An observation and a question... Do you ever notice that multi-part fics
tend to get bigger as you go along? Aside from the obvious. Part fifteen
of this was three times the size of part one and two. Heck, Hearts of
Ice, part 20, is supposed to be what? seventy-five pages?

And the observation... this part isn't quite canted toward the action,
but brings up a fic idea I don't see addressed too often... what would
Ryoga do if he realized that he was, well, dangerous? (cf. the soap
storyline.) <evil grin>

---
Misato climbed out of the command trailer. What exactly was going on?
Five minutes ago, maybe less, Ryoga and the Angel fired at each other.
Neither shot hit, although the Angel did manage to cripple the particle
cannon�s power supply trucks. Then, Rei stepped in and took the brunt of
the next shot. After that�

Something ODD had happened. Odd, even for somebody used to working with
huge robots that fought giant monsters. Odd, because there was NOTHING
in the operations manual about the Eva being able to shoot, BY ITSELF, a
huge energy blast. Bright green, yet. It had worked, though� the Angel
was completely silent; a direct core hit through the AT field. Ritsuko
would know what happened. Where did she get off to?

Oh, there she was. Lying on the ground? Not moving. Misato noticed, for
the first time, the other damage. Next to one of the power cable trucks,
a small red car was on its roof and burning. Ritsuko wasn�t the only one
down, either, she could see a couple of technicians that had been hurt,
as well.

Misato ran over to Ritsuko. She had to adjust her eyes to compensate for
the loss of glow from Unit 01. Whatever Ryoga had been doing, he wasn�t
doing it anymore� Ritsuko looked like she�d been hit in the face. How
best to wake her up? Smelling salts? None handy. Oh, sure, that�ll work.
Misato smiled, a little.

�Hey! Oww! What do you think you�re doing, Misato?� Amazing what a
well-placed slap could do, wasn�t it.

She pulled Ritsuko to her feet. �What just happened out here?� It
couldn�t have taken long.

�Girl.� Ritsuko paused, took a deep breath. �A girl drove in, crashed
the car. I think it was a girl. Red hair, ponytail, black pants. Fast!�

�Get a hold of yourself!� Misato couldn�t afford to have the science
chief go hysterical now. �Fast? How fast? And where did she go?�

�All right. I�m okay.� Another deep breath. �Very fast. I didn�t see
those guys get hit. I didn�t have time to move. At least it wasn�t here
for me. The way it jumped off my face, it had to�� Ritsuko�s face turned
towards the two downed Evangelions.

�Oh God, Ryoga!� Misato started running, leaving Ritsuko to get herself
collected. Eva 01 was inert, its entry plug ejected and empty. Something
over by Eva 00. She shouted for some technicians to help her out. Help
her what? Didn�t matter. Eva 00 had its entry plug out too, and there
was Ryoga, in his plug suit. He had Rei, was helping her get out of the
plug. Something else? There. A flash of motion, red and red on black. It
was running for the city, into the forest at the base of the mountain.
Whatever it was, it hadn�t hurt the pilots.

She yelled at them. �Ryoga? Are you all right? What about Rei?�

He turned, saw her. Yelled something at the forest. Then, he answered,
�Yeah, I�m fine. Rei looks okay, too.�

�I�m okay.� That came from inside the entry plug. Rei? Had to have been.

Misato closed the distance between the two. �You did it! What the hell
did you do? Never mind, tell me later.� She was laughing, now. Another
Angel down� and nobody hurt, although from the looks of Eva 00 it would
take a while to repair.

�Misato, I�m beat. I�m going to get some sleep. Have somebody drag me
home, later.� Ryoga handed Rei off to a couple of power technicians and
slumped against the fallen arm of Eva 00.
---
Paradise Lost, part 6
Fan Fiction by Andy Kent
All characters copyright Rumiko Takahashi or Gainax

---
Oog. Sometimes, Ryoga thought, it just wasn�t worth waking up in the
morning. He reached over, brought his hand down on the alarm clock. Too
hard. The mild electric shock he received from the broken equipment was
much better at waking him up than the metal station the radio had been
tuned to. He rolled over�

And sat up. Damn it all. He�d been awake too early, too often, for his
rhythms to let him rest now. He still felt drained, a little. He wasn�t
aware that there WAS that much ki in existence, much less his ability to
use it. Hey, it had worked. And she was alive! Rei, too. He remembered
getting her out of the plug before he went under.

He crawled his way into the kitchen. �Hey, Misato� Get up, will ya?�

She stepped out of her room. If she felt half as bad as she looked, she
would have been dead. Misato definitely was NOT a morning person. �What�
how come you�re up so early, Ryoga?� She opened the fridge, grabbed the
first beer she found.

�Hey, wait a second. You got some Gatorade in there?� He needed
something to replenish his electrolytes, after a shot like that.

�No, but I do have this sports drink stuff� Free sample I got in the
mail. Here.� She tossed him the bottle.

Ah. Cold, wet, and sugary. Too bad what it tasted like, but breakfast
wouldn�t have been any better. �I�m NOT going in to class today.�

�Good, have a seat.� What, no lecture on the value of education? Well,
it was pretty early. �Who was that last night?� She popped the tab on
her beer.

�Who was what?� He had seen this coming, sort of. Ryoga felt a little
bit guilty about getting Ranma tied up in this whole thing, after all,
Ranma didn�t almost blow up the city in a fit of depression last night.
Maybe he could lie about it. It would have to be good. He remembered the
�Big Lie� technique. Wouldn�t work, but he had to be able to say that he
had tried.

�That girl from last night. What was she doing there?�

�Oh, that. Don�t worry about him, he�s just somebody I know.�

Misato took another slug of beer, did a double take. �Him?�

�Her, I mean.� Swallow the drink, Ryoga. �I knew her from way back.�

�You know she knocked out Ritsuko, right?�

No, he hadn�t. �She does stuff like that. Next time I see her, I�ll talk
to her.�

�Well, see that you do, okay?� Hey, she bought it. �And what the hell
did you do to the Angel last night? FOOM! I�ve never seen anything like
that.�

Well, out of the frying pan� �What do you mean, you�ve never seen
anything like it? It�s your Eva.� Now THAT would never work.

Misato goggled, grabbed a second beer. �Eva can�t do that. You think I
would have done all the mess with the power and the cannon if you could
have just done that?�

�I guess not.� It would have been too good to be true. At least he�d
gotten away with one. �Okay, here goes. That was a ki blast.�

�Ki? That�s what, a martial arts term?�

�Yeah, it�s like the power generated by living things. If you
concentrate, you can do things with it. That was one of those things.�

She was impressed. �Wow! Hey, but how did you know it would work on an
Angel? And how did you practice it? Without leveling the city.�

�To be honest, I wasn�t really paying attention to what I was doing.
Side effect of the Shishi Hokodan attack. You�ve got to be really,
really depressed to pull it off.�

�You mean to tell me that you flattened that thing because you weren�t
paying attention to it?� Sarcasm? Probably, from the tone.

�Yeah. I�ve never fired one off that big, though. Normally it�s only a
few feet across. Maybe the Eva did some of it.�

�This is a lot to swallow, Ryoga.�

Ryoga tossed the empty sports drink at the wastebasket, started
rummaging in the pantry for breakfast. �What, you want a demonstration?�

�Yeah, prove it.�

�First off, it�d hurt like hell. Second, it would trash the apartment.�
Trash it more. �Third, I can�t. I�m in a good mood this morning.�

She downed her third beer. �Look, that�s getting a bit weird, even for
me. I�m going in to work this morning, have to file the reports from
last night. Don�t wander off or anything.�

Hey! Last night. �How�s Rei doing?�

�She�s all right. A bit rattled, although it�s hard to tell with her.
She keeps grinning, it�s scaring me.�

That was interesting. �Go get ready for work.�

�Sure.� She started ambling toward the shower. �Oh, one more thing.
Ryoga��

�Yeah?� What was it now?

�Good job.�

---
�Well, at least we get ONE day off. It takes some time to put up
temporary classrooms.�

�Quit complaining, Ranma. You could use the sleep anyway. Why did you go
running off like that last night?�

�You are SO uncute, Akane.� If anything would get her to stop asking,
that would do the job.

Of course, it would also make her hit him over the head. Where did she
get those mallets from? Thin air?

---
The doorbell rang. Ryoga sat up, shuffled to the door. �Huh?� Misato had
already left for NERV headquarters, and he was making up for lost sleep.
He was feeling much better now, though.

�Good morning, Hibiki-kun!� The chorus came from Kensuke and Touji.
Hadn�t they abandoned this dumb plan when Rei started showing up?

�Morning, guys. Misato�s gone.� Well, Touji was disappointed. Heh. �What
are you doing here?�

Kensuke peeked inside. �Yeah, she�s gone, all right� we�re here to take
you to school, dummy.�

�Oh yeah? Where�s Rei?� She�s asleep, stupid, just like he had been
before these two showed up.

The two looked outside the door. �I�m right here, Hibiki-kun.� Rei stuck
her head in the doorway. �Come on, you�re late already.�

�Not going in today. Still have a headache from yesterday.� It wasn�t
precisely true. He�d have some headaches about yesterday later on, they
just weren�t here yet.

Rei narrowed her eyes. �I can�t go to school without you, you know.
Gendo-san said so.�

�So don�t go. What are they doing in class today, anyway?�

�Review of the Second Impact stuff.� Touji scratched his head. �Man,
that�s all we ever get in class, nowadays.�

�See, Rei? We don�t even need to show up today.� The other two looked at
him strangely. �Besides, I need to go see a friend.�

�Ranma, right? I thought I saw him last night.� She smiled. She knew, he
had told her about Ranma, but she�d never actually seen it happen.

�Yeah, him. Let�s go. You okay for walking?� Ryoga grabbed his pack,
checking to make sure his umbrella was handy.

�Should be. I just got some sleep last night.�

�Fine, let�s go.�

�Hey, where are you going?� Kensuke looked at Ryoga, then Rei. �You
can�t just cut class!�

�Not without taking us along, right, Kensuke?�

�Right, Touji.�

�Sorry guys, this is Eva pilots only.�

�Yes, sensei, Hibiki-kun decided to ditch today!�

That was dirty. �You wouldn�t Touji.�

�Try me.�

�Looks like you�re stuck with them.� Now what did Rei think was funny
about that?

�All right, you can come along. Stay together, right?� Maybe they�d get
flattened by somebody along the way.

---
�So, what does it mean, Ritsuko?�

�Well, Hibiki-san, it means that we should have a dead pilot. Rei should
never have survived that thermal shock� third degree stigmatic burns.
She�s fine, no burns at all. She says it hurt, but nothing about the
heat.�

�Is she all right?�

�Yes, we sent her home. No physical problems, that we could see anyway.
The Eva�s going to need some work, though. Most of the armor will have
to be replaced; it�s too badly damaged to repair correctly.�

�Then we need to get another Eva. Fuyutsuki?�

�Yes?�

�What�s the status on Unit 02?�

�Ready at the German facility. We could ship it here in eight days.�

�And its pilot?�

�Soryu�s ready as well.�

�Give the order. What about the other thing, Ritsuko?�

�I have no ideas. You should ask him. I can tell you that he should NOT
have been able to do what he did. That much energy��

�Yes. What happened to your face, Ritsuko?�

�Infiltrator, I�m guessing.�

�Seele making a move, eh? Get internal security on it.�

---
�Tendo Anything Goes School of Martial Arts. Cool, right, Kensuke?�

Well, it was fairly cool. Fortunately, he had some train passes he had
gotten from the Admiral that morning, and they hadn�t had to walk all
that way. He hadn�t been successful in finding out what that energy
blast had been, either. �Classified�, his butt. Nice dojo, though.

A young woman with brown hair greeted them at the door. �Oh, hello
Ryoga! And Rei. We just finished with breakfast, Ranma�s out in back
practicing with his father.�

Ryoga turned to go around the house. �Thanks, Kasumi.�

Around the corner, Kensuke spotted a nice pond, garden style. It was
surrounded by rocks. A girl, red-haired, was jumping around on the
rocks. She was� fighting� a panda? Well, they were jumping at each other
a lot, but everything was going too fast for him to see any attacks. He
grabbed his camcorder and started shooting. �Cool.�

�Hey, she�s cute, Kensuke.� Rei started laughing. Heck, she was going to
choke if she kept laughing like that. Touji looked indignant. �Well, she
is.�

The girl spotted them, stopped. The panda hadn�t stopped, though. With a
single kick, it launched the girl into the middle of the pond. She came
out, sputtering. �Hey, cool it Dad, we�ve got company.�

Ryoga motioned upwards. �We�ve gotta talk, Ranma.�

�Fine by me.� She jumped. Jumped on the roof! Kensuke checked the cap on
his camera, making sure it was off. That was VERY cool. And now Ryoga
was jumping up on the roof. With his pack!

�Hey, Touji, can you jump like that?�

�I�m seriously considering it. Do you think those two, are�� Touji
extended his last finger, made a gesture. �Quit laughing like that, Rei.
It�s weird.�

Rei wheezed a couple of times. �Ha ha. Heh. Huh. His�� She repeated
Touji�s gesture. �That�s girlfriend, right?� The two nodded. Immediately
she started laughing again.

�Rei, cut it out, you�ll hurt yourself.� He�d never SEEN Rei laugh
before. Now, it was like it was all coming out at once.

�Okay, okay. I�ll be back.� Now REI jumped up on the roof.

�Hey, Touji, you don�t suppose that it�s only us that can�t do that, do
you?�

�I can assure you that not everybody can do that.� This came from a
brown-haired girl, standing on the porch and watching them. She was
laughing a little, too. �Who are you two?�

�They call me Touji Suzuhara, ma�am.� Of course, he�d take the
opportunity to hit on her�

�My name�s Kensuke Aida.�

She stared at him. �YOU�RE the Ensign?�

How did she know his screen name? �Yeah, I�m the Ensign. Who wants to
know?�

�Be more polite, son. You�re speaking with Miss Tendo.� THAT was Miss
Tendo? The biggest underground arms dealer in Tokyo-3? �How did you
track me down?�

---
Ranma settled down on the roof. It was annoying, having Ryoga always
showing up. Well, no, actually it was kind of nice, since they weren�t
trying to kill each other lately. And he hadn�t done his pig trick with
Akane for a while. Of course, he couldn�t, not with that Rei here
watching.

Ryoga slumped down. He rummaged in his pack for a second, grabbed a
thermos. �Hot water, man?�

Ranma looked directly at Rei. �You thinking this morning, Ryoga?�

Ryoga glanced at her, shook his head. �She knows already, Ranma. The
whole thing. And she saved my butt last night.� Ryoga emptied the
contents of the thermos over Ranma�s head.

Well, that was better. Ranma really preferred being male, if he had the
option. �Thanks. What are you doing as a pilot? Did somebody go crazy?�

�Well, remember how I told you about my dad?�

�What, the good-for-nothing jerk that ran off from you and your mom?�
Rei frowned. �Yeah, I remember you telling me about the putz.� Now she
was really frowning. �Why bring the dork up now?�

Rei�s arm flashed out� well, sort of flashed. He could see it coming. It
was a slap, all right. Should he throw her in the pond? Nah,
embarrassing, especially if she had her own Jusenkyo curse. He could
just catch her arm, twist it around, and break the elbow� no, that was
no good either, she WAS just a girl. Plus, he had seen her fight, she
wasn�t very skilled. Whoops, here it comes, better just catch the thing.
�Look, I get enough of that already around here. Don�t you start
anything.�

Rei tore her arm loose. �Don�t talk about Gendo-san like that, then!�

�Hey, yeah, cool off, Ranma. Turns out he just wandered off, you know?�

�Yeah, didn�t we have this conversation last time?�

�Oh, right. Well, he recruited me for this whole thing. I�m an
Evangelion pilot now.�

Well, duh. �That would explain you being in the robot. Evangelion?�

Ryoga scratched the back of his head. �Well, I don�t know why they call
it that. Rei?�

She stopped glaring at Ranma. �No, it sounds biblical, though.�

Ranma didn�t know ANYTHING about anything biblical. Heck, Christmas was
a mystery. �Well, anyway, what were you thinking, shooting off like
that? You could have killed somebody. Who�s the idiot who gave you a gun
in the first place?�

�Idiot�s name is Misato. She�s operations commander at NERV.�

Misato. No way, no fragging way. Had to be a coincidence. �Well, it was
a good thing that it was in the middle of the night, or you�d have
crisped us all. Not that I�m complaining. I could use a few more days
off of class.�

�Thought you wanted me to shoot Kuno.�

�Him too. Well, what were you thinking?�

�I wasn�t.� Ryoga pulled his knees up to his chest. �I really could have
killed her, Ranma. I really could have.�

�Hey, don�t go getting maudlin on me, Ryoga.� The last thing he wanted
to do on his day off was listen to Ryoga moan. �It�s okay, man.�

�It�s not the first time, is it, Ranma? My God. I�ve been after her all
these years, and I almost kill her every time!�

Huh? �No way, you�re just exaggerating.� Well, there had been a couple
of times, but they weren�t Ryoga�s fault, really� he just was too stupid
to keep track of how strong he was. �Akane can take care of herself, you
know that.�

�You kidding? How many times has she gotten in trouble in the last year?
A dozen? People are always grabbing at her, you know that. Hell,� sob,
�even me, sometimes. I can�t make her happy, not really.�

�Look, Ryoga, don�t��

�Damn it, though, she�s not happy now.� He was really starting the tear
works now.

�Hey, Rei, want to give me a hand here?�

She stared blankly. �I don�t even know what he�s talking about.�

Oh yeah, right, he probably wouldn�t have told her about Akane. �Look,
man��

�I mean, you�re always messing around with all those other fianc�es and
things. And calling her uncute. She loves you, stupid!�

Ranma slipped, skidded a foot before catching himself. Ryoga, saying
THAT? What the hell was he thinking? Did robot piloting make you stupid
or something? Not that Ryoga needed the help� what was he thinking?

�Damn it all. She�s going to be happy, if I have to die for it.� Ryoga
grabbed Ranma by the arms. �Set a date, Ranma.�

Huh? �Huh?�

�Wedding! Set a date for the wedding!�

�Hey, Ryoga, what�re you talking about?� Ranma slapped Ryoga, twice,
once on each cheek. Did he even feel it? �I�m not getting married to
that tomboy!�

�Look, Ranma, I can�t give her up if you�re just going to throw her over
for one of your women. You�re going to take care of her for the rest of
her life if I have to beat you to a pulp!�

As if that was going to happen. �What brought this on, Ryoga? Are you
crazy?� Rei flinched at that. Huh? �You really want me to marry Akane?�

�The whole thing hit me, last night. Right after I had killed the Angel,
I thought you all were dead, right? I� it was just disgust. I wanted to
die� I remembered how I had acted, and I wanted to die��

He was serious. What now, Ranma? �This is a bit sudden, man.�

�You love her, right, Ranma?� Ryoga looked up. �You DO love her, right,
Ranma?� A roof tile crumpled in Ryoga�s grip. �Damn you, if you don�t
love her I�ll kill you right now!�

�Hey, hey, calm down, I love her already! Don�t go shouting it to
everybody.� Oh man. He had really said it. Really said it. It was true,
too� he really did love her. �All right, you win, Ryoga. I�ll get
married to her.�

That seemed to brighten him up a bit. �You mean it? I don�t mean any of
this fianc� crap, I mean a marriage, husband-and-wife, you know?�

�Yeah, yeah, I got it already.�

Ryoga looked out at the crushed corpse of the Angel, resting over
several blocks of prime real estate downtown. �Oh, man, that hurt. You
really will?�

�Yeah.� It wasn�t such a bad idea, come to think of it. �Three months.
I�ll marry Akane� in three months.�

�ONE month!�

�TWO months, all right? It is MY marriage we�re talking about.�

�Hey, Ryoga�� Rei shifted a bit. �Do you mind explaining some of this?�

---
�So, you can get them to me when?�

�Look, Kensuke, it takes time to move explosives. Maybe a couple of
weeks, maybe a month.�

�The admiral�s not going to like that, Tendo-san.� Kensuke couldn�t
believe his luck. She had a finger in EVERYTHING?

�Well, tough cookies. What else?�

�I�ve got a few bits to sell. Information.�

She thought about that for a second. �What kind of information?�

�NERV kind, you understand?�

�Like you�ve got contacts into NERV.�

Touji wandered in. �Man, they�ve got great stuff in that kitchen. She
can really cook!�

�Where did you get to?�

�Got roped into dish duty in exchange for leftovers. Folks aren�t ever
home, so I didn�t have any breakfast handy this morning.�

�Get this, Touji. She doesn�t think I know anything about NERV.�

�Believe him, Tendo-san. This man knows everything about NERV.�

�Gentlemen, let�s talk business. I�ll need a sample of information to
know whether or not the rest is worth buying.�

This should be easy. �Well, the main robot is called Eva Unit 01. Short
for Evangelion. It�s tall, and purple, and has a horn.�

�You have something I didn�t see on the evening news?�

�Yeah, the pilot. Guy�s superhuman, he is. He feels no pain, fights like
a devil. Nearly took Touji�s shoulder off, and he wasn�t even trying.�

�Hey, don�t tell her that!�

�You ticked him off, stupid. Rumor has it that he�s the commander�s kid,
got the job because of that. Interesting thing is, he has no sense of
direction. Gets lost,� snap, �like that.�

�You make him sound like Ryoga Hibiki or something.�

Huh? How the hell did she know? No, wait, she DIDN�T know. �Well, you
convinced I have the information?�

�Yeah, this could be valuable. I lost a lot of money last night on the
fight.�

Touji coughed. �You mean you bet against Eva?�

�Yeah, well, I couldn�t have known about that special attack move it
had, now could I? That was pretty impressive. What�s that called?�

Well, not like Kensuke knew. Bluff time. �Hey, hey, that�s quite enough
for a sample.� He tilted his glasses. That should glint them.

She sighed. �You�re right, I�m interested. Tell you what� if you can get
answers to a list of questions, I�ll eat the cost on that shipment for
the Admiral. How�s that sound?� She batted her eyes.

�Sounds good. E-mail me the list, you know where.�

�Nice doing business with you,� smile, �Ensign.�

They stepped out onto the porch. �I thought only��

Kensuke elbowed Touji in the ribs, hard. �I use it as my Internet
handle, too.�

Thump Thump tump

�Well, Ranma, you guys finished?�

�Yeah, Nabiki� there�s the matter of that five thousand yen you owe me,
right?�

�Look, I said I�d pay everybody. Who knew you�d all bet on the Eva?�

Look at Ryoga, puffing his chest out like that. It wouldn�t be any good
if Nabiki guessed that he was a pilot on her own. He was wiping his eyes
with his bandana. No, he was still wearing his bandana. Who in the world
carried a yellow hankie?

---
Nabiki went back inside. Ryoga turned, motioned to Ranma. �Look, man,
I�m sorry about doing it like that. I just want her to be happy.�

�Damn.� Whatever had gotten into Ryoga, what he was doing had to hurt.
�She�ll be happy. GOD damn.� Ranma couldn�t shake the feeling that
something had gone fundamentally wrong with the universe.

Ryoga�s tall friend piped up. �Hey, where�d the cute girl go?� He
withered under Ranma�s supreme glare of death� a little. �And how come
you�re dressed the same as she was?�

The other one tilted his head a little; sunlight glinted off his
glasses. �I understand a few things now, Tendo-san. A few of your�
quirks, maybe.�

Nabiki wasn�t ruffled in the least. �The home environment can really
shape you, can�t it.� It was not a question.

Rei coughed a bit. �Um, Ryoga, what did you have planned for lunch?�

�Well, I was thinking of moo�� Of course Ryoga had planned to mooch off
of Kasumi. Ordinarily, this would start a fight. Ranma was in too much
shock to want to start it up (again) with Ryoga� best just to derail
that train at the station. �Yeah, Ryoga, stay for lunch. Akane�s cooking
today, you know.� Was it possible for Rei to go even MORE pale?
Evidently so.

�No, no, wouldn�t want to impose� besides, I�m not sure� I could face
her right now. You understand, right Ranma?�

�Yeah, I think so.� This wasn�t the same Ryoga that had hung around for
two years. A month of piloting had changed him, he wasn�t what Ranma
considered to be HIM anymore� and the change was good. �Look, then,
could you do me a favor? You tell Ukyou. I personally don�t care what
Shampoo and her grandmother think, when they find out, but Ukyou doesn�t
deserve that.�

�She�ll kill me.�

�She couldn�t if she tried. You�re,� and it was going to really hurt to
say this� �just about as good as I am, right?� Flattery will get you
everywhere.

�Good point.� Ryoga chuckled. �She�ll hit me, though. Tell you what.
Favor for favor. Could you mind these two while Rei and I go eat?
They�re not bad people, but they don�t think like us.�

�What, and Rei thinks like you?�

�No, I do not.� Rei wasn�t smiling at that. Well, maybe a trace.

�Sure, then, I don�t think Nabiki was done with the one anyway.�

�Well, then, let�s go. Rei?�

She shrugged. �Yes, I remember the way.� The two took off.

---
Ryoga was worried. Sure, Ukyou didn�t deserve to be left in the dark,
cut off. But to be the person to tell her, though, it was a suicide
mission. Not for him, though. He couldn�t afford to die here. Heck, he
really couldn�t afford to get beat up, anymore. Too much riding on him,
maybe.

�Rei, don�t sit next to me in there.� With any luck, she�d miss most of
the fallout from the upcoming encounter. �When she starts, GET OUT.
She�ll be serious, and I�m not going to hold back. Likely, we�ll take
down the building.� If not the block.

�Understood.� This was Rei as he had first met her� cold, showing no
emotions. What emotions did she have to show? Well, humor, now. Anger,
sometimes. Boredom? Displeasure? Fear? He�d never seen those. A
dispassionate mask for all, assuming she even felt them.

�Eat fast, too. No sense in wasting good okonomiyaki.�

�What do you mean?�

�Dad taught me not to waste food.�

�Right.� That would explain it enough for her. She was close to Gendo, a
lot closer than he was. Of course, he had seen his father what, three,
four times in the last ten years? Even if they were all in the last
month. He reminded himself to ask her about that, afterward.

He slid open the door to Ucchan�s. The place could seat over a hundred,
if they crammed in tight; now, only two or three people finished up
scraps of brunch. Ukyou, of course, was behind the counter. Her spatula
was on the wall behind her. The big one, that is.

He parked himself on a corner stool (maximum mobility; more options for
the initial evasion) and motioned Rei to sit two seats down, closer to
the door than he (might as well give her a head start). She complied,
sitting down. Too tense, damn it! Ukyou was no slouch at martial arts,
she�d notice that kind of tension in a second, he wouldn�t get a chance
to explain.

Ukyou shifted over between them. Looked at Ryoga, looked at Rei.
Something changed in her face� she HAD noticed. Oh, damn it all anyway.
She leaned over, murmured, �So, everything not going well, is it,
Ryoga?�

What could that have meant? Wait a minute. He felt his battle senses
moving, the preternatural awareness that let him keep up in battle with
foes that moved faster than he could see� and the pieces fell together.
Rei, sitting too far from him, stiff-backed. His own tension, his outer
bandana with tear-streaks, his eyes probably still a bit red. She
couldn�t think that he and REI? She did.

�Ukyou, what do you have for liquor?� Not that it would affect him, but
it�d get the point across. �Strong liquor.�

�Look, sugar, you�re underage and I�ve got no license to sell alcohol
here.�

�So don�t sell it, just pour. Whatever you�ve got. One for yourself,
too.�

She ducked behind the bar, came up with a bottle of sake. Two glasses
and a little pouring later, and he had his fists wrapped around the hot
cup. �You mind telling me what this is about?�

�Yeah, I need to make a toast.�

�So?�

�To a wedding.�

The realization hit Ukyou all at once. She stepped back, staring, as
Ryoga sipped his drink. It burned all the way down. �No.� She�d guessed
right. �You don�t mean it.� She hopped over the bar, sat down on the
stool in between the two. �It can�t be� that.�

�It is.� All he needed to say, really.

�Then what�re you doing here, stupid? We�ve got to go stop them! Akane,
remember?�

�Akane�� He blinked, twice, hard. His vision focused. �I will make Akane
happy� I�ll keep her safe. But not that way.�

�You mean�� she glanced at Rei, turned back to him, �you gave her up for
HER?�

�No, not for her. I gave up Akane for Akane�s sake. Drink up, a toast to
the wedding.�

�You�ve given up.� She was steadier now. Her hands didn�t shake as she
sipped her own sake. �You really gave up, didn�t you? How? I always
figured you�d chase her until you died. How can you just give up like
that?�

He took another sip. A gulp, really. Maybe he was more affected by
alcohol than he thought. �Last night, I almost killed her. And Ranma.
You too, by the way. I could have killed her, but I wasn�t thinking. I
could have killed her!�

�You�re talking nonsense, you idiot. What do you mean, almost killed
her? And Ranma? And �ME-? I think I would have remembered that, don�t
you?�

�Why are you open today, this early, Ukyou?�

�Because the school�s closed. They�ve got to�� She paused, took another
sip. �repair the damage�� Another sip. �caused by�� She drained the
glass. �You�re not serious.�

He looked at her. He could see her flinch at his gaze. No wonder,
really. If he looked half as cold as he felt, right then� �Yes.�

She turned around, looked at Rei. �Do you know what he�s talking about?
There�s no way it�s possible. The school was hit by the ROBOT, right?�

�It�s not a robot, exactly. Call it Eva.�

�Robot, Eva, whatever. Rei?�

Rei looked at Ryoga. He nodded, and she said, �Hibiki-kun is the
designated pilot of Eva Unit 01.�

Too much, too fast. Ukyou poured herself another drink� her hands were
shaking this time. �So you did that. I won�t ask why.� She took a slug.
�And now, you come in, and you�ve given up. And they�re getting
married.� Another slug. �I can�t let it happen� help me stop it, Ryoga.
I can�t let it happen.�

�No, Ukyou.� He set down his glass. �Nobody�s stopping the wedding.
They�re going to get married. Akane needs it, needs it more than she
needs me.� He could feel the pain, as bad as in the Eva�s cockpit. �I
can�t let you stop the wedding.�

�And just WHY is that?� She was getting angry. Now, before she started
swinging�

�Because I agreed to be the best man.� He put on a smile, it must be a
weak one at this point, but it didn�t matter because she�d see it and
start laughing, and they could talk the whole thing out�

�Best man?� Or not. �BEST MAN! Ryoga, you JACKASS! How could you?� She
vaulted the bar, grabbed the assault spatula in one smooth motion. �How
can you sit there and say that! I won�t let it happen!�

�You don�t have a choice.� He grabbed the outer headband, the one still
warm with his tears, and began a slow, whirling motion. �I can�t let you
stop it. It has to happen. She has to be happy, damn it! I can�t be
there for her,� and here, he ducked his head, blinking away the tears,
�I�ll never be there for her, but I will make SURE that she�s happy!�

Ukyou raised the spatula. �Ryoga, I�m not going to give up because you
tell me to.�

�I don�t want to hurt you.� But he would, he thought. For this� he would
indeed hurt her.

�If you try to stop me, Ryoga, I�ll kill you.� There was no rage in
Ukyou�s voice, only a cold conviction.

�No.�

Hey, that HADN�T been him, answering. Both Ryoga and Ukyou turned to
look at Rei. �I won�t let you hurt Ryoga.�

---
Ukyou smiled to herself. It was a very thin, very grim smile. �Like he
just said, sister, you don�t get the choice.� She had NEVER expected to
have to fight Ryoga over this. Hell, the jackass should be helping her,
not trying to stop her. He was serious, though.

And dangerous. She could see the pain on his face, but no desperation.
He really, truly, had given her up. That was the scary part, of course.
Without Akane, what did Ryoga have to live for? If he didn�t have
anything to live for� his depression would be unmatched. Even her
strongest defenses really weren�t up to fighting him when he was in a
good mood�

He raised his free hand, brought back the bandana with the other.
Shifting automatically, she moved the spatula to cover her. �You can�t
do it, you know.� Direct physical combat would be suicide� but Ryoga was
generally vulnerable to manipulation. �Come on. Hit a girl? The great
Ryoga Hibiki, fight a girl? No way.� She registered the shock on his
face, as he realized what he was about to do. �See? I�m right, aren�t I?
I could just go over and cut you down, and you wouldn�t even lift a
finger.�

His head came back up. He was looking at something� his eyeballs went
wide. Surprise. With the speed given her by well-honed battle reflexes,
she started her attack sequence, determined to gain the opportunity. She
couldn�t let him stop her. His hand went back, the bandana whirling with
force now. His mouth opened� a �no!� forming. Forward. She smoothly
rotated the haft to block the projectile�

It wasn�t aimed at her. To her right. Right? Nothing there but� oh damn
oh damn concentrated so much on Ryoga didn�t remember she had a gun oh
damn duck duck duck PAIN. She heard the report, felt the bullet tear a
crease in her scalp. Turn, look. Rei, standing, hand empty. Empty? Gun
flying, barrel wrapped in yellow. Of course, that bullet would have
killed her, she wasn�t THAT fast, not like Ranma. She brought her
spatula around, aimed for the temple. One strike, before she could go
for the gun.

Ryoga was there first, grabbing Rei�s wrists. He didn�t seem to notice
as the spatula struck his skull, bounced off. His eyes were wide open,
white around the iris. �What� what the hell was that, Rei?�

�She tried to kill you. I won�t let that happen.�

Ukyou looked, considered the new dent in her spatula, and decided to
wait it out.

�No no NO! Damn it, you don�t just SHOOT people, Rei! She could have
been KILLED!� Same words as earlier, but no self-pity, this time. Only
fear, and shock.

�That�s the idea, Hibiki-kun. She said that she�d kill you.� Rei�s face
was cold, showing no emotion.

�That�s NOT the idea! Just because somebody says they�ll kill you
doesn�t mean they�ll kill you! Hell, I must have told Ranma I�d kill him
what, a hundred times? Two hundred? You can�t just shoot somebody around
here just because they say they�ll kill you.�

�Why not?�

�It�s not fair, that�s why, damn it. You can�t defend against that.�

�Plus, nobody here can afford the doctor bills.� The two turned to stare
at her. What, had they forgotten she was here? �Tofu, he�s great and
all, but I don�t think he can take out bullets.�

Ryoga whirled on her. �Look, this whole thing is all your fault. Drop
that thing RIGHT NOW.�

�Or what, you jackass?�

�Or I�ll let go of Rei, and we�ll finish the job, damn it. Enough
already! I don�t want to fight you.�

Well� he had a point� and he did just save her life, sort of. �All
right.� She set the spatula down on the counter, sat down next to it.
�We�ll talk.�

�Right.� Ryoga turned to Rei. �Pick that thing up before it hurts
someone. What the hell are you doing carrying around a gun, Rei?�

�Gendo-san gave it to me. He told me I might need it.�

�NEED it? To what, shoot somebody?�

Obviously, Rei had spent a very small portion of her life being yelled
at by berserkers. �Wait, Ryoga, back off a bit. That�s what a gun is
for, right?� Ukyou turned to Rei. �Not that I appreciate being shot at,
now.�

Rei retrieved the gun, fiddled with something on the barrel, stuck it
back under her vest. �He can�t die. We don�t have another pilot for Eva
01. If you try to hurt him, I have to kill you.�

So, the pilot thing wasn�t just a cheap diversion or something like
that. �No pilot? How did HE get to be a pilot?� The idea was very funny,
really. Ryoga couldn�t navigate his way out of a paper bag. She almost
chuckled. �All right, I�m not trying to kill him now, drop it, OK?�

�Understood.� Rei sat back down, waited. �No beef on mine, please.�

�Huh?�

�Lunch, right?�

She had no middle gears, either. �Just a minute.� She turned to Ryoga.
�I still don�t want them to get married, you know. How come SHE rates?
I�m his fianc�e too.�

�Aargh.� He ducked his head again. �I�m not happy about the idea myself.
But� she loves him, and I love her, and this is the only thing I can do
to make her happy. That, and protect her. From you. From the Angels.
>From him, if it comes to that.�

Her scalp stung like hell. �Why a wedding, though? She could change her
mind, right? So could he. Just because you gave up on her, it means that
nobody gets a chance at him? Just like that, it�s over?�

�Yeah, just like that.� He nodded. �I couldn�t give her up if she wasn�t
going to be happy, I�d never forgive myself. But I HAD to give her up,
you see? So, this is the only way. You�re the same way, right? He can�t
be happy if she�s not happy. He�s the same as me.�

What was he doing looking at her like that? He reached up, grabbed a
headband. What, did he always wear three of them? �Give me your head,
Ukyou, you�re bleeding.� He shot a nasty look at Rei.

�Sorry.� No emotion in the voice.

He wrapped the bandana around the wound (just over the right ear, and
not deep� no stitches, Ryoga said) and tied it off. �It�ll heal up with
time.� He looked at her again. �Give it some time.�

She drew back a little. �Hey, why do you care about this? How come Ranma
didn�t come to tell me?�

�He�� Ryoga tensed a bit. �He didn�t want to hurt you. He likes you,
some. Not love�� A twin pain to her head, this one inside. �But he likes
you a lot. He didn�t want to hurt you.�

�What about you, then? You didn�t mind doing his dirty work?� That came
out sounding more bitter than she had meant it to.

�No. I didn�t want to hurt you either.� He grinned, the first time he
had really smiled since he had come inside. (She wasn�t going to count
that pathetic excuse for a smile earlier.) �I�m sure Rei didn�t want
to.�

�I don�t want to. I just had to.�

�And that�s it, isn�t it, Ukyou? I�m here, because I have to.�

�Look, guys, this is a bit�� She blinked back a tear of her own. �I�m
sorry, but could you leave me alone for a while? I need to� think about
this some.�

Ryoga stood, grabbed his pack from by the door. �Sure, I�ll put out the
�closed� sign for you. Come on, Rei.�

---
�Well, now what do we do about lunch, Hibiki-kun?� That whole thing had
been awkward, Rei thought. Ranma really should have done it himself, and
left Ryoga out of it.

�Damn it, Rei, she would have fed us if you hadn�t SHOT her.�

�She was trying to kill you!� All her hard work, keeping him alive, and
he has to do things like this.

�Well, at least somebody cares.�

Fortunately, he wasn�t looking at her right then, lost in his own
approximation of misery. He didn�t notice her blush.

---
End of part six

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