Chapter Text
"Aw shit.. we're cornered! The others are gonna take way too long to come help. Ready for our first fight together?" Ryuji grinned over at Mai, grabbing his weapon at the ready. Mai would nod back with a similar grin to his own
...
"Persona!- Come on Elpis.."
Mai eagerly shouted while she had her spear steadfast in case of any unexpected movements.
She hadn't fought with anyone else by her side for a while, but the adrenaline was heavily accepted, especially when it was Ryuji who was at her side. It was a scene she could barely imagine a couple of weeks ago, maybe even a day or two? But who cared. Her persona Elpis would swiftly move in with a puff of smoke, jabbing to the enemies with ease and grace. Exactly her style. Ryuji went for his attack too, the energy was high and strong as he gave his all, almost like he was trying to impress her.
Shadows that surrounded them were big but not impossible to defeat with such a small team. But with Mai and Ryuji pushing past their limits, both had hope they would win. Mai had to have hope; she was the Star Arcana after all.
"Don't let it get any weak spots right? Piece of cake!" The Blonde took every chance he could to taunt the shadows, it made her wonder if this was a usual thing when he went to the other palaces with the Phantom Thieves. Maybe it did get a giggle out of her, but she used her hand to hide it
"Shooter move!-"
One distraction from his previous antics proved to be a fatal mistake. A guarding shadow taking the opportunity to land a strong blow to her abdomen. Shit. Shit. Shit- The shadows here were more powerful than she expected, maybe even more than the ones in the mementos that she was used to. No. Stop thinking Mai, you need to heal.
Things were just going too quickly. Why was that so powerful? She tried to mutter herself a move to heal herself, but it didn't make sense. Why was she so scared... was this a fear skill? Oh god-
-------- 2 months until Ryuji is kicked off the track team
Ryuji had a common habit of constantly checking the school newspaper. Or well, he’d rush into the News club and beg to peek at the newest copies. This was usually done after a track tournament or any big sporting event that he made sure to involve himself with. Could you really blame a guy for being so happy with his own achievements? He liked being able to talk to his mother about all the great things that had happened and maybe take a few photos of the pages to bring back to her without having to pay. Without the knowledge of the leader of the group of course. But this was all mainly possible due to the girl who took those amazing photos of him for the paper to begin with. Mai Hanzawa. Leader of the photography club and usual partner to the News club to share her media in return of her own club publicity in the papers.
It took a while for Ryuji and Mai to be close to the point that she fully trusted him, but when she eventually did, Ryuji struck gold. Being given her spare copy that she always got for free. She did enjoy seeing him so happy... and it was nice to see his reactions to her photos.
“I can't believe you got a shot of me in the lead... I mean. I did win, but I was towards the back for most of it. Preserving energy of course!”
The blonde would give his infamous smirk and rested his elbow on Mai’s shoulder
“I was just waiting for that moment. You tend to show a lot of emotions when you push yourself like that...That and I felt like your mom would like to see that side of her son”
Those words only made him grin even more, giving a chuckle before gently elbowing her “Hey you really know your stuff huh?” It made her laugh back in response.
“Well of course I do- I run the Photography club Ryuji. I have to know what I’m doing. But. Still, props to you for not being able to hide your emotions”
Ryuji Immediately put his full attention on Mai, sounding offended as he took his elbow off her shoulder. “Hey!-”
Mai would quickly cut him off, not wanting him to take it the wrong way.
“It’s a good thing Ryuji! I actually like taking photos of you when you run. You show a lot of passion in your expression and it’s admirable. I’m sure the school also wants something like that in their newspapers. Good coverage and all!” It was no lie, Mai usually enjoyed photographing sports events with Ryuji in. She used to be kinda scared of him, but once she got the chance to actually admire his skills, it was perfect. The breakthrough she had been dreaming about for months. That little bit of soul in her photo’s that the public would weep for! Okay.. Maybe she’s being a little too hopeful.
“You like taking photos of me..? Oh.. Uh.. Sweet!” It boosted his ego for just long enough for him to hide the faint redness of his ears. Nobody really admired him like that.
“Well uh- you..- I hope to see you at the next track event then... You.. are goin’ right?” He begged internally that she was.
“Oh, yeah! I kinda have to either way.”
Thank God. He prayed and thanked the gods. He wasn’t exactly sure on why it felt like his life depended on it... But either way Ryuji was happy to hear it.
“Hell yeah! Well, I’m goin’ to practice now.. Good luck with your... photo stuff!” He cheered out, putting the newspaper in his bag and starting to walk backwards. Ryuji struggled to find the words to describe her work, he wasn’t that knowledgeable.
“Photography?” Mai chuckled back softly
“Yeah, that!”
And with his quick wave, he rushed off to track practice. He was usually a little late, but his coach didn’t mind too much. As long as he trained and did good, all was well. But either way, Ryuji didn’t want to disappoint his teammates. They were his friends.
Mai however didn’t have that opportunity. With how welcoming and optimistic she was, you’d expect her to have a big friend group. Not exactly. She easily talked to others, but it never warranted a friendship. She was more of just an acquaintance to everyone. Except Ryuji of course. That's what had surprised her, one of the most terrifying people she met had turned out to be the friendliest towards her. Others kind of just saw her as a lonely girl with a camera while he saw her as an actual person. It would be a lie if she said that it didn’t make her heart beat a little faster. But with first friends... It proved to her to be a struggle to decipher on whether it was a crush or just her first friendship.
-------- 5 days until Ryuji is kicked off the track team
Things in Shujin started to change for the worse over the next few weeks. The blonde teen started to seem more depressed as the weeks went on and the track teams new coach might have been the cause. Coach Kamoshida. There were mixed opinions on him. Mai couldn’t blame anyone for it. He didn’t seem like a great guy. But she was just a little too nervous to speak up about that.
But even with all this stress, she couldn’t focus on it. There was a track event today. She had to focus on that.
Things were already set up for the event; Mai had her camera set up and stood in her desired position, now just waiting for the race to start, to get Ryuji’s competition winning passion. Speaking of, she briefly noticed Ryuji walking to his resting area. Mai gave a wave, expecting him to notice and wave back.. But he didn’t. Huh. Weird.
Instead, another presence greeted her. Kamoshida.
She hadn’t actually had a proper conversation with him yet.
“You’re the photographer for the school newspaper right?” The smile Kamoshida gave was almost sickening. Maybe the rumours were getting to her head.
“Yes.. What would you like?”
Mai gave him a smile in return, wanting to be on his good side in case the rumours were in fact true.
“Oh I was just thinking that I should give you a tip on looking out for number 12, he’s a pretty good runner. Best on the team.” 12? She had no clue who number 12 was.. But she knew for a fact that it wasn’t Ryuji.
“I thought Sakamoto was the best on the team..- I mean. He’s a great subject to capture in the photograph too”
Mai would gently chuckle, trying to grasp what was going on. Maybe it was a little wrong to want to photograph the same person, but she had hope that he would win like he always did. She had hope that his mother would love the photographs and the stories written about him.
Then Kamoshida’s hand would move to rest on the small of Mai’s back. Oh?
“Oh don’t worry about him. He’s not really all that compared to the others today.”
Oh.
Then his hand moved a little further down. Then he.. He squeezed.
“Plus, I’m the coach.. I know what's best, right?” His smile became so much more forced than before.
Did he just.. He-
Then he was called over to his teams resting area. Kamoshida was gone. Well. Not gone, not after that. He’d never be gone after that. She hadn’t really processed what had happened. Not only did he try and inquire on her skills, but he did that. He touched her there and did that.
The next few minutes were spent trying desperately to gain her focus back, constantly wondering on what and why that had just happened. Why her..? Why did the rumours have to be true?
The race eventually started and...
Ryuji didn’t win.
He lacked so far behind. All that emotion being showed in his expression. Pain and disappointment. Number 12 had won, and Mai got her shoot. But none of it felt normal or right. Why was Ryuji not pushing himself. Why was he so quiet compared to his usual self?
And why did Kamoshida touch her?
“Ryuji..? Are you okay?” She managed to catch him right before winner's photos were meant to take place. He was drinking from a water bottle, by himself.
“Me? Oh Mai. Yeah.. Yeah I’m good” He didn’t sound too good
“You sure...? I mean- I don’t ever think I’ve seen you lose before you know” She tried her best to keep up the mood but her wording only made it worse. She meant it as a joke
“Yeah y’know you don’t need to rub it in. Geez..”
Ryuji let out a scoff, slightly softer than he did with most. He understood what she was trying to do but he wasn’t really in the mood. His body ached. Mainly from previous beatings from Kamoshida. That's why he didn’t win. Not only had Kamoshida threatened him not to before the race, but he had also been subjecting Ryuji to physical abuse from the start of Kamoshida’s time as coach.
“Sorry- I just..-”
Then they called for winners photos. Just when she had the chance to talk to Ryuji, she was immediately pulled away to take more photos. More time standing next to Kamoshida.
As Mai took more photos, She could feel him glaring down her neck. He kept on trying to give her tips. Like telling her who to focus on and how she should look at their expressions. Like he had any business with her hobbies. Her.. Job basically. Mai tried her best to stay calm.. Hands almost shaking as she took the photos.
“Hanzawa correct? I’ve seen your photos before. They look pretty good. I’ve just always had some tips..”
Then his hand went back to that stupid spot. And his next words had sealed her own stress. Just a whisper.
“If you tell anyone about this... teachers, friends... parents. Anyone. I will find out. Your life will be a living hell. Got It?” what..?
All she could do was nod. Just nod.
And then his hand went further than last time. She just hoped it was patting. He was just... Patting her. There.
All she could do was take the photographs. She had to. Nobody was in a position that they could see what his hand was doing.
All she knew was that nothing had gone inside.