From: mew3point14@doramail.com (Daniel Snyder)

"Once upon a time, there was a beautiful bride. She knew love, and she 
knew what it was to be loved. But she was proud, too, and resolved not 
to give herself to anyone. 

"On day of her wedding, she was dressed in her most beautiful gown and 
surrounded by everyone she loved. But she frowned, because she was proud 
and she had only half-chosen her husband-to-be. Although she knew him by 
the word of others, she had never seen his face. 

"'Smile and love your husband,' they all shouted, 'smile and love your 
husband.' And the longer she did not smile, the louder they shouted, and 
the more impatient everyone became. 

"Finally, she swallowed her pride and smiled weakly. In that moment, her 
bridegroom came to her. She saw him for the first time. 

"He was beautiful to look upon, and charming in his bearing. Willingly, 
she smiled then. Willingly, she married him. 

"What was the name of the bride?" 
--
"If the egg's shell does not break, the chick will die unborn. Now, we 
are the chick, and the egg is the world. If the shell of the world does 
not break, we will die unborn." 

Kaji Rouji stepped out of the elevator into the Dueling Arena. A dozen 
folding chairs had been scattered in the middle of the blue-gray slate 
floor. The walls seemed closer than they had been at the last council 
meeting. The floor curved upward to the base of the wall from a low 
point in the center of the Arena. 

He walked to a chair in the center of the group and swung it underneath 
him. Grimly, he said, "We must bring about a revolution in this world. 
Let us begin with the roll call. President, present." 

"Executive Vice President, present," Ritsuko continued. 

Beside her, Maya pushed two chairs around to face the same way. She 
added, "Housing Vice President, present." 

"Social Vice President, present," Misato said, taking a seat next to 
Kaji. 

"Treasurer and acting secretary, present. All members accounted for." 
The speaker was a bespectacled young man of seventeen who was making a 
few notes on a yellow pad of paper. His name was Hyuuga Makoto. 

The five members of the committee were seated in a circle; the excess 
chairs were left untouched. Kaji spoke again. "I think we should begin 
with a report on the status of the Secretary-elect. Maya?" 

"Sempai and I spoke with Horaki-inchou and Langley-san a few days ago," 
she said smartly. "Horaki said that he was in good spirits, but would be 
bedridden for the foreseeable future. There's no chance of their 
reattaching the severed limbs though, I'm sad to say." 

"How did he feel about resuming the job he was elected to serve?" 

"Uh...we didn't talk about it." 

"And that brings us," Kaji swept on, "to the matter of the transfer 
student. Rit- chan, please read us your report." 

Ritsuko tried very hard not to make an issue out of Kaji's patronizing 
attitude. Her nose was bandaged and plastered, obscuring most of her 
face. Walking any great distance caused her cracked ribs to grate 
against one another, putting her entire torso in incredible pain. Her 
one comfort was that she had escaped her humiliating defeat without any 
broken limbs. As such, she could still type, and she could hold the 
notes unassisted. 

"Ikari Shinji arrived on campus a week ago," she read. "At that time, he 
had a Seal of the Living Rose on his person. He says that he got it a 
long time ago from his father--more on that in a moment. On his arrival, 
I acted rashly and challenged him to a Duel. My defeat caused me to lose 
control of Shekhinah, derailing our own plans to revolutionize the 
world. 

"The next day Ikari was challenged by Student Council Secretary Suzuhara 
Touji, apparently over my own honor. Touji was not merely defeated by 
Ikari, he was dismembered and almost killed. Ikari has told Touji that 
when he becomes agitated, a kind of alternate persona emerges. Although 
he is aware of his actions and behavior, he seems helpless to control 
them. We'll have to keep this in mind as we try to regain control. 

"Since that time, Ikari has felt extreme remorse for his behavior 
towards Touji, spending lengthy periods of time with him. Although he 
continues to make no effort to fit in, Ikari is also acquainting himself 
with his classmates and doing reasonably well in school. 

"The most astounding thing, which I want to draw everyone's attention 
to, is that Ikari has no idea what his father is responsible for. He 
speaks about his father with both contempt and adoration. I believe 
that, for whatever reason, Ikari has a double-image of his father: one 
based on real experience, unpleasant experiences, and one a kind of 
father figure ideal. Some aspect of his belief in his father may be his 
Achilles' heel." 

Kaji tossed the idea around in his head for a few moments, then said, 
"Have you, or anyone else, told Ikari about his father?" 

"No. Frankly, I don't think anyone wants to even talk about it." 

"Then, that's how it will remain," Kaji said. "Nobody in the school is 
to speak about Rokubungi Gendou to Ikari Shinji, and none of us is to 
allow it. If the boy knows nothing, then we can still use the truth as 
our own weapon. Is that clear?" 

Everyone nodded in assent, and then Maya filed her own report. "There's 
no important complaints about the quality of life in the dormitories. 
Ikari-san and Shekhinah have moved into Akumafune. I've got utility 
reports that say that power and water are being supplied to the 
dormitory. I've seen the lights on in one of the rooms on the first 
floor. I guess their quality of life is satisfactory." 

"Maya, Akumafune is quite obviously haunted." Kaji spoke matter-of-
factly. "How can you say that the two of them are doing fine?" 

She shrugged. "I haven't heard either of them talk about it, so they 
must not have seen or heard anything. I haven't been thinking about why 
they haven't, not too deeply." 

Kaji sighed. "Then let's move along. Makoto or Mi-chan, who wants to 
talk about the Spring Formal?" 

"I will!" Misato said enthusiastically. "And basically, we're good to go 
right up to decorating the ballroom. We have the decorations, we have a 
DJ. We have refreshments taken care of. All we have to do is do the 
preparations next Friday afternoon." 

"Very good," said Kaji. "In that case, I don't think we have any more 
pressing concerns. Meeting adjourned." 

As they rose, Ritsuko whispered quietly to Maya, "I'm going to need your 
assistance with something." 
--
It was one thing for Aoba Shigeru to meet Ikari Shinji in his day-to-day 
life. It was quite another for him to pay the boy a social call. Aoba 
didn't consider himself Shinji's friend, even though they spoke with 
each other and participated in activities together. As far as Shigeru 
was concerned, his relationship with Ikari ended with the close of the 
school day. He didn't like Ikari that much more. Nor did he think deeply 
about the matter. If he had, Shigeru would have given the boy's 
genealogy and violent outbursts as reasons to avoid him. Whether Ikari 
was or was not technically responsible for either, there was no reason 
to take chances. 

Ikari was also living with that girl Ayanami Rei. Shigeru had never 
really been introduced to her, but he knew about her. She was utterly 
emotionless. She had inhuman sexual magnetism. The one made her 
oblivious to the other, and in many ways supplemented it. Not that he 
had willingly thought about the issue, but the idea of two people his 
own age being intimate didn't sit well with him. 

Furthermore, Ikari lived in Akumafune Dormitory. Shigeru had known 
several people in Akumafune, and he had seen how they had died. The 
place--in fact, the entire east side of campus--gave him the creeps. 
Ikari had lived there for a week without incident. That was simply 
uncanny. 

With these legitimate reasons to avoid Ikari Shinji, Shigeru stumbled 
upon a fourth that morning. Ikari, practically naked, looked like a Pict 
warrior posing on the top of a menhir. His bokken swings were of an 
intensity Shigeru had never before seen. The boy put his entire frame 
into every swing, and yet he was able to finish and begin each iteration 
without betraying any loss of control. Swing, stop. Raise, concentrate. 
Repeat. On top of Akumafune Dormitory, Ikari was practicing his 
swordsmanship wearing only a pair of shorts. 

Shigeru waited until he felt Ikari's rhythm changing, then he shouted, 
"Ikari!" 

He winced as the force of the boy's gaze fell from on high. The light in 
the east, the dawning sun, cast shadows over the right half of Shinji's 
body. Ikari's glance came like an earthly elemental force onto Shigeru. 
There was no scrap of mercy for him, the interloper. 

After spending a few moments gathering his courage, Shigeru held up his 
burden like a mercy offering. "Package!" he croaked, barely loud enough 
for his voice to carry. 

Without acknowledging, Ikari turned and walked out of sight. Half a 
minute later, still in his state of undress, he emerged from Akumafune. 
Although now uncomfortably close to the boy, Shigeru had collected his 
thoughts. He meekly thrust the package towards Shinji and said, "The 
Student Council asked me to deliver this. Maya...Maya did." 

Shinji took the package in his one free hand. It was a square cardboard 
box, green with a pink ribbon, that bent slightly in the force of his 
grip. He looked it over, then without a word turned round and walked 
back inside. 

The visitor scampered away, eager to be done with the task. When he was 
far enough removed from Akumafune, Shigeru gathered up his courage and 
allowed himself to feel some contempt. Ikari's behavior was inexcusable, 
he decided. After all, who was Ikari to be so callous? 
--
Shinji returned from his morning bath to find that Rei had already 
opened her box. Inside it, Shinji was surprised to see a dress. The 
fabric was odd, a thin kind of crepe that made soft crinkling noises in 
Rei's hands. It was pastel orange, a poor choice of color. The girl held 
it up to herself. It looked like it would be a snug fit, but wearable. 

"For me," she said softly. 

"It's very nice," Shinji murmured. "Did you order it?" 

Rei shook her head. "The Student Council sent it to me." She passed the 
ribbon to Shinji. It wound through a card that said, _The Student 
Council Kindly Requests Your Presence at the Spring Formal_. Inside the 
card was a black ticket, printed with times and locations. 

"The Spring Formal? Is that a dance or something?" 

"Yes." 

They were silent in their room. Then Shinji said, "Well, they don't want 
me there. I wonder who your date's going to be?" 

Rei stopped paying any attention to her gift and looked at Shinji with 
slight surprise. "You will not come with me?" she asked. 

Shinji fell into his defense. "I'm sorry, Rei, but I can't. They haven't 
sent me a ticket. I don't know if I can get one, anyway. And people here 
don't like me, they won't want me showing up at their party. 
I...shouldn't go." 

"You will not come with me?" She repeated the question. After a moment, 
she began to fold the dress back into the box and continued, "I am your 
bride. If you do not go, then I do not go." 

"What? Rei, stop. Look at me." Pausing with her hands still in the box, 
Rei met Shinji's nervous look with her own enigmatic gaze. "The Student 
Council wants you to go. They...even sent you this dress. You shouldn't 
say no to them just because of me." 

"You wish me to go, then?" 

Shinji faltered, and stared off into the corner. "Rei, you can do what 
you want, it doesn't matter to me. But I think you should go, yes. I 
mean, after all these people have done for you." 

"I will go if you tell me to." So saying, Rei finished folding the dress 
and slipped it underneath her bed. She walked into the bathroom to start 
her day, leaving Shinji alone with his mixed feelings. 

That afternoon, playing chess with Touji, Shinji mentioned the dress and 
the card. Rei said nothing while she and Pen-pen kibitzed. 

"I don't know nothin' about any dress," Touji said, "but I'm not too 
surprised Rei got invited. The Student Council's sent invitations in the 
past to people who weren't coming for one reason or 'nother." 

"What can I do, Touji?" Shinji asked. "I know they're not selling 
tickets to it anymore, they announced yesterday morning that it was the 
last day. I don't really want to go, but I don't want Rei to go by 
herself." 

Touji smiled. "I got my ticket a month ago. Why don't you take it?" 
Seeing Shinji's look of disbelief, Touji added, "B'sides, it's not like 
I'm gonna be able to go." 

"Touji...thank you...but...I don't understand why." 

"You're still giving yourself crap for the Duel, aren't you? I don't 
blame you. But it's OK, I've told you that before and you know it now." 
Touji fell silent as he focused on the chess game, planning his next 
move. He decided to move his queen out of danger to the other side of 
the board, making do with a sacrificed bishop. As Shinji took the piece, 
Touji went on. "You stop by and talk with me, and that's everything you 
really need to do. The ticket's over in my bookbag, in the outside 
pocket. Get it b'fore..." 

Both boys stared as Rei set down her book and fetched the ticket 
herself. She presented it silently to Shinji, then seated herself and 
resumed her reading. 
--
Shadow is an aspect of the natural world. The three Magi were an aspect 
of life in Feuervogel Academy. To seek advice from the Magi would 
require the same frame of mind in which one would find the time of day 
by staring directly at the sun. 

"Have you heard? Have you heard? Have you heard about the upcoming 
formal?" 

"I love a formal dance! I love putting on nice clothes and sashaying 
around the dance floor!" 

"It's quite the event. It sets the tone for the rest of the school 
year." 

"Ikari didn't receive an invitation, but he got one anyway." 

"What a clever boy. THAT'S going to turn some heads." 

"I wonder, I wonder...do you know what I wonder?" 

"Is it, why his bride received a dress and an invitation?" 

"Or, is it something larger still?" 

"Children snub each other for a reason. I wonder if sometimes it isn't 
better to give in to social pressure." 

"Nonsense! If you give in once, they'll walk all over you." 

"Either way, it makes me tired just thinking about it." 

"Speaking of tired, rumors are that the girls in the east dormitory 
can't sleep." 

"Someone keeps them up all night, clunking and clattering around." 

"It's probably that girl Katsuragi, making preparations for the big 
day." 

"Funny, though. I didn't think Katsuragi would be the kind to leave an 
organic chemistry textbook lying about in the kitchen." 
--
Clouds of Shinji's uncertainties drove him through Hell as he walked 
with Rei to the dance. His clothes, from the year before, only just fit 
him; and his yellow blazer and slacks, green shirt, and red necktie 
didn't match each other. He also hadn't had a haircut, and he could feel 
that the back of his neck was hairy. His aftershave was on too thick: it 
held him like unwelcome arms. On the other hand, Rei looked very nice. 
Her hair was combed, and her dress fit her figure beautifully. In fact, 
despite its shapeless cut, it heightened the curve of Rei's bust and 
hips. Shinji worried if it wasn't immodest. He worried that she didn't 
have heels, only her day-to-day shoes. He worried that she didn't have 
perfume, or makeup, or anything to make her seem more feminine, more 
like a grown woman. 

It was 8:30 in the evening. The dance officially had begun a half-hour 
before. Shinji's fears had given him an excuse to dawdle, and now he 
worried that they were too late for...for whatever it is that people 
miss in the opening minutes of a dance. A chosen tune, an anecdote, 
someone else's grand entrance. The boy had only been to a few dances 
before, and found them more volume than music, more sound than balance. 
He hoped that the evening would pass quickly; then he could return to 
his home and security. The notion of "entertainment" was far from his 
mind. 

The dance was being held in one of the faculty buildings in the northern 
part of the campus. Officially, it was for faculty soirees, but these 
were few and far between. Instead, it had been modified into a kind of 
lounge where people could bring their own lunches and eat in comfort. It 
was wide, as big as a football field, with great French doors opening 
out onto courtyards and plazas. The room had been decorated all in 
white. To his chagrin, Shinji saw that most of the men and women inside 
were dressed in white as well. He grimaced behind his bright colors. 

Unwittingly, he had wrapped his arm around Rei's. She was staring 
without concern into the room, parsing identities. Breaking the silence 
that had descended during their trek to the ball, he asked, "Shall we go 
in?" 

"Very well." 

He swung open the door before them. Their entrance was unintentionally 
dramatic. All activity before them ceased. Conversations, drinks, 
dances, everything was halted as Ikari Shinji and Ayanami Rei entered 
the ballroom. Beneath his jacket, Shinji began sweating. His eyes roamed 
across the petrified room. The glances did not seem largely hostile. 
There was disgust apparent, yes, but not much hatred. Some people even 
showed an interested curiosity: perhaps ignorant of who he was, they 
wanted to know who this young couple were who could bring an entire 
dance to a standstill. 

Belying the drama, the music carried on. Neither boy or girl recognized 
the exact tune, but both could place it to genre. It was a big band 
swing tune, of the kind that had been popular around the world in the 
first half of the previous century. It was an upbeat number with a 
frisky rhythm, like a filly colt kicking around on young legs. The music 
played on, and the world before them held still. 

Finally, Shigeru's voice boomed out, "Good evening, ladies and 
gentlemen. Welcome to Feuervogel Academy's annual Spring Formal. We're 
playing a selection of tunes from yesteryear to help you dance the night 
away. Please enjoy this year's theme--" he spoke the name in English, 
"'Memories of White'-- and be sure to make plenty of memories tonight 
with all your friends. We now return you to the music." 

A new song, much like the first, began with a riot of horns and drums. 
Men and women sprinkled out onto the dance floor like grains of sand 
from an hourglass. Shinji and Rei were passed over by a crowd more in 
search of entertainment than acceptance or persecution. The danger of 
being or not being had passed. 

Shinji adjusted his grip on Rei's arm and suggested, "Let's find a table 
and sit down." 

They walked arm in arm to a nearby table, one row removed from the dance 
floor. Shinji held Rei's chair for her as she sat down, and they looked 
around. Couples danced gaily, swinging around and around to the beat as 
glimmers of mirrored light twirled across their backs and shoulders. At 
tables and between them, small groups of people chatted with each other. 
Like the music itself, each person lived in a common theme, yet 
independent, and in that instant harmonious. 

Aida Kensuke, armed with a video camera, popped up next to Shinji. He 
said loudly, "Glad you guys could make it! How've you two been holding 
up?" 

"Pretty well," Shinji replied, grateful for something to talk about. 

"I see, I see. Nice dress, Rei. I didn't think you owned one like it." 

Rei's attention was fixed on the lens of the video camera. She leaned 
towards it and said, "It was a gift from the Student Council." 

"Really? Weird. I never heard anything like that before. So d'ya think 
you're starting to fit in now? Or what?" 

"I really don't know, Kensuke." 

"Don't be a worrywart, Ikari. Well, I'll be off. Have fun, you guys!" 
With a merry wave Kensuke departed. 

An overwhelming sense of foreboding swept over Shinji. In his life, he 
had grown to be suspicious of large parties, big groups of people where 
circumstances were beyond his control. They had a tendency to evolve to 
where something humiliated him. Paranoid, he glanced around the room. He 
could only see four pairs of eyes on him: Horaki's, Ibuki's, Katsuragi's 
and Akagi's. The four young ladies were clustered on the far right side 
of the sound stage. They didn't seem to be conversing, only watching 
him, enigmatic behind a barrier of inaction. 

Somewhat relieved that his fears were justified, Shinji immediately cast 
about for a means of escape. An idea came to him as the music changed to 
a slow melody for strings. Rei had said she was his bride, there was no 
danger of her refusing... 

"Rei, would you like to dance?" 

Rei cast her glance down and turned very slightly pink. Shinji wondered 
if she did want to dance very much. But she said, "I don't know how." 

"I learned a little in my physical education class last year. It's not 
that hard, really. Come on." He took her by the hand and led her to the 
floor. Other couples moved aside to accommodate the new one. Shinji 
moved around to Rei's front. He could see that she was still blushing. 

"The most important thing," he explained, "is that you have to feel the 
rhythm to know how to move your body. Put your right hand on my 
shoulder...and give me your left hand...that's it." 

And when he put his left hand low on her hip, their eyes met. Rei gasped 
softly, little more than an aspiration, and the breath sent a shiver 
through her whole body. Shinji felt it in his hand and arm, and then he 
felt it gently tugging at his heart. Gentle and mysterious, Ayanami Rei 
was deliciously close to him. His hearing returned, and he found his 
voice. He leaned forward to speak to Rei, straining to control his 
elation. "Now, you start to feel the rhythm of the music. One, two, 
three, one, two, three, one, two, three..." 

Rei's eyes fell closed. Like Shinji, she couldn't seem to find her 
breath. "One, two, three, one, two, three," came her soft echo. 

"Yes. And now..." 

Shinji's confidence grew even more. He shifted his balance, bringing him 
ever so much closer to his partner. In his mind, he could picture the 
distance that separated their thighs. "Now, I want you to start moving 
back and forth, moving your body in time with the music." Her eyes 
closed, her voice still mouthing the time, Rei moved with Shinji's 
touch, swinging side to side in time. "Back, and forth. Back, and 
forth... 

"And now move your legs and feet. Follow me where I'm leading you. 
Step...step..." 

Each step they took, Shinji led Rei through a few more degrees of arc. 
Soon, they had gone around a full circle. Rei followed Shinji's touches 
magically, avoiding his feet, always staying close to him. Yet still, 
she kept her eyes closed, and her breathing was heavy. Shinji felt her 
presence in her arms, and she felt very real to him. Unlike so many 
aspects of his life, there was no sense of separation from the moment. 
Here and now, there was someone for him: a partner whose heart was open 
enough to show him, and only him, real emotion. 

The dream began when he happened to move his left hand slightly. He 
realized he was feeling her warm skin below the dress' cloth, and 
nothing else. Rei was wearing no underwear. The shock tore through 
Shinji head to toe, arousing him, but his sense of rhythm didn't leave 
him. He only pulled Rei closer still. She opened her eyes as their hips 
and thighs touched. Mouth open, gasping for breath, with her eyes 
drinking in his gaze and nothing else, the girl kept to the beat and 
moved with her partner. He slipped his hand across to the very base of 
her back, and she reached across his shoulders. The same song went on, 
but the bass sounded richer. The ruby red irises dazzled in the lights. 

_Of course you're not wearing underclothes, Rei,_ Shinji thought. _That 
dress they sent you didn't come with any. I'll bet everything I own you 
didn't even think to wear panties._ 

"Good evening, Rei. Ikari." 

Pulling each other close, Rei and Shinji looked up in surprise. Lost in 
each other, they had danced halfway around the floor to where the 
refreshment table was. Waiting for them in a neat row were Ritsuko, 
Maya, Misato and Asuka. At the sight of the executive Vice President, 
Rei looked askance and let her arm drop from Ikari's shoulders. 

Shinji, however, made no move to leave Rei's side. Instead, he gave a 
perfunctory nod to the group of ladies. After a moment's consideration, 
he added, "Have you...been having a good time?" 

"I don't recall you buying a ticket, Ikari," Ritsuko said curtly. She 
was dressed in silvery white, a high-necked sleeveless dress that went 
to her ankles. The high fashion of the dress contrasted sharply with her 
bandaged face, but it hid whatever state her midsection was in. "If you 
don't have a ticket, I'm going to have you removed." 

Shinji smiled. "As a matter of fact, I have two tickets. One for her, 
and one for myself." From out of his inside jacket pocket he drew out a 
pair of tickets and handed them towards Ritsuko. At the last moment, he 
snatched them back and passed them to Misato. "I couldn't find where the 
front door was, 'Baisu Pureshidento'. Will you do the honors?" 

The baiting trick piqued Ritsuko's vanity enough to make her frown in 
exasperation. Maya gasped and Asuka snorted. Misato herself took the 
tickets laughing. "Looks like he's got you, Ritsu," she said. The Social 
Vice President was wearing a long black dress with slits up the side, 
showing off glimpses of a pair of gorgeous legs. Her hair was down, and 
it swayed from side to side as she moved. With the waving hair came the 
scent of lavender. Misato returned Shinji's ticket stubs. Beside him, 
Rei moved a little closer to his flank. 

"I think it's frightfully rude," Maya stated, apropos of nothing. Trying 
to explain, she went on, "I mean, your behavior, Ikari-san. From the 
moment you've come to this school, you've made no effort to fit in at 
all. What's even worse is how you've been treating your classmates! I 
really think you could do better, Ikari-san." She wore a white prom 
dress with a wide skirt, and white tights underneath it. 

Shinji replied, "The members of the school do better. They could even 
treat me like a civilized human being." 

"'Civilized human being'," Asuka huffed, "and you're a boy. THAT is an 
oxymoron." She was dressed in red silk, with long red gloves and red 
high- heeled shoes. In her hair were two red hair clips. As when they 
had first met, the red scabbard hung from her back. 

Shinji looked around the group, then put his hand on Rei's back and made 
as if to return to the dance. "Well," he said, "thank you all for 
greeting us this evening. If you've no objection, we'll bid you all a 
fond adieu." 

"Ikari!" 

The boy turned, growing tired of interruptions. Behind him, Kaji Ryouji 
was approaching, holding a glass of red punch. The collar of his tuxedo 
was wide open, free from a tie. "So you did manage to get in!" he said 
with a patronizing chuckle. "I'd been wondering how you'd manage--ah, 
hello, Asuka--manage to get in. Quite the clever boy, aren't you?" 

"Do you have anything worth saying to say, Kaji-san?" Shinji retorted. 
He broke away from Rei and took a step towards Kaji. When he got no 
reply, Shinji went on. "If you've got no excuse, Kaji-san, you're only 
interrupting my--" 

Screams of horror brought the dancing, even the music, to a halt. The 
scene was unfolding too quickly to be understood by any one person. 
Asuka was looking at Misato, whose cry had speared the party. She stared 
aghast at Rei. Head to toe, Rei was covered in the contents of the 
punchbowl. Beneath the cherry-red liquid, her skin was rising in 
goosebumps. She had had no time to step away from Ritsuko. The Executive 
Vice President herself, trembling with excitement, held the punchbowl in 
her hands. 

Maya moved across the background. First, she backed away from her 
sempai, curled in on herself in shame; then she froze, aware of the 
attention that ran to her like water through a canyon; then, with her 
own grim satisfaction, she-- along with the rest of the student body--
witnessed the exploitation of Ayanami Rei. 

The effect had been instantaneous but not obvious. Where Rei had been 
splashed with the punch, across her upper torso, the starch that made 
the dress had dissolved. What little remained was slipping away as the 
damp skirts stopped clinging to Rei's skin. Nude beneath the mess, Rei's 
modesty wilted... 

...and modesty it was. Rei was paralytic. The nature of shame, of mores, 
was so foreign to her that she could not react as it bit into her heart. 
She could only stare ahead of her, alienated by confusion and pain as 
her world burned, filled with staring eyes. 

There came a musical note as the punchbowl hit the floor. Paying no mind 
to the pain erupting from her hands, Ritsuko stared at the young man 
with the clenched fist, standing tall like a mountain in front of her. 

"Take off your dress." 

Ritsuko did not move. She was afraid of what Ikari had become. All 
thoughts of retribution were held in limbo. Instead, she was held by the 
sheer will of an angry young man and a Pavlovian ache in her ribs. 

His hand reached slowly for her face. She saw its beautiful carve 
through the air. The fingers turned aside, then the wrist. His body heat 
touched her jugular vein. When his arm was fully extended, millimeters 
from her jaw, he tapped at the nape of her neck with his middle finger. 

"Take off your dress," he said again. 

He put just a slight stress on the third word. _Your_ dress, he was 
telling her, that one and only--no other--will do. She let it fall to 
the floor before her sense of touch had returned, and she stepped out of 
it, propping her weight against the refreshment table as she did. 

Shinji picked it up, shook it out, and tossed it over his left arm. With 
both hands he tore a strip of cloth 20 centimeters wide from the bottom. 
Then his attention returned to Rei. He wiped off the remains of her 
dress by wrapping his right arm around her and sliding the scrap down 
her body with one smooth motion. Rei lifted her arms up, and Shinji 
dressed her in her new frock. 

Over the speakers, Ravel's Bolero began. The beautiful anthem of 
neurotic desire. 

Shinji took Rei into his arms. They slipped again into their dancing 
stance. Rei's spiritual turmoil, this thing of beautiful smoke, gave her 
energy: a paradoxical yang energy that sought out a negative match. 
Already she was whispering into his ear, "One...two...one...two..." 

They were taking their first steps as the piccolo explored the main 
major theme. It was a faster rhythm than they danced to, but a stronger 
one. The autistic repetition of the number eight carried their bodies 
with it. The dance floor was theirs and theirs alone, like the music, to 
explore. A school full of their peers, held by fear and confusion, 
simply watched Ikari Shinji moving Ayanami Rei to the music. 

The music blended Romantic major chords with the innovative dynamics and 
striking sixths of the Impressionists. As the piccolo droned, Shinji 
broke from their simple step. He moved his hips more freely. In time 
with the snare, he twisted Rei from side to side, rotating about the 
waist. There was no larger picture he was painting with his lead. He 
wanted nothing more than to know who she was, how she moved her bone and 
sinew. 

Hesitantly, another couple, and then another, joined them as the main 
theme progressed to different instruments. The winged woodwinds, the gay 
strings, each one took their turn. And Shinji and Rei were no longer 
alone, no longer forced to be objects of attention. The could find each 
other. Shinji's movements were becoming more and more sophisticated. As 
the brass took the theme, he tried spinning Rei out into a brief pose. 
She faltered, but followed his lead back into their close grip. He 
started to say something to her, but she shook her head twice. She would 
not hear him. They danced on. 

Soon, the entire orchestra was joined in for the theme of Bolero. Shinji 
looked at Rei closely. Her stepping was deliberate, almost a stomp. Was 
it the aborted spin that had startled her? Or was it the music itself? 
His own intensity in the maenad music was growing. Something was 
changing within him. He had to move. He was a slave to the rhythm. The 
girl in his arm was a slave. The people all around were slaves, 
struggling to break free of their bond through obedience. This was not 
"fun". This was truth. It was an illusionless look into some aspect of 
human nature, of the Academy, of his own mirror and his bride. The more 
he looked, the less he wanted to see. His staring was becoming painful 
to his spirit. 

So as the key twisted from C to E, he seized Rei and pulled her by the 
hand, aiming for the door. They rebounded against unfamiliar bodies, 
charging through a white forest, death in snow, icy Polaris, the lunatic 
moon, and then they were outside in the cold night air. Inside, the 
music halted in a crash of braying trumpets and timpani. 

Dazed, anxious, they struggled to catch their breath from the madness of 
the dance. The silence rushed into their ears, joyful. The dark sky 
overhead felt like myrrh on their eyes. The world behind them was gone: 
the dance was over, the dancers were unknown to them. With no more 
reason to stay, they left the remains of the gaiety behind them and 
walked towards their home. 

Shinji took his nightclothes to the shower with him. When he returned, 
refreshed for bed, he found Rei still fully dressed. She was sitting on 
the edge of her bed, staring contemplatively in front of her. Pen-pen 
was already in bed, holding his copy of Ravel under his wing. 

Without looking at him, without being asked to, she spoke. "It's been a 
very strange evening," she said. "I don't understand it at all. I've 
felt things this evening that I have never felt before. When we were 
dancing, it felt good, I think. I think so because I wanted more of it. 
It's odd, for me to want more of what I have already. 

"Then when the Vice President spoke to you, I felt pain. It was because 
we were no longer dancing together, even more than that she used to be 
my bridegroom or that she was impolite to you. But even that pain was 
not intense. And the only reason that I have been able to think of, this 
whole time that I have been thinking, is because you were there, and you 
were doing something for me. I don't know what that thing is. Can you 
tell me?" 

Shinji shrugged. "I was just there for you, that's all. I guess it's not 
so bad when you have someone to share something with." 

The answer left Rei unsatisfied. It was a long time before the girl, in 
the remains of a very nice dress, could go on. "I have never experienced 
goodness or pain with anyone before. I don't know what to do in a 
situation like this." 

_What does she mean?_ he thought. _What do you do when you share?_ 

It may not have been the right answer, but Shinji's inspiration came 
when he thought about what had happened that evening. He smiled. "You 
could smile, Rei," he said. 

She looked at him, incredulously at first, but her incredulity melted 
into acceptance. A smile like dawn breaking at the bottom of the world 
spread across her lips, gentle and beautiful and strange. Wonder washed 
over Shinji. She frowned at his change of expression, hiding away her 
smile. "What is it?" she asked. 

"I don't know," he replied. 

The fickle, vague human heart had boxed up something mysterious and 
beautiful. Only time and memory remained. "Well, I'm getting to bed, 
Rei...ah, ha, I'm tired. But no school tomorrow, huh?" 

"Yes." 

"I think I'll sleep in, then." 

Rei stood up from her bed and went to the washroom.