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Uncomfortable silence reigned. It was a testament to just how used they had grown to him and he to them that the moment passed quickly without incident.
"But she was defeated?" it was Asia who broke the silence. The former priestess seemed to be the most affected by his account, "Nyx? She was sealed away?"
"She was," he said, "though at great cost to us."
That seemed to reassure her, for she sent him a compassionate look in response.
"Your family and friends must be very proud of you, Arisato-san."
His lips twitched.
Yes, he rather supposed they were.
"What I'm wondering," Kiba said slowly, "is why we didn't know about Personas or Nyx earlier. If they are that important," the sword-user emphasized the word, "we should have had at least some knowledge about them."
They did not know because Personas besides his did not exist in this world. He could not tell them that, of course.
"A few weeks ago I did not know that you were all devils," he pointed out.
"Arisato-san is right," Issei nodded and further reinforced the diversion, "I did not know Buchou was a devil either when we first saw each other in school. I thought she was just another girl."
Rias smiled at her Pawn, and he was reminded somewhat of an older sister being amused at her younger brother's antics.
"Still, it is strange that we didn't know anything about them," Kiba continued to press the issue, "And if these Personas are really manifestations of thought, wouldn't it make sense for them to be the current reflections of whatever they choose to mirror? The current Belial, for instance?" a flicker of a grin spread over the handsome boy's face, "Not that I'm complaining of course. The primordial version was very impressive. It was almost cathartic in the way it handled Riser."
Issei's eyes glazed over and an almost contented sigh escaped from his mouth.
"Watching Grilled Chicken being beaten over and over again. That is something I could do all day," the devil suddenly looked very guilty, "That doesn't make me a bad person, does it?"
It was a rhetorical question and one that needn't be answered. Nevertheless, Asia still smiled and Kiba rolled his eyes good-naturedly. The rest waited for his reply.
"Personas are manifestations of humanity's innermost thoughts," he finally said, "They take the shape of whatever their users are thinking of when they are invoked," he gazed pointedly at them, "And when humans think of devils, they do not think of people like you."
"People like us?" Akeno questioned.
"He means that humans don't necessarily think of us when they imagine what devils look like," Koneko, always the astute one, provided.
He inclined his head in agreement.
"When I first met all of you, I was not sure what to make of your claim."
"That we were devils?" at his slight nod, Rias frowned, "Is that why you refused my peerage request?"
It was part of the reason. He gave her a neutral look.
"Serving under you was not such a bad thing," she blushed, "Serving under Belial would be a very bad thing."
"I can see how it would be," Kiba said faintly.
"Indeed," Akeno agreed.
He told himself the shudder that passed down the girl's back was fear and not something else entirely.
"But if Personas take the forms of what humanity perceive things to be," Rias said hesitantly, "then they are different from the real beings, aren't they?"
"They are different," he confirmed, "But there are enough similarities between them that they might as well be the same."
A pregnant pause followed. Issei finally raised an uncertain hand.
"I think I'm beginning to get confused."
From the looks of the others in the room, he was not the only one. He did not blame them. In truth, there was some things about Personas that even he didn't know.
"If this all true," Koneko said quietly, "it is an immense power to have."
"What frightens me," Kiba ran a hand through his hair, "is that there are more people like you out there."
It was not an unwarranted fear, but it was a baseless one.
"Even if there were," he replied, "they would not be able to do what I can do."
"Oh my, Arisato-kun," Akeno smirked, but not in a bad way, "that's a very bold assertion to make."
And yet not an incorrect one.
"The Wild Card," Asia, her gentle features scrunched up in thought, said suddenly, "It's the Wild Card you mentioned, isn't it? That's what makes you different."
He smiled thinly. She was just as observant as Koneko if given the time to concentrate.
"Persona-users can only call upon one manifestation in their lifetimes. Those manifestations may evolve into a new form if their users are under great duress or they undergo a resolution within their hearts. But the new Personas are only an evolved form of the original. They are not entirely different," he frowned slightly at the length of his explanation. Verbose was far from the right word to describe him, "People with the Wild Card can hold multiple Personas, and they are all entirely different."
"How many can you hold?" Akeno asked.
He shrugged in her direction.
"Many."
Rias smiled at his response.
"You have a habit of answering in very short or very vague ways, Arisato-san. Sometimes both."
"Yes," was his carefully crafted reply.
They shook their heads at that and he could feel the wave of amusement spreading around the room.
"It would be cool if you could lend others your Personas since you have that many," Issei seemed pleased at the idea, "Kind of like boosting, but with Personas. It would help a lot in future Rating Games."
"That is an interesting theory," Koneko approved.
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