tarotcards | ♔ IC CONTACT 『 CROSSCHECK 』

[ Souji was right about being there in twenty minutes. He's been to the market enough times to properly guess how long it'd take to get back to the Hall from his current spot. Combined with his rush to get back, he arrives to his room in no time. ]

[ He drops off his bags but decides to being Cream-san with him. He figures that maybe she can distract Shirosaba and give the two some space to talk. Worse comes to worse, they can always let the two walk around outside. ]

[ After making sure that the room is properly locked behind him, he heads on over to Minato's and knocks on the door three times. He has a small feeling that Minato has fallen asleep since that guy seems to have a habit of doing that, so he knocks a bit louder than usual. Wakey wakey, buddy. ]

[ Minato isn't actually sleeping for once, although someone might not realize if they'd just walked by. He's laying down on his bed with Shirosaba on his chest, but as soon as there's a knock at the door, he turns his head to look at it. Shirosaba doesn't seem to notice or she just doesn't want to move. Probably the latter. ]

It's open.

[ Ah, so he's actually awake. Well, that's good, Souji supposes. He lets himself in and Cream-san follows behind him. She jumps up onto the bed, not walking onto Minato but sits next to him, leaning her head in to bump noses with Shirosaba. Souji doesn't take a seat on the bed like Cream-san but he does take a chair from the centre of the room and places it beside the bed, sitting down with his hands on his lap. This way, Minato doesn't have to sit up to look at him while they talk or anything. ]

Minato-san.

[ That's all he says. He won't ask or anything. He'll let the other boy speak first, direct the flow of conversation and dictate the topic. He'll be patient. Minato can take his time starting too. ]

[ Shirosaba stretches as soon as the door is opened, ready and happy to greet the other carrier. She gets along fine with others, of course, but another cat is really where she feels most comfortable. Minato only turns his head as Souji finds a spot for himself. He looks so serious sitting like that.

Minato wonders if he's made a big deal out of something he shouldn't have. Something he should already know how to deal with. Is that what his problem is?

Souji is waiting for something, he knows. Much like with Setsuna, there is some level of nonverbal communication that can pass between them. Minato exhales quietly as he turns his head to look back up at the ceiling. What does he even need to say... ]

...I messed up.

[ A few things run through Souji's head as he patiently waits. Based on the kind of questions Minato asked him, he has a slight idea on what this conversation might be about. A person doesn't just bring up questions about friends and social links out of nowhere, of course, but he wouldn't know what they might talk about without actually hearing it from Minato himself. ]

[ There's no change of expression when Minato speaks. "Messed up"? ]

Can I ask what happened?

[ He wants to be polite. If Minato wants to keep this vague and just ask the questions instead, then that's fine with him. Regardless if there is context or not, Souji will still offer his advice and an ear. ]

[ How to even begin...

Souji knows part of the story, at least. At how they'd made that little faux pas with the novels and upset a few people, namely Yukari. Her Social Link is still reversed and he knows he needs to give her space, but he had to check on her at the hot spring. A part of him is still glad he did, but...did it really have to go like that?

There's a long pause as he tries to piece his thoughts together. He's never been very verbose and usually chooses the simplest way to put something. When speaking takes energy, when he's like this, that's really how he prefers it. ]

I saw Yukari. [ She died, she said. Should he share that? Maybe not all the details. Not the way she wasn't acting like herself and walked around naked, either. She wouldn't want anyone to know about that, so he respects her privacy, at least, and gets to the heart of the matter for this particular crisis. ]

She said I'm empty.

[ He sighs again. It feels so...needlessly dramatic to say it like that. ]

...I don't think she's wrong.

[ Ah, that is... a more concerning topic than he thought, actually. He knows that Yukari is still mad at them. He hasn't approached her yet. He doesn't know her as well as Minato apparently does and if it's a good time to really see her until she thinks he has apologized for the book incident enough. He does have to do it eventually, yes, he's not going to avoid it, but to say that someone's empty... That hurts. ]

[ Souji doesn't know how much he's allowed to dig into this without delving into things that Minato may not be comfortable speaking about. He's quiet at first, thoughtful, with his hands still on his knees and his right thumb rubbing back and forth. ]

Do you know why she said that?

[ Yes...yes he does. But how much should he say? He does feel like Yukari wouldn't want him sharing all the details. Upset and disconnected as she is, he does want to respect that for once.

He's quiet for a long moment, contemplating. ]

...She's...not in a good place right now. [ Which is probably the most nondescript way to put it. ] ...She said she understands how I feel all the time: nothing.

[ Hm, vague, huh? Well, Souji won't dig deeper into that topic then, but... this is concerning. Minato really believes this too? That he's "empty"? That he feels "nothing"? ]

And you agree with her?

[ The fact that he hadn't found it in himself to disagree on the spot spoke more than he probably ever would. Minato is, once again, silence for a moment, before he shrugs. ]

...I don't think she's wrong.

[ It feels so pathetic to say it. He really doesn't want to make a big deal of things, but he was the one who reached out to Souji in the first place. ]

...Not entirely.

[ It speaks volumes about how Minato perceives himself. Souji finds that rather... concerning. Yukari definitely has known him much longer than Souji has, so maybe he's wrong about this, but he doesn't exactly know if he could agree with it. ]

Is it all right if I ask why?

[ He really wants to make sure that he's not overstepping his boundaries here but... it might help if they talk about it. He's giving Minato a window to escape though, if he doesn't. ]

[ Minato falls quiet again. Are these thoughts he'd actually been having, or things he'd only begun to question when Yukari brought them forward? Maybe a little of both. A part of him has always known he doesn't see the world quite the right way, but it's never been a big problem. He really didn't care up until recently. He had to if it could cost him people he actually cares about.

He holds his hand out and Shirosaba obediently comes forward to sniff his fingertips before allowing him to pet one of her ears. It's strangely soothing. ]

...Not to sound overly dramatic... [ He pauses as he gives a soft huff. ] But it's easier that way. [ Also easier to put it in a way that feels less...personal. "I used to be that way" or "I chose to be like that" just feels...well, he knows Souji is perceptive enough to make the leaps in logic so he can hold onto some of his integrity. Or that's what he'd like to tell himself. ] I just thought things had changed.

♔ IC CONTACT 『 CROSSCHECK 』

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