April 09, 2021
Asuka padded into the kitchen, trying to escape sleep's grasp as she made to prepare breakfast. She was searching through the refrigerator when she felt a sharp peck on her calf. "Ow!" she cried. She spun around. "What the fuck?"
Pen Pen looked up at her mildly. "Whark."
"Huh?" she blinked. Then, "Oh." She glanced in the refrigerator. "I don't think he thawed anything for you. Last night was pretty rough for him."
Pen Pen's eyes widened. "Whark!" he demanded.
"Alright, fine, I'll see what we have," she grumbled, opening the freezer. "Well, there's a herring here, but it's much too big--"
"Whark!"
"You've got to be kidding," she protested. It's gotta be 30 centimeters long!"
"Whark! Whark!" Pen Pen was literally hopping up and down with excitement.
"Okay, okay! But it's frozen! How do you plan to eat it?" She held it out for effect. It was stiff as a board.
Pen Pen balked at that. "Whark . . . "
"I guess I could defrost it in the microwave or something . . . " she mused.
"Whark!" he said.
"Fine, fine," she muttered. She stuffed the thing into the microwave. "How long?" she wondered. "Three minutes, maybe?"
Pen Pen shuffled uncertainly. "Whark?"
Asuka shrugged. "Close enough."
They waited a bit. After a minute or so, Pen Pen pointed a flipper toward Shinji's room. "Whark?"
Asuka cocked her head. "What, the idiot?" she asked. "What about him?"
"Whark!" he said.
"Well, of course!" she exclaimed. "A girl has to take care of her toys if she's going to get any use out of them."
"Whark?!" he asked, incredulous.
"Oh my God, are you kidding me? Of course I'm not serious! What the fuck is wrong with you?"
The penguin gave her a deadpan stare. "Whark."
"Get this straight, bird brain," she growled. "I am the cause of, and the solution to, most of Shinji's problems. Of course I'll take care of him!"
Pen Pen looked at her with one eye, then the other, clearly skeptical. "Whark," he said.
Asuka opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the ding of the microwave. She glowered at the penguin before retrieving the fish. She looked at Pen Pen skeptically. "Are you sure about this?" she asked. "It's pretty big."
Pen Pen waddled from one foot to the other, beak open expectantly. "Whark!" he exclaimed. "Whark!"
"Okay," she said. "If you insist." She fed him the fish, her eyes widening in surprise as he managed to down the entire thing. "Well alright then," she said. "Happy now?"
Pen Pen's eyes closed as he sighed in absolute contentment. "Whaaark."
Asuka smirked and turned back toward the refrigerator. "Fine," she said. "Then go away and let me make breakfast."
Pen Pen pecked her again.
"Ow!" she exclaimed, turning around. "Now what do you want?"
"Whark!"
Asuka gave him a puzzled look, then looked around. "Oh, right," she said, spotting a tablet on the counter. She pulled up a newsfeed, then handed it to the penguin. "Now will you please go away? I really need to get things ready for Shinji."
"Whark." Pen Pen accepted the tablet, then waddled off toward his refrigerator. Asuka, for her part, returned to the refrigerator, assembling a breakfast of fruits and cheese while wondering how she would handle an upset Shinji.

December 7, 2018
"Shinji?" Misato asked. "Are you ready for tomorrow's recital?" Her voice was weary, and she sounded distracted.
Shinji looked up at Misato's question. He and Asuka were watching TV in Misato's living room, dinner long since over. "Yes ma'am," he replied.
Asuka shot to her feet. "Wait, what? You promised to take Hikari and me to the mall downtown tomorrow! What the hell?"
Misato looked at her for a moment, puzzled, then grimaced as memory hit. "Oh, crap," she said. "I'm sorry, Asuka, I forgot all about that. Maybe we can--"
"This always happens!" Asuka interrupted. "Every time you say you'll do something for me, something with stupid Shinji comes up and I wind up getting sidelined."
Misato drew a hand over her face, and took a breath. "Asuka--" she began.
"I'm tired of this!" Asuka complained. "You said you were gonna make it up to me, but you always--"
"God damn it, Asuka, will you stop being such a petulant child?" Misato yelled. "You're sixteen years old already, and you keep going on about how you want to be treated like an adult. Would it kill you to act like one?"
Shinji recoiled a bit. "Misato . . . " he said.
Misato ignored him, focusing her ire on Asuka. "Every time the tiniest little thing goes wrong you see fit to throw a tantrum, and I'm sick of it. I'm a person, Asuka. Yes, I'm a Colonel at Herz. Yes, I'm your guardian. But I'm also a human being, and sometimes I make mistakes, and I'd appreciate it if you didn't take every minor mishap as a personal affront or evidence that I'm somehow out to get you!"
Asuka squirmed, unable to meet her guardian's gaze. She took a deep breath, ready to argue, but then her gaze happened upon the calendar on the wall. December 7, she realized. That was the date. All off a sudden, her anger drained from her. After some time, she looked Misato in the eye and said, "It was today, wasn't it?"
Misato looked at her strangely. "What are you talking about?" she asked.
Asuka smiled, a sad smile. "Kaji," she said. "It happened today, didn't it? On this date, I mean. Three years ago today."
Misato's lip quivered, and her eyes began to water. She tried to think of something to say, but before she could the girl's arms were around her neck, holding her tightly. She returned the embrace, noting that Asuka was very stiff. She doesn't like it, Misato thought. But she held the girl nonetheless, shaking as she cried. Finally, she pushed her away, gathering her composure.
"It's okay," Asuka said. "I'm not mad. And," she continued, "I'm sorry. I won't . . . " she stopped, reconsidering. "It's not like I try to be a bitch. Ask Shinji, he knows." She looked at the boy, but he could only stare at the two women in confusion.
Misato laughed, drying her eyes. "I shouldn't have yelled at you," she said. "That was inappropriate. It would be okay if we went to the mall on Sunday, right?" She managed a weak grin. "I mean, you want to see his recital anyway, don't you?"
Asuka shrugged. "That's fine, I guess. It's not like the idiot can't play or anything."
Misato laughed, patting Asuka on the shoulder. "Okay then," she said. "Okay. Good." She rightened herself, putting on the air of the guardian she pretended to be. "With that settled, I'm heading for bed. Be sure to lock the door when you leave, okay?"
Both Shinji and Asuka nodded. "Yes ma'am!" they said, in unison.
Misato headed to her room, and Asuka sat back down beside Shinji.
"What was all that about?" Shinji asked.
Asuka stuck out her chin. "Don't ask stupid questions, Third Child."
"But--" he began.
"It was girl stuff, alright?" Asuka said. "You wouldn't understand."
He scowled. "You don't have to treat me like I'm a child," he said, hurt.
She scowled at him. "Look, it doesn't concern you, alright? We're working things out, same as you and I are. I don't explain everything about our relationship to her, and the same applies here. Get it?"
Shinji stared at her for a moment, puzzled, then shrugged. "Well, okay I guess. As long as everything's alright."
"It's fine, stupid Shinji." Asuka said. "She's upset now, but she'll be okay after a good night's sleep."
Shinji gave her a skeptical look, but ultimately relented. "Fine," he said. "If you say so."
Asuka didn't reply, instead returning her attention to the TV program in front of her. But every so often her attention drifted to her guardian's door, and she resolved to be a little nicer to her for the next couple of days.

August 12, 2016
Misato found him in the shelter's common area, noticeably agitated. "There you are, Shinji. I've been looking for you."
"Where is she?" he asked. "She wasn't there when I woke up. I've been looking for her, but I can't find her. Where did she go?" There was an edge of panic in his voice.
"Calm down," Misato soothed. "Asuka's fine. You two spoke with the doctor, do you remember that? Dr. Okada?"
Shinji nodded. "Yes, I remember."
Misato smiled at him. "Okay," she said. "He and Asuka talked about her treatment options, just like he did with you. He asked her what she wanted to do, and she said she wanted to get away from here, to recover on her own."
Shinji's eyes widened. "What does that mean?" he asked. "She can't do that, she won't . . . I mean, who'll take care of her? No one's looking out for her, they'll--"
"It's fine, Shinji," Misato said, placing a hand on his shoulder. He shrank back from her touch; she pretended not to notice. "She went to a hospital in Kyoto. It's a specialized facility designed to help victims of severe trauma. There are many talented doctors there, and they'll look after her."
Shinji chewed his lip. After a moment he said, "But they don't know her, do they? They don't know she likes Western food, or how to treat her after she's had a bad dream, or . . . or anything!" He looked at the ground, despondent. "Why didn't she say anything?" he asked.
Misato laughed nervously. "Well," she began, "if I had to guess, I'd say she didn't want to burden you. This was a big decision, and it was one she had to make herself. Dragging you into it wouldn't be fair to either of you."
Shinji frowned, clearly unconvinced.
Misato coughed, then crossed her arms. "Well, enough about Asuka," she said. When Shinji glared at her, she waved her hand and said, "What I mean by that is, we have to figure out what we're going to do with you!" She smiled brightly. "If you want, you can stay with me again. I've got a place set up, and . . . " She trailed off, noting Shinji's dubious stare. She laughed nervously. "Well, maybe that's not such a hot idea," she said. "But!" she said, smiling brightly, "I have alternatives! How would you like living on your own?"
Shinji's eyes widened. "Um . . . "
Misato laughed. "Don't worry, I'm not throwing you to the wolves. There are plenty of apartments available in my complex, and I figured you could live in one of them. You'd be living on your own, with plenty of privacy if you want it, but I'd be right down the hall if you need anything. And I'd take care of all of the arrangements, so you wouldn't have to worry about anything. How does that sound?"
Shinji frowned, considering. "I guess that'd be fine," he said. He looked at her directly. "I don't--" he began. "I mean . . . " He looked down, unable to continue.
Misato took his hand. "What is it?" she asked, her voice gentle.
Shinji stiffened at her touch, but didn't withdraw his hand. "You said . . . " he began. He coughed, and then continued. "You said we'd . . . do the rest when I came back." He blushed furiously. "I mean . . . "
Misato gulped. "I remember," she said.
Shinji withdrew his hand, hugging himself. "I don't . . . " he began. "I mean, if it's alright, I don't . . . " his voice dropped to a whisper. "I don't want to do that." He snuck a glance at her, then looked back at the floor. "I'm sorry, I don't want to be insulting or anything. It's just . . . "
Misato smiled, then touched his shoulder gently. This time he didn't shrink back. "It's okay," she said. "What I said then was . . . " she paused, trying to find the words. "It was . . . inappropriate. I shouldn't have said that. I was just . . . " she sighed. "I was trying anything I could to keep you in the fight, you know? I knew I was dying, and I never thought we'd wind up discussing it." She patted his shoulder, laughing all the while.
Shinji noted her discomfort, but couldn't quite let it go. "That wasn't the first time," he noted.
Misato cringed, then laughed self-consciously. "Shinji, c'mon. I didn't mean it like that, alright?" He scowled at her, and she held out her hands defensively. "Okay!" she admitted. "Okay, I did mean it like that, but it was . . . it was a tactic, alright? I was desperate, and there was so much at stake . . . " She sighed. "That's really no excuse," she went on, "but even so, it's true. Believe me, Shinji, I'm not some . . . " she waved her arms expressively, "some pedophile who's into younger guys. I just thought, 'Maybe this will work,' and gave it a shot. That's all it was. I promise, Shinji, you don't need to worry about that. You really don't."
Shinji frowned, considering. "But you always teased me," he said. "All that sex stuff, and the skimpy clothes, and . . . "
Misato groaned in frustration. "Oh, come on, Shinji, I was just teasing!" She put her hands on her hips, planting her feet for emphasis. "Look, kid, there's only one man in my life, and you aren't him. Don't read too much into things that aren't meant to be taken seriously! I was just teasing you, that's all. I'll admit it went too far, and I'm sorry if it hurt you, but I'm telling you right now that I don't view you that way at all. It's important that you understand that."
"Well . . . " Shinji began.
"And besides," Misato continued, her tone flippant, "what would Asuka think if she knew you were fixated on your guardian like that?"
Shinji scowled at her. "Hey!"
Misato smirked. "She'd be mad, right?" She gave him a sage nod. "Yep, she would be, I'm sure of it. So what do you say we put this behind us and move forward as friends?" She sounded blasé, but there was a note of pleading in her tone.
Shinji just stared at her, then smiled and nodded. "Alright," he said. "I guess that's fine."
Misato brightened, clearly relieved. "Great!" she said. "I'll make the arrangements for your new place right away. We'll have you moved in in a jiffy!"
Shinji frowned. "But Asuka . . . "
"Don't worry," Misato said, consoling him. "I'm keeping tabs on her, and I'll make sure she knows how to contact you. She'll be fine, Shinji. I promise."