entrancelogs | [CLOSED] ▫ 讓定律更簡單讓秩序更混亂這樣的青春我才喜歡讓盛夏去貪玩把殘酷的未來狂放到光年外 ▫

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[CLOSED] ▫ 讓定律更簡單讓秩序更混亂這樣的青春我才喜歡讓盛夏去貪玩把殘酷的未來狂放到光年外 ▫

Who: Seta Souji [

eatsyourscience] and Arisato Minato [

jivitadana]
Where: Sixth Floor, Room 100
When: Wednesday, May 24
Rating: PG for summoning experimentation and Persona talk
Summary: Souji and Minato figure out how to break the rules of Persona summoning, then proceed to discuss the future at home
The Story:

Once was more than enough. It hadn't even happened at home, and Minato thought perhaps he had taken it for granted or it didn't have a chance of happening at all, not with his friends around him who used the same piece of summoning equipment he did. He could've just borrowed one if he had to, though again, the issue never really came up for him.

But here? Minato only had one Evoker on him and when he did have a second one, he left it oh so conveniently by a mirror for someone on the other side to take. He knew that he needed one as well. Minato knew the feeling, that helpless feeling that he'd be unable to do anything in a proper fight or be unable to heal, the latter of which he worried the most about. What if someone needed him? He'd have his Personas, it was true, but they'd be out of reach. There was no point. He may as well not have had them at all. Not there was anything wrong with relying on his own skills and knowledge, but having his Personas was more than helpful in an emergency.

The inconvenience, he had to rid himself of the inconvenience so he wouldn't end up as an inconvenience to anyone else.

Thus Souji had offered to help Minato circumvent the whole using an Evoker method for summoning a Persona. They would need the space but also somewhere confined in case anything went wrong. Minato doubted that it would, but judging what happened the first time he summoned, he couldn't leave things to chance.

Plus there was something else to discuss: Personas. They needed to talk about the Personas themselves and what they meant now and then in the future. Just when Minato thought everything had been taken care of, the future decided it had had enough of peace and quiet. Apparently. He worried, if he could, where Souji would be in that future too and what he would be doing.

But first things first. With Souji's help, Minato had cleared the room as much as possible, moving a table off to the side along with the chairs, folding up the futon and putting it away, ensuring that Tefra and the bunny would be safe and out of any line of fire. Minato was concerned for Souji too if anything did go out of control, but Souji reassured him that it would be fine. Minato had to believe it and reign himself in as much as possible if things did get out of hand.

He wasn't quite sure where to start or how to begin. He ended up sitting on the floor in front of Souji, taking a breath in then out. His Evoker was in its holster, but he had to resist going for it. They needed to start somewhere, somehow, just straight up, almost like he had to go through withdrawals away from his summoning device. Maybe less painful? Who knew.

"... Ideas?" Minato had a couple of those, he thought. He may as well try anything right now.

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Souji was sitting on the floor across from Minato. He'd stuck Tefra and the bunny in the bathroom for now; otherwise, he'd have had one or both of them in his lap by now.

He tilted his head back a bit, looking at the ceiling where it met the wall behind Minato, thinking it over.

"Is there some way to replace the Evoker with something you will always have with you?"

But what would that be?

"...You could try shooting yourself with your finger."

That seemed a little silly when he said it out loud.

Something that he always had. Minato thought that was a good way of putting it. He had his Evoker with him almost all the time, but that was almost. He needed something else that he had with him wherever he went.

"Mn, I could try it."

But he had to think of his death, which is why the Evoker gave him more of that impression. But Minato nodded, bringing his finger up to his temple and thinking about dying and his mortality.

He stayed like that for a moment, also shutting his eyes tightly and thinking hard on it, but nothing happened.

"I might need to try it again."

"I should probably come up with a better suggestion."

That had just been the first thing that had popped into his head.

"How did the others do it? The members of Strega."

But it made sense that that would be the first thing that Souji thought of. But upon hearing the name of that group, Minato lowered his head.

"Two of them used an Evoker, but Takaya didn't. I can try it."

Minato put his hands to his head to show Souji how it was done like his head hurt. Yet he thought something deep inside him rejected this and he lowered his hands.

"... Even if that method works, I don't want it to."

Souji nodded. Leaning forward, he put a hand on one of Minato's briefly, reassuring him.

"We'll find another way to do it."

Minato smiled a little. He nodded and was thankful for that reassurance. There was too much with that way of summoning that shouldn't have been able to happen at all. It wasn't their fault. Minato thought they should keep it for themselves.

But it did make him think about something else. He tilted his head a bit in thought.

"It works because I think of dying. Maybe I should think of something else."

"Do you still think that even though you've used your Evoker so many times? Or is it more like you're conditioned to think that now?"

Eventually, the actual cognition would have to have worn off when the Evoker repeatedly didn't kill him, Souji thought.

"It doesn't work if I don't think about it. But having it simulate dying helps."

Minato knew that pulling the trigger and not meaning it wouldn't work. He thought he was reminded of dying every time he did summon and he was also reminded outside of doing that too.

"I have to condition myself to think of something else." In addition.

Souji nodded slowly, understanding that. "...I always think about reaching out to something. Whatever it is I need to attain or accomplish, that's what my Persona is there for."

That was another way of thinking about it. Reaching out for something, like how Souji did whenever he had to reached out to the truth.

But what could Minato be reaching out for?

When he looked back about all the things he had reached for though, something did come to mind.

"If you have the World, then I'll try for the Universe too."

Souji nodded. He'd always wondered at that distinction between the two of them, though he thought he understood it.

"How?"

"I want to protect you and everyone else. I want to think about all of you being alive."

Perhaps that was the key to it this time around. Minato could concentrate on his own death when summoning his Personas with his Evoker. But without it, he can think instead about life and the reason for his own death.

"You want to think about it in the past tense."

Not that he would inevitably die, but that he had died. That made Souji's chest ache a bit.

That's right. Past tense. Minato thought he could use past tense but also present tense if he wanted to protect people here, especially Souji. But past tense might be more fitting in this case.

His past didn't seem all that long ago. It was only about six months. His stay here was already half as long as that journey he had and he almost couldn't believe it. He could think about what he had done and why, think about who he saved, whose future he had wanted to protect.

Minato slowly placed his hand on his chest. He knew now why that someone close to him did that so foten. He was remembering that he had a heart. Minato was remembering that was where he kept everyone close to him.

"Like this."

Souji took in that gesture and nodded. He thought that the heart was probably where Personas truly resided, just like it was where the connections to others resided.

"It will still take some practice."

Souji shifted closer to him.

"How can I give you my strength?"

Minato smiled softly as his eyes met Souji's. With Souji here, he knew that he could do anything. Souji knew exactly where he was weak, where he needed to be mended, where he needed support.

"Believe in me?"

Souji would know too what he meant by that when it counted the most. Now Minato was embarking on something new, defying the impossible, and while he knew that he would have to do this on his own too with more practice, he just needed a little boost right now, maybe a little luck too.

Souji nodded. He reached out and briefly put a hand over Minato's where it still rested over his heart. Then he withdrew and waited, letting Minato work it out in his own time.

Souji was so good to him. Always. For all Minato had accomplished, he didn't think there was enough to repay Souji back for everything Souji had given him.

Still feeling Souji's warmth on the back of his hand, Minato closed his eyes and gathered all of his thoughts to bring them to his heart, like he were trying to catch all the stars in the night sky to collect them in his hands, doing the impossible and wanting to hold starlight in his hands. And moonlight, he couldn't forget that either.

Voices like the twinkle of that light spoke to him and a few had stepped aside since Minato knew too that he wasn't ready. He would need practice as one of them often reminded him. But just this once, they could let another one of them come out to play.

He pressed his hand more against his chest, his eyes squeezed tightly shut, remembering who he was and who he came to be and how. He just had to reach...

"Almost. He's teasing."

That should've made it obvious as to who Minato was trying to summon.

One corner of Souji's mouth quirked.

"Would it help if he had some company?"

Minato nodded. It would more than help, especially with this Persona. Minato opened his eyes again but didn't lower his hand away from his heart.

"You mean compan-hee, right?"

He smiled and was told again that even if he did the actual summoning on his own, he would still need to rely on others to give him the power he needed or remind him that he had that power. His Persona was quite clever in his own playful way. Or maybe he just wanted an excuse to see his brother. Either way, still clever.

Souji chuckled at that and nodded. He was happy to provide whatever help he could, and it was always nice to see the two Jacks together. Without waiting any longer, he reached out and summoned Pyro Jack. The Persona spun in place before bobbing up and down with lantern in hand, waiting on standby. Souji waited as well to see what would happen.

There was almost this rush of joy that Minato suddenly felt when he saw Pyro Jack now. Minato thought that that was perfect. It was just what he needed too, he thought. He could think about how happy he felt and how he wanted or had, he hoped, extended that happiness to people around him.

He concentrated on that warmth he had been feeling in his chest and though it took him a moment, several moments, he finally did hear the familiar shattering of glass before he blinked his eyes open in surprise.

Jack Frost had appeared, twirling once and giving his fiery brother his signature wave.

Minato smiled again, then thought maybe he should lie down right about now and right here on the floor.

Souji's eyes widened. Even though he'd believed in Minato from the beginning, it was still a shock to see Jack Frost appear without the aid of Minato's Evoker.

"You did it."

Looking back at Minato, he could see how much it had taken out of him and he scooted closer, in case Minato wavered and Souji needed to steady him. He dismissed Pyro Jack, who sank back into him slowly, then reached out and put a hand on Minato's again, affectionate and a little worried.

"I'm proud of you."

Minato placed a hand on the floor to hold himself up too and closed his eyes while Jack Frost soon disappeared without so much of a farewell. He could still feel how warm it was, but that was from Souji, most likely. It was warm, and he was so tired... almost like that spring day on the rooftop, but not so much like he was floating or about to drift away. He had Souji to anchor him here.

"Thank you..."

Souji had helped him so much. There was more that Minato had to practice though and he knew it would take time. He didn't think he could perform that feat again any time soon either. He'd have to wait.

"... Ne, can I have a hug?"

Souji smiled and moved closer, sitting beside Minato where he could gather him up in his arms, one hand on his hair.

"You're amazing."

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