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King Halo remembered the race being a bit colder, even when the adrenaline rush is present. The heart beat and the flow of blood reaching to the tip of her fingers and toes, naturally she'd warm up from the winter weather. It's puzzling, too warm today. Odd, the Winter Dream Cup was yesterday. King Halo slightly tilts her head, digging her cleat onto the turf.
She feels the starting gate, it isn't cold but it's real. Almost. By instinct, King Halo readies herself as she gets into her signature stance. There's only one thing in her mind and it's to win the race. Yet that thought alone carries depth and weight that she shoulders alone. She doesn't win to prove that she's the best, she wins to prove that she belongs. She wins to seek any form of validation from her mother, that she too is just as great. By her own right, King Halo is an exceptional runner.
Compared to her friends and rivals? She always believed that she didn't care for the doubts anymore, she tried. At this very moment, she's extremely vulnerable. Past phone calls and messages from her own mother. Discouraging, doubting, disapproving and nothing more. Nothing supportive and hardly any hints of affection. King Halo lived with it, took it to her races. Lost many, won a few and only one graded one race. Despite all of that, she's better than most, if not, all. Depends on you who ask.
Haru Urara would most certainly think King Halo is the best. It's enough for King Halo, more than enough. Yet the hints of her mother's doubts and disapproval lingers, a small cavity just hidden and hurts most when at the most vulnerable of time. So King Halo pushes forward as the starting gates open, she kicks hard and decides not to be behind the pack.
She can feel Grass Wonder already marking her with Special Week not too far behind either. El Condor Pasa is one length ahead who's got her sights on Seiun Sky. The lazy front runner leads the race course and the line up and roster of this Winter Dream Cup is probably more exciting than last year's. Team Spica and Team Rigil with the addition of Oguri Cap, it was a race to remember for sure. This years? The Golden Generation as they were touted.
Seiun Sky, double crown winner.
El Condor Pasa, the first to win a graded one race on European turf.
Grass Wonder, won back to back Arima Kinen, including the Takarazuka Kinen in the same year.
Special Week, winning both tenno sho, the Japan Cup and winning against Broye who's believed to be the strongest umamusume in all of Europe.
"And you only have one sprint race. The peak of your career. I'd suggest you really, really consider and pull from this race. Unless you're keen on losing to your friends again. I'd had to stomach everything about your career so far. I don't need to hear noise from this Winter Dream Cup. You can't win against them. You never have."
It was almost too evil and too hurtful. King Halo knew her career isn't something to be awe of, but she is proud of it. She was happy to be chosen as one of the many legendary runners to take part in the Winter Dream Cup. Running on the same turf as Symboli Rudolf, Oguri Cap, Maruzensky, Air Grove, Gold Ship, Vodka and just so much more. She and her golden generation friends were going to all race together alongside Symboli Rudolf who makes an appearance again. Narita Taishin, Biwa Hayahide, Winning Ticket to make up the core "BNW" trio and the last member of the roster is Silence Suzuka to recreate the stacked line up of the Mainichi Okan.
El Condor Pasa won't let Suzuka get away so easily, seeing that she takes the lead and is two lengths ahead of Seiun Sky. King Halo remembered the race being thrilling and fun. She remembers almost catching Seiun Sky's tail, she was close and ahead. She remembered how intense it was when Rudolf made her move out the outside, her strength and speed was truly in a different realm. She won first after all, Seiun Sky taking silver. She proved to be the better front runner that day, Suzuka holding bronze but their distance were only mere inches apart. Fourth.
King Halo wasn't at the podium, but she placed fourth. Ahead of her friends. Wasn't that good enough? Or was her mother right, did she just end up losing to her friend again and didn't even collect any silverware. King Halo slows down but not by choice. She felt heavy, restricted even. It was hard for her to kick forward and run, her arms squeezed together against her body and feeling a tight hold. She wanted to scream, yell, cry out and surge forward to catch up to everyone else, but they don't slow down. They're gone. Ahead. To a place where winners are welcomed. They all won something prestigious and marked their names in history, renaming an era with their names and presence. Would the Golden Generation be any different without King Halo?
"Please, come back." She whispers out, not wanting to be left alone. To face shame alone as she done so in the past. She felt a force that squeezes her tighter and tighter, almost hard to breathe. Immediately, King Halo gasps for air as she sees her room is bright and sunny. It's a rare occurrence, Haru Urara is up and early before her. Normally, King Halo would gently wake up her roommate, help her get ready for the morning and even brushing Urara's hair and tail.
"You're awake!" Urara cheers out, loosening her hug around Halo and shifting back to give some space. She sits on Halo's bed, legs crossed with a big wide smile that she always have on any given day, minus the gloomy ones. "Are you okay?" She asks, her cheerful tone carrying a hint of worry, her ears lightly bending forward almost in sadness. Happy to see her roommate awake, but feeling a bit down because she's worried. So her smile falters, something more rare than a shooting star.
"I'm okay." King Halo replies with a whisper, "More importantly, why are you on my bed again? Did you sleep here?" Almost a rhetorical question, she's used to Urara inviting herself from time to time. "Did something happen-"
"Yes, I wanted to sleep here. I couldn't sleep last night! Then you... kept moving in your sleep and that woke me up. You started mumbling and I heard you, asking someone to come back. I hugged you! I kept hugging you." Urara rarely is ever worried and maybe it's because King Halo is a strong girl. She never confided in Urara, never so much as broke down and cried on the spot with a lot going on. Losing races against her friends and rivals, no support from her mother, yet Halo had her heart to give out. To be a first rate umamusume. She shoulders all of it and she won't bother Urara with it.
Being roommates with Urara is a healing in itself. Something King Halo doesn't vocally say, but seeing how close they are is more than enough proof.
"I'm sorry for worrying you, Urara. I just had a bad dream. I..." Halo pauses and contemplates on what she should say. Wondering if it's okay to lie to her roommate who has been nothing but sweet and honest. "The Winter Dream Cup. I came in last place-"
"You came in fourth! You did your best and I was happy to see you run faster than Spe-chan! You were amazing!" Urara is quick to remind King Halo of her accomplishment. Fourth place, it doesn't sound great, but to Urara, it means everything. She never won a race. It probably hurts her a lot more than she realizes.
"Yeah, I was pretty awesome yesterday. I felt too close to Seiun Sky, I almost had her but Silence Suzuka sweeps in and takes third. That was a close race. I kept my composure, applauds and sportsman ship. It's common decency-"
"For the best first rate umamusume!" Urara is quick to interrupt again, her smile getting more brighter. "You're very important to me. You've always been kind to me and always help me. To me, you are number one." Like a daughter declaring that they have the best parent. King Halo bites her lips and blinks. She can feel her eyes begin to water so she quickly leans in and hugs Urara to hide the slip of vulnerability.
"I'm better, now, Urara. I just didn't want to see my friends run ahead. It was a dumb nightmare, but I don't like them regardless." King Halo couldn't resist the urge to pat Urara's head, gently brushing her bangs to the side like she would normally do every morning. "I hope you had a better dream than mine." She lightly chuckles, her mood improving from awful to great.
It's a question King Halo kind of needed to ask so the conversation can change and luckily for her, it works. She can see how excited Urara got when mentioning about her last night's dream. "It was bright! Big! Like, huge! The stage was really big, King!" Urara can't help but almost bounce on the spot in excitement and pure joy. "We were on it. I saw you on stage, walking up and like, I remember it was your solo part of our performance. The glowsticks all turned green for you and then when it was my turn, I can hear the cheers and colour turning pink! Spe-chan was leader and... I think I saw Rice Shower too! There were so many of us, but... I can't remember."
King Halo lets out a light laugh, motioning Urara to turn over and sit on the edge of the bed. She might as well comb Urara's hair first as she talks about this grand dream of hers. It sounds almost too good and honestly? "It sounds sweet, Urara. Try to remember who else was there."
"Hmmmm." Urara ponders, her shoulders relaxing because she will always feel safe and comforted around King Halo. "Rice... Spe... Teio...? I did see two girls, humans! They had pink hair like me!"
"Oh? Humans with the same hair colour as you? They sound wonderful." Almost like a mother, King Halo kinda tries to think and wonder if she met anyone with cherry pink hair. She's not too familiar with humans other than trainers and some faculty members.
"I want a dream like that again." Urara softly says, "Or... something fun. My friends all together with everyone cheering on stage. I... never been on stage that big." Because she never won any races. Urara has done a few performances. The better performances were away from racing and more so community events or fan festivals. Nothing as grand as what she saw in her dream. It kind of makes her sad in a way.
King Halo can feel a throb in her heart, hurting and making her want to tear up almost. "We can sing and dance together. How about this weekend? We go eat dinner and rent a karaoke booth. I'll invite Special Week and you can go get Rice Shower. Teio won't say no to singing so she will be easy and Seiun Sky owes me so... I can drag her along. Because I can." Almost like a mother planning a birthday party for her children. The reality is that they're roommates and Halo is just a mother figure to a certain degree.
She doesn't really see herself that way, she's just happen to be very caring and kind with a lot of heart to give. To Urara? She doesn't fully grasp the sentiment, but it still means the entire world for her. King Halo is forever someone important and to have a fun outing with her friends. Maybe it's not a grand stage with lights and crowds of cheering, but this familial bond is more than enough.
"You're the best, King!" Urara won't stop cheering out her name or anything for that matter. It's how she is and a happy Haru is a happy day. The dream won't put down King Halo and her mother's approval doesn't mean much anymore. King Halo only seeks a few things and it's to be a first rate umamusume. One that works hard, on top of her work, trains and understand discipline, lady like, professional, and well, having everything to give. To be something more than her mother could ever be, no matter the fame she has.