ARCHIVES: Evangelion | A Purpose After Life - Chapter 3
A/N: I removed this fic from FFnet (originally published 8-25-2004). It has now been back-posted here for archival purposes. This is the last chapter (the fic being hereafter abandoned).
Disclaimer: I own none of these characters...except maybe the junior assistant. It's all Gainax.
CHAPTER III
Why do we exist?
What purpose do we have...we living beings?
.:.
[Six months later, at the apartment everyone is sharing.]
"Thanks, Touji-kun. We couldn't have gotten better apartment housing without you. You're truly a lifesaver!" Misato gushed, sipping at a can of beer.
The five of them were sitting around after dinner-Misato, drinking beer, and the four ex-Eva pilots (no Rei), playing an odd cup-and-die game out of sheer boredom. And perhaps partially due to Shinji's current disability as well.
"Ayanami...she really is gone, isn't she?" Shinji murmured. No one had mustered enough nerve to tell him the truth about what his father had done to him-about Rei IV and his daughter, Ikari Kawori.
"Our Ayanami-the one we knew the longest, at any rate-is no more," Misato carefully answered. She took a long, slow swig of beer.
Shinji rolled the dice and turned his cup upside down. "What...what happened to the Evas, then? Why aren't any of us still at Nerv? Why-"
Nagisa Kaworu, the red-eyed boy, effectively halted the stream of questions before Shinji could ask about the Commander, his father. Kaworu had come up behind Shinji and put his arms around him...
"YOU FOOL! BAKA BAKA BAKA! GET LOST!" Asuka screamed. But before she could do anything, Kaworu quickly slipped back to where he had been sitting, rolled the dice, and turned his cup over in his turn-all in one quick, smooth movement.
...which left poor Shinji quite flustered. He completely forgot everything he had just asked. Misato and Touji sighed with relief [a/n: massive sweatdropping!]
"HAH!" Asuka cried triumphantly. "I win this round!"
Touji sighed and leaned back. He had lost every round, without fail, and the game was boring him. "So...you guys ready to hit the sack? It's getting pretty late." (aka: Shinji needs rest!)
Shinji turned his head slightly. He had regained most of his hearing, but his vision was still quite poor. Not only was everything black and white, but blurry even with the best glasses they could find. They didn't dare attempt any surgery on him, not at this stage of his recovery, and at any rate, they did not possess the necessary funding for it. Once Shinji had unknowingly given his father the required cells to implant within Rei IV, Shinji was regarded as little more than another bag of useless flesh to be disposed of. The red-eyed Ikari Kawori already bore a STRIKING resemblance to Yui, Shinji's mother...and that was all Commander Ikari Gendo wanted. After the failure of 3rd Impact...he never fully quelled his insane desire to be with his wife again in flesh...
"Sure, Touji. But before we go, I second Misato's thanks. This place is wonderful."
/He sure has grown up./ Misato thought, looking at Shinji. /He doesn't even seem like the same person anymore. Even Asuka notices.../
Asuka was staring into space. /Shinji...how you've changed. Maybe we've all changed. But you're still a fool, no matter what you do./ odd, wistful smile
Touji eyed Asuka warily before putting both hands on the table. "All right then, let's go. Shinji, need any help going up those stairs?"
"Nope, no problem. You go on ahead-I've already bathed. Not much to do around here when you're all out at work at and all..."
"Asuka?" Misato inquired, standing up and stretching.
/Why do THEY get the good apartment?/ Asuka wasn't at all pleased with the current rooming arrangement. Since Rei no longer inhabited any apartment whatsoever, Asuka and Misato shared her old "room". Touji, Shinji, and Kaworu shared an adjoining room, which had a loft, small cooking area and main room, and a real bath. To bathe, the girls had to come over to the boys' end of the apartment...which made absolutely no sense if they were forced to stay in separate rooms to begin with. So it was decided the girls would just have to bathe in the wee hours of the morning, while the boys were still sleeping.
"Huh? Sure...ready," Asuka mumbled, also standing up. Suddenly, she leaned over. Very far over. Over Shinji's head. "Umm...Shinji?" /Oh god, what have I gotten myself into now? Why do I feel so embarrassed all of a sudden? Augh...boys...I just want to slap him now.../
Shinji's eyebrows shot up. He sensed that Asuka seemed to be bending over him...very close...
/Drat...of ALL times...why does it have to be NOW that I can't SEE?/
And she kissed him...really kissed him.
O.O?
"Happy birthday...Shinji..."
And she was gone.
.:.
Back at the old Nerv hq.
"So you're saying Kawori should mature to age sixteen within two years when she takes this specialized formula?" Commander Ikari Gendo mused, his gloved hands clasped before him on the desk.
"Precisely. It is, I must say, not flawless, but it has worked incredibly well up until now. We have only had very few minor errors. You can see yourself how Kawori has grown."
"Yes. I see." Kawori looked about four years old, though in reality, she was only six months old. Apparently neither the doctor nor the Commander found this to be unnatural...
"And about Rei IV..." the doctor continued cautiously.
The Commander nodded.
"She won't...last...much longer."
"Ah...I see." The Commander turned to the decaying Rei IV, who was asleep in a chair next to his desk. "But she still has her uses..."
.:.
[Up in the loft of the boys' end of the apartment. Getting ready for bed.]
"Wow...you and Asuka?" Touji commented dryly.
"Actually...no. I think that was the only time anything like that has ever happened where I haven't gotten the shit beaten outta me. But...I have to say...it was quite nice."
"I'll say."
"Speaking of which, how are things w/ Hikari (the head-of-class)?" Shinji prodded, grinning a bit when he heard Touji squirm slightly.
"Ahh..."
"Ahh...eh?" Shinji teased.
"Yeah...ahh..."
Kaworu came wandering in...wearing...
NOTHING! [a/n: ahhh just kidding...sorry had to do SOMETHING! Getting kinda bland around here...]
...wearing his normal sleeping attire. "What are you two 'ahh-ing' about?" he inquired.
"Ah, just Hikari, our class leader. Er...Touji's Hikari, that is."
"She's NOT 'my' Hikari...!" Touji protested, turning a nice shade of red.
"She's not?" Kaworu feigned cluelessness.
"If you weren't such an invalid right now, Shinji, I swear..." Touji breathed.
There was a moment of silence as Touji settled himself for sleep. Their futons were lined up on the floor-Touji by the window, Shinji, then Kaworu by the door. Rather tight squeeze for such a tiny room, however.
"Soo..." Touji finally said to break up the silence.
"Yeah. Guess we should sleep, eh?" Shinji said. "Goodnight Touji, Kaworu..."
"Happy birthday, Shinji," Touji replied, turning off the light and immediately falling fast asleep.
Kaworu still hadn't lain down. Within moments, Touji's loud snores filled the room.
"Kaworu-kun?" Shinji whispered, confused. There was a faint rustling as Kaworu shifted over.
"Mmm... Happy birthday, Shinji-kun..."
Disclaimer: I own none of these characters...except maybe the junior assistant. It's all Gainax.
CHAPTER III
Why do we exist?
What purpose do we have...we living beings?
.:.
[Six months later, at the apartment everyone is sharing.]
"Thanks, Touji-kun. We couldn't have gotten better apartment housing without you. You're truly a lifesaver!" Misato gushed, sipping at a can of beer.
The five of them were sitting around after dinner-Misato, drinking beer, and the four ex-Eva pilots (no Rei), playing an odd cup-and-die game out of sheer boredom. And perhaps partially due to Shinji's current disability as well.
"Ayanami...she really is gone, isn't she?" Shinji murmured. No one had mustered enough nerve to tell him the truth about what his father had done to him-about Rei IV and his daughter, Ikari Kawori.
"Our Ayanami-the one we knew the longest, at any rate-is no more," Misato carefully answered. She took a long, slow swig of beer.
Shinji rolled the dice and turned his cup upside down. "What...what happened to the Evas, then? Why aren't any of us still at Nerv? Why-"
Nagisa Kaworu, the red-eyed boy, effectively halted the stream of questions before Shinji could ask about the Commander, his father. Kaworu had come up behind Shinji and put his arms around him...
"YOU FOOL! BAKA BAKA BAKA! GET LOST!" Asuka screamed. But before she could do anything, Kaworu quickly slipped back to where he had been sitting, rolled the dice, and turned his cup over in his turn-all in one quick, smooth movement.
...which left poor Shinji quite flustered. He completely forgot everything he had just asked. Misato and Touji sighed with relief [a/n: massive sweatdropping!]
"HAH!" Asuka cried triumphantly. "I win this round!"
Touji sighed and leaned back. He had lost every round, without fail, and the game was boring him. "So...you guys ready to hit the sack? It's getting pretty late." (aka: Shinji needs rest!)
Shinji turned his head slightly. He had regained most of his hearing, but his vision was still quite poor. Not only was everything black and white, but blurry even with the best glasses they could find. They didn't dare attempt any surgery on him, not at this stage of his recovery, and at any rate, they did not possess the necessary funding for it. Once Shinji had unknowingly given his father the required cells to implant within Rei IV, Shinji was regarded as little more than another bag of useless flesh to be disposed of. The red-eyed Ikari Kawori already bore a STRIKING resemblance to Yui, Shinji's mother...and that was all Commander Ikari Gendo wanted. After the failure of 3rd Impact...he never fully quelled his insane desire to be with his wife again in flesh...
"Sure, Touji. But before we go, I second Misato's thanks. This place is wonderful."
/He sure has grown up./ Misato thought, looking at Shinji. /He doesn't even seem like the same person anymore. Even Asuka notices.../
Asuka was staring into space. /Shinji...how you've changed. Maybe we've all changed. But you're still a fool, no matter what you do./ odd, wistful smile
Touji eyed Asuka warily before putting both hands on the table. "All right then, let's go. Shinji, need any help going up those stairs?"
"Nope, no problem. You go on ahead-I've already bathed. Not much to do around here when you're all out at work at and all..."
"Asuka?" Misato inquired, standing up and stretching.
/Why do THEY get the good apartment?/ Asuka wasn't at all pleased with the current rooming arrangement. Since Rei no longer inhabited any apartment whatsoever, Asuka and Misato shared her old "room". Touji, Shinji, and Kaworu shared an adjoining room, which had a loft, small cooking area and main room, and a real bath. To bathe, the girls had to come over to the boys' end of the apartment...which made absolutely no sense if they were forced to stay in separate rooms to begin with. So it was decided the girls would just have to bathe in the wee hours of the morning, while the boys were still sleeping.
"Huh? Sure...ready," Asuka mumbled, also standing up. Suddenly, she leaned over. Very far over. Over Shinji's head. "Umm...Shinji?" /Oh god, what have I gotten myself into now? Why do I feel so embarrassed all of a sudden? Augh...boys...I just want to slap him now.../
Shinji's eyebrows shot up. He sensed that Asuka seemed to be bending over him...very close...
/Drat...of ALL times...why does it have to be NOW that I can't SEE?/
And she kissed him...really kissed him.
O.O?
"Happy birthday...Shinji..."
And she was gone.
.:.
Back at the old Nerv hq.
"So you're saying Kawori should mature to age sixteen within two years when she takes this specialized formula?" Commander Ikari Gendo mused, his gloved hands clasped before him on the desk.
"Precisely. It is, I must say, not flawless, but it has worked incredibly well up until now. We have only had very few minor errors. You can see yourself how Kawori has grown."
"Yes. I see." Kawori looked about four years old, though in reality, she was only six months old. Apparently neither the doctor nor the Commander found this to be unnatural...
"And about Rei IV..." the doctor continued cautiously.
The Commander nodded.
"She won't...last...much longer."
"Ah...I see." The Commander turned to the decaying Rei IV, who was asleep in a chair next to his desk. "But she still has her uses..."
.:.
[Up in the loft of the boys' end of the apartment. Getting ready for bed.]
"Wow...you and Asuka?" Touji commented dryly.
"Actually...no. I think that was the only time anything like that has ever happened where I haven't gotten the shit beaten outta me. But...I have to say...it was quite nice."
"I'll say."
"Speaking of which, how are things w/ Hikari (the head-of-class)?" Shinji prodded, grinning a bit when he heard Touji squirm slightly.
"Ahh..."
"Ahh...eh?" Shinji teased.
"Yeah...ahh..."
Kaworu came wandering in...wearing...
NOTHING! [a/n: ahhh just kidding...sorry had to do SOMETHING! Getting kinda bland around here...]
...wearing his normal sleeping attire. "What are you two 'ahh-ing' about?" he inquired.
"Ah, just Hikari, our class leader. Er...Touji's Hikari, that is."
"She's NOT 'my' Hikari...!" Touji protested, turning a nice shade of red.
"She's not?" Kaworu feigned cluelessness.
"If you weren't such an invalid right now, Shinji, I swear..." Touji breathed.
There was a moment of silence as Touji settled himself for sleep. Their futons were lined up on the floor-Touji by the window, Shinji, then Kaworu by the door. Rather tight squeeze for such a tiny room, however.
"Soo..." Touji finally said to break up the silence.
"Yeah. Guess we should sleep, eh?" Shinji said. "Goodnight Touji, Kaworu..."
"Happy birthday, Shinji," Touji replied, turning off the light and immediately falling fast asleep.
Kaworu still hadn't lain down. Within moments, Touji's loud snores filled the room.
"Kaworu-kun?" Shinji whispered, confused. There was a faint rustling as Kaworu shifted over.
"Mmm... Happy birthday, Shinji-kun..."