and Doctor Akagi speaking. Asuka wondered what was so wrong with Shinji that they needed the highly advanced NERV medical ward for as she got out of bed and started getting dressed
"What makes you think NERV's generators are functioning?"
"The fusion generators are hardened against physical damage, just like the MAGI. Both of them will still work."
The clock beside her bed told Asuka that it was nearly ten-thirty. The two women seemed to have been debating for a while. She walked out into the hallway and almost into Misato and Ritsuko, who were standing right outside her door. The blonde woman was upright, but obviously favouring one side over the other.
"Even with everything that happened to the Geofront during Third Impact, I can guarantee the- oh, good morning Asuka."
"Mornin'," Asuka muttered in reply. "What were you just talking about? Does it have something to do with the fact that there's an immense hole in the ground where there should only be one about a kilometre wide?"
Ritsuko paused for a moment as she stared at the girl. "...Ah, yes," she finally said. "You two weren't... alive when Third Impact started. Long story incredibly short, the entire Geofront was pulled out of the ground and used by Lilith. If you weren't simply imagining things and the Geofront is back where it used to be, then the infrastructure should still be mostly intact."
"I really doubt that both of us imagined the exact same thing, Rits. The Geofront is there... and we have a great deal to talk about, Rits," Misato glared at her friend. "There were too many secrets kept from us that we needed to know."
"And with good reason. For now though, we should work out what to do with Shinji."
Asuka perked up at the mention of her fellow pilot. "Don't tell me there's something else wrong with him now!" she exclaimed.
Instead of replying, Ritsuko merely tilted her head in the direction of the Third Child's bedroom and limped back into the lounge. Misato threw an apologetic look at Asuka before following her.
Asuka had woken up feeling better than she had in years after the nightmare had been banished, but now a feeling of dread was settling over her like a heavy cloak. Crossing the threshold into his room felt like one of the toughest things Asuka had ever done. She had to force herself through the doorway. The girl had woken up expecting Shinji to be awake as well, and as she reached the bed she saw that she had at least been partially right.
Shinji was certainly awake, his open eyes were a clear sign. However, he was staring unblinkingly upwards, and even the appearance of Asuka next to his bed seemed to go unnoticed. A hand waved in front of his eyes elicited no reaction, not even a reflexive flutter of eyelids.
His eyes were just as empty as they had been on the beach, if not more so. The dead stare bored straight through Asuka as she leaned over him. Asuka groaned in dismay and rubbed her face as she stood back up.
"Alright, Doctor Genius, what's wrong with the idiot?" she demanded as she stepped into the lounge room. The technicians had arrived while she was in Shinji's room, and the adults were now eating breakfast and debating how to get into the Geofront.
"Until I have access to medical equipment," Ritsuko replied. "the best I can determine is that Shinji is in a form of catatonia. I'll need to examine his head injury as well as his brain waves to get a better idea."
"Schiesse, and here I was hoping he'd be fine after last night," Asuka grumbled to herself. She spoke a little too loud however, and Misato blinked at her.
"Last night? What happened last night? You didn't climb into bed with him did you?" she asked with a smirk.
"Misato!" Asuka and Ritsuko both yelled at the same time, causing the major to start cackling. Ritsuko continued. "That's incredibly inappropriate for children their age! Especially with the state Shinji is in!"
Her cheeks now starting to redden, Asuka glared daggers at Misato. "It was nothing like that, you old pervert! I was just getting some water when I heard him having a nightmare." She explained what happened last night, leaving out the part about having a nightmare herself, which made Misato shut up and look at the girl.
"Is that why you're holding your hand like that?" she asked as the smirk slowly widened. Asuka looked down, noticing her right hand still clutched to her chest. She immediately pulled it away as her blush deepened to almost match her hair.
"T-that's not important right now! How bad is it for Shinji?" Asuka stammered, attempting to change the subject.
"Is it anything like... like what happened to me after Second Impact?" Misato added with a small shudder as she turned serious. She could only hope that Shinji would recover far quicker than the two years it had taken her.
"Worse, I'm afraid," Ritsuko shook her head. "You were simply mute and withdrawn, but you still responded somewhat to outside stimuli. Shinji, on the other hand, isn't reacting to anything." The doctor turned to Asuka. "We can't even get him to stand up. Shinji simply collapses like a puppet that had its strings cut."
That explained the argument that woke her up. Asuka furrowed her brow in thought. "So we need to carry him. Could we find or make a harness?" she asked.
Ritsuko raised an eyebrow and glanced at the technicians. They talked amongst themselves, discussing the emergency entrances. Makoto finally spoke up.
"It's certainly possible," he answered. "Some of the passages are bigger than the others, to accommodate people carrying wounded. While there would still be ladders in case of power loss, there should also be equipment for carrying people up and down large drops. Including rope and harnesses."
"Then we head to one of those entrances," Misato declared. "Where's the nearest one?"
"All of the shelters should have them, to evacuate anyone severely injured during an Angel attack."
Maya spoke up. "Senpai, isn't there a shelter under the high school?"
Ritsuko snapped her fingers and forgot to admonish the young woman for her slip. "There is. The school is approximately fifteen minutes away so it should have survived the blast, and the shelter would be fine this far away from the epicentre."
Shigeru raised a hand. "Uh, what about the tunnels? What are we going to do if they're blocked by debris?"
All the women in the room turned to stare at the male technicians, who shrank under their collective gaze before sighing in defeat. Asuka smirked at their response before running back to Shinji's room.
The bandage on his forehead made Asuka pray that it wasn't a permanent brain injury causing Shinji's current state. It looked as if something, possibly falling debris, had smacked the boy in the head shortly before he had been found. The injury to his hand was just as mysterious. The swelling had died down a little, but the bones were still clearly out of place.
'Looks like I'll be carrying you some more, dummkopf,' Asuka mused. 'You're going to owe me so many German dinners after all this.' The trip to the Geofront would likely be more taxing to the redhead than their trip home from the crater, but she wasn't going to hand the task off to anybody else, not even Misato. For the life of her, she couldn't work out why she should be the only one to haul him around.
"Alright, Shinji," she said, speaking more to herself than the prone figure as she spread her arms and prepared to pick him up. "Get up, it's time to go."
Asuka squawked in alarm and jerked backwards as Shinji suddenly sat up and got out of bed, halting in front of the surprised girl.
"Everything okay down there, Asuka?" Maya called down the hallway.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine," Asuka stuttered as she stared at Shinji, who was standing as he always used to. Slightly hunched over, looking downward slightly as if afraid to catch anyone's eye. The same pose that always made Asuka grimace at how passive he looked. If he actually straightened up, he would have been slightly taller than Asuka. Instead, the Third Child always seemed to be just slightly shorter than her, like he was afraid of his own physical presence drawing attention away from her.
Putting aside the fact that she would have to stand on tip-toes to be at eye level with him if he ever actually kept his back straight, Asuka looked into Shinji's eyes, hoping for a glint of life. The thousand-yard stare told her that nothing had changed in that department yet.
"Shinji?"
There was no response. Asuka huffed, unsurprised. She snapped her fingers in front of his face to no effect. An idea occurred, but she shook her head to dislodge it. Nothing else came to mind after several minutes, so Asuka did the only thing she could think of.
"Shinji, raise your arm."
His right arm slowly rose up, stopping when it was level with his shoulders. Asuka swore to herself.
"I don't know what's worse, you being unconscious or you being a gott verdammte robot. A doll," she spat. "Put your arm down, you look stupid. Then again that's nothing new..."
Shinji lowered his arm, but had nothing to say on the matter. Asuka spun on her heel and returned to the lounge. Maya was checking her mentor's ankle while the doctor tried ineffectually to shoo her away. Misato and the two male technicians were out on the balcony talking quietly about something Asuka couldn't hear, but she saw Makoto gently squeeze Misato's shoulder as the major started shaking.
"Hey, doctor. How soon do you want to move Shinji?" she asked, crossing her arms and staring at Ritsuko. The woman noticed her posture and dropped her head. She knew the reason for the Second Child's animosity towards her, and in the aftermath of Third Impact she felt the guild of her own actions in bringing it about.
"As soon as possible. Are you ready to carry him?"
Asuka shook her head. "That won't be necessary." Without bothering to explain herself, she exited the lounge, returning quickly and dragging Shinji. She had yanked on his arm without giving an order, but that seemed to be enough to propel the boy after her. As soon as the force on his arm ceased, Shinji returned to his hunched state. Ritsuko got to her feet in surprise, to Maya's dismay, and rushed over to Shinji.
"Amazing, he's actually mobile! Asuka, what did you do?!" Ritsuko exclaimed.
Asuka rolled her eyes. "I talked to him."
"I did that as well, but he wouldn't respond."
"Well I don't know what you were doing wrong, but I told him to get up and he did. He's turned into a robot."
Ritsuko walked around Shinji, examining his head from every angle. "Interesting. He responds to basic commands but not to familiar voices simply trying to get his attention." The doctor ran her hands through the boy's hair, searching for any more head wounds, but there were none to be found. She walked back in front of Shinji and cleared her throat.
"Shinji," she commanded. "Raise your hand."
The boy's hand flew up as if he were signalling for attention from a school teacher. Ritsuko rubbed her chin as she watched him.
"Well, this certainly solves the problem of transporting him. Sh-"
"Shinji, slap Doctor Akagi."
Ritsuko reeled back as the open palm connected with her cheek, her head turned sideways with the force of the blow. Asuka heard Maya gasp behind her and the balcony door open, but paid no attention. She was focused fully on Ritsuko, who was now holding a hand to her cheek and glaring back at the girl.
"That," Asuka hissed dangerously. "was from both of us."
The anger faded from Ritsuko's face as the words sunk in. She nodded glumly as Asuka left, dragging Shinji behind her as the Children exited the apartment.
Misato finally broke out of her shock and exclaimed, "What the hell was that about?!"
Ritsuko rubbed her cheek, the heat almost burning her hand. "It's... nothing Misato" she replied as she turned away. "I'm just starting to get what I deserve."
Nobody spoke as they loaded up supplies for the journey.
Rajvik_wolfboy
Wolf amongst the stars.
- Location
- Florida
Bravo at least rits understands the why
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
Hmm... Good snippet overall, but Misato's teasing is rather out of place when they were just worriedly discussing Shinji's serious medical condition a moment before.
Muphrid
Star of the Lancer
I can try to hurry through the rest of what's written prolly by...Thursday? If there's something you still need hashed out on a technical level, I can try to help out then.