History Fanfic / TheOneILoveIs

* CurbStompBattle: Shinji against [[spoiler:the MP-Evas in the FinalBattle]]. Asuka [[spoiler:was butchering them, when they suddenly gained the upper hand and tore her Unit-02 to pieces]]. Then Shinji arrived, saw what they had done, and went completely berserk and utterly ''massacred'' them.

* DaddyHadAGoodReasonForAbandoningYou: In the side-story "Let the World Burn / One Dream at a Time" Gendo explains to [[spoiler:Yui]] he cared about Shinji but abandoned his son because Shinji scared him: his son loved him and he could not understand why; neither he thought he deserved it. Moreover, Gendo was convinced he would only hurt Shinji if he stayed around.

* DeathEqualsRedemption: Averted with [[spoiler:Gendo.]] In the final moment of his life he [[spoiler:met Yui]] at last, and he confessed he knew he had done many horrible things [[spoiler:to try to get her back,]] and he said he was sorry for what he had done to [[spoiler:his son. His wife]] informed him that he had to earn his redemption yet in order to have her forgiveness.
* DeathGlare: During the first half of the story Asuka and Rei were very hostile to each other due to be in love with the same boy. They constantly crossed heated, angry glares. Shinji was also the recipient of many Asuka's incensed glares. An example of this happened in chapter 5:

* DeathOfTheHypotenuse: Subverted and explored. After [[spoiler: Rei is seemingly killed, Asuka reflects that this means she can have Shinji for herself, but feels guilty for even thinking this. It turns out Rei survived anyway]].
* DefrostingIceQueen: Shinji had defrosted both [[{{Tsundere}} Asuka]] and [[EmotionlessGirl Rei]]... and he had no idea that had done so until both got jealous and started fighting over him.

** Asuka. After several close calls (in episode 6 when she thought she had lost Shinji and in episode 9 after her MindRape), Asuka crosses the line in episode 10: she has been completely beaten, humiliated and even {{Mind Rape}}d, she knows she will be replaced soon, and regards herself as an utter and completely worthless failure. After [[spoiler:Rei's death]] the only thing keeping her from falling apart is Shinji loving her. But then [[spoiler:it turns out that Rei has survived,]] Asuka thinks Shinji has chosen Rei over her, and she can not bear it anymore. She runs away, leaving a goodbye note, and slits her wrists.
** Shinji was on the brink of crossing it after [[spoiler:Kaoru's death.]] Then the [[spoiler:Geofront was invaded, Misato got shot, Asuka's Unit 02 got butchered and eaten by the MP-Evas]] and Shinji thought he had nothing left.

* {{Determinator}}: At the end of episode 11, when Shinji is at his lowest, Misato explains why he can not and must not give up. Thanks to her words he does not give up and he [[spoiler:keeps fighting during the FinalBattle, even though everything seems lost and he has nothing left, and defeats nine war mechas.]] And because he did not give up, [[spoiler:Asuka survived the battle.]]
* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: During the FinalBattle Shinji driving Unit-01 [[spoiler:ran the Lance of Longinus through an EldritchAbomination born when Gendo performed the Forbidden Union betweeh Lilith and Adam.]]
* DistantFinale: The epilogue happens four years after the FinalBattle and narrates [[spoiler:the Shinji and Asuka's wedding. During the ceremony, Shinji tells what has happened to the cast in the meantime.]]
* DontYouDarePityMe: In chapter 9 Asuka is cracking under pressure and going through a severe breakdown [[spoiler: which her MindRape worsened.]] When Shinji tries to help her she tells several times she does not want to be pitied and she actually hates being pitied.

* DramaticIrony: After [[spoiler:Asuka runs away,]] a depressed Shinji notes how ironic it is that he -a self-proclaimed coward and wimp- stood his ground as she -who had always been brave and indomitably stubborn- runs away.
* DreamSequence: Shinji had one when he was trapped inside Leliel and another when he was stuck into Unit-01 after fighting Zeruel. They consisted of memories and visions intermingled where his family and friends asked him about his life and helped him to reach a resolution.
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:Asuka had been completely beaten, humiliated and even {{MindRape}}d, after which she knew she would be replaced.]] She regarded herself as an utter, worthless failure, and the only thing keeping her from falling apart completely was Shinji loving her. However, when she thought Shinji had chosen [[spoiler:Rei]] over her, she lost her only reason to live left. She wrote a good-bye note, ran away and slit her wrists. [[spoiler:Fortunately she got found in time to save her life.]]
* DudeShesLikeInAComa: At the beginning of chapter 12, Shinji is watching over a comatose [[spoiler:Asuka.]] Before leaving for a little while he leans over and kisses her lips softly.

* AnythingYouCanDoICanDoBetter: Rei was this to Asuka. In chapter 6, she explained to Shinji that she was terrified of losing him to Rei because Rei gets better grades, is a good cook, keeps her apartment spotless, is nearly more beautiful...whereas she barely can pass tests in school due to her inability to read all kanji, is a slob...and in her mind, she is only good at piloting EVA, and in that she's not even the best anymore.

* BigNo: When Shinji saw [[spoiler:the MP-Evas had chopped Unit-02 into pieces and possibly killed Asuka]] he screamed a very big and anguished "no":

* BloodKnight: During several conversations Asuka tells Shinji she likes fighting because she is good at it and people notice when she fights. So she worked hard to become the best, because she thought that nobody would care about her otherwise.
* BloodLust: When Rei confessed to Shinji that the dummy plug system used her brain patterns he could not believe it because the dummy plug program fought with a savagery and thirst for blood he did not manage to associate with the demure, quiet, stoic Rei.

* BonusMaterial: The author includes several light-hearted, humorous omakes at the end of every chapter. They might be about anything, from Franchise/{{Godzilla}} attacking Tokyo-3 to Shinji accidentally discovering his best friend's girlfriend is not a girl.
* BreakTheCutie: In case that seeing your mother dying and being abandoned by your father before your fourth birthday, being blackmailed into piloting a HumongousMecha to fight an alien monster, and being a child forced to fight a war against {{Eldritch Abomination}}s were not traumatic enough, in this story Shinji has to see how the two persons he cares the most about fall gradually apart until one of them loses all her memories after [[spoiler:trying to blow herself up]] and the other attempts to [[spoiler:commit suicide and falls in a coma.]]
* BreakTheHaughty: In this story Asuka was broken even worse than in canon. In addition to the long string of traumatic humiliations, beatings, defeats and MindRape she suffered in the original series, she got to compete with Rei over Shinji. She forced herself to face her feelings, opened up to Shinji (making herself vulnerable despite of all her misgivings and fears)... and then she got depressed and heart-broken because it did not seem to be enough to win him over and she felt wanting compared with Rei. That situation increased her insecurities and feelings of inadequacy and she slowly and gradually fell completely apart and [[spoiler:tried to kill herself.]]
* BrokenAce: Shinji thinks that Asuka is better than him at everything: she is beautiful, smarter, more sociable, braver, more strong-willed and a better pilot and fighter. Then she gradually reveals she is utterly broken inwardly and she sees herself as a worthless failure.
* BrokenBird: In chapter 6 Asuka shows Shinji she has been very, very badly hurt but she has always tried to overcome it and be a strong-willed, self-reliant girl.

* BrotherSisterIncest: Although Shinji likes Asuka he also likes Rei (and both girls like him back). However Rei does not want to tell him she is his mother's clone because she is afraid that it will kill any possibility of having a love relationship with him. Later Shinji learns about her origin [[spoiler:but he does not care about it because she is still Rei.]]

*** In chapter 5 Shinji gets mad because his father has manipulated Asuka and Rei. So that he marches to his office and warns Gendo against interfering with their lives again, pointing out ''he'' is more expendable than a pilot.

'''Shinji''':''"Of course I can. I am the only pilot of Unit-01. You need me to save your life. You know as well as I do that you don't have any spare pilots. And you also know that Rei and Asuka won't be able to fight alone for long. That is, if I don't convince them to stop fighting for you at all. In this whole scenario... you are the only one who is useless."''
*** And in chapter 11 Shinji explodes in public:

* CanNotSpitItOut: Asuka had a very hard time confessing openly her feelings to Shinji. And the fact of Shinji has also a very hard time with this is part of what moves the plot forward.
* CatFight: Asuka and Rei had three, all of them were about Shinji and all of them happened off-screen:
** The first of them happened in chapter 5, while Shinji -the POV character- was trapped into the Sea of Dirac -an alternate dimension-. Asuka wanted to mask her growing worry so she said things she did not mean, and Rei took offense. When Shinji returned, Rei's left cheek was badly bruised and Asuka had a black eye and a cut on her lower lip.
** The next happened in chapter 7, during the month Shinji spent absorbed into his robot and it was narrated in the side-story "Friends or Rivals". Asuka went to Rei's apartment and they got into a fight. After beating the crap out of each other, ruining Rei's living room and being taken to NERV med bay they realized they had done something very stupid and made up.
** The last happened a while before the epilogue. Rei was wasting her life and Asuka went to her house to have a serious talk with her. When Asuka came back to her and Shinji's apartment she brought Rei along, and both girls were bruised and exhausted.
* CatapultNightmare: Asuka does this in chapter 9 after a nightmare where she was forced to relive the worst bits of her childhood.

** Shinji learns to stand up for himself and stop running away and giving up.
** Asuka learns to stop pushing people away and not let her existence be defined by piloting a HumongousMecha.
** Rei learns to acknowledge her emotions, show her feelings and develop bonds.
* CharacterizationMarchesOn: Back when the fic was being written, fans debated whether it was or was not Misato the one shot Kaji (shortly after, WordOfGod stated she did not). Rakna was uncertain about how he wanted to handle and he even put up a poll on his site. Finally he decided [[spoiler:leaving it ambiguous.]] Also, it is interesting pondering how Asuka's portrayal could have been affected by one of the extra scenes added in later releases (the one showed she had wept after kissing Shinji because she believed he really was not interested in her since he had not kissed her back and he would not even hold her or touch her) or if he would have added the manga event regarding her stepmother to her backstory, and how it would have played out.
* CharacterTics: Asuka sometimes clenches and unclenches her fist, like Shinji did. She mentions it in the "Friends and Rivals" side-story:

** Rei is a HumongousMecha pilot and surprisingly an excellent cook. When Shinji gets worried because she always eats instant food he starts to teach her how to cook a few recipes. She learns quickly and she becomes an excellent cook. Asuka even remarks she cooks like a chef.
** Shinji is not as good as her but he is still a very good cook... and the squad member with the larger number of kills.
* ChickMagnet: Shinji goes from believing nobody cares for him to ask -more than once- why girls are interested in him and what has he done to deserve it. [[http://www.oocities.org/tokyo/teahouse/2236/ The old homepage]] even joked about it, displaying pictures of Asuka, Rei, Misato and Hikari and asking if they were romantically interested in Shinji.
* CluelessChickMagnet: Shinji drew women wherever he went... and he had absolutely no idea about it. He was genuinely shocked and surprised when Rei gave him chocolates and when Hikari told him that Asuka was in love with him because he was completely oblivious to their feelings and Asuka's hints.
* ConvenientComa: Asuka was in a coma twice: after [[spoiler:attempting to kill herself]] and [[spoiler:after being badly wounded in the final battle.]]
* ConvenientlyAnOrphan: As per canon, all Evangelion pilots [[spoiler:but Kaoru]] are orphans.
* ConverseWithTheUnconscious: When [[spoiler:Asuka was in a coma after attempting to kill herself]], Shinji remained by her side the whole time, talking to her every so often, hoping his voice reached her somehow.

* CooldownHug: It happens a lot of times. Some of them:
** In chapter 4 Shinji hugs an upset and furious Asuka to reassure her after an argument between them;
** Shinji also hugged Misato when she was crying her heart out after [[spoiler:Kaji's last phone call]];
** Shinji hugged Asuka several times after her MindRape to comfort her and reassure her that he was there for her;
** Asuka embraced Shinji when he was collapsed over the floor and sobbing because [[spoiler:Rei had blew herself up to save his life]];
** [[spoiler:Kaoru]] hugged Shinji when he was shivering after a terrible nightmare and feeling lonely.
* CrushBlush: In chapter 9 Shinji blurts out that he loves Asuka to her face. Then he blushes brigthly.

* CurbStompBattle: Shinji against [[spoiler:the MP-Evas in the FinalBattle.]] Asuka [[spoiler:was butchering them when they suddenly gained the upper hand and tore her robot into pieces.]] Then Shinji arrived, saw what they had done, and went completely berserk. He utterly massacred them.

* AcePilot: Asuka trained very hard since she was three to be the best mecha pilot ever. However, her frequent defeats eroded her fragile confidence progressively until her mind snapped. However, she still got to show how good she was when she [[spoiler:ripped the MP-EVAs apart]].

* AlwaysSaveTheGirl: In the side-story "Let the World Burn/One Dream at a Time", Gendo explains how he had tried to wipe humankind out, destroyed lives--including those of his son and the girls he loved--and got his hands stained with blood...because he had to free Yui. He loved her, he missed her, he blamed himself for her getting trapped inside Unit-01, and he had to set her free, no matter what.

* AnythingYouCanDoICanDoBetter: Rei was this to Asuka. In chapter 6 she said Shinji she was terrified of losing him to Rei because Rei gets better grades, is a good cook, keeps her apartment spotless, is nearly so beautiful... whereas she barely can pass the tests because she can not read all kanji, is a slob... and in her mind, she is only good at piloting Eva and she is not even the best anymore.
* ApologisesALot: Shinji has the habit of constantly apologizing, and it gets Asuka mad. However she gets mad because she feels that Shinji doesn't apologize for when he feels that he has done something wrong, but because he tries to avoid a scolding, and it drives her mad that he is unable to stand up to himself.

* ArmorPiercingQuestion: In episode 11 Shinji decides to regard [[spoiler:Kaoru]] as his friend. However a part of his mind asked:

** In chapter 11, during a nightmare, a vision of Rei tells openly something Shinji had been trying to not think about:

* ArtificialLimbs: During the Angel War, Touji loses an arm and a leg. They were replaced with prosthetic limbs. They were pretty good but they did not quite look like the real appendages, and they did not grant him enhanced physical abilities.
-->''I noticed that he also wore black gloves. I was very grateful for that. Even if the advances in bio-robotics had been astonishing these last few years, they hadn't yet managed to make artificial limbs that looked totally like real ones. Touji knew that the sight of his artificial hand tended to make me uneasy. I was over the guilt, but... I just couldn't look at it...''
* AttentionWhore: During several talks, Asuka explains Shinji why she yearns for being looked and valued, and reveals she is frightened of being alone and disregarded as if she was a worthless thing.
* AuthorAppeal: After completing the series, Rakna confessed that [[spoiler:Asuka was his favorite character and he had always planned for a Shinji/Asuka ending.]] However he also stated [[spoiler:he started truly liking Rei after writing chapter 3 and he nearly changed his mind.]]
* AwkwardKiss: In episode 4, Asuka dares Shinji to kiss her during their date. Tired of her taunting, Shinji grabbed her shoulders and kissed her forcefully. Although they enjoyed it for a bit, their kiss was more awkward than romantic.
* AwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther: At the beginning of the story Shinji and Asuka argued very often. Then Rei gave Shinji chocolates and Asuka was jealous, slapped him and stormed out of the classroom... and Shinji felt awful because he had noticed she was crying, and her tears hurt him more than her slap. Later he found a chocolate heart in his bedroom, made by Asuka.
* BabiesEverAfter: In the four-years-later epilogue it is revealed that Shinji and Asuka are expecting, and [[spoiler:Misato is raising her and Kaji's son, Ryouji.]]
* BathSuicide: Asuka attempted this right before the final chapter, when she thought that she had lost all what she had and wanted: [[spoiler:her Evangelion and Shinji.]]
* BattleCouple: Shinji and Asuka. Due to living, working and fighting together, they started to like each other and became extremely close. This closeness kicks the plot off when Rei realizes Shinji is falling for Asuka and decides to pursue him actively.
* BeautifulDreamer: After her [[spoiler:MindRape]] Shinji and Asuka sleep together. During the night Asuka wakes up due to a [[CatapultNightmare nightmare]] and stares at Shinji for a while, thinking of how beautiful he looks and how much she loves him.
* BedmateReveal: The night after defeating Leliel, Shinji woke up and found Asuka sleeping on his bed. He panicked right away, but Asuka told him to shut up and go back to sleep.
* BelligerentSexualTension: At the beginning, Shinji and Asuka fight a lot even though they are clearly drawn to each other. However Rei starts to actively pursue Shinji and show her affection openly, forcing Asuka to try to show her softer, nicer side openly. As a result of it their relationship becomes calmer and stronger.
* BeneathTheMask: In chapter 6 Shinji finally realizes Asuka's self-assuredness and confidence were a mask to cover a very fragile self-esteem.

* BerserkButton: Do not even think about hurt or harm Asuka or Rei in some way, shape or form. Or else Shinji... will not be nice to you.

** And later [[spoiler:when he saw the MP-Evas munching the last remnants of Unit 02]] he went utterly nuts and tore them apart savagely.
* TheBerserker: In the FinalBattle Shinji went completely nuts when he saw [[spoiler:the MP-Evas had tore apart and eaten alive Unit 02 with Asuka inside.]] He fought like a savage beast, roaring "I'LL KILL YOU!" the whole time and he did not stop until all of them were dead.

* BewareTheNiceOnes: Shinji is usually nice and meek to the point of being a doormat. When he gets angry... he is scary. When his father meddled in his love life for his own purposes he coldly told Gendo if he interfered again he would refuse to pilot and the next Robeast could kill everyone as far as he was concerned (keep in mind he is terrified of his father usually). When an Eldritch Abomination hurt one of the girls he loved he attacked like an angry berserker. He even lashed out against Rei or Asuka when he was angry (and then he regretted it afterwards).
* BewareTheQuietOnes: Rei was a quiet, calm EmotionlessGirl, seldom spoke and obeyed her Commander's orders without question or hesitation. But if something or someone threatened Shinji or her relationship with him, she became hostile and even violent... especially to Asuka since Shinji was falling for her. Her relationship with Asuka became very strained and belligerent until [[spoiler:they got a very bitter argument and a pretty virulent CatFight.]] Although that fight ended in a stalemate Asuka noted Rei was very quiet but she could be quite savage and hit hard if provoked.
* BigDamnHeroes: Shinji performs two: the first in chapter 7 to save Rei and Asuka from Zeruel and the second in chapter 12 to [[spoiler:save Asuka from the MP-Evas. He arrived too late to save Unit-02 but right on time to save Asuka's life.]]

->''"I'm sorry Asuka. I should have done this a long time ago. But I was afraid. With Rei and you... I no longer felt alone. I thought that if I made a choice, I would lose one of you. I didn't want to lose either of you. So I made you wait. I was so selfish..."''

During a test inside Unit-01, Rei realizes she cares for Shinji in a romantic way... and even though Shinji cares about her, his attention had been shifting towards Asuka. Determined to stop that, Rei decides to try to get Shinji's attention back. In turn, her actions force Asuka to drop her denial act and display her real feelings towards Shinji openly.

All of sudden, Shinji finds himself being in the middle of a war between his dearest persons... while the war against the Angels keeps waging and his personal traumas keep getting worse.

Written by Alain Gravel/Rakna and described by his author like "A story about how the love of two special girls can change one Ikari Shinji", ''The One I Love Is'' is one of the first ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' classic fanfics.

It tries to address the next question seriously: "What might have happened if instead of a deconstruction of the EveryoneCanSeeIt trope, a real LoveTriangle would have developed between the three pilots during the course of the series?". However, unlike other shipping/romance fics, it does not neglect the real events of the series, and strives to fit the events of the fic in the canon storyline. Most of tragedies and mind-screwness that happened in the anime show also happened here. However, due to the changes of relationships, the characters react differently to them, and evolve and develop accordingly, leading to Shinji having not only to choose between two girls... but also between saving the world and condemning it.

It can be found [[http://web.archive.org/web/20120717162230/http://rakna.angelfire.com/toili.htm here]] -together with side-stories, spin-offs and fanart made by other fans-, [[http://fanbards.net/stories/12643 here]] and [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/209065/1/The_one_I_love_Is here]]. And this is [[http://web.archive.org/web/20081203132639/http://www.geocities.com/nge_toili/ Rakna/Alain Gravel's old homepage]].

Compare with other alternate universe Eva fanfic like ''Fanfic/AdviceAndTrust'', ''Fanfic/TheChildOfLove'', ''Manga/Evangelion303'', ''Fanfic/HigherLearning'', ''Fanfic/TheSecondTry'', ''Fanfic/ChildrenOfAnElderGod'', ''Fanfic/NeonGenesisEvangelionGenocide'', ''Fanfic/AGlassOfWine'' or ''Fanfic/{{Read The Fine Print|Evangelion}}''.

* AcePilot: Asuka trained very hard since she was three to be the best mecha pilot ever. However, her frequent defeats eroded her fragile confidence progressively until her mind snapped. However she still got to show how good she was when she [[spoiler:ripped the MP-Evas apart.]]
* AdaptationNameChange: The author renamed Kaworu to Kaoru when he decided to change Kaworu's sex.
* AllForNothing: In one of the side-stories Gendo admits all he has done, all lives he has ruined -including his son and daughter's- and all blood he has shed... has been for nothing, since [[spoiler:he has failed: he has been unable to free his wife and they will never be together again.]]
* AllTakeAndNoGive: One of the reasons that [[spoiler:Shinji chose Asuka and not Rei]] was he knew their relationship would become this: she would make him the only goal of her existence, she would make anything for him without asking for anything in return and he would take everything. And it would not be fair to [[spoiler:Rei.]]
* AlwaysSaveTheGirl: In the side-story "Let the World Burn / One Dream at a Time" Gendo explains he had tried to wipe humankind out, destroyed lives -including the ones of his son and the girls he loved- and got his hands stained with blood... because he had to free Yui. He loved her, he missed her, he blamed himself for her getting trapped inside Unit 01, and he had to set her free, no matter what.

'''Yui''':''"And you thought the Third Impact would free me. That doesn't explain why you had to devastate your son's life. Seele would have given you the Impact."''\\

* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: Shinji was this to Asuka. She trained hard her whole life to become the best mecha pilot ever, only to be beaten every turn for an untrained civilian who -as far as she knew- had been picked from the streets.

--> '''Asuka''':''"It's okay. I can manage on my own. You be happy with Rei... Shinji... I... I love you..."''

* GrewASpine: Shinji forces himself to grow a spine AND keeping it intact to protect [[HeroesWantRedheads Asuka]] and [[BrotherSisterIncest Rei]].

* HeroesWantRedheads: Shinji finds himself attracted to Asuka... [[spoiler:and at the end, he chooses her.]]

* CharacterDevelopment: Several characters go through it, but mainly the three pilots evolve greatly through the story. Shinji learns to stand up for himself and stopping to run away and give up (WordOfGod stated in one of the author notes it was one of his main goals, since he simply hated what Shinji had become at End of Evangelion). Asuka learns to stop to push people away, to not let her existence was defined by piloting a HumongousMecha (like ''[[Anime/GreatMazinger another certain]]'' HumongousMecha AcePilot / BrokenAce that she is a GenderFlipped {{Expy}} from did) and to open herself up to others. And Rei learns to acknowledge her emotions, show her feelings and developing bonds.

* HurtingHero: Shinji, Asuka and Rei's went through the traumatic experiences they endured in canon, but their traumas got worse because they became a LoveTriangle, and Shinji could not stand that Asuka and Rei got hurt. Still they fought to save the world and made their best.

* TheyDo: Shinji spent the whole story trying to choose between Asuka and Rei. Finally in the epilogue [[spoiler:he and Asuka got married.]]

* TriangRelations: Shinji, Asuka and Rei have a Type 7 relationship (thankfully without affair): Shinji loves both Asuka and Rei and both girls love him, but they are rivals (although later they become friends).

* ArmorPiercingSlap:
** In episode 4, Asuka delivered a well-deserved one to Shinji when he admitted - after asking her out, spending the day with her and even kissing her - that he had kissed Rei and shouted it was none of her business.
** In episode 11 Shinji has just [[spoiler:killed Kaoru]] and he is feeling borderline suicidal. When he mutters he should just die Misato slaps him, reminding him that [[spoiler:Kaoru]] sacrificed herself so he could live.

* GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex: Shinji [[spoiler:had sex with Rei and later Asuka]] when they needed comforting each other. It is depicted as a tender, heart-warming moment where they tried to take care of each other.

Compare with other alternate universe Eva fanfic like ''Fanfic/AdviceAndTrust'', ''Fanfic/TheChildOfLove'', ''Manga/Evangelion303'', ''Fanfic/HigherLearning'', ''Fanfic/TheSecondTry'', ''Fanfic/ChildrenOfAnElderGod'', ''Fanfic/NeonGenesisEvangelionGenocide'', ''Fanfic/AglassOfWine'' or ''Fanfic/{{Read The Fine Print|Evangelion}}''.

->'' "I'm sorry Asuka. I should have done this a long time ago. But I was afraid. With Rei and you... I no longer felt alone. I thought that if I made a choice, I would lose one of you. I didn't want to lose either of you. So I made you wait. I was so selfish..."''

Check ''Fanfic/AdviceAndTrust'', ''Fanfic/TheChildOfLove'', ''Manga/{{Evangelion 303}}'', ''Fanfic/HigherLearning'', ''Fanfic/TheIkaris'', ''Fanfic/NobodyDies'', or ''Fanfic/MobileFighterEvangelion'' to see other AU Eva fics. Check ''Fanfic/ACrownOfStars'', ''Fanfic/{{HERZ}}'', ''Fanfic/NeonGenesisEvangelionR'', ''Fanfic/ScarTissue'' and ''Fanfic/WalkingInTheShadowOfDreams'' to see other Eva continuation fics. Check ''Fanfic/DoingItRightThisTime'', ''Fanfic/OnceMoreWithFeeling'', ''Manga/ReTake'', ''Fanfic/TheSecondTry'' to see PeggySue Eva stories. Go to ''Fanfic/ChildrenOfAnElderGod'', ''Fanfic/GodsAngelsAndKings'', ''Fanfic/LastChildOfKrypton'', ''Fanfic/ShinjiAndWarhammer40K'', ''Fanfic/SOE2LoneHeirOfKrypton'' and ''Fanfic/ThousandShinji'' if you are interested in crossovers.

* AlwaysSaveTheGirl: In the side-story "Let the World Burn / One Dream at a Time" Gendo explains he had tried to wipe humankind out, destroyed lives -including the ones of his son and the girls he loved- and got his hands stained with blood... because he had to free Yui. He loved her, he missed her, he blamed himself for her getting trapped inside Unit 01, and he had to set her free, not matter what.

* AndNowForSomeoneCompletelyDifferent: Most of the story is told from Shinji's point of view, but some scenes and most of side-stories narrate events from other characters' points of view to flesh the plot out.

** In episode 4 Asuka delivered a well-deserved one to Shinji when he admitted -after asking her out, spending the day with her and even kissing her- that he had kissed Rei and shouted it was none of her business.

* ArtificialLimbs: During the Angel War, Touji loses an arm and a leg. They were replaced with prosthetic limbs. They were pretty good but they did not quite looked like the real appendages, and they did not grant him enhanced physical abilities.

* AttentionWhore: During several talks Asuka explains Shinji why she yearns for being looked and valued, and reveals she is frightened of being alone and disregarded as if she was a worthless thing.

* BedmateReveal: The night after defeating Leliel, Shinji woke up and found Asuka sleeping on his bed. He panicked right away, but Asuka told him shut up and go back to sleep.
* BelligerentSexualTension: At the beginning Shinji and Asuka fight a lot even though they are clearly drawn to each other. However Rei starts to actively pursue Shinji and show her affection openly, forcing Asuka to try to show her softer, nicer side openly. As a result of it their relationship becomes calmer and stronger.

-->''There before me, from this girl who'd never shown anything but self assuredness, was a catalogue of failures.''

* BreakTheHaughty: In this story Asuka was broken even worse than in canon. In addition to the long string of traumatic humilliations, beatings, defeats and MindRape she suffered in the original series, she got to compete with Rei over Shinji. She forced herself to face her feelings, opened up to Shinji (making herself vulnerable despite of all her misgivings and fears)... and then she got depressed and heart-broken because it did not seem to be enough to win him over and she felt wanting compared with Rei. That situation increased her insecurities and feelings of inadequacy and she slowly and gradually fell completely apart and [[spoiler:tried to kill herself.]]

* CharacterizationMarchesOn: Back when the fic was being written, fans debated whether it was or was not Misato the one shot Kaji (shortly after, WordOfGod stated she did not). Rakna was uncertain about how he wanted to handle and he even put up a poll in his site. Finally he decided [[spoiler:leaving it ambiguous.]] Also, it is interesting pondering how Asuka's portrayal could have been affected by one of the extra scenes added in later releases (the one showed she had wept after kissing Shinji because she believed he really was not interested in her since he had not kissed her back and he would not even hold her or touch her) or if he would have added the manga event regarding her stepmother to her backstory, and how it would played out.

* CurbStompBattle: Shinji against [[spoiler:the MP-Evas in the FinalBattle.]] Asuka [[spoiler:was butchering them when they suddenly gained the upper hand and tore her robot into pieces.]] Then Shinji arrived, saw what they had done, and went completely berserker. He utterly massacred them.

* DeathGlare: During the first half of the story Asuka and Rei were very hostile to each other due to be in love with the same boy. They constantly crossed heated, angry glares. Shinji was also recipient of many Asuka's incensed glares. An example of this happened in chapter 5:

* FateWorseThanDeath: After trying to cause Third Impact to reunite with Yui, [[spoiler:Gendo gets trapped in a sorts of deserted Limbo, separated from his wife forever... which is his personal vision of Hell.]]

* ForcefulKiss: In chapter 4 Asuka tries to tease Shinji into kissing her. All of sudden Shinji grabs her arms, pulls her closer and kisses her.

* FreudianExcuse: Most of the story is narrated from Shinji's point of view, so Gendo is treated very unsympathetically most of time. The "Let the World Burn/One Dream at a Time" side-story explores his personality and motivations. Gendo is depicted as a pathetic, broken shell of a man who always felt lonely and frightened of other people, thinking nobody would ever love him because he was not worth it, and fell utterly apart after his wife's death, sending his only son away because he was scared of Shinji and of hurting him.

''The words hit me even harder then her hand. I had never thought about things this way.''

* GiantEqualsInvincible: Although he hates fighting, Shinji gets forced to pilot a giant robot because there is nothing else can damage the [[{{Robeast}} Angels]], and the is the only one can pilot Unit 01.

** The inmediate consequence of the abovementioned epiphany was Rei starting flirting with Shinji, which in turn made Asuka very jealous and forced her to admit she also loved Shinji.

* HowTheMightyHaveFallen: Asuka was [[AcePilot the best Eva pilot]], a genius and a [[FieryRedhead beautiful girl]]. She gloated about it because her very fragile self-esteem depended on being the best at all what she did. However throughout the fic she got routinely beaten by her teammates, defeated by the [[{{Robeast}} Angels]] and the guy she loves is uncapable to choose between her and another girl. When she is {{mind Rape}}d, that is the final blow and humilliation and she feels that she is worthless and she has nothing to live for. She even quotes the line verbatim:

* LatexSpaceSuit: The pilots wear skintight suits called plugsuits when they drive their giant robots. In this story there are two standard models: one for males and another for females. However Asuka's plugsuit is different from Rei's because Asuka is first production model's pilot and her plugsuit's design is the standard one.

''Her voice had barely been stronger then a whisper. It got definitely louder as I continued, as if I hadn't heard her.''\\

* LetsWaitAWhile: Subverted. In an early chapter Rei wants to have sex with Shinji but he backs out because [[spoiler:he can not stop to think about Asuka.]] Not wanting to hurt Rei he lies, saying he stopped because he wants to make sure things don't go too fast.

* LoveRevelationEpiphany: In chapter 1 Rei gave Shinji chocolates. In reaction Asuka got beyond mad, yelled him and slapped him. Then she cried and ran out of the class. And Shinji had absolutely no idea of why. Later Hikari yelled him he was a blind, thick-headed idiot and told him that Asuka loved him. Shinji was shocked because he liked Asuka but he could not believe she was interested in him.

** When Shinji fell into Leliel, the Angel entered his mind to try understand the human mind. However Shinji did not realize what was happening, and he attributed the visions he got to an hallucination.

* MindScrew: There was at least three: the first in chapter 5 Shinji falls into Leliel trap and sees an image of his younger self asking what he loves and what people thinks of him; in chapter 7 when Shinji is absorbed into his giant robot and wades through a bunch of hallucinations; and in chapter 12's side-story when [[spoiler:Gendo merges with Adam and Lilith. He and Unit 01 grab the Lance at the same time and all the sudden we see Gendo and Yui are in some kind of Eldritch Location. They talk, Gendo explains his actions, Yui and Kaoru lecture him about his mistakes, and Yui tells she will set him free because he was willing to do anything to save her... and maybe after a long while she will forgive him.]]

* NightmareSequence: In chapter 11 Shinji has a nightmare where he relives his worst failures: first he sees Unit-00 fighting Armisael and blowing up. Then Rei appears and says that he let her die before bursting into flame. Right after Asuka shows up, accuses him from never loving her and betraying her trust, and then slits her wrist. When Shinji tries to touch her, her body erupts in a shower of blood, covering him whole. Shinji screams and then he wakes up.

** Shinji knew he was not good with people, but he thought Asuka was more sociable. However he slowly realizes he is very, very wrong: Asuka is popular but she has never dated anybody, has very few real friends and has a hard time to open up.

** Asuka suffers frequent nightmares, specially after [[spoiler:getting raped by Arael.]] Usually they revolved around her mother's insanity and craziness. During a conversation with Rei, Shinji says they are getting so bad he is worried about Asuka.

* RecursiveFanfiction: Several fans wrote a bunch of side-stories, parodies, and even an authorized -sadly unfinished- sequel ("Que Sera Sera").
* RedIsHeroic: Asuka is a redhead, wears a red plugsuit and drives a red robot. And if you ask her, she will tell red is the best color.

* RunningGag: Shinji is constantly falling on top of women in increasingly embarassing situations -and positions-. Rei, Asuka... When he falls on top of Misato in chapter 8 he is wondering whether it is some kind of curse.

* SuggestiveCollision: Shinji colliding with other woman and falling on top of her happens so many times that it is a RunningGag. Shinji had fallen on top of Rei before the beginning of the story, he fell on top of Asuka when she was asleep and lying on her bed and he tripped and fell over Misato when he was helping her to go to her bedroom. All accidents are highly embarassing to him.

* ThatDidntHappen: When Misato collapses over the floor after [[spoiler:listening to Kaji's last call]] Shinji hurries to hug her, try to console her and help her to walk to her bed. Accidentally they tripped and Shinji fell on top of her. Misato kissed him before both of them fell asleep. At the next morning both are embarassed and agree to never talk about it again.

* TrashOfTheTitans: Misato and Rei's apartments seem war zones because the amount of trash, garbage and dirt littering floor and furniture. Rei made an effort to become tidier, but when [[spoiler:Shinji got absorbed into Unit 01]] she reverted to her old ways. When Asuka visited her apartment in the "Friends and Rivals" side-story she was surprised when she saw the mess because she thought Rei was tidier than her.

* ValentinesDayEpisodes: The story begins during a Valentine's Day. As Asuka is trying to work up the nerve to give Shinji some home-made chocolates, Rei gives Shinji a chocolate box, earning Asuka's wrath and kick starting the plot.

'''Asuka''':''"Sure! I asked her. I don't know why, but she has the biggest crush on that baka. Personally, I think she deserves better, but if she want him that bad..."''

* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: The epilogue chapter happens several years after the FinalBattle: [[spoiler:Shinji and Asuka get married and their friends and co-workers attend their wedding. During the ceremony Shinji explains what everyone have been doing during the past years: he and Asuka still work for NERV, are living together and expecting a baby; Rei dealt with a depression for a while but got better and was experimenting with all kind of jobs; Touji and Hikari are still together; Misato started dating Makoto...]]

* NotSoDifferent:
** In the false epilogue it was shown what Shinji might have turned into if [[spoiler:Asuka would have never awoken from her coma:]] He would become eerily cold and driven, and his obsession with saving the woman he loved would lead him to try to bring about Instrumentality, manipulating everyone around him and treating them like tools to achieve that goal. In a nutshell, he would turn into his father. As a reader put told, the scariest thing of that alternate epilogue is it feels right.
** Likewise, Shinji notes several times throughout how alike he and Asuka are, to the point of considering it eerie.
--->''I'd thought once before that she was a lot like me, by pushing people away... but I'd never imagined this. It was distressing to find out how much we really were alike.''