By this point, lunches with Akira have eased their way into your routine, to the point that Akira no longer complains about it. Or, at least, not repeatedly. It's a habit that you sort of wish you'd gotten into sooner, but you only really got a reason to do so recently. Or even to think about it.
You've had some nice conversations since you started doing this. You mentioned finding Morgana- with the blatantly supernatural bits removed- the fact that you've taken in Koromaru, that you're pretty sure Lavenza's family is going to end up killing someone one day...
Though, in hindsight, maybe it wasn't such a good idea to mention that part.
"Are you sure?" Akira asks about that last part. You nod.
"You haven't met her yet, but Elizabeth-san is scary. She probably wouldn't even mean to do it, it'd just end up happening." That family is far too casual about their possession of incredibly destructive powers.
Akira blinks. "Ken-senpai, I'm not sure that's the sort of thing that... just happens." Normally, you'd agree, but the middle sister is someone that you doubt is entirely sane, and you are basing any assumptions you make of her on that fact.
I mean, that's a pretty safe assumption...
"I'm not sure you should be saying that until after you've met Elizabeth-san." Which you hope he never does, that seems like it could be bad for his health.
Honestly, you still have your doubts about spending time with Lavenza being entirely safe, but you don't think you can get out of being friends with her. She's the sort of person who you don't doubt would be able to find out where you live.
"I guess..." He still doesn't seem entirely convinced, but you doubt he's ever actually going to bring it up to any of the Velvet siblings, and that's probably all that matters in terms of your safety. "And I guess it's not like she wouldn't be able to..."
You aren't entirely sure what he's thinking about at the moment, and you don't really see the need to ask. So long as none of you mention the fact that you think it's unsafe to hang out with people from the Velvet Room to someone from the Velvet Room, it should be perfectly fine.
While you've given Akira fair warning, Maiko is less aware of the dangers of associating with someone from outside reality. You think that she's just glad your group of friends has another girl in it, even if the two of them don't talk to each other as much as everyone else does.
"So, Lavenza-chan, how do you use magic, anyway?" She asks, not seeming to care at all for the fact that you're in public.
Then again, it's not like Lavenza is all that subtle, either. "I hail from a place between dream and reality," She explains, making to demonstrate a spell of some sort before seeming to remember all of the people around you. "As such, I am more... connected, to the power lurking within everyone's soul."
"Everyone?" You know you're not imagining the excitement in Maiko's voice, even as she struggles not to shout the existence of magic for all of Iwatodai to hear. "Even- even me?"
Lavenza nods. "Potentially, though it will most likely be quite some time before you are capable of wielding it."
"Ken-senpai can use magic..." She points out. Which, yes, you can, but you don't think you should be taken as the baseline for any of this stuff.
I mean, the youngest age recorded for accessing the Dark Hour is either six or seven, but that doesn't mean it's a regular occurrence.
"Yeah, but... When I was talking to other magic-users, they seemed surprised by how young I was," You point out. "I think it happens most often in teenagers?" Which, when you think about it, sounds more like something from a TV show than reality, but it's not like your definition of reality meshes with the one most people use, so it's just another nail in the coffin of you ever being considered normal.
"That sounds about right," Lavenza agrees. "Adolescence is the time for humans to try and discover who they are, which in the right circumstances can lead the the discovery of this kind of power. However, it is also common enough for such powers to develop later in life. Early development like Amada-san's is easily the rarest occurrence."
Maiko looks a bit upset by the fact that she'll probably have to wait until puberty for her magical powers. You'd tell her not to be jealous- you still aren't sure your powers are worth the Dark Hour- but with how little she knows, you can sort of see why she'd find it appealing. It's not like you've never taken the time to enjoy how you can summon light whenever you want, after all.
The dormitory still feels like a storm system in the making. It settles down, somewhat, when there's less people there, but there's always a slight tingle of electricity lingering around.
Out of everyone, Shinjiro-san seems to be the least bothered by these conditions. Of course, Shinjiro-san doesn't really let on when he's bothered by things in general, so you should probably be taking that into consideration.
Koromaru and Morgana, meanwhile, seem to have the most problems, because the air is filled with static most, if not all of the time and it's making their fur stick up. Until someone tries to pet them, which tends to end in electric shocks.
I'd ask if we could get Akihiko-san to handle this, since he's shockproof, but I think that might just make things worse.
You aren't sure whether it's Koromaru or Shinjiro-san who's more upset by this. Koromaru's the one who whines about it, though. Shinjiro-san, of course, promises to make him a nice dinner, and you sort of wonder what Akihiko-san would have to say if he were here. And if this had happened before September.
"I don't think that's what Mitsuru-san wants you to do with the grocery money," You point out. Even if you don't particularly mind so long as you still get food. And given that a major factor in what everyone eats when Ikutsuki-san comes around is spite, it actually might be something that Mitsuru-san would sign off on.
"Yeah, well, what she doesn't know won't hurt her." You might not have been there, but you're positive he said the same sort of thing about Mikage-Cho.
"I'd be more likely to believe that if I knew it wouldn't end in ice," Morgana states. The conversation pauses for a bit, and then the feline Persona User starts off on a new tangent. "So, I've been wondering about something..." He says to Shinjiro-san.
"What is it?" You're suddenly beginning to get a bad feeling about this.
Beginning?
"Well, it's just... I've never met a Persona User who didn't want to use their powers before. How'd that happen?" And there it is.
"That's... personal." Shinjiro-san glances at you, though you aren't sure if he's looking for help or just wondering how much you've mentioned to Morgana.
"I guess, but you're living with a bunch of other Persona Users. And then stuff like this ends up happening, and you still don't seem to care at all. It's just..." He seems to be struggling to explain it. "You have powers, and you don't seem to like them for some reason, and I just don't get it." Which is probably for the best, but...
[ ] Try and get him to drop the subject. (+Diligence)
[ ] Ask a question in order to distract everyone. (+Expression)
-[ ] So, does anyone know just why your dormitory feels like it's about to start raining any second?
-[ ] Would Morgana like a second chance to meet with Lavenza?
-[ ] You never heard how Akihiko-san and Mitsuru-san's date went. Shinjiro-san would know something, right?
[ ] Leave the conversation entirely before things get any more awkward.
)