Catch-22: The Sense of Unknown and Known
By: M14Mouse
Summary: Futaba knows someone is there and he is utterly trolling her.
Disclaimer: Don't own them.
The road to hell is paved with good intentions.-Unknown.
Futaba knew someone was there. He was just out of her awareness. Every time she reached out, her mind would brush against his presence. And she just….
You're going to give yourself a headache.
She didn't scream but she wanted to.
If you stay still, I wouldn't get one!
Hmm…no.
You are a meanie!
So, I have been told.
She just couldn't reach him. She knew the general layout of Mementos. Sometimes, she could even map it out. With him….he seems to be everywhere and nowhere at the same time. IT WAS SO FRUSTRATING!
AHHHHHGGG!
"I'm going to find you!" She mumbled to herself.
"You still can't find him, huh?" Ann asked next to her in the van.
She pouted.
"NO! HE IS BEING A SNEAKY….!"
"It goes to show you that your powers have limits," Akechi said across from her.
"Can it? We are going to find him!" She mumbled back.
"I'm not sure why. He hasn't caused us any harm. In fact, you said that he helped us at one point," Haru said.
She groaned.
They just finished fighting with some shadows when another group of shadows appeared behind them. She shouted out a warning before giant roots popped out of the ground, grabbed the shadows, and dragged them into a black vortex. They just stood around and looked into darkness like what the hell just happened?
Was that you?
Hmmm?
Tentacle thing? Was that you?
Possible.
She groaned.
Straight answer. Was that you?!
I suppose. I was in the area.
Instantly, she summoned her persona and started to scan the area. After searching the area for a few minutes, there was nothing.
You lied!
No, I didn't.
Then why can't I find you?!
Simple. You are looking too closely.
WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT MEAN?! I can scan and analyze large amounts of data in seconds. I should know your weaknesses, strengths, and how you like your damn curry. I should know how to drag you out of the hole that you have been hiding.
Interesting. You sound very talented.
Oh, my god. She was blushing.
You are making the mistake to think that I'm hiding.
Then where are you?!
Oh, out and about. In fact, my stop is coming up. I wish you a farewell for now.
Then there was silence.
She wanted to stomp her feet and scream.
Wait…he is traveling by the subway trains…how does that even work?!
"Yes, he did. I wished that he would show up already! I have questions! Like…Like…how in the hell that he is hiding from me?! And traveling on the subway?! What is his persona?! ARGGHHH!"
First, I got on the train because it stopped at the station. And again, I am not hiding.
Well, where are you?
Talking to a little boy, Jose. He is quite insightful. We are having a delightful conversation about the places that we have been. Oh, we talked about flowers for a bit as well.
Last time, they saw Jose. It was a few floors ago.
Urgh.
"I wonder if it wasn't the nice gentleman that I met in the doctor's palace," Sumire said.
"You talked about him before. He didn't seem to be one of us due to his attire," Akechi said.
"Yet, he seemed to know what was going on. He seemed to really help to clear my head," Sumire added.
"So, he is the reason why our fight wasn't as intense," Akechi said.
Sumire nodded.
"He could be one of those people who can see the palaces. I met some people who could see the Velvet Room," Ren added.
"It is possible," Makoto said from the front.
"But they don't pop up in palaces or the Velvet Room," She added.
"Probably because the twins would scare them," Ren said with a chuckle.
"He took the whole palace thing really well. I don't think the twins would have frightened him. He did talk about a tv which I thought was strange," Sumire said.
Ryuji snorted.
"Man, there is no world within the tv," He added.
"It would be interesting to see if it was one. Imagine the colors," Yusuke said excitedly.
Well…like to add anything?
Silence.
I think that you are doing that on purpose.
"He is gone again," She said in a huff.
"Maybe he is busy?" Haru said to her.
"Being a stalker. Anyway, we have a strong shadow coming up," She said.
Ren nodded before slowing down the Mona-mobile to hit the shadow.
The group got out of the van…blah…blah…fight the shadows…blah…blah….Her making sure that they don't die. Blah…blah…blah…
Same old. Same old.
When the shadow was about to be defeated, she saw Makoto and Haru get ready for a showtime.
A part of her was super excited. Showtimes were so much fun to watch. Another part of her long to join them. She wanted to do a super move too.
Huh? How interesting.
Never seen a showtime before?
No. How does it work?
Well…Jose gave us this weird star thing that we could wish on. I'm not sure how it works but it makes our moves come true.
Interesting. Is there a reason why you haven't done one with anyone yet?
I….
His question made her think. Honestly, she was drawing a blank. She always had an idea on the tip of her tongue but something always stopped her.
Too many ideas….and sometimes, not the right fit with the person. I tried talking Joker into a video game theme one but I sort of had too many ideas. The star didn't like it. So, no showtime.
Hmmm…Focus seems to be the key. Queen and Noir are similar in many ways…they are both goal driven.
Fox and Skull have nothing in common. They got one to work.
Wrong.
AND HOW WOULD YOU KNOW?!
For the entire trip, they talked about food.
Wait…you can hear us?
Yes.
Fine…you get the point about food. What about Panther and Fox?! They shouldn't be able to either! Nothing in common.
From what I gathered from your very loud conversations, they like art.
Modeling isn't art.
Oh? Isn't both movements of the body? Lost in the moment? It doesn't matter the form, it is the intent behind it.
….
He was right. This perfect stranger nailed it.
She was an outsider. She couldn't connect with anyone. She tried so hard to connect again.
She….
Oracle, would you like to know something?
What?
Beside the Wild Card, Navigators are the lonely persona users.
She blinked.
Connected and disconnected. We observe and aid but never pick up a weapon. We are useless but useful at the same time. We stand alone but stand beside them.
She swallowed for a moment. He was so right.
You said Wild Cards are lonely but Joker is surrounded by everyone. We support him no matter what!
And yet, he has taken the burden of choice and of path. What would happen if you fail?
He…he would go to jail…or die.
Correct. And you?
….Fall apart….
Correct.
How…How do you know so much about this?
Experience. It looked like your friends were done…I bid you a…
WAIT!
If…if you could do a showtime…what would you do?!
Hmmm…no explosives. The radius of the blast could be dangerous.
Okay…
But I like lasers.
She grinned.
How do you feel about robots?
-P4P5P4-
They heard the doctor before they saw him. He was yelling at someone in a room filled with screens and computers.
"What did you do?!" The doc shouted at the stranger.
The stranger's back was to them but she knew that voice. Ren stopped them from getting any closer.
He was just like Semire described him. Black business suit, tall, silver hair, and had this air about him that shit was about to go down.
"Merely…change the direction of thoughts. I hate to see those "happy" thoughts go to waste," The stranger said.
"I took their pain away," The doctor shouted.
"No, doctor. It is about control. Your road is paved with good intentions but it is likely to lead you to hell," The stranger said coolly.
"No, you don't understand. I tried to leave you alone. You aren't one of them. Why do you…?"
"Why do I try to stop you? I don't need to be a Phantom Thief to understand that isn't right." The stranger said.
"It doesn't matter what you think. It matters what the world thinks," The doctor said.
The stranger snorted.
"It really doesn't matter what you think at all," The doctor said as he reached out. In a flash, the room is covered in darkness. She could hear the sounds of screens and pipes falling to the ground. When the darkness disappeared, the doctor was standing in the middle of a pile of screens and pipes. The stranger was gone.
The doctor let out a sigh of relief. Suddenly, the TV monitors came to life. Various images and mumbled words flash onto the screens. Her mouth dropped when she saw who was sitting on top of the pile.
Oh…what the….
The stranger was sitting on the tvs like it was a throne.
"I must say that I kept my cards a little bit closer to my chest than I intended. I thought that you would have tried that sooner," He said as he pulled a card out of thin air.
"How….?"
"You are not the first nor the last to poke at things, Doctor."
The stranger's face flicked over to the doctor. She almost felt herself step back from the energy rolling off the stranger.
"You played the game well. You gain their trust and use it against them. You didn't fool everyone but you were so close."
"THAT ISN'T TRUE! I would never….I wanted to know their wishes!"
"I may be a fool, doctor but don't take me for an idiot. You wanted control," The stranger said coolly.
"So do you!"
The stranger started laughing.
"Oh, doctor, I have no control whatsoever. At least not in the larger picture. I suppose that is the difference between you and me. This is your last chance, doctor. Step away from this path because at the end is he who waits,"
"Never!"
The stranger looked almost sad.
"Very well."
The stranger threw a card onto the ground and that is when all hell broke loose.
"Let's play."
End of The Sense of Unknown and Known
Next Chapter: The Cards Where They Lie
A/N: Sorry for the delay update. I injured my foot and had to elevate it for a bit. I was worried for a bit. It was an interesting shade of purple. Did Yu spend most of this chapter trolling his students? Yes. Yes, he did. Did he have fun doing it? Probably. This chapter was so much fun to write. A lovely reviewer asked if there going be more one on one between Yu and his students. Not during this arc but during PQ2, we get to see Yu and his students' relationship through the eyes of IT team which is will be equal funny and insightful. Anyway, read and review if you wish. As always, thanks for the reviews, kudos, and favorites. Thank you!