Embrace Your Isekai Fantasies // Locked to mountainfoggedlotus

[fogboundcrow]

This is it! Raven's chance to help the younger Ren experience his powers as a Persona user. They can fight together. Explore together. It's going to be great.

But the Metaverse is too unpredictable, and the Dark Hour fairly dangerous. So, naturally, the TV world is the best bet.

Thus, Raven leads his young compatriot to the Junes Electronics Department. How convenient that there's a little rack of glasses near the flatscreen TVs with a cute Teddie cutout nearby.

Raven glances at the selection. "You'll want to take one of these before we step inside. It'll help you see through the fog."

Comments

[fogboundcrow]

"That's a good question." Raven cups his chin in one hand, while keeping his blaster in the other. "Perhaps you could try looking inward and speaking to him?"

It's rather odd that he'd struggle, though. Is there some sort of internal strife at play?

[mountainfoggedlotus]

Ugh, introspection...fiiiiine. Ren thinks really hard.

C'mon, Wormwood, where are you? That was totally embarrassing!! And in front of my first real friend!! In his home turf!! I'm thinking really hard about you! Wormwood Wormwood Wormwood!

(To the outside observer, Ren's making all kinds of funny faces as he tries too hard to speak to his inner self.)

[fogboundcrow]

"...Is everything all right?" Raven steps closer, a tiny frown across his lips. The faces Ren's making alone are certainly worrisome.

[mountainfoggedlotus]

"Thinking is hard," Ren's nose scrunches up. "C'moooon Wormwood!! Come out, come out, wherever you are! I know you're in there!" He punches his own chest once, for emphasis.

[fogboundcrow]

"...So he's not even responding to you." A stoic look overtakes Raven. He remains close, but his eyes occasionally dart around them, just in case a Shadow approaches.

At least unlike Mementos, the Reaper won't chase them here.

"I wonder if there's some form of internal conflict that's preventing you from summoning properly."

[mountainfoggedlotus]

That snaps Ren out of wracking his mind for Wormwood. "What kind of internal conflict?"

Perhaps, Wormwood -- right on time -- responds, it's because you're thinking too hard. I art thou. I can't speak over you.

"...Guess who just showed up in my head."

[fogboundcrow]

"...Did he raise any objections?"

Raven tries to keep calm, but goodness. Ren's little pout is annoyingly adorable. Who allowed him to be so charming?

[mountainfoggedlotus]

"I was thinking too hard, or something."

[fogboundcrow]

"Odd. I happen to think quite a lot. You could say it's my default state..."

But perhaps something about Ren's thoughts is interfering with his summoning ability? Raven taps his chin, mulling it over. "Is something on your mind?"

[mountainfoggedlotus]

Millipede problem, Wormwood grumbles in his mind. You were thinking too much about how to do something; you couldn't do it.

"I'm not a bug," Ren snips to the air.

And yet. In Ren's mind, Wormwood taps his long black fingers, partly covered with silver gauntlets, to his chin.

"Oh, come on. You're not a bug either."

[fogboundcrow]

"I'd still appreciate you if you were a bug." It's just an offhand comment. Blame Akira-kun. He's the one who asked about worms, after all. "I suppose you could stand to go with the flow..."

[mountainfoggedlotus]

"Now I'm just thinking of all the bugs I've flushed down the toilet." Ren blows a puff of air out. "Okay," he addresses his Persona aloud. "Now that you're here...why aren't you showing up?"

Wormwood meets him with silence.

Then:

I don't know.

"What do you MEAN you don't know?"

I art thou, remember. I don't really know things you don't.

"You know how to cast spells and speak English. You know tons of things I don't."

This is...different. His own mind's going shifty on him, great. Ask Raven how persona-related things work here.

He grumps, but obliges. "How do personas work here?"

[fogboundcrow]

"You call your Persona, and typically a card materializes that you crush in your hand. Getting the handshake should have enabled you to summon with ease the way that it did for Yu. The only reason I struggled was due to the immense internal conflict within me..."

But Ren shouldn't be like that. He's a far more normal preteen boy. By all accounts, shouldn't it be like breathing?

[mountainfoggedlotus]

"No. He means like...foundational values, n stuff. We're still getting mad to frick things up, right?"

[fogboundcrow]

"Well, most of my teammates had to face their repressed feelings to awaken, as I said before. I'm not even certain if Yu had to reflect on his values, but he was in a position where he was desperate to fight for a greater cause, I suppose..."

And protect his friends. That likely also had a hand in his awakening.

[mountainfoggedlotus]

"Hmm." Ren closes his eyes. "What could I be repressing..."

Well, if you're asking me--

"I'm not asking you."

I'd say you are, since you are asking yourself.

"Shut up."

[fogboundcrow]

"Perhaps you ought to listen to your Persona. It may make it easier to summon him."

For now, Raven leans against a wall, arms and legs crossed in an attempt to look cool and composed.

[mountainfoggedlotus]

Like I've been saying. I art thou.

"Yeah, I got that part."

I don't think you have.

A chill goes down Ren's spine. He goes very, very still. "What do you mean?"

I mean...I AM you. You-you, not. Ugh. Wormwood paces around in his chest. Not just...ugh. You're special. Clawed hands press flat against a barrier in his mind. This isn't some...video game where you can PRETEND to be special. He's scratching against a cliff now, like a particularly agitated cat. I AM you. This is REAL. You deserve good things, not the...Special version of you in your mind.

"Ow. Stop clawing..."

It's TRUE!

[fogboundcrow]

"Perhaps we should find a place to sit down?"

Raven's Shadow hums in the back of his mind.

There's a door around the corner with a chest and no Shadows present.

"Ah, excellent." Raven takes a few steps forward, motioning for Ren to follow.

[mountainfoggedlotus]

"Wormwood's being prickly," Ren complains, following Raven, heavily distracted by the demon in his mind. "All bark and all bite. He's getting upset."

Because you're not accepting the truth!

"I am!"

[fogboundcrow]

When they reach the door, Raven holds it for Ren. "Could you at least explain what you're arguing about? It may make it easier to understand and offer advice."

[mountainfoggedlotus]

Tell him, Wormwood glowers in his mind. Tell him the truth.

"He's saying stuff like...'you're not accepting the truth'."

Tell him more!

"Ow. He's like...scratching in my mind. And yelling. I'm not accepting myself, or something..."

[fogboundcrow]

Hmm... Concerning, certainly. Raven glances across the room. There really is nothing but an unopened chest.

So he takes a seat beside that chest and pats an empty place on the floor.

"Is there something about yourself that you're not especially proud of?"

[mountainfoggedlotus]

"No, I like myself," Ren protests. "I just--"

Crack. Something breaks inside Ren and crawls out of him like a wave of puke crawls up his throat, wrong and convulsing, and--

"--Don't think I'm worth being special."

Wormwood, looking exactly like him except for the yellow eyes, stares at him. Grumpily.

[fogboundcrow]

Oh.

Did Ren's Persona just... revert into a Shadow? Are his insecurities truly so deep?

It takes a moment for Raven to process before he gets up, moves closer.

"Why don't you think you're worthwhile?"