I've been threatened. Or something like that. ^_^ To appease the
masses^H^H^H^H^H^Hkindly readers, I'll put this out.

	Rather preliminary. It's Donut Hole 3.5 since it won't be large
enough to merit being a chapter on its own. In short, it's an interlude,
designed to introduce some plot points and ideas. Part 4, which will be
started...someday...will go to the 14th Angel. I've got ideas cooking, but
nothing serious.



The Sound and the Furry Productions, copyright Century of the Fruitbat
Andrew Huang, nutcase, headcase, briefcase, member
begun September 1, 1997

  Reminder: There _are_ spoilers in here. Big time.

  Evangelion is the property of Gainax (great bunch of people, they
are). ADV Films has the rights to the English translation. The drink
called "scumble" is the invention of Terry Pratchett, adapted a little
to my storyline.

  Still more of the thing called Neon Genesis Evanjellydonut. Do please
read the previous three parts first, before reading this part. Note that
this is an interlude piece, much shorter, and released to make you all a
bit happier. Nothing much happens, I just need to establish a few things
before the next full part.

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

  A frazzled writer sat down at his computer.

  "I know. This is late. Very late. Several months in the writing. Shut
up already. I'm going, I'm going!"

  Type, type, type, type....

************************************************

  Ikari Gendou's mind rose through the layers of blessed unconsciousness
and emerged into wakefulness. He lay there quiescently, contemplating
the ceiling above him. It was slightly blurry, as he did not have his
glasses on.

  Presently, a face loomed over him.

  An accompanying voice spoke. Ibuki Maia's voice.

  "You really must teach me how you do that, sir."

  Gendou blinked. "Ah...do what?"

  "Take a fall like that. I mean, when Rei grabbed you by the arm and
just tossed you--I'm sure a human body usually doesn't make _that_ much
noise from falling such a short distance. You had to have done something
to amplify the crash sound."

  Gendou sighed. This was going to be one of _those_ days, was it?

***
Neon Genesis Evanjellydonut Hole 3.5:
Family Can Get on One's NERVs
by Andrew Huang
written for The Sound and the Furry Productions
***

  "Good morning, Asuka-chan!" Hikari's bright smile truly beamed.

  "'Morning, Asuka." Shinji came in with a vase and a pink carnation.
"Misato wanted me to bring this."

  "Guten mor...good morning." Asuka yawned and rubbed her eyes. "I want
to get out of here. I'm all right, really I am...." She looked around.
Cocking an eyebrow, she asked, "Just you two?"

  Hikari coughed. "Er...Touji-kun thought maybe...and Rei...."

  Asuka sighed. "How considerate of them."

  Shinji set the flowers down by her bed. "Well, yeah. And...here!"
Shinji waved a pair of video tapes around.

  "Hey! Don't go flashing those around this place! I have a reputation
to keep, you know!" Asuka hastily snatched them out of his hand. "Um.
Danke schoen."

  Shinji nodded, and grinned. Asuka scowled a little.

  "And here's the stuff that you've been missing in class." Hikari
produced a bag and dumped it on the bed. The bed shook.

  "_What_ has Sensei been doing!?"

  "Stopped mumbling about the Second Impact and actually assigning
work." Shinji's lip quirked. "I never thought I'd actually miss those
lectures of his."

  "So, Asuka-chan, how's the food here?"

  "I'm beginning to think Misato is on the hospital kitchen's payroll."

  "Ah. Well, 's there anything else you need?" Shinji seemed awfully
solicitous today.

  "If you're trying to buy my favor, it won't work. But no, I'm fine.
Thanks anyway." Asuka stifled a second yawn.

  Shinji nodded. "All right. Gotta go--I'm meeting up with Kensuke about
something soon. Get well soon." He walked out the door.

  "Close the door, okay?"

  Hikari did so as she exited, giving a cheerful wave. "See you later!"

  Asuka sighed again, then pulled the cart with the TV and VCR towards
herself. Turning on the machines and lowering the volume, she stuck one
of the two tapes in.

  <*I am the beautiful sailor-suited warrior, Sailor Moon! And in the
name of the Moon, I will punish you!*>

  "Ahh...bliss."

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

  It was a wonder, her cute smile. It still made Shinji a little
lightheaded. But that wasn't the important thing--for the moment. "Well,
where's Kensuke?"

  "Are you kidding? He's not going to find out about the plan until it's
too late. I mean, until he's participating." Rei smiled in a slightly
different manner.

  "Are you sure about this? I mean, I know Aida, and I know how he--and
I--feel about Asuka." Touji looked up from his...ah, heated
philosophical debate with Hikari.

  "And I know that Asuka-chan isn't too fond of him either." Mental
note: resume heated philosophical debate about Sun Tzu later. "Touji-
kun's right...."

  "Two words," said Rei. "Training room."

  The three EVA pilots were silent. Hikari, who had only heard about the
events, still wasn't quite convinced. "Was it _really_ that bad?"

  "No, it was worse. I say we go with this." Shinji looked over to Rei.
"You have a plan?"

  "Working out the details, but yes. I have a plan." Rei smiled, again.

  Shinji felt lightheaded, again.

  Kensuke, somewhere else, suddenly sneezed and felt very, very scared
at the same time. That resulted in a rather large usage of tissues.

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

  "Father."

  "Shinji."

  Ikari and son sat looking at each other, over the menus. It was a
special day, today. Ikari Yui's birthday. She would have been 38. In
honor of her memory, they were having lunch together.

  If it hadn't been for the graveside meeting a few months ago, this
would have been even more uncomfortable. Of course, it is difficult to
contemplate that level of discomfort, considering that _now_, Shinji's
prime instinct was still to get up and quietly shuffle away. One must
suppose that it was an improvement over wanting to run away aimlessly.
Shuffling out of a restaurant is a bit more dignified than running out,
and he certainly would have had a particular destination, ahem, in mind,
had he given in to his instinct this time around.

  They kept on staring at each other, perhaps in the hopes that one of
them would break down and actually start _talking_ about something,
sooner or later. Then again, the phrases "normal family relationship"
and "NERV affiliate" just don't really fit in the same sentence without
considerable suspension of disbelief.

  Still, something had to give.

  "So...how are you and Rei doing?"

  It was a little forced, but a noble attempt, nonetheless.

  Shinji sighed slightly in relief. "We're getting along great, Father."
No thanks to you. "She's got something planned for us tonight."

  Gendou nodded, and was silent for a while. "It is...good to hear
that."

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

  <*--as it turned out, a small black piglet had gotten tangled up with
the unmanned glider's landing mechanisms. I guess you could say that
pigs have flown.*>

  Rei blinked, and frowned momentarily, while the newscaster laughed a
bit at his bad joke, and moved on to another story. She then resumed
flipping channels. She returned her attention to the computer terminal.

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

  The silence had come back, after the initial effort. Shinji felt that
it was his turn.

  "Um...why did you decide to come here, anyway? I thought you liked
sashimi more than Indian food."

  The fact that his son knew what sort of food he liked surprised Gendou
a bit--almost as much as it surprised Shinji himself. "Um, well...it's a
little hard to use chopsticks, when...." Gendou drummed his taped
fingers on the table. He almost winced in pain.

  Shinji declined to comment on Rei's, ah, handiwork, but did shake his
head slightly.

  Gendou shrugged. "Well, I don't know about you, but I could murder a
curry."

  They placed their orders, and briefly contemplated the other.

  "Tell me about Mother."

  This took Gendou off guard for a moment. "She was...full of life. So
vibrant. She had greatness written all over her. I was so proud of her."
As he spoke, his expression became positively wistful. "But more than
that, I remember...when you came along, she put even more energy into
raising you up...." And, of course, there was _before_ you were born....

  "Father? You're drooling." Shinji felt slightly sick.

  Gendou blinked. "Ah. My...apologies." He sobered quickly. "She was a
wonderful woman, scientist, and mother. Simply put."

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

  "Mari...." The door swung open.

  "Oniichan! And Oniichan's girlfriend!" A cute, 10 year old girl
wearing a bright pink ribbon in her hair was sitting up in the hospital
room's bed.

  Hikari blinked. Word, apparently, got around fast.

  Touji laughed slightly nervously, just in the right way that irked
Hikari just a bit. "Ah, yes, Mari...this is Hikari-chan."

  "Hello, Mari-chan. The doctors say you're getting much better!" She
didn't notice a sudden shift in the way that Mari's eyes shone.

  "I am doing very well, thank you. I am gratified by your concern,"
intoned Mari.

  Hikari would have facefaulted, if not for Touji's hand on her
shoulder.  Mari continued talking. "It becomes...tiresome to lie in here
alone for so long." Mari suddenly shook her head a bit. "Oniichan's been
telling me so much about you!" she burbled, gleefully. "And you cook
great, too!"

  Hikari would have started edging towards the door, but again, Touji's
hand restrained her from moving. Touji said, "Ah, yeah...isn't she
great?" He gently elbowed his girlfriend to keep her from saying
something off.

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

  "...and she really liked the color purple," said Gendou.

  "Purple?" asked Shinji.

  "Purple," said Gendou. "And green, too."

  "Green?"

  "Green." And Unit 01 was supposed to be white, and it _was_ white,
until the day after the...accident. Stupid paint jobs never stayed on,
either. I hate purple.

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

  "G'bye, Oniichan! G'bye, Hikari-neesan!"

  "I'll be back in a few days, Mari...."

  The two teenagers stepped out of the room.

  "Wh...what was with that...uh...."

  Touji shook his head. "Ever since I got her transferred over here,
she's done that once in a while. It's strange.... And when she asks
about Unit 03, it's like...." Touji frowned slightly. "Very weird."

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

  "My question is, how the HELL did anyone manage to tie a ten meter
pink ribbon around this thing."

  "Shut up and help me get it off Unit 03."

  "Yeah, yeah. Heh, I think it would look better with a blue ribbon."

  "The last one _was_ blue."

  "There was another one?"

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

<not sure if this is going to make it into this part--may be reserved
for a later chapter>


  One special day in the year 2000, a certain apple farmer/retired
biochemist awoke and went outside to check on his crop. He was
immediately greeted by the sight of the aftermath of the Second Impact.
The fellow promptly turned around and decided to make something that
would forever wipe the image of that from his mind. The result is this
drink called "scumble", though to many it is known as "arghlhlhlglh"
after taking a liberal sip.

  It is _not_ a type of cider, despite being an apple juice derivative.
Drinkers of non-alcoholic cider wouldn't touch scumble because it is,
beyond all question, alcoholic. Drinkers of hard cider drink hard cider
because they like the taste as well as the buzz, and would also like to
remember the events of the week that they decided to have a drink.
Scumble, though made from a thing as innocuous as your average Golden
Delicious apple, has more "oomph" than 200 proof ethyl alcohol. Perhaps
it is due to the additional spices and flavorings that one adds (very,
very carefully) during the fermentation process. Most religions that
managed to still carry a follwing after the Second Impact have banned
its use as anything other than a disinfectant. (One can seemingly hear
the bacteria scream in agony as it is applied. What is _actually_ being
heard is the linoleum beneath being molecularly wrenched in grotesque
and indecent ways.)

  Serving suggestions for scumble are many, but all of them invariably 
contain the word "thimbleful" somewhere within, usually preceded by
"less than a". So, it would go without saying that Misato filled two
glasses rather larger than a thimble, passed one to Kaji, and slammed
hers down in unison with him.

  "Squeak," she said, and fell over.

  "Squeak," he said, and set into something akin to rigor mortis.


>From Andrew Huang, brought to you by his computer, Oddzilla
Oddzilla says, "Mmmmm...Evanjellydonut...."
http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~alhuang/
Harvard Anime Society, President