Basically, it's a canon divergence AU that I have dubbed "Strikers 'Verse," even though it is completely unrelated to the actual Persona 5 Strikers. In it, 18-year-old Ken has befriended the Phantom Thieves as a sort of liaison between them and the Shadow Operatives. He is also dating Ryuji because uhhhh IDK they're cute! I think they'd be good together!
Anyway, the main tipping point is the fight that, in canon, results in Morgana leaving the team and finding Haru. In this timeline, Ryuji instead leaves, taking Ken with him. They stumble across Haru being accosted by her fiancé (I am too tired to remember his name) and, upon discovering the Metaverse app on her phone, form a team that they dub the Strikers. Ken even gets his own codename, too, even if he doesn't have full Metaverse gear (yet). His codename is Judge!
More stuff happens, obviously, but I'm still debating if I'm going to do more with this AU or not. It'd be a heavy commitment that I'm not sure I can reliably stick to at this point in my life. But I'm open to answer more questions about it!
Oh yeah, and as for the shipping aspect- Ryuji and Haru also end up dating, and Ken and Haru have a more queerplatonic relationship rather than a romantic one, but all three love each other and its cute
it’s the dreaded Horse Phase™™ I have some ideas under the cut if anyone’s interested
Some terms for those who don’t know
Stallion - male horse
Gelding - male horse who’s had the snip
Mare - female horse
grey = white (in terms of coat colors)
Eventing - cross country on horseback (I did it for a long time it’s pretty hectic)
paddock name - the informal name of a horse used outside of competition or in general conversation. The elaborate names are a makeup of the sire (dad) and dam (mum) names for their offspring
tack - the bridle and saddle
Akira
all rounder, great a show jumping & eventing
dates Yusuke
Lives with stable master, Sojiro
Horse: ‘Arsene Lupin, Joker extraordinaire’
black thoroughbred stallion
paddock name: joker
herd leader, rather relaxed temperament
Ryuji
former jockey turned barrel racer, sometimes events with Akira
dates haru
Started horseriding as a correctional method but now really enjoys it
A cowboy
Horse: ‘The Skull of Captain Kidd’
Buckskin quarter horse gelding
paddock name: skull or kidd
has a bit of a limp like his owner but it’s nothing serious
mischievous af
Morgana is the barn cat who gets on well with a miniature pony named ‘zoro’ (this horse is a such a shit)
Ann
prize-winning dressage champion
dates makoto
also models equestrian gear
Horse: ‘Carmen’s Panther’
palomino Swedish warmblood mare
Also models tack
paddock name: Pan? Carmen?
Sassy bitch
Yusuke
Dressage & show jumper
also paints lots of horses (he went through the horse phase)
dates akira
Horse: ‘Goemon’s fox’
grey ‘white’ arabian stallion
paddock name: ‘fox’
rather stubborn
Makoto
allrounder, loves eventing (GOTTA GO FAST)
dates Ann
father was a mounted policeman, aspires to do that later
helps out with the bizniz side of stabling & stuff
Horse: ‘Queen Johanna II’
Cleveland Bay mare
paddock name: Queen
SUPER FAST GIVES SKULL A RUN FOR HIS MONEY
a bit skittish
From the same dam as Sae’s horse
Futaba
stable girl (does pony club & junior comps that aren’t as serious as the rest)
helps design obstacles & monitors horses when others aren’t around
doesn’t date anyone because she’s an ace child
Horse: ‘Necronomicon’
tri-paint pony mare
paddock name: oracle (orry?)
Very fast learner
decent allrounder, gets on with Joker
Haru
prized dressage champion & show jumper
dates Ryuji
pays for literally everything & anything everyone is so spoilt
like everyone else here, never got out of the horse phase
typical rich girl with a horse (but not a cunt)
Horse: ‘Milady de Noir’
Chestnut andalusian mare
this horse is literally worth over 10k its pedigree is fucken royalty)
Paddock name: noir
the sweetest mofo ever anyone can ride her she’s so calm
will be a great dam
General Ideas
Everyone’s riding uniforms includes a coloured accent from the games text message background (ie Ann’s cravat for dressage is pink. Also everyone looks so hot in their uniforms)
The saddle blankets are also the same colour (ie Queen’s saddle blanket is dark blue)
Akira moves in with Sojiro Sakura, who owns a fair bit of land and equestrian centre with his adoptive daughter, Futaba, and their pet cat, Morgana
Upon arriving, Akira is put to work doing basic stable hand stuff under Sojiros eye, and meets Joker, a stallion that hasn’t been put to work for some time since the original owner abandoned him
Sojiro offers to coach Akira in the basics of riding, while Morgana and Zoro watch. He gets a bit more confident riding Joker and starts to take him out alone on trail rides
Morgana sits on Zoro’s back when out riding
Akira meets Ryuji and Ann, who moved their horses to aggist with Sojiro since he is a lot cheaper than other places
Ryuji is a former jockey who had an accident, so he’s now a barrel racer
Ann is a dressage and showjumper, but is also a model for equestrian clothing
The three get along and start to share their mutual dislike towards society, they go on trail rides together (with morgana and zoro tagging along.)
Ryuji hates his old coach, Kamoshida, for abusing him and horses, and Ann hates him for constantly hitting on her
Yusuke and Makoto move their horses in and get to know everyone
Yusuke is a freelance artist who spends his time drawing horses as well as being a show jumper/dressager
Makoto is an all-rounder whos training to become a mounted policeman
Yusuke and Akira hit it off, as do Ann and Makoto ‘,:)
The horses start a herd, and then a pony comes along, no one knows who it belongs to until Sojiro tells them he has a daughter who owns it
Futaba doesn’t do pony club and junior comps anymore since her mother passed away, so Sojiro wonders if the group could get her back into riding
Futaba also loves to dress up the horses and Ann is On Board™ with that
Haru shows up with the most perfect horse anyone has ever seen like wtf
Escaped her fiance, Ryuji offers comfort (they become a thingo)
Do I dare include the trash man? He could be a lit rival though
Shido used to own Joker but abandoned him because he wasn’t good enough
Akechi’s horse - Robin Hood (paddock name: Crow) a grey thoroughbred stallion
