The Second Try



After Third Impact, Shinji and Asuka are the only humans left in the whole world, and they must carry on with only each other. And against all odds, they do, overcoming their own psychoses and insecurities and becoming better humans through it. Then one morning, they both wake up to find that mankind has returned, they are in their younger bodies and living in Misato's apartment again, and only they have any memories of what has happened, and what is happening again, the little world they built for themselves destroyed.

And now they have to go through their most trying ordeals once more in the Evas, and try to change history, while simultaneously deflecting suspicions of their changes, and coping with the loss of their old life.

The realm of Evangelion fics has numerous Post-Third Impact and Peggy Sue stories of varying quality. The Second Try has both plotlines, but you know what? It works. The story has Asuka and Shinji change vastly from how they were in the series, but in small ways, so that Shinji is still Shinji and not Chuck Norris or The Chessmaster, and Asuka is still Asuka and not Belldandy or Ty Lee, and the reasons for these changes are organic and make sense in context for the characters.

The Second Try can be read here. The author has since begun a sequel webmanga called Aki-chan's Life. It picks up right where the story leaves off. Another fic of his, The Ikaris, now has his own page.

"Asuka (to Shinji): "I'll handle them. These guys aren't the real problem after all. Just take care of my cable, okay?" Shinji (smiling weakly and nodding): "Of course.""
 * Adam and Eve Plot: Asuka and Shinji discuss this during one of the "flashback" chapters.
 * After the End: All named chapters before "Repeat" are set here.
 * Anachronic Order: The story alternates its chapters between the Peggy Sue and Post-Third Impact storylines.
 * And Now for Someone Completely Different: The start of the last chapter "end" shows the events of the last day from Rei's viewpoint.
 * The Apocalypse Brings Out the Best In People: Both Shinji and Asuka become much more confident and capable people after Third Impact.
 * The Atoner: Shinji and Asuka to a degree.
 * Babies Ever After: Misato is revealed to be preggers in the epilogue.
 * Babies Make Everything Better:
 * Badass Bookworm: Both Asuka and Shinji have to become this in order to survive the post-Third Impact world, since they're the only humans left on the planet.
 * Baka: Asuka loves to call Shinji this.
 * Battle Couple: Shinji and Asuka, even more than in the original series now they are serious about fighting and want to support and help each other. It even is noted by
 * In episode:
 * Battle Couple: Shinji and Asuka, even more than in the original series now they are serious about fighting and want to support and help each other. It even is noted by
 * In episode:
 * In episode:

""Concentrate all fire on that power cable!" "It's no use, Sir! Purple's guarding it!""
 * And later in the same episode:


 * Be Careful What You Wish For:
 * Belligerent Sexual Tension: Played with. Living on their own had helped Shinji and Asuka grow past this point, but when they return to the past, they try enacting this trope to avoid arousing suspicion. The key word there is Try.
 * Berserk Button: Taunt Asuka with  or threaten to harm Shinji in front of her. Come on! I dare you!
 * Likewise, Shinji doesn't take too kindly towards anyone who tries/threatens to harm Asuka. While he's pretty good at keeping his cool, some found out the hard way what happens if this button gets pressed too hard. Stupid bastards never saw it coming.
 * Beware the Nice Ones: Once again, Shinji. More so than in the original timeline, as he's no longer plagued by crippling insecurities. Exemplified in his rematch with the thirteenth angel.
 * Bilingual Bonus: Asuka and speak a lot of German, including several children's songs. Which makes sense, since both the characters and the author are German.
 * Brother-Sister Incest: Discussed but ultimately averted.
 * Calling the Old Man Out: Shinji finally snaps at Gendo during The Final.
 * Cassandra Truth:
 * Character Development: Some of the best development for Shinji and Asuka in all of fan fiction takes place during the Post-Third Impact chapters.
 * The Chessmaster: Averted. Shinji and Asuka are not Gendo Ikari.
 * Though they do have some small successes here and there, such as pushing Toji and Hikari to becoming a couple.
 * Chekhov's Gun: The "Anonymous" letter that Shinji slips into Misato's jacket during chapter 3.
 * Children Are Innocent:
 * Clingy Jealous Girl: Asuka was one in the original series (part of her animosity towards Rei was due to her misconception of Shinji liked Rei instead of her). Her jealousy had mellowed down due to she feeling more confident about herself and their relationship; however, she was completely hostile towards Kaworu and she warned him she wanted him nowhere near from her husband.
 * Convenient Coma:
 * Curtain Fic: It's debatable how much "finding food and shelter" and "maintaining the homestead's defenses" can be considered normal chores, but the post-Third Impact chapters do qualify, in a weird post-apocalyptic sort of way.
 * Cuteness Overload: Rei, of all people, is hit by this. . Although, in the following web comic, causes this in pretty much everyone.
 * Damned By Faint Praise: Rei resorts to this to critique a drawing of her. It works because the artist is only three.
 * Dead Guy, Junior: Discussed but ultimately averted.
 * Despair Event Horizon: Subverted twice..
 * Played straight with
 * Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?: Chapter 11. Yep, Asuka just.
 * Better yet, in the same chapter she.
 * Didn't See That Coming: SEELE's reaction to Their following argument gets so heated that they don't even notice that someone is missing.
 * Dude, She's Like, in a Coma: After the defeat of the Seventeenth Angel, Shinji visits a sleeping Asuka in the hospital, and unlike what he did in the original timeline, he kisses her. Asuka wakes up during the kiss and jokingly tells maybe he should have tried that the last time instead.
 * Earn Your Happy Ending: Well, yeah.
 * Everyone Can See It: Humorously inverted this time around. The rest of this cast assume this is the case with Asuka and Shinji. However, no one has any idea that, not only are they a couple, but
 * Everything's Better with Monkeys: No. No, they are not.
 * Falling Into the Cockpit: In chapter 2 Asuka wants to drive a car for first time. Shinji thinks it is not a good idea, but she argues if she is able to drive a Humongous Mecha, she is able to drive a car. Shortly after she finds out that... nope. She is not able.
 * Fiery Redhead: Asuka mellows out considerably in the post-TI chapters, but still retains this as part of her personality.
 * Foregone Conclusion: A minor one at the end of chapter 6, the author makes it seem like Asuka has died ...about 4 years before she and Shinji get thrown back in time. She, of course, turns out to be fine a paragraph later.
 * Played straight in the otherwise heartwarming Chapter 8. The chapter (and chapter 6) also hints at another one that combines with Adult Fear. They're still the only people left on the planet, even after several years.   Their happiness will not last forever, nor does the future look bright.
 * Get a Hold of Yourself, Man!: Asuka delivers this trope almost word for word in chapter 2, thankfully without the slapping.
 * Note that had this occurred before the Third Impact, she would have slapped him. She was probably afraid to (given what happened during Instrumentality, and the fact he's the only other person left on earth).
 * Gilligan Cut: From "I'm sure, as long as we ( and Asuka) have each other, there's nothing that could hurt us." to "Ah!, you're hurting !"
 * Happily Married:.
 * Heroes Want Redheads: Shinji very much wants his redhead, gorgeous, Tsundere wife.
 * Hidden Depths: Rei is apparently quite the artist.
 * Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: All odd-numbered chapters are numbered from 12th to 17th to represent the Angel fought, while even-numbered chapters are named with a single word on its major theme.
 * Intergenerational Friendship:.
 * In Medias Res: A lot happens after that last scene of End of Evangelion, but that gets revealed later on. The story starts within a couple days of the battle of the Twelfth Angel.
 * Ironic Echo: "Do not ask questions you don't really want to hear the answer to."
 * Karmic Death: Chairman Kihl of SEELE. Most evil man in the series. Has been manipulating things behind the scenes probably since he was a young man. Cooked up Second Impact and the plan for his version of Third Impact to essentially escape Death, which he's afraid of.
 * Little No: Asuka to Shinji in survive: . Shinji's answer? "No..."
 * This actually mirrors their scene during Instrumentality (you know, that scene), with their positions swapped. However, this time it ends with a CMOH.
 * Like an Old Married Couple: Hilariously inverted. After Shinji and Asuka used to bicker Like an Old Married Couple before, but now they are one, they act like newfound lovebirds. Shinji and Asuka explain that is partially because they are hormone-driven teenagers again... without Belligerent Sexual Tension separating them.
 * Living Emotional Crutch: Shinji and Asuka are this for each other.
 * The Matchmaker: Shinji and Askua act as this for Hikari and Toji. Hikari thinks she's acting as this for Asuka and Shinji.
 * Meaningful Echo: "Smile when you're happy, cry when you're sad..."
 * Little No: Asuka to Shinji in survive: . Shinji's answer? "No..."
 * This actually mirrors their scene during Instrumentality (you know, that scene), with their positions swapped. However, this time it ends with a CMOH.
 * Like an Old Married Couple: Hilariously inverted. After Shinji and Asuka used to bicker Like an Old Married Couple before, but now they are one, they act like newfound lovebirds. Shinji and Asuka explain that is partially because they are hormone-driven teenagers again... without Belligerent Sexual Tension separating them.
 * Living Emotional Crutch: Shinji and Asuka are this for each other.
 * The Matchmaker: Shinji and Askua act as this for Hikari and Toji. Hikari thinks she's acting as this for Asuka and Shinji.
 * Meaningful Echo: "Smile when you're happy, cry when you're sad..."
 * Like an Old Married Couple: Hilariously inverted. After Shinji and Asuka used to bicker Like an Old Married Couple before, but now they are one, they act like newfound lovebirds. Shinji and Asuka explain that is partially because they are hormone-driven teenagers again... without Belligerent Sexual Tension separating them.
 * Living Emotional Crutch: Shinji and Asuka are this for each other.
 * The Matchmaker: Shinji and Askua act as this for Hikari and Toji. Hikari thinks she's acting as this for Asuka and Shinji.
 * Meaningful Echo: "Smile when you're happy, cry when you're sad..."
 * Meaningful Echo: "Smile when you're happy, cry when you're sad..."

"Rei: "He (Shinji) is acting different lately. Soryu as well. Both have improved their social skills. Ikari is not as timid in the presence of other people. Soryu's aggressiveness has calmed down enough to accept the presence of people she had declared to hate, including myself. However, most of the time, they are trying to convince everyone that these changes are not existent. They also seem to possess a greater knowledge than before.""
 * Mind Rape: Asuka once again suffers this at the hands of the 15th angel, but this time it's even worse.
 * Mind Screw: In the author's own words, it wouldn't be Evangelion without it. This includes a bizarre and slightly disturbing rehash of the Gainax Ending of Neon Genesis Evangelion in chapter four, "Love."
 * Another minor one occurs in "end" with Shinji wondering
 * No Export for You: In an incredibly rare aversion for fanfiction, this story is available to read in several other languages, which right now include German, Spanish, and Polish.
 * Oh Crap: From the audience.
 * Older Than They Look/Wise Beyond Their Years: Shinji and Asuka, after they return to the past, are mentally in their early 20s. However, they have the emotional maturity of a person at least 10 years older than that.
 * One Steve Limit: See Dead Guy, Junior above.
 * Out-of-Character Moment: A rather important plot point revolves around Shinji and Asuka trying to act like their old selves so as to not arouse suspicion. However, they are not the most convincing actors and most of their friends note that they are acting odd (Asuka is bad at hiding her emotions, while Shinji is bad about remembering to be careful with words or actions). Rei pretty much spells it out in chapter 3 in a conversation with Toji.

"Shinji:"
 * The only reason they manage to keep the facade up is because no one would suspect that they were actually a couple, much less the other absurdities of their story.
 * Peggy Sue: Arguably deconstructed when.
 * Red Oni, Blue Oni: Asuka and Shinji were like this in the original series, but their relationship becomes a more mellow version of this trope in the post-Third-Impact chapters.
 * The Reveal: See Wham! Line.
 * Saying Too Much: An interesting version.
 * Sleep Cute: Quite a few times in Chapter Four.
 * Talking to the Dead: Shinji and Asuka do this in After-TI chapters. Although instead of a grave, they go to the LCL sea.
 * Taking You with Me:
 * Tears of Joy:
 * Technical Virgin: A literal example. In "The Final" Asuka points out that it is technically her first time due to Mental Time Travel.
 * Tempting Fate: Asuka hangs a lampshade on how it's bad luck to propose before the final battle. She even compares it to Retirony.
 * Timey-Wimey Ball:
 * WAFF: Ironically, a lot of After the End chapters can get like this, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it's the opposite, it's a good thing. A very, very good thing.
 * Wham! Line: The end of chapter 5.
 * WAFF: Ironically, a lot of After the End chapters can get like this, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it's the opposite, it's a good thing. A very, very good thing.
 * Wham! Line: The end of chapter 5.


 * What Happened to the Mouse?: