Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ A View From the Wings ❯ Chapter 3

A View from the Wings

Chapter 3: All the Stars in the Sky

By: Lord Deathscythe

Disclaimer: See chapter 1

It had been about three weeks since the incident with what I later learned to be the Tenth Angel. During that time, Mana and I had become good friends, going out to movies or meals. She helped me out with my Japanese, and I could speak more easily with her and the other people around me. There were times I needed her to translate for me still, but they were getting fewer and farther in between. Mana was an even bigger help when it came to the homework they gave in class. I don't know how that old fossil of a teacher was able to give out so much homework when all he ever spoke of was Second Impact, as if we didn't already know enough about that meteor. We even went shopping on occasions, it was fun to watch her try on dresses and tell her what I thought.

We were very close indeed, so close it made everything before I had come to Tokyo-3 seem like nothing. If the past is prologue, then my life was beginning chapter one.

I was still reeling from our last outing together when I got home. Mom saw me as I walked into the house, more like heard me humming and skipping a bit. She had that damned grin on her face, the one I knew meant she was gonna start digging into me for information. She could be so nosey when she wanted to be, but it meant that she cared about me to find out what I was doing and who I was with. She was a good woman.

I miss her.

"So, you have a good day with your girlfriend Cricket?"

I rolled my eyes at her, she always used that nickname for me. I still don't know where she came up with it. But I couldn't help but smile anyways.

"Mom, she's not my girlfriend. She's just a friend who is a girl. And yes I did have a good day with Mana."

"That's good. I told you you'd have fun here, didn't I tell you that?"

"Yes you did."

"So… when's the wedding?" She said with a grin on her face.

"MOTHER!" I cried out as I turned an interesting shade of crimson at the implication.

"Hehehehehe, I'm just playin' with yah. Seriously though, you be careful okay? I don't want you getting hurt or to do something foolish just for a girl."

Always the protective one.

"Don't worry Mama, there won't be anyone calling you 'Grandma' for a while." I said, a confident smirk on my face. If she wanted to play the game, then we'd play.

It had the desired effect, she paled slightly at the notion she was getting old, but quickly recovered. Mom wasn't too hung up on age to let that one get her too much. She chuckled. It was no secret that I felt I got my rather sadistic sense of humor from her. Tech stuff I got from Dad. We were both good when it came to computers. I just couldn't bring myself to make something I did for fun my career. I'd get so sick of it it would stop being fun. But then again I had a few more years before I had to make that decision.

Like I said before, I had all the time in the world. At least that's what I thought. I wish I could still hold onto that illusion these days.

I went to put my purchases from the day up. A few DVD's, some clothes Mana thought I looked good in, a CD or two, nothing major. Fact was I wasn't much of a shopper and I usually went with Mom to pick out clothes for myself. I had very simple tastes. But if Mana said I looked nice in them, then I must have.

Was I really so infatuated with her that her opinion of my clothes made such a difference? I suppose we were a bit closer then I had let on to Mom.

Maybe I should take Mana out on a real date, do something aside from shopping. Perhaps dinner and dancing?

I stopped at that thought. WHAT IN THE BLUE HELL WAS I THINKING?!

I needed to get a grip, we were friends nothing more. Granted, she'd be a great girlfriend if I asked but I was only fourteen. I wasn't supposed to be thinking about things like this. At least I didn't think I should. Only one thing for it.

Mana and I had taken a picture of us together, I scanned it into my computer and then logged onto the internet. I immediately caught some instant messages from my friends and fellow writers.

Angel17: Hey LD, What's up?

I had been online for about two years, and I felt I was a passable writer. So I got a few people I knew on net together and we started our own little web site. You may have heard of it. Darkscribes.org was my favorite little hobby project, and still is to this day. I still get some e-mails once in a while about it, wondering how I'm doing and when the next update will be.

LD: Hey Angel, how's Missouri?

Angel17: Same as always this time of year, lots of thunderstorms rolling across the prairie. How you finding Tokyo-03? God knows you haven't been on much since you got there.

LD: It's pretty interesting. I have a few pictures to upload so you can take a look.

I proceeded to upload said pictures of the city. There weren't that many, but they were enough for everyone to get the general idea. It was at this time my partner in crime Random1377 showed up. Nice guy, but a bit on the perverted side. To this day we still call him "The Lemon Lord."

Random1377: Hey LD, how's life in the land of the Rising Sun?

LD: You know, it's okay.

Random1377: Meet any hot girls?

Oh Random, why is it that you and my brother are so much alike when it comes to women? But then again, he was older then me. Maybe he could help me out with my problem.

LD: I'm glad you're on man, I need to ask you some things. I'm uploading some pictures of a girl I've been hanging with here. Tell me what you think.

Angel17: Whoa, LD with a girl? What is the world coming too? ::Smirk::

LD: Ha ha Angel.

I loaded up the pictures and put together some hyperlinks and thumbnails on the "LD' World" page. Typed in a few captions for my pics and sent the whole batch to the server. As soon as Random saw a them I knew I'd be in for it. Thank God TR, Sare, Isamu and BT were offline right now.

Random1377: DUDE! SHE'S HOT!!! You're doing her right?

Yup, that's exactly the reaction I expected of Random.

LD: Random, do I have to through you into the tentacle pit again?

Random1377: … I'll be good.

LD: Good.

Angel17: Good.

Not again, we'd always end up talking at the same time saying the exact same thing. It was a curse at times, but it helped when we went back and forth on story ideas. I figured that, if you put it into a percentage that her and I were 95% similar. But I could be wrong.

Angel17: So, you and her… dating?

LD: I suppose you could call it that. I mean we go to movies, shopping, she's showed me around town.

TommyRude: Sup. LD, I didn't know you were dating? Anything you'd like to share with us?

TommyRude, the "Original Anime Rudeboy" or "The Flamers Champ" depending on what you preferred. He was one of the most disliked people on the net, but one of my best netbuddies. Granted, he and his FY were rather… blunt at times, but we shared the same ideals when it came to our work.

I'm just happy he never flamed me.

Random1377: TR, take a look at the pic on the site.

TR: You aren't dating a girl like that, TELL ME you AREN'T DATING a girl like that!

LD: I'm not dating a girl like that.

TR: Good, I was worried you had a better love life then me for a second.

LD: I'm dating THAT girl.

There was no response as TR was probably having a heart attack at that moment. I chuckled as more people came in and the news spread. Seemed everyone was pretty shocked by this. I don't see why honestly, I mean people start dating all the time. I guess it's just nice to talk about someone's good fortune or possible future problems on occasion.

I eventually logged off and went to eat dinner. Dad had gotten home early, so it looked like tonight we'd have dinner as a family tonight. That alone had become a rare occurrence since we arrived here. I enjoyed it.

I just wish that hadn't been one of the last few times we'd been together like that as a family.

--

The next day I headed out to school with Mike. Thankfully, the last Angel attack hadn't done too much damage to our side of town so the trip was pretty straight forward. If it changed at all I might have gotten lost, I never did have a good sense of direction. Mana met up with us near the coffee shop she and I would go to every now and again. Just seeing her made me smile for some reason. I never smiled much, just smirked if I thought something was amusing.

She handed me a tall cup of French vanilla coffee and Mike some chocolate milk. We walked, talking about the homework from last night and other things that were only really important to us. Mike eventually broke off from us to go walk with some of his pals leaving me and Mana to ourselves. Since it was Saturday we had a half day of school to get through and were planning on going to the mall later.

I was looking forward to that. Some time alone with Mana and no one else to really bug us.

I had some thinking to do, and class would be the best place to do it. Not like we'd go over anything important with the instructor today, Second Impact had quickly become old news and I think I knew everything there could have been publicly known about that meteor.

--

My mind wandered during class, as the teacher droned on about something which to me at the time was rather unimportant. I kept thinking about Mana, and I mean REALLY thinking. What were we? Friends, something more then that? What did she think we were? Did she think we were more then just friends?

It was odd how things like that seemed to be the only thing important in the world, even more important then when the next Angel was about to attack. Our class had become a bit smaller due to all the people sending their kids to places safer then Tokyo-03. If we were just friends, or if we were becoming a real couple, then we had a real problem. There was a very real possibility that we would be separated, possibly forever.

I couldn't just let her disappear like that. If we were a couple I had to do something quickly, and it had to be something big and important.

But what? Maybe I could ask someone for advice, someone I trusted with something this big.

Well, that pretty much knocked Mike off the list. He may have been my brother, but he couldn't keep a secret even if his life depended on it.

Mom was out of the question, she'd do nothing but tease me about it and provide advice that was at least twenty years out of date.

Dad just didn't have the time lately.

Who could I trust with this?

I really didn't know that many people, and my only real friend here was Mana, which meant I couldn't ask her for help. I only had a passing acquaintances with most of the students in our class, and the only other person I had spoke too for more then fifteen seconds that seemed to have an ounce of decency had been Hikari…

Wait, that might just work. Yes, Hikari would be able to help me, and she probably could keep a secret real well.

I'll just ask her opinion on the subject. Then I'll have an idea of what I should do next, if there even is a next.

So I set off to seek the advice of the honorable class representative, like a man going to the Dalhi Lama.

To be Continued…

Authors notes - First off, before you guys start in on me about the whole chat room thing I want to clarify that I said this was going to be a True SI. I discuss a lot of things with all the other DS members all the time. The only problem I had was how to integrate certain parts of my net life into this fic. So don't get pissy about the gratuitous self-promotion of Darkscribes.org, it's just as much of who I am as anything else I've used in this fic so far.

C&C is as always welcome at webmaster@darkscribes.org and appreciated.

Pre-readers: SDB, Ghola, Random