Persona 7
Section V
The Sisters
~ Reflecting Time 8/27 MON
Condition: Tired
The Mirror Road ~ Part 2
"Lee," Ling said to him. "EJ and Tess."
Lee heard a smile in her voice.
"You're going to have to come back for Axle. You're going to have to come back for me. No pressure. You'll come for me last. I'll be fine."
Lee suddenly felt exhausted, and he could see that EJ and Tess were feeling the same.
"Would that be safe?" EJ asked, leaning on his knees to hold himself up.
"We can't leave you guys," Tess said, "especially if you're facing off against your own shadow selves." She kept blinking, trying to keep her eyes open.
"Leaving us behind might not be the safest option," Ling said, "but it is safer than you all trying to continue forward in your current conditions. You're all still new to your power. Recover, and then come back refreshed."
"Once I catch my second wind," EJ said, "I'll be good to go."
"I feel like I'm getting more and more drained by the second," Tess said, sitting down.
Lee and EJ had had their Personas for a little longer while Tess had just received hers; that explained their varying conditions. Ling usually was right; it would be best to go. He would not endanger anyone if he could help it.
"We'll go back," Lee said, "but when midnight rolls around we're coming for Axle and you."
"Thank you for adhering to my advice," Ling said.
Lee heard the smile in her voice again.
"I'm teleporting you guys to the platform," Ling said. "I don't want any trouble to find you."
~ Reflecting Time 8/27 MON
Condition: Tired
The Mirror Road ~ Platform
"There you go," Ling told them when they had returned to the platform. "Don't forget to cover for Axle. We don't want this world to cause too many problems for him in the other."
"I'll take care of his schedule and school work," EJ said.
"I'll do the same for you Ling," Tess said.
"Good thinking," Lee said. "I'll give you Axle's room number EJ, and I'll go talk to Axle's boss. He has an on-campus job. Maybe I can fill in for him. You can take it easy Tess; I can handle that too."
"No," Tess said. "I'm a part of this; I'm going to pull my own weight."
"Lee," Ling said. "Give her my address and the name of my roommate. She can talk to her and handle that. I know that's your way, trying to take everything on, but you don't have to try and do it all."
"We're coming back as soon as possible," Lee said.
"Take your time," Ling said. "No rush. Axle and I aren't going anywhere."
Lee wanted to question her about Lola, but he figured that could wait considering Lola appeared not to be a threat to Ling.
"This goes without saying," Tess said, "but watch yourself."
"We'll keep our eyes on Lee," EJ said.
Tess, EJ, and Lee walked down from the platform. Tess exited first, next was EJ, and then Lee.
"See ya soon Sis," Lee said before he left. "Tell Lola the same."
"See you," Ling said, "and I will."
When Lee, EJ, and Tess returned home, they went straight to bed.
~!~
"Lee wants me to tell you he'll see you soon," Ling, who sat on a bench with her legs crossed, told Lola, who stood across from her with her head bowed.
They were on a Merry-Go-Round.
Shadow Ling sat sidesaddle on a unicorn near Ling who was protected by a barrier erected by her Persona.
"That boy…" Lola said. "Doesn't seem to care that I'm threatening his life."
"I'm sure he can sense that your heart isn't really in it," Ling said. "Remember, this place is all about reflecting the true self. That includes the truth in one's heart."
They shared silence for a moment.
"How are you involved?" Lola asked, neither confirming nor denying Ling's comments. "You have to get out of this. You're going to get him killed."
"I didn't have a choice," Ling said. "You were involved. He was too. You expected me to sit on the sidelines? I had to become a part of this. You two weren't my only reasons either."
"What other reasons do you have?" Lola asked: curious and suspicious.
"We all have our secrets," Ling said.
"I rather tell him the truth," Lola said. "You too."
"No," Ling said, shaking her head. "We each have our roles. If either of us were to act or speak prematurely, this grand production would end sooner rather than later. He's not a baby anymore. Have faith in him. I do."
"He's not all I'm worried about," Lola said.
"Leave this side to me," Ling said. "I'll make sure Lee does what he does best, connect, and with that I'm sure fate will be on our side."
"I will kill him Ling if he's not strong enough," Lola said. "After he's dead, I'll go after you."
"Guess I have to make sure he's strong enough then," Ling said. "As I said, I'm not worried. I know I have time."
"Not much," Lola said. "You have until the 31st: the end of the month. Good luck." She turned from her sister and walked for a full-length mirror that appeared behind her.
"See you soon Sister," Ling said as Lola walked into and through the mirror, disappearing.
"You're going to lose one of them before this is all over," Shadow Ling said.
"You and I both know I love them too much to let that happen," Ling said without looking at Shadow Ling and instead focusing on monitoring Axle.
"History will repeat itself," Ling heard Shadow Ling say. "Such is fate."
The Rendezvous
~ Morning 8/28 TUE
Condition: Tired
Lee woke up when EJ nudged him.
"Morning," EJ said.
"Morning Sunshine," Lee said, yawning before he grinned.
"If you want," EJ said, "I'm always up early, I can wake you before I leave, so you won't be later for your morning classes. Would you be interested?"
Lee thought about it. He wouldn't mind it for his eight o'clock classes, but he wanted to sleep in some days. He imagined he'd have to get some extra sleep based on the events of the past couple days. This didn't even include yet when he and EJ would be joining their fraternity. EJ didn't know that yet though. Lee decided he could always talk to EJ if he did or didn't want the reminder.
"Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays would be great," Lee said.
"You got it," EJ said. "Before I left, I wanted to speak with you. The Pool won't be open until midnight. Seems our trip leaves us tired too, even after we get some rest. I'm still kind of exhausted. We should probably get a nap in before we head in for the next round of bouts. We'll all be better off if we're well rested. I texted the same to Tess. I'll take care of Axle's business too. Text me if you need anything."
"You're on it man," Lee said. "Have a good day, and I will."
EJ nodded with a short smile and then left.
Lee couldn't help smile. EJ had been dressed and ready to go. Lee sat up before he sat on the edge of his bed in nothing but his boxers: hard to concentrate on school when both his sisters were in danger. He couldn't do anything until midnight, so better to dive into his college experience. He decided to attend class rather than skip it. After he took his shower and got dressed, he checked his phone. He had received a text message from Tess.
{I hope I'm not texting you too early, but if you're available can you meet with me after lunch? Don't feel like you have to. We can just see each other later in the lounge.} Tess said.
Lee could see her then or see her later.
{I'll text you when I get out of my classes. Meet you at your room.} Lee thought about it and decided he saw no reason not to. He found himself interested and curious about why she wanted to meet.
{Cool. Yeah, we'll meet at my room. Until then.} Tess replied.
~ Morning 8/28 TUE
Condition: Tired
Lee had time to eat breakfast because his class wasn't until nine o'clock. He had to walk quite a distance, but it wasn't as far as his College Algebra class. On his way, he thought about Ling and why she was calm about this new world and their circumstances. What did she know that she wasn't telling him and the others? He wondered why Lola would want to kill him. If Ling couldn't answer his questions, he figured his next course of action was to meet with Lola. She would fight him, try to kill him, but he wouldn't let her. After he beat the shadows she sent after him, or even if he had to face her down, he'd get her to talk: get her to explain herself.
The mysterious message he received the other day was another unanswered question or unsolved problem to add to the mix. He had to meet with someone, someone again, and he didn't have a choice. If this whole situation was about choices, why did he not have a choice? The more important question was who else from his past was involved in this and wanted to meet again. When he reached his Introduction to Criminal Justice class, he found this class larger than his first. He went and sat toward the front of the class, and walking toward the front he estimated about 100+ students in the room. The TAs jumped into action with the syllabi, and the professor got ready to start his lecture.
Lee remembered EJ telling them it would be best to be well rested because they were heading back into The Pool, but Lee also didn't want his first impression with these TAs and this new professor to be a bad one. If these forays into The Pool continued for a long period of time, he wanted to have them see him as a good, productive student in case he ever needed an extension or extra credit. So, the real question was: read the syllabus and sleep, or listen to the professor and take notes?
Lee decided to listen to the professor and take notes, and it was a good thing he didn't take a nap because he ended up getting called on to answer a question. The institution of social control that is considered society's 'last line of defense' is…
Social Justice
Poetic Justice
Criminal Justice
Environmental Justice
The professor must've been in a good mood because that had been a pretty easy question to answer. It probably wouldn't have been if he'd been sleep and not paying attention. Criminal Justice was the answer. By the end of the hour, he had gained some knowledge, understood what he learned, and even charmed his teacher.
~ Afternoon 8/28 TUE
Condition: Tired
Lee went back to the General Education Building to attend his English Composition II class. Because he generally could write a good paper, he decided to sit in the back of class. Instead of listening to the professor, this time he planned to go to sleep. He at least waited until after the syllabus had been distributed and he read over it before he nodded off. He woke up toward the end of class feeling braver for having the nerve to sleep in such a small class. The class only had about 15 students compared to his larger classes. He felt his condition improve, and he considered himself lucky when his professor hadn't assigned a paper the first day of class.
{I'm on my way.} Lee texted Tess after he left class and headed back toward their dorm.
~ Afternoon 8/28 TUE
Condition: Good
Lee knocked on the door, and he smiled when Tess opened it. She ushered him inside before she shut the door and locked it.
"Yesterday was intense," Tess said. "Tonight might mean more of the same. Are you ready?"
Lee had to decide how he wanted to answer her:
I want to bring everybody back safely.
You thought that was intense? That was nothing."
"I want to bring everybody back safely," Lee said, "so it doesn't matter if I'm ready. I'm going to get it done no matter what."
"You just dive in," Tess said. "You're unafraid, and you're willing to risk your life not only for your family but complete strangers."
"You're not complete strangers," Lee said. "You're my friends. You guys decided to help me save my sisters. I won't let you guys regret your decision. I won't let anything happen to you."
"To be honest," Tess said, "I was afraid. I couldn't even believe I offered to help. We're going to be fighting for our lives. We'll have to try to get through this ordeal and school. We'll be living double lives. On top of that, this might only be the beginning… And then, you and EJ learned all that stuff about me."
"We don't think of you differently," Lee said. "That's a part of your past. Right now, in the present, all we know is the Tess who's going to help us fight and survive."
Tess moved closer toward Lee. She kissed him.
"I find you attractive," Tess said. "We should have sex. What do you think?"
Lee had no idea how he wanted to respond to her:
Are you sure?
I'm game.
"I'm game," Lee said and grinned mischievously.
"It's been a while," Tess said, "but I have a feeling you'll make it a good time."
"For you," Lee said, "I'll pull out all my best moves."
Tess laughed.
"I bet you say that to all the girls," Tess said.
"I always pull out my best moves," Lee said. "It's not worth it if I don't leave my
partner satisfied."
"Then I can't wait to see what you can do," Tess said. "You got a condom? If you don't, you can run to the convenience store or gas station to get some more. I heard sometimes the Student Health Center gives out free ones too."
"I like to keep some on hand in case an occasion such as this calls for it," Lee said after he reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out a few.
"You come prepared," Tess said. She took them from him and tossed them on her bed. Then, she pulled off his jacket and tossed it over the chair at her desk. "All right then Mr. Clarke, drop those drawers. Let's see what you've got."
Lee kicked off his boots, unbuckled his belt, and pulled down his pants and boxers.
"I can work with that," Tess said and smiled.
"It gets better and thicker," Lee said.
Tess couldn't help but laugh.
Lee stripped naked, drew close to Tess, and began kissing her neck.
Tess let herself fall into her emotions and fall into Lee.
Lee undressed her and kissed her roughly, passionately.
Tess kissed him back with the same fire and desire.
I'm a sexy mama (Mama)
Who knows just how to get what I wanna (Wanna)
What I want to do is spring this on ya (On ya)
Back up all the things that I told ya (Told ya)
I'm about to blow; I don't think you know
I'm tellin' you to loosen up my buttons babe (Uh huh)
"You do not disappoint Mr. Clarke," Tess said. She was a little sweaty and out of breath. "That was a workout."
"I managed to surprise myself," Lee said as he held her while they lay under her covers in her bed. "I was a little tired from yesterday, but I still got it. You've got skills too Ms. Bailey."
Tess laughed, and she turned around and kissed him.
Lee managed to leave Tess satisfied, raising his charm, expression, and diligence as well as improving his condition.
"This doesn't mean anything," Tess said, turning away from him but remaining in his embrace. "I appreciate you helping out a friend."
Lee had to decide how he felt about that and whether he wanted to just be Tess' friend or wanted her to know he could see her as his girlfriend.
I figured. If you ever need any more help, don't hesitate to ask.
My loss. Any guy would be lucky to have you.
"I figured," Lee said. "If you ever need any more help, don't hesitate to ask. I'm a friend you can always count on."
"I believe you," Tess said. "One more for the road, and then we shower. We've got work to do: friends to bring home."
"You're insatiable," Lee said, and they laughed together. "All right, one more time, what does that make three, and then we get back to our real work."
Tess playfully hit him before she kissed him roughly, passionately, and Lee kissed her back.
P7 Soundtrack: So far
Sex – Buttons
Artist: Drchichkenchowmein (M)
Artist II: O'G3NE (F)
