Ikari's eyes narrowed as he saw the Angel's form.

"Not entirely unexpected," Fuyutsuki commented.

"But none the less a threat."

Maya looked on in muted surprise as well. "So that's what he saw..."

The Angel, its form a perfect mimic of Unit 00, slowly stood up straight. The shifting of the armor and hidden musculature was identical, right down to the rushing crash as its feet pressed into the earth.

Rei's bright, crimson eyes widened, looking into the mono-optic fa�ade of the other Unit 00. This is what he saw?

The Angel suddenly gut-punched Unit 14, doubling the Eva over. Bringing its fist back around, Traumifel slammed it into the back of Unit 14's head, firmly shoving the black Eva to the ground. Unit 14 tried to get up, but Traumifel slammed its foot down into its back, driving the armored humanoid into the ground again. The Angel then reached down, and grabbed Unit 14 by the back of the head. It lifted the Eva up, looking into its face. Unit 14 hung there limply.

Misato's expression slackened in horror. "Cirus, defend yourself!" she shouted.

Silence.

Wavering, she persisted. "Cirus, I know what you saw, and I know how hard this has to be, but you have to defeat the Angel. It's the only way!" the Major urged desperately.

Again, silence.

Traumifel spun around, and axe-kicked Unit 14 to the ground with incredible force. It cracked the front of the brain case, but that healed shortly. Unrelenting, the Angel went for a punch to the Eva's head, but Unit 14's hand came up, and grabbed its fist. The Eva stood up slowly, armor and musculature stretching and shifting. As Traumifel's other fist shot in, he caught it. The Angel tilted its head at Unit 14, and then pulled away. Unit 14 let go of its hands to allow it.

Dr. Akagi's brow creased finally. "Why won't he fight back?"

"It's what he saw..." Misato answered slowly.

"Unit 00 is approaching the target!" Hyuga reported.

Misato stared at him in shock. "The real Unit 00?"

Hyuga nodded as the screen zoomed out, showing Unit 00 running toward its mimic, its power chord disengaged.

"It's not changing to attack Rei," Ritsuko noticed.

Misato's brow creased as she watched the situation. Traumifel was facing Unit 14 and Unit 00 was running up behind the Angel. Realization struck. "Its eyes! It has to see you to change to your fear!"

Unit 00 leapt at the Angel, and grabbed it around the neck and arm, pulling it to the ground with itself. The two of them struggled on the ground until they rolled away from each other and faced off. It was impossible to tell which was which.

"Cirus, you said you could deal with this," Ikari said over the comm.

Suddenly, Unit 14 charged toward the Unit 00 to its left, raising its right arm, blade out. The Unit 00 looked up, and raised its arms over its head as Unit 14 charged, the other Unit 00 closing in.

Rei knew Cirus couldn't tell it was her he was attacking. She opened her comm and shouted desperately, "Cirus!"

"Rei!?" Misato shouted in horror, realizing what was happening.

Suddenly, Unit 14 spun around, slashing the other Unit 00 in the neck, shoving the blade in deeply, and forcing the Angel back.

Rei's Unit 00 fell to its knees and relaxed its arms. She didn't want to interfere again.

Unit 14 took its other arm, and sliced the Angel down the torso diagonally. Blood poured out of both wounds, and sprayed Unit 14. The Angel, in a sickening mimic of Cirus' vision, reached up and grabbed Unit 14's face, its head straining to get closer.

"Rei... don't look at this..." Cirus' voice came over the comm in a soft but strained whisper.

Unit 00 started to turn away, and Maya took the same advice for herself.

Cirus looked down at the Angel with a hatred in his eyes that could rarely be matched. Unit 14 reached up with its free hand, and grabbed both of the Angel's, pulling them away from its. He was torn down the middle emotionally. His hatred for the Angel doing this to him, and his fear of destroying Unit 00. Even though he knew it wasn't real, just seeing himself physically do it would kill him. He pulled the blade out of Traumifel's neck, and resheathed it, his Eva's head lolling down. The Angel's neck healed, and it stood up in front of him.

Cirus realized what he had to do. He opened his comm. "Rei... I need you to look straight into the Angel's eyes when I tell you to, and then turn away. Can you do that?" he asked. He wouldn't force her to do this.

"Yes," her voice came back calmly.

Unit 14 reached up and grabbed Traumifel by the neck, spinning them both around, and forcing the Angel to face Unit 00. "Now Rei!"

The true Eva leaned down, staring into its double's optic. Rei looked into the Angel's eyes deeply, and she saw it start to change shape. She turned away then, and closed her eyes, realizing what Cirus was going to do. Traumifel changed into a mimic of his own Eva because of Rei's fear. Cirus spun the Angel around, and unsheathed both blades. He drove his left blade into the Angel�s left side of its neck, and his right blade into the other, then yanked his arms outward. The Angel's head flew off with an explosion of blood, and the body limply fell to the ground. Before the head even struck the terrain, it changed into a solid form of the Angel. A blue, humanoid creature with bright yellow eyes.

"Thank you, Rei," Cirus said over a private frequency.

Unit 00 stood up and faced Unit 14 as it walked over. "I did not see it," she replied, knowing what he was afraid of.

She saw his head nod to her with a faint smile in the comm screen.

"The target is still active!" Misato shouted into their comm.

Units 00, 02, and 14 spun around to look at the Angel. It put its head back on its body, and stood up with a flash of the yellow eyes.

"Get down," Asuka's deadly calm voice came over the comm.

Cirus and Rei complied as a massive rocket flew over their heads, and slammed through the Angel's torso, lodging itself halfway. Asuka tossed the Eva-sized bazooka to the ground, and started to walk toward them while the missile exploded. All three Evas ignored the shock-wave as it engulfed the area around them.

Cirus smiled wryly. "Good work, Asuka."

"That's what it gets for thinking it could beat me," Asuka replied indignantly, though her tone revealed a great deal of relief.

"Good work everyone. Return to base," Misato's voice came over their comm lightly.

The three Evas walked back to their launch pads and started to descend.

As they did, Cirus saw a comm window appear in his cockpit. It was Rei on a private line.

"Why could you not destroy the Angel?" she asked calmly.

"Because that's what I saw..." Cirus answered her quietly, bowing his head.

"...I see," she replied, and then the window closed.

Rei's eyes widened when she ended the transmission. He feared hurting her more than anything in his life, she knew that without doubt. She hadn't realized it before, but it was logical when she applied it to all the times they had spoken with each other.

Her Eva docking brought her back to the present, and she reserved to think about it more later.

The three pilots climbed down from their Evas; all three of them noticeably weary. As they converged on the way to the locker room Asuka spoke up. "I guess we should go check on Shinji."

"I agree. He got a nasty taste of reality today," Cirus replied calmly.

"What about you, little miss-"

"Asuka!" Cirus cut her off, looking at her with an urgent warning on his face.

"Oh... sorry. Well how about you Rei? Coming?" Asuka corrected herself, realizing that Cirus was telling her not to remind Rei of being a doll at the moment.

"Yes," Rei answered calmly.

"You are? Eh, fine. I guess he'll be happy to see you, too," Asuka replied.

Cirus shook his head at Asuka, but didn't say anything about it. He looked down at his watch as he stifled a yawn. He was a trained killer and a spy, but that didn't mean he never got tired. His eyes widened slightly as he saw the time. "It's only nine in the morning..."

"That early?" Asuka asked. "I thought it was evening..."

"So did I. Ah well," Cirus replied.

"We arrived at eight o'clock, and were dealing with the Angel for about an hour," Rei said calmly.

"True, it just seemed like longer," Cirus replied calmly with a nod.

A few minutes later the three pilots had changed and were going from the locker room to the medical bay.

"I swear, why does this place have to be so big?" Asuka asked as they rode one of the moving walkways toward the medical bay.

Cirus shook his head disapprovingly behind Asuka. How she could whine so much about everything he never understood. Especially how she did it without getting bored of her own voice.

After stepping off the walkway it was only a few minutes before they were at the door to the room in which Shinji was being treated. Misato was already inside, so the three of them went in.

Shinji was sitting up in the bed, and smiled as they entered. "Good to see you all," he said.

"Hey Shinji! Feeling better?" Asuka asked.

"Ah, much, thanks. Sorry I left so quickly though," Shinji apologized, nervously scratching the back of his head.

"I wouldn't worry about it too much, Shinji. Asuka got to add another notch to her gun," Cirus replied with a wry smile.

"Of course that was after Cirus and Rei did all the work," Misato added dryly.

"Hey!" Asuka shouted.

"Eh, calm down, Asuka, I was just joking," Misato replied, waving away the problem with her hand.

Asuka 'hmph'-ed and turned her chin up.

"So I take it you're just enjoying the free ice-cream?" Cirus asked Shinji with a raised eyebrow, keeping his wry smile.

Shinji blushed and scratched the back of his head again. "Heh, I guess."

"Yeah, he can leave as soon as he wants now," Misato explained. "Although you all deserve a bit of a break after that."

"You bet we do," Asuka replied.

"Asuka..." Cirus' voice trailed off meaningfully.

"What? We do!"

He shook his head wearily and looked at Misato. "Well, Major, how did the rebuilt Tokyo-3 handle its first crisis?"

Misato smiled at him. "Quite well. Thanks to you for letting it get built."

Cirus smiled back. "Good."

Misato stood up. "Well Shinji, I think we'll leave you be now. See you at home," she said pleasantly.

"All right, Miss Misato," Shinji replied, waving.

"See you tomorrow, Shinji," Cirus said with a wave of his hand.

"Yeah, see you at home," Asuka replied, tossing a wave behind her as she hurried out the door.

"Bye," Shinji said to them both.

"It is good to see you well, Ikari," Rei said, and then left quietly.

"Uh... thank you, Ayanami," Shinji finished quickly, seeing her leave.

Shinji was surprised. He didn't expect Rei to say things like that to him for no reason. She's changed...

Ikari raised his eyebrow at Cirus, who was standing in front of his desk in his office, illuminated by the afternoon sun. "Why did you do this?" he asked.

Cirus allowed a faint smile to play across his lips. "You're not cleared for that."

Fuyutsuki smiled himself. The boy wasn't helping himself, but he had merit.

"So do you mind or not?" Cirus asked back calmly.

Fuyutsuki wondered if the boy knew how sensitive the topic actually was, despite its apparently harmless nature.

Ikari narrowed his eyes thoughtfully for a moment. "...I see no reason against it, since it was not done at our expense," he said finally.

The Vice-Commander knew he only agreed because of Cirus' sway with SEELE. Nothing else could have persuaded him to allow what Cirus had requested.

The boy bowed his head respectfully. "Thank you, Commander," he said, and then turned and left.

"I'm surprised at you, despite his position," Fuyutsuki commented.

Ikari stood up from his desk, and walked over to the massive window to its right. "Remember, Fuyutsuki, that you once told me I was a very persuasive man?"

"Yes."

"I think you learned how to be so as well."

"So you're willing to let her live a possibly normal life then?"

The older man could see the Commander's frown in the window's reflection. "Simply because I have no choice. I know where her loyalties lie now, and getting rid of him would only make it worse."

"Ah, so you were beaten at your own game?"

"It would appear so."

"I wonder Ikari, are you in danger of becoming a decent man?"

Gendo didn't answer.

Rei was standing at the window in one of the hall's of NERV headquarters, looking out on the Geo-front and the underside of the restored city. The reflected sunlight that illuminated the cavern was a soft, yet powerful orange that cast the entire view into a beautiful, dream-like vista.

She turned her head when she heard voices coming down the hall toward her. It was Major Katsuragi and Dr. Akagi.

"Are you sure you want to take a bunch of kids out to a club with you, Misato?" Ritsuko asked with a raised eyebrow and a slightly amused smile.

"Oh, it'll be fun. They haven�t gotten to do anything fun for a long time, and this place reopens in three days. People are already starting to move back to the city," Misato replied.

Ritsuko looked forward, and her and Rei's eyes met across the hall. "Ah, it appears you have a chance to invite one of them now, Misato."

The dark-haired woman looked up curiously, and then smiled with an energetic wave at Rei. "Ah, hey Rei! Can I talk to you for a sec?" she asked.

Rei nodded, and walked back toward them.

She saw Ritsuko's smiled broaden as Misato looked down at her.

"Ah, Rei. A club is finally reopening in the city this Saturday, and I wanted to know if you would like to come. I'm going to tell the other pilots and Kaji to come. I think you'd have a wonderful time!"

"Don't worry, Rei. Neither of us mind if you say no," Ritsuko reminded her.

"I... suppose I would be able to go," Rei answered slowly. She didn't like places with large crowds, but Misato seemed rather set on her coming.

"Great! I knew you would, Rei! Oh, wait a minute!" Misato suddenly seemed to remember something. "Rei do you have anything else to wear?"

"No," Rei answered calmly with a shake of her head.

Misato seemed to digest that for a moment. "Ah," she drew out the word knowingly, "Rei come by my place earlier Saturday, and I'll give you something to wear, alright?"

Ritsuko shook her head. "Misato, you don't really expect Rei to come in one of your get-ups do you?"

"Hey, they aren't get-ups! They're very attractive outfits!"

Ritsuko sighed. "Rei, proceed with caution, you're going into a land of extreme... lack of taste," she chose which words to use as she walked past the two of them.

Misato glared at her, but then smiled at Rei. "Well?"

Rei was slightly bewildered by the speed of what had just happened. "...Y-yes, Miss Katsuragi."

"Great, you'll love it! I already have it picked out in my mind. Bye!" Misato said with a wave as she ran after Ritsuko.

Rei followed Misato with her eyes for a few minutes before calmly proceeding toward the exit gates of headquarters. It took her a few minutes from her location, but she made it there, and was surprised to see Cirus waiting for her. He was sitting, leaning against the wall just before the gates started. He looked up and smiled at her, standing. "Ah, Miss Ayanami."

"You were waiting for me?" Rei asked calmly.

"Yes. If you wish, I would like to show you something. It's quite a walk from here though," he answered.

"I will go," she replied with a slow nod.

Cirus smiled at her, and nodded his thanks. He turned around, opened the first gate, allowing her to walk through before him, and then stepping out beside her. They walked off down the sidewalk together.

"I wanted to thank you again, for what you did in the battle," he said as they walked, his voice calm, but soft.

"...You are welcome."

"Was it very difficult for you?" he asked, looking at her with a politely raised eyebrow.

Rei shook her head, making her hair dance slightly. "No, it was not."

Cirus nodded. "That's good. I would have regretted it if it was... painful for you." Regret being an understatement...

"I see," Rei replied. She could hear the meaning behind his tone.

They walked along silently for the next few minutes. Cirus caught himself staring at her again, and felt rather childish as they continued. After some time, Cirus smiled as he saw their destination. He guided Rei across the street, and they proceeded along the other side.

"During the reconstruction I noticed that this land lot was empty," Cirus explained as they walked up toward a small, old-style, Japanese home. Even though it was small, it was still nearly three times the size of the average apartment. "I asked the workers to do me a favor, and they were kind enough to do it."

Rei looked at the house as they walked toward it in mild surprise. "They built you this house?"

Cirus nodded as they reached the front door. He opened it for them both, and they stepped up into the small landing before the floor actually started. He took his shoes off, as did she, and he allowed her to step up first. He came forward, and started to show her the house.

The front door led to a long hall that ran straight to the back. The different rooms were split off from the hall by old-style sliding doors. The first door on the right was a large sitting room, the first on the left, a large dining room, and the next, on the right, was a two-person bedroom.

Cirus stopped at the next left room, and faced Rei before opening it. When she was standing at the door, he slid it open so that the room was revealed to her. A fully stocked kitchen with stove, pots, pans, plenty of cabinets and counter space, a dishwasher, fridge, and even a small dining area at the back.

"...It is very nice," Rei said awkwardly as she looked around, walking into the kitchen with subtly widened eyes.

Cirus smiled, and walked into the kitchen after her. "I thought you would like this part. The other two rooms are the master bedroom and the laundry room," he explained, still smiling at her.

"You are going to move here?" Rei asked calmly, turning around to face him.

His smile broadened, and he shook his head. "No, no. Well, that depends actually, but I could never use a place this big. The house belongs to you."

Rei's eyes widened and she blushed. "...It... It is mine?"

"Every square inch is in your name, Miss Ayanami. You're already cleared to move in, and, in fact, you already do live here, you just weren't informed until this moment," Cirus answered, smiling all the while.

"T-this is my... home?" Rei asked, the word coming to her lips for the first time with the true meaning behind it.

His smile softened for her. "Very much so. Do you like it?" he asked with a slight nod of his head.

Rei nodded, not really able to speak at the moment. No one had ever done anything like this for her.

"...Are you happy with it?" Cirus asked more specifically, his smile remaining.

"Y... yes..." Rei answered in a voice so soft it was almost inaudible.

Tears started to fall from her eyes, and she leaned back against the counter closest to her, suddenly feeling faint. Cirus stepped over closer to her.

"Are you all right?" he asked softly.

She nodded, distant, the feeling of the counter under her hands suddenly very comforting. This was her home. For the first time she understood what it meant when someone wanted to return home. She felt safe here; she wasn't alone, in a cold room, with no life.

...She looked up at Cirus and smiled through her tears. She reached and grabbed onto him around the waist, pulling herself to him, and burying her face in his shoulder as she cried. Cirus held her with his own arms, and smiled as he rested his head on hers, reaching up and gently stroking her hair with his hand.

"...Thank you," she said quietly with a soft, muffled voice in his shoulder.

Cirus closed his eyes as his own silent tears came up again. "You are very welcome, Miss Ayanami... very, very welcome."