Chapter Text
The sound of a ball dribbling could be heard in the distance as Calliope Mori made her way down the streets of Tokyo on her bike.
She turned her head toward the sound and found a gym, the billboard above advertising a pool and basketball court.
Didn't know this was a thing
Calli was on her way to her new college to take a look around before classes started the next day, after all she didn't want to get lost on her first day and miss class.
Tokyo is so similar yet so different from what I'm used to…
Calli started pedaling again as she took in the rows of sakura planted along the road, spring truly was beautiful.
Soon she found herself in front of her new college, Aodai, a general college with a huge interest in sports, which was part of the reason she picked this place to spend her next four years at.
The college stood a few kilometers away from Chiba station with a great view of Tokyo Bay from its front gates. Being this close to the station meant coming on to the streets during rush hour would be suicidal with the number of salarymen going up to Tokyo for work but Calli was lucky as it was a Sunday. As she made her way down the sakura laden path she took in the peace and calm of the campus, nobody would guess that this place was only a short walk away from a major station.
A few minutes of walking later, Calli stood in front of the administrative building, she hadn't joined a college halfway across the country without any contacts. After a minute or two of fiddling around with her phone, a man in his late twenties stepped out of the gray building.
"Yo Calli! Sorry I couldn't help out with moving in, I got called for an urgent situation on the day" said the man, bowing his head slightly in apology.
"It can't be helped," said Calli, shrugging "but I'll let you know that moving in alone isn't fun at all"
"Yeah yeah, I get it, I'll treat you to dinner tonight." the man replied with a weak smile on his face.
"Wooo! Now that's the Shinzo I know!" yelled Calli with a cheeky smile on her face.
The man who stood in front of her was Shinzo Nakajima, a friend she knew from way back in the day. He used to be her neighbour and was her first friend back home in Osaka, but he moved away a few years ago when he got a job in Aodai, here in Chiba, much to young Calli's despair. He had been the one who recommended Calli to join this college as he knew she would fit right in.
Shinzo was a tall and lanky man with playfully disheveled long hair, he gave off an easy going aura however he wasn't slacking when it came to his attire. Shinzo was dressed in a formal shirt and pants with a coat stored away somewhere inside the building behind him, when he was at work, he was as prim and proper as can be.
"So did you take a look around campus?" he asked as they made their way down to the cafeteria, it was quite close to lunch time after all.
"Not really, I only really had a look around the entrance." replied Calli as she took in her surroundings
"Well that's a shame, because what you're looking for is farther inside"
"What? What am I looking for?"
"The basketball court, of course," said Shinzo with a smirk on his face, "or am I wrong?"
"You know me best my dude" said Calli, blushing slightly.
He had hit the nail right on the head, Calli was an avid basketball player and played it everyday of her life from middle school. She had taken part in multiple tournaments in junior high and high school, in fact her high school was the champion for the Kansai region all three years that she was on the team. Her dream of becoming the best high school basketball team in the country fell short when they lost in the semi-finals of the National Tournament in her last year of school.
She had been absolutely devastated but she quickly cheered up after she realized that she could continue her career in college, which is what led her here to Tokyo.
"Don't worry, we've got a great court and a pretty decent team." said Shinzo with a sense of pride.
"Even if it wasn't, I would whip it right into shape," said Calli, motioning as if she was holding a whip.
"Sure you would" said Shinzo, as he chuckled softly
They turned the corner and made their way down to the cafeteria, chatting along happily.
Calli gasped loudly as she pushed the door open.
"Holy crap!" Calli exclaimed, "This place is giant"
Shinzo nodded happily as he came up behind her.
"As I told you, we take our sports quite seriously here," said Shinzo.
Calli stood in the middle of the giant gymnasium with two full size basketball courts next to each other with a viewing gallery on the second floor. It was quite the spectacle to be the only people in this giant arena meant to hold at least 500 people.
"Both the men's and the women's team can practice here without having to fight over space!" said Calli, her eyes sparkling as she darted from one place to another.
"Actually we hold practice sessions for the men's and women's teams at different times" said Shinzo as he eased himself onto the back of a basket, "the boys come in to practice before classes begin whereas the girls come in after classes."
"Woah! So we would have this whole place to ourselves!"
Shinzo nodded lazily when he remembered something important,
"Shit! I forgot I had a meeting at 5" he quickly made his way toward the exit, "I'll see you at dinner, oh, and don't forget to go in and sign yourself up for the basketball team."
Calli made her way out of the gymnasium after exploring every nook and cranny of the place.
It was still light out when she came back out so she decided to go back to her home before she went out for dinner with Shinzo.
***
It was another day when Calliope Mori would come to attend Aodai. The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and the cherry blossom petals danced with the wind as her morning walk led her back to her new sporty college. Today was a fine Japanese morning it seemed. Perhaps a sign of good things to come, the aspiring player thinks.
Although, as bright as the prospects seemed to be, Calli would still have to deal with one reality that persisted through every academic institution. Mandatory and regulated lectures in classrooms.
“Good morning students.” Calli hears their professor call them. A woman, looking rather young for a college professor, sporting blue hair and rimmed glasses. The class, then, responds in turn.
“Good morning, Sensei!” Calli joins the students in unison as they greet their educator.
The morning went by rather smoothly. It was your standard first period lecture at this not-so-standard Japanese college. Mori Calliope mostly ended up keeping to herself throughout the class. Minding her own business and trying not to stand out among the crowd. For it wasn’t in the academics that she was interested in. The girl had her mind on a more action-packed scene than that.
***
“Yo, Calli!” The student hears a familiar male voice call to her from a distance.
“Sup Shinzo!” Calli acknowledges and greets her friend in response. Walking up to meet each other as the two share a high five.
“You done signing up yet?” Shinzo asks. “You better not be lagging behind me!”
“Of course I am!” Calli remarks in a cocksure attitude. “No way am I gonna fall behind your sorry ass, even if you don’t play.”
“There she is!” Shinzo enthusiastically beams. “I’ll see you at the court Calli!”
And so the two part ways again.
***
The metallic sound of a locker door creaking fills the scene as Mori Calliope puts away her set of normal clothes. For right now demanded something much more than that.
“Yo there!” Calli hears another girl greet her from across the locker room. “Suzuki Masanori!” The black-haired girl with hair raised in a high ponytail extends an arm. “Nice to meet you, Mori-san!” And Calli shakes it in return.
“Same here.” Calli gives a bare minimum response.
“Have you met the others yet?” The socially forward girl gestures to the others in the room. “Say hi Kawataba-san!” She calls to a timid looking short-haired girl keeping to herself in the corner.
The girl who was introduced as Kawataba walks forward. “H-Hello…” The shy seeming girl twiddles on a pigtail.
“Nice to meet you.” She repeats the same gesture with Calli and Masanori. “Kawabata Yasushi.” Calli wonders why such a timid girl would be signing up for a competitive sport, but she keeps the thought in for now as she hasn’t actually witnessed her in court.
“Oho? Introducing ourselves are we?” Walks forward a girl with long blonde hair, proudly flaunting her luscious and pristine hair. “Ueda Masami” Proud and boisterous, Calli shakes the hand of the girl who looked like she kept up her appearances. “Shiraishi-san! Greet the new girl too!”
“Yeah yeah Ueda-senpai. I know, sheesh.” grumbles another girl as she removes her glasses and puts them in her locker. “Shiraishi Toshiaku.” A bright looking girl walks a composed stride. “Nice to meet you, Mori-san!”
“Wasn’t there another girl too?” Suzuki asks the girls. “The orange one? Taka-” Then, suddenly, a whistle blows.
With the sound of rubber on the hardwood floor, Calli walks out into the gymnasium sporting a women’s jersey and her best pair of basketball shoes.
“Eyes up ladies!” Calli hears the coach call to the group. A rather imposing woman, taller than the whole team, wearing a jersey that had the letter J emboldened across it.
“Aodai, as you all know, prides itself on its sports…” Their instructor starts to give her speech. “So I hope you all know what you’ve gotten yourself into because this ain’t your middle-school playground game of ball!” Jchad, as she was apparently known by the student body, gave a rather intimidating aura. However, Calliope wasn’t one to back down from a challenge. “If you don’t think you can handle yourselves on my court, piss off and go back to your notebooks and stencils!”
Taking a deep breath and then out, Calliope Mori makes her debut into the Aodai scene.
“Yes, ma’am!”
“Yes, ma’am!”
Two voices say at the same time. Calli, a bit surprised to hear someone else take the same lead as her, looks around to spot who the other was, but their coach beats them to it.
“Orange! Pinkie! Nice initiative!”
Orange? Pinkie? Calli supposed she was Pinkie, but turning to where the other’s voice came from, she spots a strangely familiar head of bright-orange hair. But, once again, the coach seems to be too fast for her to focus on anything.
“Pinkie! Catch!” Calli’s quick reflexes allow her to catch the incoming basketball. “Show me what you can do! Free throws, now! As many as you can!” Jchad points a thumb behind her to where a ring was.
Calli soon follows.
1…
2…
3…
She could feel the impressed eyes look at her.
5…
10…
15..
Sweat rolls off her forehead as she takes pride in her skill. Honed after relentless hours of training, hard work, and effort.
18..
19...
20…
She felt tired…
21…
22...
23...
“Alright!” Jchad shouts before blowing a whistle “That’s enough!” Calli, breathing heavily in and out, wiping her forehead with her arm, eyes the coach as she makes her way back. A confident smile plastered on her face. “What’s your name, Pinkie?” The woman makes no comment on the show of skill, moving straight to recognition.
“Mori Calliope!” She says as she catches a towel thrown at her by the coach and loops it around her neck, letting it hang on her shoulders.
***
Taking a seat on the bench, Calliope Mori regains her breath, minding her own business and not paying attention to the next girl who was called. The one known as ‘Orange’ or something. Something about her ticked something in her mind for some reason, but she couldn’t put a finger on it.
18..
19...
20…
She’s been going for a while now…
21…
22...
23...
Wait, how many has she….
“Alright! You can stop now!” J-chad calls for the girl to stop.
Finally paying attention to who this girl was who lasted what felt like as long as her, she takes a closer look at that head of hair she swore was so familiar before.
“What’s your name, girl?” Their coach asks the shooter, who graciously accepts the towel and wipes away the sweat on her forehead. Glancing at, not their coach, but rather the girl at the bench, the orange-haired girl clearly speaks her name that Calli knows too well.
“Takanashi Kiara!”
Calli finally realized who she was.
She's that girl from before
The one who almost made her lose in the quarter finals of the National Tournament in her last year of high school.
Calli's Semboku High had won the Kansai Regional Finals and cruised through the league stage of the National Tournament, things were looking great for the team as they entered the playoffs and were slated to play Minami High from the Greater Tokyo Area.
Calli and her teammates had expected an easy win but the team lead by a star shooter in Kiara Takanashi had proven to be fatal as they forced the game into overtime.
Calli's team ended up winning the game with a solid lead however the damage was done. No one had expected the team starring the red-hot Calliope Mori to be taken into overtime. Calli recovered quickly but her teammates weren't fast enough and they ended up losing in the semi-finals, throwing Calli's dream of a high school championship out of the window.
The same Kiara stood in front of her now with a huge smirk on her face as she so boldly took a seat beside Calli on the bench.
***
“Kusotori??” Calli asks a wide-eyed gasp as a familiar face she never expected to see again comes back to her on the same court she made her debut in. “Why are you here?” She switches from a surprised to a now targeted tone. The bitterness of their old rivalry still hadn’t left her.
“I should be asking you that question.” The championship ruiner smirks. “Isn’t Aodai only for players with skill?” And it seemed she didn’t forget about it either.
“Exactly.” A curt response. “We won, not you.” Calliope narrows her eyes at the smug girl.
“Need I remind you who exactly still took a win from you, oh red-hot player?” Kiara rubs salt on the wound. She was right on that. Calliope was a player renowned, yet was still backed into a corner by this one girl that one time. “Sorry, dear Calli, but I’m going to be the one taking this team to victory.” She knew it was likely due to the competitive nature of the sport, but to literally go to the same school and try out for the same team is a whole different story.
The wait for the other shooters to finish their sets ended up having this tense air between it. Not due to the worry if Calli’s record might be met again. None of the other girls managed to get nearly as many as her or Kiara. But rather, the fact that this girl could just sit next to her like this and rub that one victory all over her face again.
She stands up, almost as if she knew that the coach was just about to call them. As the last girl, Kawabata, finishes at a count of 16 throws, J-chad’s whistle blows and all the girls are called back to address the coach. Calli then stands up from her seat and straightens herself as they are summoned. She never expected the two would cross paths again so soon, a thought that crosses her mind while the two come back together.
Walking back to their coach, the earlier prideful gait Mori Calliope exuded seemed to mellow for now in the presence of her old enemy Takanashi Kiara. She was an unexpected hurdle in this path to stardom she sought. But, she wouldn’t just let this girl get in her way that easily. The true leader of this team... will be her!
“Alright ladies!” The tall woman calls to all the girls. “I assume you all know the drill by now.” Lifting up a ball, the woman grasps it between her palms and looks towards the direction of Calliope and Kiara. “Takanashi!” Calli’s heart drops. Was this girl really gonna be chosen over her? “Mori!” But then she gets called as well. “Both of you, opposite teams!” Instructions get given. “Take two each and play. Now!”
And as the whistle blows, the selection of teammates starts.
“Suzuki-senpai! Kawabata-senpai!’ Takanashi Kiara immediately calls the two that she wanted on her side. Taking the lead from beneath Calli’s feet. “You two in?”
“Sure!” The more headstrong Suzuki answers first. Meanwhile the reserved Kawabata just nods and walks to Kiara’s side.
This girl… Was she actually just here to fuck with Calli? Because that’s what it feels like to the pink-haired girl.
“So…” Calli turns to face the other two and they walk to her side, not even needing her to call them.
“Glad to have you, Mori-san!” Toshiaku politely waves.
“Pshh! I guess I can have you leading us.” Masami scoffs.
“Seems you’re ready there too, Calli!” Calliope Mori hears the competition call her. “We won’t be holding back!” Kiara’s eyes burn with a fire that wasn’t physically there.
Staring her down, Calli starts to fuel her drive. Reminded of her past humiliation, the red-hot player finds the spirit of competition to prove this stupid girl wrong.
“Ueda-senpai, Shiraishi-senpai!” She gestures to her two teammates. “Excuse my rudeness but please follow my lead. Let me shoot.” Calli gives instructions quickly and concisely.
“Do you have a plan?” Toshiaku wonders. “You seem fired up. Got a strategy in mind?”
“If it means someone else doing the hard work, sure!” Masami takes the girl’s lead.
“I have a plan.” Calliope holds firm on her conviction. “Win.”