January 3rd, [1974 timeline-wise] (Japan)
"Miss? Miss?" A brief shaking woke the sleeping woman up, her eyes slowly opening as she gazed around with foggy eyes. She blinked several times at the woman timidly standing by her, the woman's hands held professionally as the sleeping woman's eyes fully cleared up. As clarity fully returned to the sleepy woman, she quietly stood, giving a bow to the woman.
"Ah. Sorry. The seats were too comfy." The woman sleepily muttered, looking down into the wide eyes of the flight attendant who blinked upwards at her. Her head pressed into the top of the plane, her ears pressing down into her hair. Standing at a height of six feet, six inches, or one hundred and ninety-eight centimeters, she clearly towered over the woman. She winced slightly as she bumped the ceiling; it clearly was not designed with someone of her height in mind. "Thank you for waking me." She gave a tired smile, which was met with a cautious one from the woman.
"It's no t-trouble." The woman, Kaoruko, if her name tag is accurate, quickly collected herself. "The other passengers have already left. When you're ready, please grab your things and leave, miss. Thank you." After another quick bow, she scurried off, back to where her coworkers were waiting and also staring.
The object of their staring didn't notice or didn't care for their staring, and began to stretch, her powerful muscles straining as her bones creaked from her poor posture while sleeping. "Hoo.." She breathed as she reached only slightly above and pulled out her luggage. With a few short strides, she reached the attendants waiting by the door, and after a brief smile, gave their way, strolled out into the terminal. Their whispers caused her ears to twitch before she continued. Many gave her glances, but outside of curious looks, they left her alone as she walked along.
On her way to the departures area, her nose twitched several times as the unmistakable aroma of coffee reached her. Against her better judgment, she headed to the nearby coffee shop. She knew it was probably a bad decision, as the coffee would be overpriced in an airport like this, but she was still far too tired to function properly.
"Hello, welcome to…" Kira, a young woman who had just started her shift at UmaBucks, could only stare upwards in disbelief at the tall woman standing at the counter. Her auburn hair was held in a high ponytail behind her, light brown eyes surveyed the menu with a look of concentration. The woman was an Umamusume, as noted by her tall ears twitching on her head, along with the tail she could see swishing behind her. She must have been staring for a long while, because the Umamusume woman was staring at her in concern.
"Excuse me..? Is everything alright?" Her ears flattened against her head as she glanced at Kira, her eyes noting that no one else besides her was present at the moment.
"Ah, uhm! I'm very sorry!" Kira bowed repeatedly as the Umamusume blinked repeatedly. "W-what can I get for you, miss?" She switched into customer-service mode relatively quickly. The Umamusume stared at her for a moment before smiling warmly at her.
"One caramel frappuccino, please, thank you." Kira nodded at the order, typing it into the register. She perked back up again as she looked at the Umamusume, holding a sharpie as she did so. "Your name, miss? For the order."
The Umamusume woman seemed to frown for a moment before she smiled at the barista. "Sera, please."
"Okay! Your order will be out soon, Miss Sera! Thank you!" Her cheer fully in place, Kira began working on the order as she took several glances back at Sera. Her curiosity won out as she called out to Sera while prepping her order. "Miss Sera? Is it your first time in Japan?"
Sera glanced over at her before nodding. "Yes, it's my first time here. Is it that easy to tell?" She smiled almost sheepishly at the barista.
"Hehe. Foreigners tend to stand out here." She made a show of glancing at the towering height of the Umamusume. "In more ways than one." Both of them broke out into light giggles at the joke. "Where are you from? Your Japanese is very good, by the way!"
"America, the United States." Sera hummed as she glanced around, seeing more people beginning to pour in as other flights entered and left. "I'm actually considering staying here permanently, though. I've heard good things about Japan. And thank you."
"America? I've always wanted to visit there." Kira sighed wistfully as she stepped back for a moment before getting back to work. "I hope you like it here. Moving here though.. I hope everything's okay. Moving to a different country is a big move." Kira smiled welcomely to Sera, who returned it. "Were you a racing Umamusume?" Kira's eyes sparkled as she glanced over her customer once more.
Sera laughed lightly before answering. "I did a little bit. Just retired ,actually." A wistful and somewhat bitter smile appeared on the Umamusume's face. "I was looking for a fresh start, and I'm hoping to find it here."
Kira's mouth opened into an O of surprise as she replied while finishing the drink. "Oh! I hope it wasn't due to an injury." She looked briefly worried at the Umamusume before shaking her head, and handing the drink with her name on it, towards her. "Here, one caramel frappuccino. Personally, I hope you find your start here. Please take care of yourself, Sera." Kira bowed deeply once before smiling warmly at the Umamusume.
Sera blinked several times before her eyes began to water, to the alarm of the barista. Sera shook her head as she rubbed her eyes with her jacket's sleeves. "Thank you. Have a great day, Kira." With that final word, Sera walked off, a bright smile contrasting with her teary eyes as she made her way out.
Kira looked worriedly after the Umamusume, before she remembered something crucial. "Ah! Did she pay?" Her skin turned pale as she realized she had forgotten something critical, which could potentially get her fired. Her worries were unfounded, though, as she glanced over and saw some money left on the counter. There was another problem, however. Sera had left her fifteen thousand yen on the counter. Her coffee was just five hundred yen. She left too much! As Kira looked up to shout about Sera's mistake, it was too late. Sera had already disappeared through the doors. (500 yen = roughly 3 dollars USD. 15k yen = 100 dollars USD.)
"Very superstitious.." Sera hummed to herself as she smiled on the way to the departure circle, her mood lighter thanks to the words of the barista she met. She hoped she had tipped enough; the woman had done an excellent job with service and brightened her day after their conversation. People once more glanced at her as she strolled past, many choosing to stare openly at the giant Umamusume moving past them. She skillfully ignored those gazes while flagging down a taxi. She glanced down, realizing she had drunk too fast and already finished her coffee. With a quick flick, the cup was thrown into a recycling bin.
A small black Toyota sedan pulled up in front of her, a light on top denoting it as a taxi. Seeing the driver stopping and popping the trunk, Sera promptly placed her baggage in the trunk before hopping into the back seat. Her legs pressed into her stomach as she was far too tall to sit comfortably in the car. The driver, who had been lazily looking forward, turned back and did a double-take at her appearance. His cheeks reddened slightly as he continued to stare, before looking forward hurriedly with a cough.
"Ahem! Where to, miss…ma'am?" He corrected himself as he looked forward, very openly glancing at her in the rear-view mirror. The reaction got a brief smile from her before she frowned, as she realized she hadn't exactly thought about where she wanted to go. As she gazed upwards briefly in thought, a name she remembered stood out to her: Hokkaido.
"Any places you'd recommend here in Hokkaido?" Sera asked curiously, her head tilted to the side as her ears perked up.
"Hokkaido." Her driver frowned as he thought, tapping his chin. "There's a beautiful coastal town I can think of, Urakawa." He glanced over at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Perfect. Take me there, please." Sera nodded gratefully at the driver as they got moving. She knew nothing of the town, but it was a good starting point. She gazed out the window awkwardly with her position, taking in the difference in building design before they started to drive through the countryside. Her smile grew as she took in the beautiful scenery, her eyes shining as she gazed around. Time passed quickly for the Umamusume. Before she knew it, they had already arrived in Urakawa after leaving New Chitose Airport, their two-hour drive passing in the blink of an eye.
"We've arrived, miss! That'll be fifteen thousand yen for the fare." Her driver spoke up as she stepped out of the car, blinking at the amount. Fifteen thousand yen? That sounds like the amount she left for the barista… did she tip too much!? As her thoughts spiraled, she reached into her pocket and pulled out two ten-thousand-yen bills.
"Please, keep the change. And thank you again." Her smile exposed her canines, getting a full blush from the older man as she grabbed her luggage and strolled along. Her eyes took in the new surroundings, as feelings of uncertainty about the unknown and wonder at the areas she didn't know took hold. Everything was so different. The people, the buildings… life. Her wide eyes took it all in as people glanced at her, but surprisingly, they went back about their business with just the one glance. It was different… She liked it.
After strolling up to a local ramen stand, she seated herself. Her stool creaked ominously as she looked down at it, her eyes worried. A bell jingling heralded the arrival of the cook, who stopped and stared briefly at the tall Umamusume in his shop. His eyes traveled down to the creaking stool before he quickly held up a hand. "One moment, please!" He just short of yelled out, before running into the back.
Her eyes blinked several times as she stood, hearing a whole bunch of noise from the back before he emerged again. The chef strained slightly as he held a larger chair in front of himself, likely his personal chair inside the stall. He smiled through the strain as he came around and placed the chair near her. "Please, have a seat! No customer of mine will be forced to stand!" His smile was bright as she wiped the sweat off his forehead after bowing to her briefly.
Her eyes blinked several times in disbelief before nearly watering again. She was going to be outed as a crybaby at this rate. "Thank you." Sera softly muttered, giving the man a matching smile before she seated herself. A pleased hum escaped her as she found the chair perfectly accommodating.
"Haha! What can I get for you today?" The Chef, likely Mr. Nagase, as it says on the outside of Nagase's Heavenly Ramen, questioned as he pointed his ladle at Sera. His question prompted her to look down at the menu, finding the option she'd like within a moment.
"Ah..how about.. Three bowls of Tonkatsu Ramen, please?" She clasped her hands together as she asked, her question getting another laugh from the chef.
"Hah! Just three? I'll have it out in a moment!" The chef's eyes lit up in challenge as he began his work. Sera looked on in wonder as the man made the ramen in record time, the aroma alone causing her nose to twitch several times as she closed her eyes. Right after, a loud "CLANG" echoed as Chef Nagase placed the three bowls right in front of her. "Order up!" He smiled almost cheekily as he leaned back and looked at her.
Her eyes took in the ramen, from the noodles, the broth, to even the egg, meat, and spring onion decorating the bowl. Before she ate, she remembered herself, clasping her hands and muttering, "Thank you for the meal", before picking up her chopsticks and taking her first bite. Sera froze as the noodles passed through her lips, a metaphorical galaxy expanding in her mind as the flavors surged through her mind. Under Chef Nagase's eyes, she ate all three bowls in under a minute, leaning back after with a pleased sigh and a slightly bulging belly.
"Well? How was it?" He grinned, noticing the blissful expression on Umamusume's face, her eyes staring unseeingly into the ceiling.
"Best. Ramen. Ever." She said aloud, holding up a thumbs up to the man, which got a laugh in return.
"It's my first time seeing you here, miss. Just visiting?" He asked curiously, taking her appearance in now that his job was done. She was tall even by Umamusume standards, towering clear above anyone he had seen. She was also quite heavy for an Uma, as those stools he had were reinforced to handle the weight of MOST Umamusume. He'd remember seeing someone like her before.
"Actually.. I was considering moving here." Sera scratched her head uncertainly as she glanced away from the chef, a slight frown on her lips. "I kind of just picked a destination, and here I am." She smiled sheepishly at the man, who blinked before laughing once more.
"Hahahaha! Such snap decision making… I like it!" He gave her a thumbs up in turn, which she returned with an embarrassed smile. "Well, if you're looking to move in, I'd recommend trying down the road. We've had some people move out, so a couple of vacancies have opened up." His smile widened at the grateful smile sent his way.
"Thank you, truly." Sera felt her cheeks were going to hurt from how much people here were making her smile. "How much do I owe you?"
"Bah. It's on the house today." Nagase waved her objections away before pointing at her. "I expect you to be a repeat customer of mine. You'll more than make up for today." He pointed a thumb at himself cockily as she stared at him in shock. He ignored her objections as he collected her bowls and gave her a jaunty wave. "See you soon! You'll always be welcome to Nagase's Heavenly Ramen!" Nagase chortled to himself as he strolled back into the kitchen, not seeing how his words affected Sera.
Sera lost track of how long she remained staring back where Nagase had disappeared, her eyes blinking several times. She gazed around several times in disbelief before leaving the ramen stall in a daze. Her steps carried her down in the direction he pointed out to her, coming upon several houses with Japanese realtor signs outside. The next events passed in a blur for her, as the nice lady who met her outside the home enthusiastically showed her around the house. When Sera felt fully lucid again, she noticed she was sitting in a Japanese home, bare of most furniture, while seated on a tatami mat alone.
"Haaaa…" Sera laid down, staring at the ceiling above her in disbelief. Her gaze went down to a set of papers on a table that sat next to her, clearly having been signed off by her, marking her as the owner of this home. It was real; she had gone through with it. "This is my life now, huh?"
She did mean what she said about moving to Japan, as she had moved here almost immediately with any belongings she considered important to herself. But this was a confirmation of her decision. Her thoughts began to fill with more indecision, self-loathing, and questioning of what she had done thus far.
"Nope, I'm not doing this right now," Sera muttered as she stood with a frown, stretching lightly as she looked around. Those thoughts could wait, and well, this technically was a cause for celebration. After a glance around, she grabbed the keys left on the table and made for her front door. Making sure her new house wouldn't get broken into, she walked onto the street and roamed mindlessly.
Several people waved to her and bowed as she went past, something she hurried to reciprocate as she searched around. People here were just… kind. It was a strange feeling, having lived through areas of America notorious for their attitude and aggression. Before her thoughts could spiral down that dead-end again, she arrived at what she was looking for. A bar.
She strolled in, with several individuals stopping to stare at her before going about their business. Two individuals, however, kept their eyes on her. The bartender and a man at the bar, the latter sipping his drink as his eyes never left her. As she walked up, she took a glance at the nearby stools, and after a test attempt pressing them down, decided to remain standing. No need to add an extra bill for a broken chair, as well as avoiding embarrassing herself by falling to the floor.
"What can I get for you?" The bartender, an older man likely in his forties, asked as he finished polishing a glass while looking at her. The younger man at the bar perked up, his eyes looking her up and down as she thought about it for a moment.
"An Umeshu, please." Sera nodded towards the man before turning to look at the man who hadn't stopped staring at her. "Can I help you?" A light frown appeared on her lips. She didn't mind staring, but something about the way this man stared at her irked her.
"Hm? Not yet, maybe later you can." The man smiled cheekily, taking a sip of his drink as he met her eyes. "I didn't expect to see an Umamusume here, and a foreign one at that. Matsunaga Yoshiharu. A trainer from central." He gave a small bow of his head before waiting for her answer, his eyebrows raised while he smirked.
She continued to stare for a moment before shaking her head as the bartender placed her drink in front of her. Taking a small sip and giving a pleased hum at the taste, she looked back towards him. "Sera, an Umamusume." She remarked with light sarcasm. "I recently moved here. I didn't expect to meet a man who both had and lacked manners. You haven't stopped staring at me since I came in." She grinned as she looked at the mildly affronted man, who could only shake his head.
"That's fair. I apologize. I just couldn't take my eyes off you." He held up his hands in mock-surrender, grinning at the twitch of her brow. As their conversation continued, the bartender could only shake his head at the antics of the two. He had a feeling he knew where this was going. Unfortunately, he was right.
SCENE BREAK - TIME SKIP
Sera had a lot of regrets in her life. Letting her trainer dictate all aspects of her life back in the US, getting drunk for the first time after her debut race, and now, ever going into that damn bar right after she arrived in Japan.
"Push miss! Push!" A nurse calling out to her encouragingly from her left, as her tired eyes took in the rest of the room she was in. Several other nurses had crowded around her, with the doctor standing in front of her, helping guide her along. Her eyes burned as she pushed along with another contraction, her teeth gritting in fury.
"It's all that bastard's fault…" She thought angrily to herself, her mood worsening as she continued to labor, already sixteen hours in. Matsunaga Yoshiharu. Not only did that man take advantage of how drunk she was to sleep with her, but he also decided to leave shortly after and block all forms of contact she attempted to reach out. She could understand it at first; she was the fool who got sucked into his rhythm while dealing with the conflicting feelings of moving to Japan and getting absolutely shitfaced.
But to ignore her attempts to communicate when it had turned out she was PREGNANT? That she could not forgive. She had debated what to do after finding out the news, and had spiraled pretty badly shortly after. Thankfully, the people around her in her new home were wonderful, not only accommodating her but also doing their best to emotionally support her. Mr. Nagase, the ramen chef, had been one of her closest confidants. She truly had lucked out in that case. She decided she was going to deliver the baby, regardless of everything. She was going to be the best damn mom to this child, a little girl, after learning from the ultrasound.
"I can see her head! Push! You can do it!" The words of encouragement followed again, as Sera turned almost as red as her hair while she continued to push. "Almost… there! I have her!" The doctor's voice called out once more, as Sera felt her body relax. She felt exhausted, worse than any race she had ever had the privilege of running. The sound of a baby, her baby's, wails echoed throughout the room as she glanced over with bleary eyes. The doctor was whispering to a nurse while covering her baby in blankets, the umbilical cord already cut.
"You've given birth to a healthy baby Umamusume. Congratulations, Miss Secretariat." The doctor's eyes crinkled in warmth, his smile hidden by his mask, as he walked over to her, her baby held against his chest. Her name passed over with no fanfare; in this hospital, who she was outside of it didn't matter. She tiredly held her arms out as he approached, the little bundle nestled firmly into her arms. The little girl was an Umamusume, her daughter without a doubt. Her head was covered by a matching shade of auburn hair to hers, her eyes twitching as she looked around blindly, her eyes still not adjusted.
Miraculously, her baby stopped crying once she was in her arms, quieting down almost immediately. Her hand reached forward uncertainly, gazing at the baby in wonder. To her surprise, the baby latched onto her finger with a strong grip, refusing to let go. She could only look on in tired amusement as her baby fell asleep, her finger still in a death grip.
"Miss?" A nurse nearby got her attention, as she looked at the woman with half-lidded eyes. "What would you like to name her?" Her questions received several blinks from Secretariat, her eyes looking at the bundle. When she went to answer, she stopped. Whispers reached her ears, ethereal and otherworldly, the sound taking over everything else as she closed her eyes. When her eyes opened again, she looked at her baby with a radiant smile.
"Nice Nature. My little miracle." Sera's eyes burned. She wasn't planned. But without a shadow of a doubt, she was her little miracle.
CHAPTER END