There were only two weeks before the [Japan Cup].
And Oguri Cap was out on a mission.
"I-Is this really necessary?" Blossom Star asked, her voice muffled as she hid behind the dressing room curtain. Oguri could faintly hear the soft rustling of cloth, and she could imagine Star pressing her hands down onto the new clothes she'd brought into the dressing room just a minute before.
Oguri's tail began swaying. "I think it'll look good." She said genuinely.
Star went quiet for a moment, before she heard her mutter, "O-Okay." And a moment later, the curtain was pulled to the side, and out came Star. She was dressed in a beautiful navy blue gown, with a smattering of star-like patterns lining the bottom of her gown. Her face was flushed red as she did her best to stand straight, though Star only managed to do so for a few more seconds before she hid back behind the dressing curtain. "S-Stop looking at me like that!"
"Like what?"
"...N-Nothing."
Oguri tilted her head slightly, before she shrugged. She knew Star was oddly shy regarding a few things, so this was probably one of them. Perhaps she was just overly conscious about her looks?
Hmm. She really shouldn't. Star was one of the most beautiful umamusume she'd ever laid her eyes on, whether in this world or another.
"Ah, geez." She heard Star sigh. "Why do we need to do a ballroom party of all things…"
Oguri hummed.
She didn't grasp all the details, but from what she understood, the usual [Japan Cup] Press Conference had been extended into an entire party this time around. She didn't understand why, but it was likely because Director Akikawa wanted to go all out this year.
"It's okay." Oguri said, and with fierce determination burning in her eyes, she clenched her fists. "I'll protect you. No one will take you away."
Star chuckled. "Aiya~, I don't think that's what's important."
Oguri blinked. "It isn't?"
A moment of silence, before she heard Star sigh. "Forget it." The curtains were pulled aside, and Star stepped back out, having changed back to her usual clothes. The gown she'd worn was in her hands, having been neatly folded. "How about you? Have you picked out what you want to wear for it?"
"I already have it." Oguri said instead.
Star raised an eyebrow. "You already have one?"
Oguri nodded. She did have one, though she didn't really purchase it. Instead, a teal-colored dress had appeared in her wardrobe one day, and though she had never worn it before, it elicited in her a sense of familiarity, as if she'd once worn it in a previous life.
She had a feeling her friend had sneakily bought it for her. The phantom tended to do that at times.
Star went quiet for a moment, before she blinked. "Oh, is it that dress I saw in your dresser?" Oguri nodded, and Star hummed. "Yeah, that'll definitely work." Star's tail began swaying slightly. "Not that you need a dress like that to be the star of the party." Star then said, winking playfully.
Oguri smiled. "You're pretty too."
"Mhm~" Star's cheeks turned slightly red. "Well, I'll go pay for this real quick." She smiled. "Wait for me outside?" And seeing Oguri's nod, Star quickly made her way towards the cashier to make her purchase.
With Star busy, Oguri turned towards the exit, before she proceeded to walk the opposite way. She headed towards a seemingly ordinary corner at the back of the store they were in, and she took a small breath as she closed her eyes. A creeping chill swept through her body as she took a step forward, and she kept her eyes shut despite the terrible discomfort she was feeling.
Then that feeling was gone, and when she next opened her eyes, she was standing in front of a small mall complex. The walkway she'd abruptly appeared in wasn't empty in the slightest, yet her appearance was noticed by no one. Or to be more exact, it was as if no one could understand that she was standing there.
"Health Land…" She whispered, frowning slightly. The building in front of her was both familiar and not, and she took a moment to compose herself before she headed in.
Following her instincts, she eventually ended up in front of the door leading to the communal Ganbanyoku. Her hand paused over the door handle for a good few seconds, eyes closed as she waited for a reason she couldn't quite decipher.
And then–
"What're you doing?"
Oguri slowly turned to her left, and there stood an umamusume. She wore a hoodie that shadowed most of her face, but even then she could still see the heterochromic eyes that glowed beneath the shadows. An eerie yellow and a bloody red, their glow almost reminiscent of gemstones.
"I don't know." Oguri said genuinely. "I was…waiting?"
The umamusume stared at her for a moment, before her eyes widened slightly. "You're…" She whispered, before her expression returned to neutral. Though Oguri could see that the look in her eyes had turned colder. "You from out of town or something?"
Oguri hummed faintly. "It's my first time here."
The umamusume snorted. "Yeah, I could tell." She stared at Oguri for a moment, before she reached up and pulled her hoodie down, revealing hair as white as snow. "Come on. I'll show you around."
Oguri nodded. "Okay."
And she did. The umamusume brought Oguri all around the communal Ganbanyoku area, showing her all the amenities provided. She even showed Oguri how to operate the recently-installed oxygen capsule, though Oguri politely denied using it. She didn't feel comfortable being trapped inside a space so small.
Though she had to admit that her mind began to wander slightly as the umamusume began going on a tangent about all the benefits using an oxygen capsule could bring. Fatigue and injury recovery, anti-aging, helps with disease—there was just so many things she mentioned that it made Oguri's head spin.
And by the time the umamusume noticed just how much she'd talked, Oguri had stared at her for a good second before she whispered, "The Health-Land master…"
The umamusume blushed. "Don't give me weird names!"
Eventually, they found a place to sit down, and Oguri pretended not to notice the way the umamusume was staring as she brought over two bottles of water she'd purchased from a nearby vending machine. "Here." She said as she offered the bottle, and the umamusume muttered a soft 'thank you' as she unscrewed the cap and took a sip.
They sat there in silence for some time, and for a moment, Oguri couldn't help but feel a dull sorrow echoing in her chest. She remembered this scene, but the way it'd played out was different. The initial wonder she felt wasn't there—a meeting that had happened due to chance alone had instead turned into something else.
She didn't wallow for too long, and Oguri eventually turned back to the umamusume. "I am Oguri Cap." She introduced herself.
The umamusume snorted. "Yea, I know." And at Oguri's stare, the umamusume just raised an eyebrow. "You think I couldn't tell? Your face is literally plastered everywhere."
Oguri hummed, though she secretly filed that for later. The fact that the umamusume was capable of recognizing her made her stand out compared to other people. After all, even now the other people in this communal room hadn't noticed that the Grey Monster was literally in the same room as them.
She then nodded. "Call me Oguri, Health-Land master."
Her eyes twitched. "Stop calling me that!" She huffed as she grimaced slightly. "I'm Folkqueen."
She smiled, her gaze both probing and cold.
"Nice to meet you."