aterat | there are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke

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there are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke

Who; Ren Amamiya and Waver Velvet
What; Ren has been thinking about that trick the prof had for a while, now
Where; Waver's laboratory, Harbor District
When; Mid June; late evening
Warnings; None as of yet, but will update as needed

With all the strange but subtle things that had been happening throughout Aterat over the last few months, his last actual meeting with the Professor started flitting through Ren's mind. The candle, the ward, they were useful for small rests, when you needed to stop existing for a few moments to catch your breath, but with the wall of mist and its roiling creatures encroaching on the place he and his had made their home away from home, the leader of the Phantom Thieves decided to take matters into his own hands.

He headed to Waver's laboratory under cover of darkness, disguised as the Joker, he flitted unseen from rooftop to rooftop, eluding the creatures new and old scurrying below, and only dropped to the cobbles outside Waver's door. He didn't know what sort of protections the mage had set up, or rather, he could see them if he Looked, but he didn't understand their weave, and he didn't want to test their potency.

And so, the Phantom Thief knocked, like a good, upstanding citizen.

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Waver was currently draped over his sofa with his Gameboy. He’d angled it enough that the lamplight behind him could illuminate the screen enough to squint at while he played late into the evening instead of going to sleep at a respectable hour like a responsible adult should. The knock at his door gets him to look up, though, lowering the device and setting it on the coffee table.

He hadn’t been expecting company that evening, and only a handful of people know the workshop is there to walk past the bounded field to approach the door... Less than a handful, actually, since one of them can’t even do that despite knowing the workshop is there. One of the others only ever teleported directly into the room, negating actually passing through the field… So with the knocking, Waver felt confident in guessing it might be Ren.

The professor pushed himself off the sofa with a performative huff and moved to the door, opening it to peer out at the teen waiting patiently. A brow raised lightly, if only because there’s something almost comical about the sight. A masked individual knocking politely instead of letting themselves in. Comedic or not, he is grateful for the manners shown. People barging in on him had never been something he was fond of (even if he never kicked the people who did out). He opened the door wider and stood aside for Ren as an invitation to enter after casting a small glance around to make sure nothing had wandered past the field. It seemed to still be doing its job, though, which was good.

Ren took the invitation for what it was, moving past Waver into the workshop. The teen realized it was late, but he also knew the Professor to keep odd hours. At least, he hoped he still did. Either way, he was at the door now and there was nothing to be done for it.

"Good evening, Professor." Joker nodded as he entered. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

“Good evening, Ren.” He responded politely in return, gesturing to an armchair as he expected there was going to be a conversation that followed. No point in standing around when they could be sitting, or so he decided. The question gets a small, casual shrug. “Not at all, just working my way through a dungeon.” The answer should at least give an indication that the hour was fine, at least for tonight. Not that he’d turn the teen away if it was a bad night, though he might grumble a bit in that case.

Although belatedly, he recalled Reines trying to impress upon him the fact that his hobby wasn’t exactly befitting of a lord. Both silly and not necessarily what anyone wanted to hear when they asked what he was doing. Clearing his throat awkwardly, he continued with a curious glance. “What brings you here tonight?”

"A Dungeon..." It took the teen a moment to realize what the Professor was referencing as his eyes found the handheld gaming console, drawing a slight smile to his lips. Aterat was so much like a Palace, with its archaic architecture and mythical nature, it was hard to remember there could be things here as mundane as a Gameboy.

"Well, hopefully it can pause. I was wondering if you could tell me more about your wards."

The momentary uncertainty behind Ren’s tone leaves Waver trying to wrack his brain on if the teen was from a more modern world or not. He was pretty sure he was… But it wouldn’t be weird if he wasn’t. Plus, it was true. Aterat was more like days gone by or a fictional world in a video game in a lot of ways… So maybe he should have been more specific when he responded, but at least Ren’s response settles the mage’s mental debate.

Could he pause? Sometimes he might be reluctant to, but the request is the sort of thing he wouldn’t turn down. Especially given he’d considered the topic when he handed off the temporary items a while back. So he glanced at Ren curiously, trying to gauge how serious the teen was about this, before scooping up the device and turning it off. “I believe the giant moth at the end can wait for another night, so yes.” He responded, setting it back down and moving to a bookshelf behind the counter he usually worked at.

“I’m guessing that you mean the long-term ones over the temporary fields I gave you?” It was among the basics of magecraft, something he covered with all his students. “I might be able to tell you more, but if you’re asking with the intent to learn and use them yourself, it won’t be a short conversation… and there are some rules to follow.”

Ren frowned apologetically before crossing his arms. He would have called ahead, but he didn't know how much time they had, with the darkness encroaching. It was times like these he missed Morgana and his ability to sense things like that.

"I can follow rules." Which may have been a comedic thing for an admitted thief to say, but it was true. While he didn't have much respect for authority or for adults who expected him to do as he was told just because they were older and he was a child, he understood that certain things required things to be done a certain way. He could respect it.

"But I have a question first, Professor. What do you make of this fog?"

“Good.” It’s less about authority or respect for him (he’s used to not having that), and more about what can happen with this stuff. Waver’s had one of his students nearly poison everyone by being a bit careless. He wasn’t about to send Ren off without knowing the precautions that were necessary and what shouldn’t be done. “Even something as simple as a bounded field can cause unfortunate disasters if you try to cut corners or substitute the materials without checking to make sure that they’re compatible and won’t react badly to something else in the mix.” He tugged a book from the shelf lightly, flipping through the pages before sliding it across the counter to Ren, along with a pencil. “It might help to take notes, just for reference.” Because somehow he doubts that the teen will have him along to wherever it is he intends to set one up.

The question gets a severe frown directed at the window. “That it’s bad news, but that’s fairly obvious, I think.” He doubts that’s what the teen is looking for, either. The problem is, he only has theories without particularly concrete evidence. “I’ve tried to do a little analyzing, taken some samples as it rolls in… But it’s a bit hard to say much other than it’s unnatural without more data and solid information on how things work naturally in this world.”

But where the world is constantly changing, he doesn’t feel particularly confident in suggesting something more definitive. “If I were a more powerful mage, I could probably do something a little more grand and maybe get an answer. But I’m not, unfortunately, so I’m only as good as the tricks I have available to me. I have compounds that react to residual magics that I can use to see if it’s there, but that might not tell us much in a world where magic is far more present and potent than my own.” As much of a chaotic element as Flat was, he kind of wished the kid was here to ask what he saw when he looked at it. If there were workings of a spell in it to say if it was created by a mage or if it was something natural.

Ren nodded, reaching into an inner pocket of his coat to retrieve a small notepad. They were useful to have around when one did a lot of their navigation by rooftop, and Ren kept it around just to jot down ideas he had as they came to him.

He nodded along with the Professor's claims, agreeing that the mist itself was dangerous and was an unknown they couldn't afford to ignore.

"I'm thinking we should check it out. Go inside, I mean, but first, I want to know how to ward a building. We can work out how to explore the mist later."

Waver was glad to see Ren had come with something already, was always a good idea to keep a notebook handy in his opinion. Neat, easy to refer to notes, was very important when in the midst of something… And it helped now to know that the teen was going to keep things on hand to go over later.

The frown returned, however, at the notion of going inside the mist… Not that he disagrees! He just doesn’t like it. “As much as I hate to say it, we probably should.” As ill-advised as it seemed to just waltz into something they didn’t know nearly enough about… But they wouldn’t know anything if nothing was done with how things had progressed so far. “Maybe in a group large enough to cover each other’s backs and allow for time for a thorough investigation of it.” He added with a sigh, that much he could voice his agreement on…

The return to the topic at hand at least settled his mind a bit. This was something he could handle. A controlled environment, a comfortable subject he knew enough about to show Ren how it was done. “Right. I assume you have a specific building in mind, yeah? We’ll need the dimensions at least, if you happen to have those.” He added, moving to a cupboard behind the counter and opening it to begin pulling out materials. He isn’t going to ask for more than that. He knows better than to dig for too many details yet. “Just so I know how much area you need to cover and to extend it a little further than that.”

Ren was more than familiar with needing to be prepared for every eventuality. They'd been overconfident, once upon a time, and it had nearly cost them everything. Now, to spite their youth, they'd saved the world twice. That sort of leader didn't travel without a notepad.

He appreciated the Professor's concern, really. Theirs was a world where most of the adults left a lot to be desired, a lot, and Waver had been nothing but a breath of fresh air to the teen phantom thief. The complicated part would come next. How did he explain the Metaverse to Waver? Did their world have something similar? Did the Prof even know?

"Not in meters, but I can get it." A return to an easier topic. Better for everyone at the moment. "It's about the size of one of the warehouses, though." It was, in fact, one of the warehouses, but the Prof didn't need that information yet, either.

If asked, Waver could confirm he had rather unique experiences between his current predicament on the Rail Zeppelin and some past situations with both cases he’d worked and a reality marble he’d experienced while in Fuyuki. While it wasn’t the same as the metaverse, it wouldn’t be hard for the professor to wrap his head around the idea or believe Ren’s story. So if the phantom thief ever decided to try to explain that, he might be surprised at what Waver has to share in return…

Instead, the professor was focused on the task at hand. He paused, considering the warehouses he’d seen, having walked by the main bulk of them on more than one occasion. “I can work with that, but if you find it’s a little too large an area after you set it, we’ll talk more specific measurements.” He set out the supplies across the countertop, leaving a large enough space clear to work at. “As you know, the idea behind this particular bounded field isn’t to physically stop someone, but to mentally deter their approach in the first place. Makes it a little less suspicious than walking into an invisible wall.” And the fewer questions asked, the less attention drawn to the area, the better.

“Having it extend a little past the outside of the building ensures that if someone happens to be able to ignore the field, you have the appropriate time to react before they even enter the building.” He added, and that would be key when they were dealing with potentially dangerous intruders. Capable as Ren and company were, the professor didn’t like the thoughts of them being taken entirely by surprise.

The professor began listing the items out carefully and explaining the amounts needed, making sure Ren had time to write them down in his notebook. The materials ranged from minerals like rock salt to small bottles of chemicals like nitric acid. He also set out a goblet on the counter in the middle, along with a few other items like coins and a tarot card recognizable as the Justice card by the woman with scales depicted on it.

Ren studiously made note of all components for the spell, jotting little notes in the margins on where he believed it best to try and acquire the items. Some of them he'd never seen around the city before, others he wasn't overly familiar with in the first place and might need to ask around, or just use the Professor as a resource. One of the things he appreciated about he Professor was his willingness to wait until Ren was ready to explain things to him. He never pushed, never expected more information than he was given, he just trusted Ren to share when he felt comfortable.

That and Waver treated him like an equal, not a child, and that went a long way to increase the young man's trust, too.

"Can they be set to allow other people to see through it?"

Waver kept an eye on said notes, if only to offer a correction if needed. But Ren was quite exact and careful, the mage glad to see the extra thought gone into them for where to find what. He could certainly be a source for some of them, and he’d work it into their agreement when Ren brought him things. If it seemed more than, he might also ask for help with the odd errand needing done as well.

The question gets a small tilt of his head, answering as he moved each piece into place. “The best way to ensure that your allies can see through and enter on their own if you’re unsure if they can ignore the field, despite knowing the location well, would be to have them there with you when setting it up. It means they belong, that they’re ‘trusted’ within the space. Generally, if they already know it well and spend a lot of time there, they can also be taught to walk through it and ignore the effects easily enough if they can’t already.” Ren’s easy approach to his workshop was a good example.

“If they aren’t familiar with the place, and haven’t been there before… They can still learn, it just takes practice.” He doesn’t have an example here to draw from, so he thinks back to his world and chooses the easiest. “Take entry into the clock tower. I work at back in my world, for example. It’s a much larger, stronger bounded field. Those brought up less traditionally to magecraft or those who aren’t mages, all need to get used to walking through the field that’s set up around the school. It’s often described as a slight tug at the back of one’s mind at that point. You know it’s there, and it doesn’t stop you anymore.” Otherwise, none of the students could ever enter. That said, mages with a proper traditional upbringing usually already knew how on instinct.

And since he’s talked to Noir, he’s pretty sure he knows at least one of the people Ren had in mind. So they should be fine…

Finished with his adjustments, he glanced back at Ren to continue. “If needed, the best method I’ve found is talking the other person across it if they can’t ignore the effects themselves, even knowing where they’re going. Disrupting the thoughts attacking the mind… Failing that, leading them through by hand at first.”

Most of his friends were afforded abilities of perception beyond those of normal humans thanks to being Persona users, so he was confident they could see through his deceptions if he set them up without them, but he would get their help regardless. He was sure both Yusuke and Haru would be excited to know he had a way of masking their lair from prying eyes.

"And it'll work to hide it from other magic users, too? It's a magic barrier, right? Can they, I don't know, sense it?"

Logic told Ren it should work, that it wouldn't be much of a barrier otherwise, but he was still concerned.

“Good question.” Ren had the forethought to cover his bases even before Waver got around to it. It made him feel a little better to know the teen wasn’t going to think that this was going to turn his hideout into an impenetrable fortress.

Still, the answer was… complicated… at least where this world was involved. Folding his arms, he considered some of the people he’d met since arriving. “Under normal circumstances, without knowing it’s there, it wouldn’t be strange for mages to walk by and not even give the place a second glance. Now if they're looking for you and happen to learn where this place is through other means and approach...” That was a problem often enough, a lot of mages forgot there were plenty of mundane means to track people down because it was beneath them. Waver utilized them on occasion and it always pissed the mage in question off. “It’s possible they’ll still miss the field, but they have a more solid idea of where they’re going and still pass through. Not all mages are as sensitive as others, but that also means the more powerful ones could be a problem.”

“But that’s part of why I want to make sure you have enough materials to set one big enough to give you an extended coverage. Someone who doesn’t belong passing through will trigger something like a silent alarm you and the others that belong will feel. So you’ll all know someone who doesn’t belong is approaching. Gives you a chance to get away, or ambush them instead of the other way around.” It would be their territory, better to not let someone else gain the upper hand. “Which is best to keep in mind and utilize in this world compared to my own. I’d like to say with the utmost certainty that it will keep you hidden, but we’re dealing with magic users from different worlds.”

Most of the time he thought about how fascinating it was, but when it came to covering defenses… “While a lot of worlds seem to share very similar systems where magic is concerned, there are bound to be subtle differences depending on the way a world has grown and changed over time. Mine turned its back on the gods ages ago, so it’s dwindled more than a little because our source is different. It's why most mages have the goal of connecting to the root directly. That aside, it means magic in another world could be more powerful than mine, depending on the source they draw from. So, what is effective in my world might be child’s play to get around in another.” Adjusting something slightly, he continued. “Although I’ve also run into someone here who I had to forcefully drag through the bounded field so he’d stop turning around. He was that affected by it, even though he did possess some form of magic, which was odd to say the least. So with some people, the fields are clearly more effective.”

He and his friends had learned in very complicated ways how to prepare for eventualities, and how necessary it was to be prepared for everything possibility, even the ones you might not have anticipated

He made a note of that, more powerful mages could be a problem, and he realized that could mean the mages native to this place as well. Since their targets had been natives of Aterat, that was a very important thing to note. Did the guard employ mages? He'd have to look into it.

"Is there a place with books on the subject? The magic of Aterat, I mean. That might be a place to start as far as knowing what the natives are capable of."

He made a note of Waver's experience as well, another important distinction. Was it someone's powers of observation that effected their ability to see through the disguise or not?

Waver offered a small, tired shrug at the question. “That’s been something of a problem, to my knowledge. Finding specifics seems a bit… Hit and miss. I’ve done a search of the academy shortly after I started helping out around it, found old lesson plans and some names, but mostly the basics rather than anything specialized that this world might be known for. No one I asked when I addressed the network seemed to know anything or had heard them before either.” So his searches had come to a slight standstill, at least for now.

“Books on magic can be found in a few places, the historium and tower. But I’ve found things relating to other worlds for the most part.” He added with a shrug, the tension in his brow easing a bit. “So my recommendation is to operate with caution and to keep in mind that we may end up dealing with magics beyond what any of us are used to.”

"Suspicious." Maybe he'd been foolish to think the people native to this place had their best interests in mind, but were they intentionally hiding information from them? He nodded a the recommendation, though.

"I'll keep that in mind." He wondered if his talents might afford them more information at the Tower or even the academy, but he'd have to try that out on his own, or at least with his friends. He was beginning to trust Waver, that was true, but he didn't know how much he was willing to divulge just yet.

"We'll stick with the wards, first."

Waver wasn’t sure which it was, though he had a feeling it might be a mix of some hiding information and others simply not knowing… Which made sense in its own sad way. Regardless, Ren was right. Stick with this for now, and at least make sure the teen had a solid foundation to start with. “Right. Now that you’ve had a look, I want you to copy what I just did and we’ll see how you handle it.” He moved things aside and cleared the space for Ren to try his hand at it. “I’ll just be a moment, so review the notes you took already,” he added, disappearing into the cellar for a moment. He wanted a moment to deactivate the field he had set up, at least temporarily, and to grab a few things to send Ren with when he was done.

Honestly, Waver wanted to get an idea of how Ren tapped into things himself… It was clear from the way he called up his persona that he had some kind of trigger, but if that was needed for things aside from that remained to be seen. The mage himself had his own personal trigger, necessary to activate his magic circuits and work magecraft like this… But different worlds and different abilities, again, might mean different things. He didn’t doubt this would work, considering Ren didn’t have a problem with the temporary fields, but Waver was curious about seeing something done, nonetheless.

Returning a few moments later with a small box, he gestured for the teen to the supplies left on the counter to try it out.

Ren had a rather pragmatic way of looking at Aterat and its people. He assumed many of them were brought here, just like they were, and that they just didn't remember. Some of them seemed to alien to one another, even the structures were as dissimilar as they were the same. It was hard not to think of this place as something akin to Mementos, which made even more send to the boy since he could summon his Persona here.

The teen spent the time Waver was away going over the notes again, sketching out a rough diagram of exactly how he wanted to lay out the field he was thinking of and around the building he was thinking of, leaving any distinguishing marks from his illustration.

Following Waver's return, he nodded as the professor directed him to recreate the effect with the supplies provided. After he had everything set up to the best of his understanding, he reached one hand up to touch his mask, the other he extended toward the miniature closed magical circuit. He didn't know if his magic would work this way, but the design he'd created itself gave him something to focus on, and in a way it was sort of like activating his third sight.

The circuit wavered before the energy he summoned flickered into place and he smirked.

"Nice."

Waver kept a close eye as Ren worked on setting things up, making sure that things went in the right place and order. Sometimes he offered a small bit of advice, of some small adjustment to keep in mind, but it was clear Ren had already gotten a good idea of what he was doing. It was always a particular kind of satisfying to see one of his students actually get how something worked and completing it without any concerning issue. He liked giving them the foundations needed to succeed, to teach and help guide them towards progressing. Even if the end results were a bit bittersweet, seeing them always surpass what he was capable of so easily compared to his struggles in such a short time.

The real test, of course, came to the point at which Ren finished setting it up and activated. As suspected, the mask’s significance held true where magecraft was concerned as well. Similar to the triggers each mage had for utilizing their circuits, he wondered what it meant for Ren, that it was a mask in the first place to use his abilities. Something the professor would be pondering over later, probably. For now, he admired the teen’s handiwork, with the skeptical eye of a teacher grading an assignment.

“Very nice, actually. I’ve had students fumble a bit with the placements before, but you’ve done well. It’s a strong, solid field.” He reached for the box he’d brought up from the cellar. “If you repeat the process back in your own space, I don’t doubt it’ll hold for a long time as long as you maintain it. I’ve put together a few things that you’ll need yourself, harder to get your hands on.” They could consider it advanced payment for future errands and assistance, Waver figured.

He smirked at the professor's reaction, nodding as he did so. He couldn't say he wasn't at least a bit egotistical when it came to his ability to work out puzzles and put things to use. He was pleased he'd be able to keep his people a little safer, and hopefully that would be enough.

He nodded. "You know where to find me if you need me, Professor." And by that, Ren meant he had a habit of running into Waver when he needed him. He patrolled often enough for that to be the case.

“I do, and you certainly know where to find me if you have more questions.” He confirmed, because it was more likely that Ren would run into him rather than the other way around. If the teen decided he wanted help with something else, well… he’d proven to be a decent student, so Waver wouldn’t mind doing this again sometime.

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there are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke

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