History Fanfic / AdviceAndTrust

* AdaptationalJerkass: Asuka's date at the amusement park. In the original anime, Asuka merely blew off the date becauase she found him boring, but in this fic Asuka mentions to Hikari that he also tried to feel her up only an hour into their date.

* AccidentalProposal: Downplayed; [[spoiler:Misato's proposal to Kaji]] was more a matter of panicked babbling than misunderstanding, but it was still pretty much unintentional, and everyone has fun talking about it as such. (But the answer was "Yes.")

* AdaptationalContextChange: Asuka's argument with Shinji over forgetting to pack their lunches. In the anime it's legitimate, whereas in this fic, because they're hiding their relationship, Shinji deliberately forgot to pack the lunches so he and Asuka could stage a public argument to keep up appearances.

* BreakingPointSwearing: In chapter 3 Misato demands to know what is being kept from her about the nature of the Evas. Ritsuko tells she gave her all information regarding Eva. Misato's retort is accurate and precise:
-->'''Misato''':''"Bullshit! You're lying!"''

* PrecisionFStrike: In chapter 3 Misato demands to know what is being kept from her about the nature of the Evas. Ritsuko tells she gave her all information regarding Eva. Misato's retort is accurate and precise:
-->'''Misato''':''"Bullshit! You're lying!"''

It has a continuation crossover of sorts with ''Fanfic/TheSecondTry'', approved by both Strypgia and Jimmy Wolk. In The "[[https://archiveofourown.org/series/1203856 Chronicles]]" series, the A&T cast finds and watches the original ''Evangelion'' series, and later read ''[=TST=]'' and its webcomic {{continuation}} ''Webcomic/AkiChansLife''.

* EverythingsBetterWithPenguins: In chapter 8 Shinji plays a Strip Chess match against Pen Pen as part of Asuka's plan to get Misato to accept that he and Asuka are together (long story). Although Shinji was meant to lose, the penguin turns out to be pretty good at Chess, beating Shinji without losing its only item of clothing (he has also beaten Misato before, apparently). Later Asuka plays against Pen Pen to win Shinji and his clothes back. Yes, it is as funny as it sounds.

* AmnesiacLover: [[spoiler:Rei ends up losing all her memories of Kaworu after her HeroicSacrifice during the fight against Armisael, due to her last memory backup having been before they met. She has a hard time believing that she could have ever fallen in love with an Angel, and probably would have dismissed it as a lie if Asuka and Shinji hadn't corroborated the story. Fortunately, Rei is able to regain her memories of that time via her connection to Lilith.]]

** Rei eventually tells Ritsuko that, despite having good reason, she does not hate Ritsuko or Gendo. Ritsuko is alarmed, as the drug regimen she has prescribed for Rei shouldn't even permit her enough emotional depth to ''consider'' hating anyone; the explanation Rei offers is that she can always ''feel''; but normally, she does not ''care''.

** Shinji and Asuka's first kiss happened in chapter 1. Unlike what happened in canon, where their kiss went awry due to a lack of communication and understanding between both, Shinji accidentally put his hands on Asuka's hips which led to their kissing intensifying, and a RelationshipUpgrade after a much needed heart-to-heart talk.

* HintDropping: After kissing for first time Asuka asks Shinji why he had never responded any of her advances favourably if he liked her. Dismayed, she learns that Shinji never realized that she was dropping hints.

--->'''Asuka''':''"Wait, if you feel like that about me, why didn't you ever respond any of the other times I tried to flirt with you? I've been trying to get you to do something for weeks!"''\\
'''Shinji''':''"Wait, other times? What other times?"''\\
'''Asuka''':''"When a girl walks up to you in a bikini and starts using her chest as a ''physics demo'', she's trying to ''get your attention''!"''\\
'''Shinji''':''"Oh."''

** ZigZagged with Shinji and Asuka's "arguments" post-kiss. Whereas the arguments did occur in the original series, the fic turns them into Asuka and Shinji maintaining the cover of "they're still mad at each other" to protect their relationship.

* JokeAndReceive: Touji called Shinji and Asuka newlyweds when they were having a (staged) fight. A while later they confessed publicly that they had been secretly dating for several months before kissing in front of all their classmates, and Touji muttered that he thought he was joking when he told they looked a married couple:

* LonersAreFreaks: During their post-FirstKiss conversation Shinji and Asuka dejectedly tell each other they were always alone after their mothers' deaths and their fathers' abandonment. They had no friends because no one wanted to talk to them, no one even tried to understand their pain or cared... and no one could in fact understand.

** After their FirstKiss, Shinji tells Asuka his mother died in an Eva-related accident when he was four. Astonished, Asuka reveals her mother died when she was four, too.

** Hikari's mother is also missing. [[spoiler:After Hikari tells them about what happened to her inside Unit-03, Asuka comes to the conclusion that Hikari's mother is inside 03's core.]]

* OfficialKiss: In chapter 2 Shinji and Asuka kiss. After, they have a long talk where they open up to each other and become a couple.

** In chapter 4 Shinji thinks for a second that Misato knows that he and Asuka have been doing behind her back, and he has this reaction.

* OneManArmy: While Asuka is trying to cheer Shinji up she reminds him that they are possibly the more dangerous persons in the planet and they could take on anything and anyone.
* OneSteveLimit: Averted. Asuka's mother and one of Kensuke's girlfriends are both named Kyoko.

** In chapter 4, when Shinji learns his father took Rei in after abandoning him, he is so furious it gets Asuka shocked:

* SacredFirstKiss: Discussed. A random occurrence turns Asuka and Shinji's canonical AwkwardKiss into TheBigDamnKiss, which leads to their first RelationshipUpgrade. In chapter 5 they discuss what could have happened if Shinji had not accidentally placed his hands on Asuka's waist and both agree that their FirstKiss would have been ruined, leaving them angry, upset and feeling worse than usual.

It has a continuation crossover of sorts with ''Fanfic/TheSecondTry'', approved by both Strypgia and Jimmy Wolk. In The "[[https://archiveofourown.org/series/1203856 Chronicles]]" series, the A&T cast finds and watches the original ''Evangelion'' series, and later read ''[=TST=]''.

* ShoutOut: Moved to its own subpage.

** In "[[https://archiveofourown.org/series/1203856 The Laserdisc Chronicles]]", the A&T cast watch the original series, and describe that "alternate universe" as a horrible world.

* CharacterDevelopment: Asuka's plan in chapter 8 was meant to mess with Misato's mind ''and'' [[http://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/posts/4290937/ show subtly that they had matured since they were together]]: Asuka can now control her temper, both teens care about each other and are comfortable with their bodies and with sexuality to the point they can have fun with some fantasy -- or make fun of each other's personality traits -- without ruining their real relationship...
* ChastityCouple: Invoked. Ritsuko deliberately wanted to take things slowly with Maya since she had just come out of an emotionally abusive relationship with Gendo.

** In chapter 7 Rei -- who was upset after being forced to not see Shinji and Asuka for two days -- hugged Shinji and then Asuka, giving her an additional hug on Shinji's behalf. The three of them felt comforted and calmer for it.

* ArmorPiercingSlap: Without thinking, Rei delivers one to Kaworu in chapter 9 after he (playfully) threatens to interfere with Shinji and Asuka's relationship. Both Kaworu ''and Rei herself'' are surprised by her outburst. It's so strong that Kaworu bounces off the tree behind him.

* ShesGotLegs:
** At the beginning of chapter 3, Shinji sees Asuka wearing nothing but a ModestyTowel. He tries very hard to not drool over her naked legs.
--->''A small part of his brain was concentrating on not dropping the hot pot on his feet, because most of it was trying not to drool helplessly over the way Asuka's long, smooth legs disappeared up under the hem of the towel, mixed in with memories of last night that said sight triggered.''
** Later in the story Rei Ayanami falls for both her fellow pilots and she also notes Asuka has beautiful legs:
--->''Shinji's deep blue eyes... Asuka's crystal blue ones... her long red hair... his sensitive hands... her long legs, his compassion, her fire, her heat...' ''

* OrphansOrdeal: After kissing for first time, Shinji and Asuka open up to each other and find out their childhoods were very similar: their mothers died, their fathers left them with no explanation or apology, they had nightmares the whole time about it, and they were always alone because no one cared about them or tried to understand their pain.

* ParentalAbandonment: After their FirstKiss Shinji blurts out accidentally he was abandoned by his father when he was a little kid after his mother's death. Amazed, Asuka muses that is exactly what happened to her. Both teenagers talk about how they never got an apology or explanation from their fathers, how they still miss their mothers and have nightmares about their deaths... and start bonding thanks to their shared griefs.
* ParentalFavoritism: Subverted. Rei is Gendo's favorite (of course, Rei is really only nominally so by virtue of being the keystone to his plans, as well as her resemblance to Yui). However, Asuka realizes that it does not amount to be valued since Gendo still treats Rei like crap. Finding out what Rei's life is like helps Asuka to get over her jealousy.
-->''Asuka didn't say anything for a minute. "She's the Commander's pet, his favorite," she said in a low voice. "Not you, his own son. Not me, the top scorer. Her. She's the one he likes. And they've got her taking so many tranquilizers and dissociatives I'm amazed she was even able to get angry enough to slap you. That amount of drugs has to be making her nearly a robot. That 's the kind of cocktail you give to someone you want to keep totally pliable, unargumentative, too doped up to care about anything... someone you want to make into a doll." Asuka shuddered. "If they can do that to the Pilot they like, what do they think of us?"''
* ParentalHypocrisy: Subverted. When Misato forbids Shinji and Asuka from sleeping together Asuka tries to argue Misato is a hypocrite. It doesn't work.

* PersonOfMassDestruction: Shinji, Asuka and Rei are capable of massive property damage or even ending humanity. And Rei not even needs a giant robot to turn all humans into orange soup.

--->''"C'mon, Shin-man, you've gotta tell us what you're doin' different, so we can get in on it! I could finally get one of these hot babes to notice my studly, well-muscled bod-OW!" Touji's paean to his handsome form was cut off by the impact of a well-aimed piece of chalk to the middle of his forehead.''\\

** Surprisingly averted with Asuka in that same chapter. When she found out about Shinji accidentally seeing Rei naked and touching her right breast she was pissed off... but since it was an accident, she did not hold it against him.

* ThePlan: When [[spoiler:[[TheQuietOne Rei]] was fighting [[HeroKiller Zeruel]] all alone,]] because [[spoiler: Asuka and he got fired]], and she was losing badly, Shinji came up with a plan to help her: [[spoiler:return to the Geofront and [[GrandTheftPrototype hijack a spare Eva Unit]], reasoning that Asuka and himself would be able to move it together.]] Was it a good plan? [[spoiler:Yes, it was.]]

* PreAssKickingOneLiner: In chapter 7 [[spoiler:Rei is fighting Zeruel all alone.]] It is about to kill her when [[spoiler:Shinji and Asuka show up riding Unit 03.]] Before start kicking its rear they say in unison:
-->'''Shinji and Asuka:''' "Get away from my friend,"

* ProperlyParanoid: Ritsuko thinks that Unit-00 went berserker because it hated her and was trying to kill her. Later on, Rei confirms that the soul inside Unit-00 does hate Ritsuko.

* PunishedForSympathy: [[spoiler:Shinji and Asuka]] are fired and thrown out. The reason? [[spoiler:[[BodySnatcher Bardiel]] had hijacked the HumongousMecha that one of their friends was piloting. They were ordered to disregard the pilot and destroy the enemy.]] They refused to abandon their friend and managed [[spoiler:saving the pilot and destroying the enemy.]] Still [[spoiler:Gendo]] was so furious with them for not following his orders that he declared he had no use for unreliable pilots and fired them.

* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: In chapter Shinji gets fed up with classmate Chihiro Tanaka treating him as a prize to be won and dissing Asuka and Rei as trying to seduce him. And he makes sure that Tanaka hears about it:

* RelationshipUpgrade: Shinji and Asuka became a couple in chapter 1 which happens two months before the prologue. During their FirstKiss Shinji accidentally places his hands on Asuka's hips, which leads her to think he is reciprocating and intensify the kiss. In turn Shinji realizes she is kissing him because she wants to and kisses her back. After breaking their kiss they talk about their feelings, realize each other's feelings and get together.

* TheRival: Since they met Asuka always regarded Shinji as her rival, a challenge to beat, the one could best her. After getting together their rivalry becomes more friendly but she still encourages him to push himself so that she keeps feeling challenged and driven to improve her piloting and fighting skills.

** In a way, Rei to both Shinji and Asuka. She fell for them but they are in a fully committed relationship and are not looking for an additional romantic partner, even if they love her [[spoiler:([[https://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/threads/advice-and-trust-nge.8768/page-234#post-5146298 yet]], though granted that's assuming that Rei's romance with Kaworu doesn't last through the end)]]. And she does not want to disrupt their bond, either.

** After getting together Shinji and Asuka's lives had gotten better: they were happier and more stable, they had kicked an EldritchAbomination's posterior together, they were helping Rei to get in touch with her humanity and developing a strong bond with their teammate, their best friends were getting together... and then [[spoiler:the Bardiel incident happened. Hikari got trapped inside Unit-03 and they got fired.]]
** The whole fight against Zeruel was a sucession of Hope Spots. Several times Rei was apparently getting the upper hand or gaining an advantage or rising after getting stomped flat... right before getting pummelled by Zeruel again. And then [[spoiler:Shinji and Asuka came along piloting Unit-03, saved Rei and started to beat Zeruel up... and then they ran out of power.]]
* HotBlooded: Asuka is brave, passionate and hot-headed. When she fights alien monstrosities, when she scares other girls away Shinji, when she encourages her boyfriend and her friends, when she argues with her commanding officers... she oozes passion and fierceness.
* HouseHusband: Shinji is the one who handles all of the household chores in Misato's apartment, while his guardian Misato and his roommate (and secret girlfriend) Asuka do nothing (except praising his cooking skills and cleaning ''sometimes''). So what happens when Shinji and Asuka decide to mess with Misato's head? Asuka wears an apron, cooks and insists she does all cooking, shopping, keeing the apartment clean and all laundry. Misato is so confused she barely can tell [[FlatWhat "What"]] over and again.
* HowWeGotHere: Much of the opening act is spent chronicling the time before and after the two month period referenced in the page quote. This ends in Chapter 5 (part 2), where the story has caught back up and moves forward.

* HumongousMecha: The part-mechanical, part-biological Evangelion. Throughout the history Shinji and Asuka start to realize that they are not mere robots, and figure out some of their secrets [[spoiler:(such like their mothers being stuck inside).]]
* HurtingHero: In chapter 1 Asuka and Shinji have a long conversation where they talk about how they were abandoned by their fathers after their mothers' deaths when they were three—and never got an explanation or apology—they spent their whole childhood feeling lonely with no friends, nobody understood their pain or cared about it, they still have constant nightmares about it... after reaching each other out and bonding they feel more confident about winning the war against a bunch of giant alien monsters, but they still see their family and friends getting hurt constantly.

'''Asuka:''' "Well, duh. That's the way things are supposed to go. He's mine. He belongs to me,"

* IcyBlueEyes: Asuka has very piercing "crystal blue eyes" -according Rei- which stare through you.
* IKnowYouKnowIKnow: In chapter 8 Kihl informs Gendo that they will send him the Fifth Child. Gendo knows the Fifth Child will surely be a spy. Kihl knows that Gendo will regard him suspiciously. And Gendo knows that Kihl knows that. And Kihl knows that Gendo knows that Kihl knows that.

* IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight: In chapter 8 Rei gets doped to the gills due to Ritsuko's "medication" and is completely emotionless, unresponsive and unfeeling. Shinji and Asuka spend a good while trying to draw her out. When Rei finally -and laboriously- shows some emotion, Asuka asks her if she is still in there. When she says "yes", both teenagers feel relieved.

** [[WordOfGod Strypgia]] [[http://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/posts/2137040/ said]] that [[TheProfessor Ritsuko]] would need a whole bottle of vodka after seeing both [[HumongousMecha Units 01 and 02]] [[spoiler:awakening and going [[TheBerserker berserker]]]] given the implications of the fact.

** PlayedForDrama when Misato ''really'' wants to get drunk, but decides she shouldn't, after [[spoiler:the team is attacked by snipers and Shinji is hospitalised]]. Rei passes her a can of UCC-brand coffee.

** ZigZagged with Shinji and Asuka's "arguments" post-kiss. Whereas the arguments did occur in the original series, the fic turns them into Asuka and Shinji maintaining the cover to protect their relationship.
* InLoveWithYourCarnage: In chapter 8 Ritsuko remembers the sight of Unit-01 howling like a blood-thirsty demon as its enemy was being ripped apart by its and Unit-02's combined efforts and she wonders inwardly: "That is your precious Yui there, Gendo, howling blood and madness like something from the depths of Hell! Is that what you want back?" The answer is a clear and definite yes, that is what Gendo wants.

** Asuka starts regarding Gendo this way after he [[spoiler:fires both her and Shinji as Eva pilots for countermanding his orders and neutralizing Bardiel with almost no collateral damage - even successfully recovering the entry plug.]]

* IUhYouToo: During a pillow talk scene Misato and Kaji are fed up with denying their feelings and pretending their relationship is only "friends with benefits"... but they are too frightened to spit it out, so they struggle to find a way to tell "I still love you" without actually saying the words:

** Rei falls in love with both Shinji and Asuka but she renounces to try to have a relationship with them because she does not want to interfere with their love bond:

** Subverted with their female classmates. They have guessed what something is happening between them and Asuka has kind of claimed Shinji, but they will not stop trying to seduce him.

** In chapter 7 [[spoiler:Shinji manages getting Hikari out of [[HumongousMecha Unit 03]] where she was absorbed.]] Gendo could have realized maybe it meant Yui could come out, but she chose not to -therefore he should stop his little "I'll get the whole mankind killed in order to save my wife" scheme-, but he chose focusing on the fact that it is possible for a soul come out of an Eva.
** In chapter 8 Rei shows many signs that she isn't interested in Gendo and she doesn't even ''like'' him. Still, Ritsuko refused to realize the implications, and kept drugging Rei because she thought that "the doll" was "competition."

* ForWantOfANail: The premise of the story matches up exactly with canon until during the kiss Asuka gives Shinji -- he grabs her waist to stay upright (because he can't breathe and Asuka is holding his nose shut), which she interprets as the vital reassurance she was hoping for that he liked her, as well. Things tumble along from there... to say the least.

-->Asuka waved her concern away. "It's fine, he's gone and forgotten. Tomorrow I won't even remember his name. So much for him being a 'dashing older student' like you said. He was just a selfish jerk out for a cheap feel, not anything like a real good man, like Kaji-san or S--" Asuka suddenly coughed violently and covered her mouth. 'Crap! You idiot! That was close!'\\

"Ssssssschelbert-san. Guy I knew in Berlin. Nice guy, very... er... tall. You don't know him,"

* {{Gaslighting}}: Asuka comes up with a ZanyScheme involving Strip Chess and role-reversal to bewilder Misato so thoroughly that she doesn't have the mental fortitude to make a big deal of the fact her two wards are sleeping together. [[spoiler: It ultimately fails -- insofar as Misato still loses her temper when she finds out.]]
* GeneralFailure: Commander Gendo Ikari. He devised a real dumb strategy to fight Bardiel, and when his pilots had to change the plan and adapt to survive and win, he got in their way nonstop, distracting them, berating them and issuing stupid commands. Then, when Shinji, Asuka and Rei managed to [[spoiler:destroy the enemy and rescue the pilot with no casualties]], he got so angry at them for not winning how he wanted that he [[spoiler:had Shinji and Asuka -- his best pilots -- detained and ultimately fired]] and [[spoiler:lectured Rei for "insubordination"]].

* GrandTheftPrototype: When [[spoiler:[[TheQuietOne Rei]] was fighting [[HeroKiller Zeruel]] with no support]] and losing badly, [[BattleCouple Shinji and Asuka]] wanted to help her but they could not use their own [[HumongousMecha Evas]], so that they [[spoiler:hijacked Unit 03.]]
* GratuitousGerman: Asuka, of course, falls back on her mother tongue occasionally, especially when she is angry. When [[spoiler:Zeruel maimed her Unit 02]] she shouted: "Du Arschloch! Sie Ente verdammte Scheiße Esser! Ich bring dich um!"[[labelnote:translation]]You asshole! You duck fucking shit eater! I’ll kill you![[/labelnote]]

** Shinji also starts speaking German as time goes on, due to Asuka tutoring him. He was even planning to speak nothing but German during her birthday party, though notably, she shot that idea down because she figured that almost everyone else present would have trouble understanding.
* GratuitousJapanese: Some bits here and there (mainly Asuka calling Shinji "baka" or some honorifics), but its use in this story is not too jarring.

* GreenEyedEpiphany: Inverted. Rei finds out why Ritsuko hates her when she realizes the scientist loves Gendo and is jealous of her.

* GrewASpine: Shinji, with the help of Asuka's influence, and not punished by the plot. Fully demonstrated in the fight with Bardiel, where [[spoiler: he and Asuka convince Rei to disobey Gendo and attempt to rescue Hikari]].

* HatesBeingAlone: Asuka, obviously. The difference here is that she's actually explicit about showing it to Shinji (and, eventually, Rei) after they become a couple. Unlike in canon, she ''isn't'' alone anymore thanks to having Shinji, and she is ''extremely'' protective of that as a result.
** When Gendo [[spoiler: has Shinji and Asuka detained for insubordination]] after the fight with Bardiel, Asuka is starting to panic as the forced isolation sets in... until she hears Shinji knocking a familiar beat against the wall [[spoiler: in the cell next to hers.]] It immediately pulls her out of the spiral and helps her get through the whole thing.

* HeKnowsTooMuch: Rei wanted to tell Shinji and Asuka everything about her origins and NERV and SEELE's real goals, but Kaworu warned her that SEELE would kill them all if they found out that they knew too much. [[spoiler:Later [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] - once SEELE begins trying to kill the pilots anyway, Rei and Kaworu agree that there is no longer any reason to hold back information.]]

* HeroicBSOD: Asuka got one in episode 7 when [[spoiler:Gendo fired her in the wake of the battle against Bardiel,]] which in her mind meant that she was useless since she had lost the only thing made her special and worthy of something. She collapsed, and Shinji had to catch her before she hit the ground and carry her out. Later she told him that she was hanging on by a thread, and she was coping only because he was there for her.
* HeroicSafeMode: Asuka goes into this in the immediate aftermath of [[spoiler:SEELE's assassination attempt on the Pilots]] in Chapter 11.
* HeroicSelfDeprecation: Much like in canon, Shinji has incredibly low self-esteem, although he gets better as the story progresses thanks to his relationship with Asuka. At one point, Tanaka tries to flirt with him by calling him a hero, and it visibly makes him incredibly uncomfortable.
* HighSchoolSweethearts: After their FirstKiss Shinji and Asuka had a long, civil talk where they open up to each other and realized they were the same. They got together but they tried to keep their relationship secret out of fear to be separated. When an adult found out about their relationship and objected they firmly declared this was NOT a middle-school crush and they did not plan breaking up... ever.

* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Ritsuko orders Shinji and Asuka spending more time with Rei, hoping that they help Rei to raise her synch scores. However the result is that Shinji and Asuka are learning things about Rei that neither Ritsuko nor Gendo want them knowing. Even worse, they have helped to Rei to become self-reliant and [[TrueCompanions have bonded with her]], and now she questions Gendo's will, trusts Shinji and Asuka more than she trusts him, and is willing to disobey his orders.
* HoldingHands: After [[RelationshipUpgrade their]] FirstKiss [[IdiotHero Shinji]] [[BattleCouple and]] [[{{Tsundere}} Asuka]] like holding hands constantly. Unfortunately, since they are forced to [[SecretRelationship hide their relationship]] they can not make it publicly.

* ManipulativeBastard: Gendo is a manipulative bastard, but he isn't as good as he'd like to believe. When the Children refused to follow his orders, he reprimanded Rei severely and [[spoiler:fired]] Shinji and Asuka, thinking that, in the event that he needed them back, he knew what buttons to press: Rei was brainwashed to obey him, Asuka needed to be an Eva pilot to validate her own existence, and Shinji craved his approval and would never want to be apart from Asuka. Usually he'd be right, but they had changed when he wasn't paying attention, and those emotional levers wouldn't work.

** In a slightly less conventional example, Asuka and Shinji both meet each other's mothers during a cross-synch test in Chapter 10. Despite Kyoko's mental instability and Asuka viciously calling out Yui for all the crap she put Shinji through, it goes rather well.
* TheMenInBlack: NERV's agents. Asuka calls them "Gendo's private Gestapo". After the battle against Bardiel [[spoiler:they arrested Shinji and Asuka per orders of the Commander]], and after the battle against Zeruel [[spoiler:they dragged both teens to meet Gendo]]. In no instance they were remotely kind, warm or agreeable.
* MildlyMilitary: NERV's formality varies depending on the character. Gendo [[spoiler:fired his best pilots only because they did not follow orders, even though they won the battle and he had no replacements]]. Misato is pretty informal but she puts her foot down when she thinks it is warranted: she was okay with two of her pilots dating each other because she thought it was cute, but she was against them sleeping together, and brought up chain-of-command concerns when her wards argued the matter with her.
* MilkingTheGiantCow: Downplayed examples. In chapter 8, while having lunch with his friends, Touji is so frustated with being not allowed seeing his girlfriend while she spends time in the hospital that he stretched his hands out and "nervously grasped at nothing". Before, Misato does much the same while discussing Shinji and Asuka's relationship with Kaji, though she uses her still bandaged hand for it.
* MindRape: Both Rei and Kaworu end up getting attacked by Arael and are subjected to their worst fears (Rei being rejected by Asuka and Shinji for her angelic nature, and Kaworu giving into his instincts and causing TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt). Rei takes it so hard that she begs Ritsuko to drug away the pain afterwards despite her history with being drugged. Fortunately, there are no long-term effects thanks to the emotional support from their friends.
* MindScrew: When Asuka [[spoiler:got trapped into the Sea of Dirac]], she got a very weird hallucination where she was in a train car and a child version of her talked about "the self inside of the self" and asked what she was afraid of and whether she was valued. Asuka later described that episode in these terms: "I... it was like I had eaten too much spicy food and fallen asleep reading Sartre or something. Just a weird conversation with myself about... the self, and loneliness. It didn't make much sense."

** After their FirstKiss Shinji tells Asuka his mother died when he was four. Astonished, Asuka reveals her mother died when she was four, too.

** Hikari's mother is also missing [[spoiler:although she felt her when she was stuck inside her Eva.]]
* MistreatmentInducedBetrayal: [[TheWoobie Shinji]] was abandoned by his father Gendo when he was four, [[BrokenBird Asuka]] was also abandoned by her father when she was four and then trained to be a Child Soldier, [[BattleCouple they]] have been used like disposable and replaceable weapons for Gendo and then fired when he thought he had a replacement who would not disobey their orders, and in chapter 7 they found that their mothers' deaths were not "accidents"... in summary, they are turning on NERV.

* MixtapeOfLove: Kaworu gives Rei a mixtape as a Christmas present. He wanted to make something for her, but his adamite nature means that he has CreativeSterility. Shinji's suggestion of a mixtape proved to be [[LoopholeAbuse a good workaround]].

* MoralityChain: Rei is the one thing keeping Kaworu from giving into his Angelic instincts and becoming [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Tabris]]. [[spoiler:When she dies in a HeroicSacrifice against Armisael, it's only thanks to a combination of his knowledge that she usually gets better in other timelines and a well timed pep talk from Mrs Horaki that keeps him from trying to start Third Impact right then and there.]]
* MotherlyScientist: Subverted with Ritsuko. She looks nice at the beginning. However she doesn't care for Rei, mistreats her and regards her as a doll and a tool at best, or a creepy abomination at worst.

-->'''Shinji:'''' "How come I'm the one with the pack after them? You were ten times as popular as I was, a week after you arrived, miss incredibly-hot-exotic-foreign-transfer-student. I know Touji and Kensuke were making crazy amounts of cash selling beauty shots of you almost right away. Why haven't I had to chase away a pack of boys drooling after you?"\\

** In chapter 12.4, when Asuka confides in Misato about her [[InsecureLoveInterest ongoing feelings of insecurity]], she utters both Shinji's classic English dub line from The End of Evangelion's hospital scene ("I'm so fucked up") as well as her own Japanese script line from the film's ending ("I feel sick").
* NegativeSpaceWedgie: In chapter 3 the pilots fight Leliel, a being that is apparently a floating, white-and-black-striped sphere. It turns out that the sphere is a shadow, and its "shadow" is Leliel's real body: an impossibly thin body that stores a whole alternate dimension of blank nothingness. [[spoiler:Asuka falls inside it and spends twelve hours trapped inside Leliel as the alien monster tries to mind-rape her. She gets saved when her mecha goes berserker at the same time that Shinji's.]]
* NeverMyFault: Gendo blamed Shinji, Asuka and Rei for disobeying his orders when they fought Bardiel. Never mind his strategy was dumb and nearly got them killed. Never mind they HAD to disobey his commands in order to adapt and survive the enemy attack. Never mind they [[spoiler:won, destroying Bardiel, rescuing the pilot and recovering the Unit hijacked by the enemy]] by ignoring his interfering commands. He blamed them for "insubordination" and "endangering the humanity", he punished Shinji and Asuka and threatened Rei.

* NightmareSequence: In chapter 8, Asuka has a nightmare in which she and Shinji were fighting [[EldritchAbomination Israfel]] again, and Shinji dies. Meanwhile Shinji has another nightmare where he sees Asuka sinking again in the volcano's magma, he jumps in to rescue her, and he misses.
* NoMedicationForMe: The only reason Rei was taking "a giant cocktail of sedatives, dissociatives, mood suppressors, and hormonal contraceptives" was because it made it easier for Gendo to control her. Horrified that this is what NERV is doing to their Pilots, Asuka pretty much begs Rei to stop taking it when she finds out (Asuka had previously been put on Benzodiazepine by her step-mother for similar reasons). Rei ends up going through several months of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benzodiazepine_withdrawal_syndrome various withdrawal symptoms]], but slowly starts experiencing emotions as she detoxes and recovers with their help. She also had the good sense to research what to do to ease the symptoms, stealing a counter agent from Doctor Akagi to reduce the nastier side effects. She even exploits LCL exposure during Synch Tests to help her cut her doses faster.

** When they open up in chapter 1, Shinji and Asuka remark that neither of them has social skills due to their childhood trauma and growing up with no friends. Asuka realizes that is the reason that Shinji never got her hints.
** When the three pilots are ordered to spend time together Asuka -and Shinji- finds out that Rei is weirder and socially-unaware that she previously thought: she does not understand the concept of modesty, does not know what a double entendre is, does not know any thing about relationships between boys and girls... and she has never known her mother. Oh, and NERV is drugging her. Rei's social awkwardness is what leads Shinji and Asuka to suspect that NERV is up to something real bad.

** When [[spoiler:Asuka fell into Leliel's otherdimensional trap,]] Shinji acted incredibly cool and unemotional as she was missing. Misato and Rei are both struck with the thought that he looks just like his father.

* ObfuscatingStupidity: After getting together Shinji and Asuka start to figure out several secrets of Nerv by comparing their pasts and their experiences piloting their Evangelions, but since they realize they are not supposed to know about them and they are trying to keep their relationship under wraps they pretend they are clueless and oblivious to not draw unwanted attention to themselves.
* ObliviousToHints: After kissing for first time, Asuka asks Shinji why he had never responded any of her advances favorably if he liked her. Dismayed, she learns that Shinji was completely oblivious to her hints. In chapter 2:

* OldFlame: Misato and Kaji are this to each other. In chapter 8 Misato gets tired of dancing around the issue and tells Kaji she wants them to get together again.

* HouseHusband: Shinji is the one makes all household chores in Misato's apartment while his guardian Misato and his roommate -and secret girlfriend- Asuka do nothing (except praising his cooking skills sometimes). So what happens when Shinji and Asuka decide to mess with Misato's head? Asuka wears an apron, cooks and insists she does all cooking, shopping, keeing the apartment clean and all laundry. Misato is so confused she barely can tell [[FlatWhat "What"]] over and again.

* HurtingHero: In chapter 1 Asuka and Shinji have a long conversation where they talk about how they were abandoned by their fathers after their mothers' deaths when they were three -- and never got an explanation or apology -- they spent their whole childhood feeling lonely with no friends, nobody understood their pain or cared about it, they still have constant nightmares about it... after reaching each other out and bonding they feel more confident about winning the war against a bunch of giant alien monsters, but they still see their family and friends getting hurt constantly.

** [[WordOfGod Strypgia]] [[http://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/posts/2137040/ said]] that [[TheProfessor Ritsuko]] would need a whole bottle of vodka after seeing both [[HumongousMecha Unit 01 and 02]] [[spoiler:awakening and going [[TheBerserker berserker]]]] given the implications of the fact.
** In chapter 8 Asuka and Shinji carry out a plan to let Misato know they are together and get her to accept they are also sleeping together and they will not stop. Every step of that plan (involving Strip Chess, foot massages and Shinji and Asuka swapping roles) invariably gets Misato craving for alcohol. Plenty of it.

** PlayedForDrama when Misato ''really'' wants to get drunk, but decides she shouldn't, after [[spoiler:the team is attacked by snipers and Shinji is hospitalised]].
* IfOnlyYouKnew: In chapter 7, Asuka abruptly leaves the dining table to lie down in her bedroom, due to being severely traumatized from the aftermath of the battle against Bardiel ([[spoiler:she and Shinji were fired as pilots for disobeying orders, and on top of that, she'd just learned Hikari had been absorbed into Unit-03's core]]). Shinji watches her leave long enough for Misato to notice:

** Shinji thought he wasn't good enough for Asuka before ''and'' after hooking up with her. However Asuka disagrees and she always replies he's the only man good enough for her.

* InnocentBlueEyes: Shinji has -quoting Rei- "deep blue eyes" and he is pretty innocent and naive (at the beginning).
* InnocentFanserviceGirl: Due to her upbringing Rei is completely clueless social-wise and she has no idea why people -like Shinji- freaks out when she walks naked or flashes her underwear. When they argued the subject Asuka could not tell whether Rei was innocent or trollish until she realized Rei was indeed oblivious. Then Asuka explained Rei why people had those reactions when she flashed them... [[{{Troll}} And Rei started doing it on purpose.]]

* KnightOfCerebus: Once again, [[BodySnatcher Bardiel]] fills this role. The story's tone takes a much more serious and drama-focused weight during and after the battle, with [[spoiler: Hikari]] left [[spoiler: disembodied inside Unit-03]] as well as Shinji and Asuka being thrown into solitary confinement.

* LethalChef: Misato's cook is... dangerous. In chapter 8 Asuka accuses her from almost poisoning their penguin pet:

'''Asuka:''' "The last time you fed 'your best curry' to Pen Pen, he spent the rest of the night staring at the ceiling and barking."

-->'''Misato''': Take her out for drinks next time instead of me and Kaji? [...] It's not like you've never kissed a girl before. Or done even m-\\

-->'''Asuka:''' [[LampshadeHanging A psychiatrist would probably say we're all kinds of unhealthily dependent on each other,]]

* LostHimInACardGame: In chapter 8 Shinji loses a Strip Chess match against Pen Pen and becomes his "butler" for a month (long -and hilarious- story). Asuka wanted to win Shinji back, so she and the penguin played another Strip Chess match. If she won, she would have Shinji back and he would be her cabaña boy for one week; if Pen Pen won, Shinji would be his butler for one month AND she would do all Shinji's chores. Pen Pen lost the match and Shinji. [[spoiler:It's all an act, designed to mess with Misato's head and shake up her preconceived ideas about them, before they break the news that they're lovers.]]

* LoveRevelationEpiphany: Subverted. Misato thinks that Shinji and Asuka are oblivious to each other's feelings and in the Prologue she tries to make Shinji realizing Asuka loves him. Ironically they had gotten together several weeks ago and had kept their relationship a secret.

** Ritsuko was in love with Gendo but she did not know him at all.
** At the same time she thinks Maya's crush on her is idol worship because Maya did not know her real self.

** In chapter 3 Asuka flushes while thinking of what her and Shinji did the last night right after getting together. Later Shinji becomes red after slipping that thinking about Asuka kept him awake at night.
** In chapter 4 Misato teases Shinji about his feelings towards Asuka. Shinji flushed incandescently.

** At the beginning of the story Shinji and Asuka realize they are alike. Since that point, when they are trying to understand each other, each one of them thinks "He/she is just like me. How would I feel in that situation?"
** When [[spoiler:Asuka fell into the Leliel otherdimensional trap,]] Shinji acted incredibly cool and unemotional as she was missing. Misato thought he looked just like his father.
** In chapter 7 Kaji is arguing with Shinji and Asuka. During that discussion Shinji looked so cold and his stare so harsh and firm that Kaji could not help to think of how much Shinji resembled his father.

* ObliviousToHints: After kissing for first time Asuka asks Shinji why he had never responded any of her advances favorably if he liked her. Dismayed, she learns that Shinji was completely oblivious to her hints. In chapter 2:

* ObliviousToLove: Subversion. In the prologue Misato thinks Shinji and Asuka are still oblivious to each other's feelings and she tries to encourage Shinji to win Asuka over... not knowing they got together two months ago. The first chapter narrates how they accidentally noticed each other's feelings after dancing around each other for months without realizing the obvious, and both got shocked reactions.
* OffWithHisHead: In chapter 7 [[spoiler:Zeruel beheads Unit 00 with a single blow of its arm-whips.]]

* OfficialKiss: In chapter 2 Shinji and Asuka kiss. After they have a long talk where they open up to each other and become a couple.

** In chapter 5 both Shinji and Asuka have that reaction when Rei tells them she knows that they are together and are having sex.
** In chapter 7 Asuka is telling to Shinji everything what she wants him doing to her as they are walking into their home... [[spoiler:and then they run into Kaji.]] Asuka's reaction was:

** In that same chapter the entire Nerv staff wear OhCrap expressions when [[spoiler:they deploy the dummy plugs against Zeruel... and Zeruel demolishes them easily.]]

--->'''Shinji''': [[spoiler:"He knows. About us."]]
--->'''Asuka''': “Oh… ''Scheiße''…”

** In chapter 8 Rei is undergoing a memory scan. It is a long, tedious process, but Rei never complains, gets bored or tired. So that when she actually displays resignation and impatience, Ritsuko -who oversees the scan- becomes startled and wonders if the emotion suppressants they fed Rei with are not working.

** Everyone also has a hard time processing the fact that Rei got angry at Kaworu (who she just met), let alone the fact that she's angry at all.
** The reason that Rei even considered to stop taking her meds was the fact that Asuka begged her to stop.

* EldritchAbomination: The Angels.

* AnAxeToGrind: Axes are [[FieryRedhead Asuka]] [[HotBlooded Langley]] [[AcePilot Sohryu]]'s [[WeaponOfchoice favoured weapon]]. Her first battle in the fic has her wielding the huge Progressive Axe.

* BedmateReveal: Shinji and Asuka ''both'' have a moment of this immediately after their RelationshipUpgrade, though they were more surprised that it wasn't AllJustADream ([[GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex a really, really nice dream]]) than who the other person in the bed was.

* ElegantClassicalMusician: As in canon, Shinji is a skilled cello player, and he is later joined by Asuka (Violin), Rei (Viola), and Kaworu (Violin). Shinji even [[spoiler: writes a concerto for Asuka's birthday and performs it alongside Rei and Kaworu.]] And yes, he does get [[GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex other uses]] out of his "musician's hands".

** Shinji had brought it up earlier with Asuka during their first real date [[spoiler: after they were fired]], but Asuka said that using the term "family" probably wouldn't be appropriate for the two of them when you consider [[GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex what they get up to every night]].

* GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex: After fighting Leliel, Shinji and Asuka engage in vanilla, passionate lovemaking as often as possible. Misato and Kaji aren't that far behind with their FriendsWithBenefits cover relationship [[spoiler: which eventually becomes rekindled romance and later an engagement]]. In contrast, Ritsuko and Gendo's relationship, while physically pleasurable, was entirely devoid of anything resembling love or passion.

* LeaveTheTwoLovebirdsAlone: Everyone quickly leaves after Asuka's birthday party is over since they're fully aware of [[GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex what Shinji and Asuka are planning to do]] when they go to bed.

* TechnicalVirgin: The story alludes to Asuka and Shinji having "done just about everything two teenagers could do without risking a surprise nine months later" after their RelationshipUpgrade. And it was ''[[GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex bloody fantastic]]''. [[GladToBeAliveSex It doesn't last very long.]]

** When Shinji attacks Leliel's AT-Field to force it to release Asuka, he screams, [[Anime/RebuildOfEvangelion "GIVE! HER! BACK!"]]