Maybe he was just being paranoid. Maybe he was slowly going crazy from all that Shadow fighting. Maybe all that social link juggling has made his brain go haywire.

Call him whatever you want, but he felt like someone was following him.

Souji Seta was simply walking down his usual jogging route early in the evening. He greeted the usual neighbours and small children walking home after playing at the playground. It wasn't until he began walking back to his house that he felt someone else's presence following him in his footsteps.

It's been around half a year since he left Inaba and the self-proclaimed Investigation Team. He still kept in touch with them (especially Yosuke, who always found the time to call him), sure, but it wasn't anything like being with them in person. Since then, he's become better at talking to people and opening himself up to them.

But then why is he so apprehensive about this one, small guy?

At one point, Souji managed to quickly glance at a road mirror placed for people to avoid traffic to see his self-proclaimed stalker. It was a boy his age, maybe younger considering his small frame and slightly-childish face. To be honest, he thought it was Naoto following him for a second. He chuckled inwardly at the thought then instantly snapped himself back into his current situation.

He obviously can't lead this guy to his house, though that was his original course of action. Even if he does live in an apartment with decent security, he wasn't going to risk it, especially when he was home alone while his parents were out working late (again).

So what could he do? He bit his lip, contemplating as to whether to go to the police station or not. He wasn't sure if this guy meant any harm or not, but he should still go there if, say, he was some lost tourist. Souji felt satisfied with his decision and turned to his new destination, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible and get some rest. He has been working up a sweat, after all.

"Hey."

Souji froze, taking him a few seconds to slowly turn to look at the boy. Perhaps he shouldn't call him a boy, since the guy certainly looked old enough to grow out of that specification. But we're getting off topic here.

His stalker, after a getting a better look at him, had dark, midnight blue hair, with a rather long fringe partly covering his right eye. He wore a simple white collared shirt and black pants, having nothing else but a neat ribbon tied under his collar as well as a lanyard connected to his mp3 player resting on his shoulders. He adjusted a schoolbag over his shoulder and stared at Souji with his stone grey eyes.

"….." "….."

The younger (?) of the two broke the silence "Isn't your house that way?" he asked, pointing to the direction of Souji's apartment, the same one of which they just turned away from. Souji raised an eyebrow and watched him warily.

"How do you know where I live?" Souji asked, ready to push the other over and make a run for it should anything occur. He wasn't about to pick a fight; he'd rather keep violence to a minimum in a residential area. The other simply shrugged, though noticing Souji's stiffening. "A woman dressed in blue gave me this bag and told me to follow you to your house and stay there." He explained, patting his bag with his other hand, looking a little blank and confused.

Souji's eyes widened, a woman in blue? It was most probably Margaret, and if that's so, then maybe he should trust this guy. He went through a whole year receiving help from the blue-clad assistant, usually help that benefitted him well, so maybe he should trust her judgement and let this guy come to his apartment. He still wasn't sure if they were talking about the same woman, but so far it seemed like the guy meant no ill harm; to Souji, at least.

But first, "Well, uh, do you have a name?" Souji asked, feeling a bit dim after asking such a stupid question, and probably one that sounded offensive. But then again, he's been dealing with people so well lately, especially since going to Inaba, so why is he suddenly so awkward?

The younger of the two frowned, "…I don't know if I do."

What?

Souji simply stared at him. That was a weird answer. Usually people would give out their names to a simple question like that, right? Or maybe it was the way he asked him? Or maybe this guy really was as suspicious as he previously deemed him to be. Nontheless, Souji tried again, not moving from his spot.

"So where did you come from?" "I don't know."

"Do you know the woman in blue?" "Maybe. I can't remember."

"How about your age? How old are you?" "I don't know."

Souji became frustrated, something he almost never did with people, especially ones he's just met. "Do you know anything about yourself?" he asked with a sigh, rubbing at his temples, wishing he could just find some way to trust this guy and get this over with so he can go back and take a nice, long, relaxing shower-

"Persona."

Startled, Souji turned to fully face the unnamed boy. He hasn't heard that word in while, but then why would this guy know about it? Was he a Persona user too? That would probably explain why he knew Margaret (he's pretty sure it was Margaret) and was told to follow him.

The younger of the two clutched at his bag with both hands, looking at his feet. "Ever since I met that woman in blue, that word has been circling in my head. Persona, persona, persona, it's as if there's a voice in my head chanting it." he looked confused, scared, even, and clutched at his bag tighter. "Sometimes I see flashes of faces I've never met, but I feel like I know them. I keep trying and trying to remember who they are, but…" his voice trailed off, and he continued staring at his feet, resembling a lost puppy.

Souji felt sorry for him. It sounded like he's been through a lot, and to not remember important things must be really frustrating. And to be involved in Personas must mean he's somehow related to the Velvet Room, and the teen felt that that was all he needed. Souji outstretched his hand to the other, who looked up in surprise. He smiled a little, offering his hand.

The blue-haired boy looked at his own hand, slowly bringing it up to meet with the others'. He looked down immediately as the other teen's fingers grasped lightly onto his. It was pretty awkward, to be honest. To be holding hands with another guy was something he never thought he'd do (that one time he hugged Yosuke was awkward enough), but he was used to dealing with people, and he was used to doing things for them, things he never thought he would do. This time was no different.

Holding hands with him was just a way of reassuring him that he wasn't alone.

He tucked his pride into the back of his head and gave whatever support he could to the blue-haired stranger as they began to walk to Souji's apartment, hand in hand. Souji hummed a little to try and ease his embarrassment. He could feel the other fumbling with his hand as he held it and he couldn't help but think that it was cute. It was as if he was holding hands with a child who has never held hands with anyone other than his parents before.

"Um, hey." Came a small voice, and Souji stopped, looking at the other boy, still unnamed. The blue-haired boy flushed a little after gaining eye contact, probably just as embarrassed as Souji was about the hand-holding. "Yes?" Souji asked, inwardly chuckling at how awkward the other boy was and how innocent his actions seemed.

"You know how…the voice chants in my head? It said something different just now; a name, probably. I'm not sure if it's mine, but you can call me by that if you want." He fumbled with his captured hand, still flushing a little but refusing to show it.

"Oh? What is it?" Souji asked, happy to finally have a name to call the younger boy. He waited patiently for the other to speak. The blue-haired boy had closed his eyes, trying to remember each syllable, and spoke.

"Arisato Minato."

Hello everyone! It's been a while, hasn't it?

This idea has been circling my head for a couple of months now, and I've decided to finally write it down. SoujixMinato is an otherwise rare pairing due to them being in separate games, therefore I have the need to contribute! The first chapter is rather short, and I'm sorry for that, but I wanted it to end where it ended. This will be the start of another multi-chapter fic, so please look forward to it! I'll try my best, yosh!

Thank you very much for reading!

-Cantella, 2010.

EDIT: Corrected and added a few more things because I derp'd (2011)