~*To Your Other Self*~

He was her, and she was him, playing the same roles and yet…

~*X*~

Color seemed to have lost its way here.

Minato Arisato stood with his hands in his pockets in front of the Door, the one sealing Nyx. He examined the dark chains winding around it almost disinterestedly, as if he was merely bored and searching for something to preoccupy his eyes. And preoccupied they were. The Door soared into the white void that was to be his entire world, marked with complex swirls that were made into its surface. He wondered just how old it was, or perhaps, how new.

He looked out of the corner of his eyes, sensing the arrival of the one he had been long expecting.

Her red hair streamed behind her like a flag. She had a peaceful expression on her face, and as she fell, she alighted softly and without a sound. For a moment she did nothing, just let everything settle, her hands at her side. Eventually, though, she opened her eyes and expressed only the slightest sign of surprise at her new surroundings. She turned to pierce the Door with her scarlet gaze.

Minato spoke at the same time as she, also looking at the Door.

"Nyx…"

She didn't even gasp upon hearing his voice. She just turned her head and met his navy eyes. Wordlessly, they walked towards one another, every step creating a ripple that spread across the ivory space, fading into nothing as time passed. It wasn't long until they stood, closer than people would have expected total strangers to stand, staring into faces that felt familiar to both, though they had never once met before.

Silence. And then:

Minato smiled at her, and she returned it. Both of their smiles were bittersweet.

"We can finally meet," Minato said softly. His fingers curled into fists in his pockets.

Minako gave a little laugh, the sound as sad as their smiles. "Though it seems funny to say, 'Nice to meet you'."

"Hah." He grinned a little wider, and she blinked, doing the same.

My "Self" that followed the same path in another world. The thought passed between the both of them silently.

Minato remarked aloud, "I could see it, when I gained the power of the Universe."

"Same here." She wrapped her arms around herself, and he could tell she was remembering an embrace that she missed dearly. Over their bond, as perhaps the only owners of the Universe Arcana in all the known cosmos, he glimpsed golden memories shared with a young man who no longer breathed in his world. "How long have you been here?"

Minato sighed. "Time doesn't seem to operate here. Not like how we're used to. I couldn't say."

Minako nodded solemnly. He felt like she could sense where his mind was going, and he didn't care if she got a peek at his memories of the girl whose eyes had made brown a beautiful color. "Are we going to be here, forever? If that's so, I'm glad that I'm not alone."

"We have the power of the Universe," he answered wryly. "And still I don't know."

She brought a hand close to her heart, as if in prayer. "Even with all this power, we've still made our friends so unhappy…"

He closed his eyes. "But they're safe, and sadness is only temporary."

"Do you think she will get over it, then? Do you think he will?"

The two names of their closest loved ones hung in the air; intangible but so real he could almost see them.

His voice lodged itself in his throat, but he managed to murmur, "They must."

Minako tilted her head to the side, like she was listening. "…You too, huh? You would rather they forget us?"

"Forget, or else no longer think of our names with pain."

Somehow, she managed to giggle briefly, though he couldn't fathom for the life of him how. "We sound so mature, not at all like teenagers, don't we?"

He scoffed in amusement. "We stopped being teenagers long ago."

Unexpectedly, they heard the sound of beating wings. "Hey," said a familiar voice. "So…you came after all."

They both watched, turning their faces skyward as a figure with two sets of wings descended. Feathers as black as oblivion spiraled around him, and his yellow scarf flapped in the generated breeze. He, too, landed noiselessly before the Door and his wings disappeared without sound or fanfare. He had his arms spread helplessly, his expression kind, but exasperated and confused.

Over his link with Minako, Minato felt a sudden, violent twinge. He glanced at her, the alarm fading from him as he saw the way she was looking at Ryoji. The red of her eyes were filled with the grief of one who knew that she could never be with someone she loved. He didn't understand, but as fast as it had come, the feeling was gone. He realized she had long ago accepted something that would never happen, no matter how much she wished it. Soon, her heart was again filled with images of friends…and of the boy with the red coat who was alive in her world somehow…

He wondered, did she see into his heart the same as he could into hers?

"Why must you all be so strong?" Ryoji asked, his tone melancholy. "Did you never think of running away…?"

The pair exchanged looks, and he saw that the resolution that burned within him was in her as well. Minato decided to speak for them both, that is, if she didn't mind. "Running away isn't our style."

Death seemed mildly amused, but the gloom in his eyes returned quickly. He met Minako's eyes, and once more Minato sensed that something had gone on between them that had not happened in his world. It would make sense, he supposed, for some things to be different in his other self's world…Minako, meanwhile, was turning a ring over and over on her finger absently.

Ryoji soon began talking again, this time moving his gaze between them both. "With the power of the Universe, there are enough human sacrifices for the Seal." He paused to let that sink in. "This is a prison whose bounds cannot be seen. It will steal you away from your teammates, your friends, all who are important to you…For the sake of saving the world?" His eyes hardened. "Sorry, but I'd rather see you two happy." He stretched his hands out towards them, one to Minato and one to Minako. "Please, I'm begging you…sacrifice some lives in the universe, and Seal off Nyx that way…"

Minato had let out a strangled gasp earlier, but now he became still as stone. Almost as if in a time warp, he found himself being catapulted back to his final moments with Yukari. He remembered everything. Every little crease in her clothes, the way she knitted her eyebrows when she was thinking or angry, the scent of the citrus perfume she wore. Was he willing to cause…cause genocide to close the door and trap Nyx forever? Was it truly worth it, just to feel the warmth of her arms again around him? A part of him, so desperately, cried from deep within his heart—Yes.

Ryoji smiled, reading his mind. Or maybe just the naked longing on his face to be with her again. Though he had only parted with Yukari a short time ago, it felt more like years. "You wouldn't even have to sacrifice anyone you know," he coaxed. He looked at Minako next, and he seemed to have just noticed the way she spun the ring on her finger. He smiled gently. "Minako…You wish to return to him too, don't you?"

Her eyes were half closed, and Minato could hear, almost as if from far away, Shinji's voice murmuring, "I'm so glad to have met you."

Like a sweet echo, Yukari's last words to him rebounded again and again in his ears. "Just…stay with me for a little while." He thought of her face streaming with happy tears, shining with the promise of their love, the kind of love that only existed in fairy tales and the world where his other self resided. The kind of love that tore down terrifying monsters, befriended Death, and locked away the nightmare that was Nyx forever.

And yet…To kill others, even total strangers, for his own happiness? For their own happiness? Half of him yearned to be with Yukari, consequences be damned, and the other half knew that he had no right to pass judgment on so many lives.

Messiah. Was that not the name of one of his strongest Personas? But…maybe he didn't want to be a martyr. Maybe he didn't want to be a hero. Maybe Minato Arisato just wanted to laugh with his friends again in the sunlight and hold Yukari close…never letting go…

He sensed a similar wavering on Minako's end. He wondered, to his other self, was this proposal as tempting as it was to him?

Ryoji said nothing, hands still outstretched, his eyes ancient and yet full of hope. Minato knew his view on death, which would likely explain why he wanted his friends to sacrifice lives for the Seal. But in his own way, Ryoji was trying to do his best for them, just like how he had offered up his own life to erase their memories on New Year's Eve. But it was not to be, because they had never been ones to take the easy way out.

But now…Now there was nothing to fight. Nothing to try their luck against. Just two options, and neither were easy.

"Forever become Seals for the door," Minako said into the silence that had been enveloping them for God knew how long. "Or sacrifice countless lives in the universe and return home."

Minato scowled. "Damned if you do, damned if you don't. I couldn't live with myself if—"

"Why you?" Ryoji interrupted in a surprisingly harsh voice. "Why you two? Who says you have to give up your lives? What makes your lives any less special than anyone else's? Let them make the sacrifice, you two have done enough already. More than anyone could ever imagine, or ever know." He faced Minako. "Minako. You know I love you." His tone was normal again. "Please, I don't want you to do this. Please."

She flinched as if his words were physically hurting her, though Minato had to admit, he himself was not immune to the pain he was causing. Ryoji was right, but…

"Do you really want to leave Ken alone? After he lost his mother?" Ryoji continued. He seemed to be directing this at the both of them. "Or Mitsuru? Fuuka? Akihiko? Even Koro-chan." His eyes slid over to Minato. "Yukari?" Back to Minako. "Shinji?" And now for the true low blow. "Aigis?"

Aigis. He felt a throbbing ache in his heart for the android, who had never shown him anything but love and understanding. It was the same with his other self, he knew. He felt so torn up inside that he could hardly breathe.

Please, God…give me a sign…

How could Death know them both so well? But he supposed he was on a different plane of existence altogether, almost a force of nature, so existing in two worlds suddenly didn't seem quite so farfetched. Despite how much he could see this option was hurting his friends, Ryoji was stubbornly waiting for their response. He was being cruel to be kind, in the end. Trying to make them see that the right path was returning to their friends.

Supposedly. But killing so many…

A thousand voices seemed to be chiming around him, Yukari's the most prevalent. Minato grabbed the side of his head and shut his eyes tight. He could tell that Minako was doing the same.

Ultimately, the correct choice made itself present to him, and to her as well. At the same time, they both removed their hands and met each other's gazes. Red and blue. Blue and red. The same and yet different.

Minato turned to face Death, and Death smiled back hopefully at him. At his side, Minako took in a shaky breath.

"We choose…"

Author's Note: First Persona fanfiction! Woohoo! Review, if you want. This was based on a comic I saw a little bit ago.