Catch-22: The Rank
By: M14Mouse
Summary: Ren gets his lesson and Yu gets to play Igor
Disclaimer: Don't own them.
"A true teacher would never tell you what to do. But he would give you the knowledge with which you could decide what would be best for you to do."
― Christopher Pike
Yu glanced at his phone and took a sip of his coffee.
Ren was running late.
He has no idea if it was school, the train, or even one of his friends.
Honestly, he almost felt bad for asking Ren to come. Maybe, he could fit in his training session with another…maybe Makoto or Ann. They didn't seem to cause havoc when he left them along with his shadow friends.
Maybe, he should have done that instead.
He knew how it worked.
Social Links are a pain to manage. Like the American saying of running around like a chicken with your head cut off was a great way of putting his first year at home. He loved his friends…honestly, he does. But how many phone calls…late night fishing trips…study sessions…did he have to do?
Once, he asked Theo about it.
"My Master believed you were up to the task," Theo said.
He snorted.
He had another impression. Igor and Margaret enjoy watching him run around.
"Hey, Sensei. Sorry, that I am late. We had a team meeting about…you know," Ren said as he dropped his bag on the chair next to them then took it across from him.
Ah…yes, Medjed.
He could offer his assistance but this was clearly their fight.
"That is okay. I know how it is. Why don't you order something before we get started? Here," He said as he laid down some money on the table.
"Thanks. You don't have to, Sensei," Ren said.
"Ren…I have seen the cost of weapons and medicines. The others may be blind to the cost but I am not. Now…go and get something to eat."
Ren's face flushed for a moment then grabbed the money from the table. He got up and approached the order counter. He glanced over at Ren's bag. Morgana peeked his head out for a moment before ducking back down.
After the incident, everyone said that Morgana has been strangely quiet. Maybe, he should move the exercise up.
His experience told him something else was bothering the cat. He just hasn't quite figured out what yet.
Maybe later, he will text Ren about it. Morgana is Ren's best friend even if he denies it. Ren can be very insightful when it comes to Morgana.
"I am kind of curious on why here and not La Blanca," Ren asked as he returned to his seat with a piece of cake and a cup of coffee.
"I didn't want Sojiro-san to question what I was doing."
"Good point," Ren said as he took a bite of his cake.
He hummed as he watched Ren eat.
Ren looked like he needed the food. He knew that Sojiro fed him but he knew from experience that traveling through tvs…or palaces was a lot of work on the body.
Once Ren was finished, he took out a deck of tarot cards and set them on the table.
Ren stared at the cards then at him.
"I had a talk with one of your predecessors once about how he viewed his personas."
Ren leaned closer and Morgana even popped his head out of the bag in curiosity.
"He called like shooting a card through a sand storm. Of course, the way he summoned his persona was a little different too."
"Oh?"
"Some persona users used something called Evoker. It is a gun type device that helps them summon their personas."
"How did it work?" Ren asked.
"By shooting themselves with it."
Ren and Morgana grasped in surprise.
"It was quite a shock to see them use it for the first time."
"I thought the masks were hard. I have to go through them in my head. Sometimes, I can feel them all. They want a say or a feeling. IT is weird even after I…never mind."
"Interesting enough…I said the same thing."
"Gun?" He asked.
"Cards?" Minato said.
"It works."
"The same."
"The headaches are not fun."
"Agreed."
"But there is some symbolism to it. The others have told me that the Evoker symbolized death and acceptance of death. It also acts as a reminder that the persona users can die fighting shadows."
Ren and Morgana stared at him like he lost his mind.
"I think…I stick to masks."
"Me too," Morgana added.
"He expressed to me once that behind his Evoker, he saw these…." He said as he waved to the pile of cards.
"He said that it was easier for him to see them in his head. Sometimes as cards…sometimes as the personas themselves. Sometimes, he would link the persona with the card. But to be honest, a lot of it is trial and error and trusting your gut that you are summoning the right persona for the situation."
Ren nodded his head.
"So, today…we are working on switching your masks."
"Should we be down in Mementos for that?"
"No…not really. We are linking your mask to these cards. Let's start with an easy one…Oh! Here…the Fool," He said as he picked up the cards to find the card that he was looking for.
He laid down the Fool Card on the table.
"What in the hell?! That doesn't mean anything?!" Morgana said.
Ren just stared at him like he grew a second head.
"You knew?"
"Wild Cards are often associated with the Fool Arcana. Do you know why?" He said.
Ren shook his head.
"They represent zero…which shows they have infinite possibilities and choices before them. It might even explain their ability to use multiple personas."
"Oh…"
"Anyway…what personas do you have of the Fool Arcana?"
"Uh…Decarabia."
Interesting. He doesn't bare his true persona.
….?
It might be a different fusion. We have no idea what the fake is using to fusion his personas.
True.
"Okay…how about the Magician?"
"I have a few of those. Chorozon and Sandman."
"Great. We start with those and then add more. Oh, please, tell me when your head starts hurting, that would be a good place to stop."
"Honestly, I don't know why you said that. Ren doesn't get headaches from using his personas," Morgana said.
He stared at Ren, who took off his glasses and rubbed them with a napkin.
Morgana looked from Ren to him then back to Ren.
"Ren….?" Morgana said.
"They aren't that bad."
Morgana blinked then looked down. He has seen that look before. Yosuke and Chie wore the same expression when he told them.
Shame.
Morgana is ashamed that he missed them.
"Still…the point of this exercise is to work on switching between masks. Not to give you a mass headache. Understood?"
"Yes, Sensei."
"Okay…let's begin. I lay down the cards represented by your mask and you will switch the masks inside your head. I will start out slow then get faster as we process. Understood?"
Ren nodded his head.
He laid down the Magician card.
"Sandman"
Then he laid down the Fool card.
"Decarabia."
He switched between the two cards…sometimes, pulling the same card twice. After a few turns, Ren got the hang of it.
"Okay….slight break then we add another card. Now…anymore questions?"
Ren nodded.
"I have a friend trying to teach about tarot cards but she is all doom and gloom about it. I don't know. I feel that she is wrong about it."
"I think I know who you are talking about. She has a little table at a street corner?"
Ren nodded.
"Met her?"
"Once…she was quite memorable."
Ren laughed.
"Yes, she is. So…."
"Tarot cards are neutral…neither good nor bad. Her thoughts on her deck are doom and gloom. I am guessing that all of her readings are equally so?"
Ren nodded.
"I view them differently. For example, the Death card…it means endings and personal change. But endings aren't always a bad thing. Back home, I have an older friend that lost her husband. She blamed herself for her husband's death for quite a while. It took her time to realize that she wasn't at fault for her husband's death. Change isn't a bad thing. Some people found it a little scary."
"So…you can equally have a card that is good or bad in your reading."
"Correct."
Ren looked thoughtful for a moment. He wondered if he formed a bond with Akechi.
He felt a moment of sadness rush through him.
"Ready to start again? How about Chariot this time?" He asked.
He added the Chariot to his deck and began the activity again. After a few minutes of having Ren switching masks, he stopped again.
"How is the head?"
"Not bad. I think that this is helping, Sensei,"
"Good. One more card then we will stop for today. Questions?" He said.
"Yes…how do you know so much about this?" Ren said as he leaned back and waved his hand.
"A friend. She insisted on teaching me," He said with a smile.
"So does Chichya but you explain a lot better."
He chuckled.
"I try."
"Although, I think that she is trying to get me on her side. I think that she is just lonely."
"Which Arcana is she?"
"Fortune. Wait…" Ren said then stopped. Ren tilted his head and he just smiled.
"Actually, that explained a lot. She is probably in reverse. She is resistant to change at the moment, correct?"
Ren just continued to stare at him then nodded his head.
"Hopefully, your influence will move her forward," He said with a grin.
Being vague was kind of fun.
Now, he knew how Igor felt.
"I hope so. She seems nice when she isn't all doom and gloom."
He laughed.
"No matter. Now, I have a question for you. What are you planning to do about Medjed?"
"We have help but we aren't sure if it will lead to anything. Whoever it is…is kind of strange."
He wondered what that meant.
He nodded.
He watched as Ren's face blanked out for a moment.
Ahhh…a rank up perhaps?
He wondered what Arcana he filled in Ren's deck to speak.
Maybe one day…he will ask.
Next Chapter: The Sand and It is Everywhere
A/N: Ren finally gets his lesson. Yu makes a pretty good Igor, huh? Next chapter with starts Futaba's palace. YAY! Oh…and Yu finally says something to the twins. To my reviewer at , yes, Mona and Ren found out during the tv station trip that Akechi was the man in the black mask. Papyus…you crack me. In my head, I now think of Yu as the hippy president. Anyway, read and review if you wish. Again…thank you for the wonderful support.