If you've made it this far, congratulations! You've made it to the end of the story!
This is chronologically the last chapter. The story will continue to update, but stories that occur after this will be posted in a separate story.
It was a cold evening under a starless sky. In a sterile, eerily quiet hospital waiting room sat Katrina Beaufort, fourteen years old, beginner boxer at the WVBA, and possibly an orphan.
No, that's crazy talk. It couldn't be that bad. Dad's taken all kinds of beatings before.
...But then, they usually weren't bad enough to land him in the hospital.
It had been such a normal day; she had just been at home after a long day at school, putting her books away and writing down a reminder to bring four dollars for lunch money the next day when she'd gotten a phone call from the hospital. A doctor had, as gently as possible, explained to her that her father had collapsed, wailing in pain after his most recent match, and had to be taken to the emergency room.
"Katrina?"
She looked up. That same doctor was approaching her.
"How is he?" Katrina needed to know if Dad was okay, like, yesterday.
"Well," said the doctor, "once we looked him over, we found that his appendix had been injured. We need to take it out."
Katrina's heart went cold. Had Dad finally taken one punch too many? This was his ninety-ninth loss; surely something like this was bound to happen eventually.
"Now, there's no cause for alarm," continued the doctor. "Appendectomies are simple. You'll be able to see your father by tomorrow morning."
At that point, Von Kaiser finally burst into the waiting room, frazzled and out of breath. "Wo ist er?" (Where is he?)
"You must be Viktor," said the doctor. "We've just got your husband in for surgery. He should be well enough to visit first thing tomorrow."
Von Kaiser sighed, and gestured for Katrina to come. Katrina trailed behind her stepfather as they exited the hospital.
After a deafeningly silent car trip, Von Kaiser and Katrina arrived back at the WVBA arena. When they got inside, Pierce saw them and went to them. "How is he?"
"Anhang Verletzung," said Von Kaiser. "Während wir sprechen, liegt er auf dem Operationstisch." (Appendix injury. He's on the operating table as we speak.)
Pierce clenched his jaw. "Here's hoping he has a speedy recovery."
Katrina breezed past them and went to the locker room. She stood in front of Joe's locker. Each boxer got a metallic sticker of their stage name to place over their locker, and she still remembered the day that the new sticker came in the mail. She pressed her forehead to the locker door, hoping and praying that Dad would be okay. She was so focused on the locker that she didn't even hear the curtain rustling.
"Oi."
Katrina looked up and saw Aran standing next to her. "What?"
Aran clenched his jaw for a moment, but sighed when he saw just how shaken Katrina was. "I was there when yer aul man went down. Screamin' like 'e was bein' murdered. I let 'im squeeze me hand till th' ambulance came." He shook his hand for a moment. "'E's got a mighty grip."
Katrina wrapped her arms around him. She just wanted someone to lean on. Aran was taken aback at first, but picked her up and brought her to the lounge room, where Von Kaiser was sitting on the couch, looking lost, with Bear Hugger and Flying Feather by his side, softly saying comforting things to him. Katrina laid her head down on Aran's shoulder. She wanted this whole mess to be over.
Von Kaiser shook his head and stood up. "Komm schon, Katie. Wir sollten etwas zu Abend essen gehen." (Come on, Katie. We should go have some dinner.) He took Katrina's hand, gently thanked Bear Hugger and Flying Feather for their consolation, and walked out of the arena.
When they got home, Von Kaiser and Katrina simply sat on the couch. They realised that neither of them were particularly hungry, and they certainly weren't in the mood for cooking. Katrina picked up her phone, and found that her message inbox was exploding.
Louise sent: Is your father okay? (6:23 pm)
Gina sent: Comment va Joseph? (How is Joseph?) (6:47 pm)
Janet sent: Hey I hope your dad is okay (7:02 pm)
As she was reading them all, there was a frantic knock at the door. Von Kaiser answered, and there was Amélie, looking frazzled and panicked. "Où est mon gars?!" (Where is my boy?!)
"Beruhige dich, Amélie. Er ist gerade im Krankenhaus und wird operiert." (Calm down, Amélie. He's at the hospital right now, having his operation.) Von Kaiser soothed his mother-in-law until she calmed down.
Katrina just wanted some peace, so she went upstairs, shut herself in her room, and texted Annie.
Katrina sent: Are you there? (7:15 pm)
. . .
Annie sent: Yeah what's up (7:23 pm)
Katrina sent: I'm sad (7:24 pm)
Annie sent: About your dad? (7:24 pm)
Katrina sent: Yeah (7:25 pm)
Annie sent: I hope he feels better soon (7:25 pm)
Annie sent: I mean he probably will…your dad's kinda badass ngl (7:27 pm)
Katrina sent: Thank you (7:27 pm)
Before she could continue, she started getting notification after notification from the WVBA group chat.
deathclover317 sent: yo junior are u there? (7:27 pm)
deathclover317 sent: hey (7:27 pm)
deathclover317 sent: hey (7:27 pm)
deathclover317 sent: hey (7:27 pm)
deathclover317 sent: hey (7:28 pm)
kittykat08 replied to deathclover317's message: What! (7:28 pm)
sexymachobeast69 replied to deathclover317's message: dude quit spamming (7:28 pm)
deathclover317 replied to kittykat08's message: hows your old man? (7:29 pm)
deathclover317 replied to sexymachobeast69's message: kiss my arse (7:29 pm)
kittykat08 sent: He's still in the hospital (7:30 pm)
deathclover317 sent: oh (7:30 pm)
sexymachobeast69 replied to deathclover317's message: dumbass (7:31 pm)
the_boss31 replied to deathclover317's message: yeah, real mature there aran (7:31 pm)
deathclover317 replied to the_boss31's message: you can kiss it too sandy (7:32 pm)
Katrina sighed and put her phone down before the group chat could devolve into a huge, profanity-laden argument.
"Katrina?"
Katrina opened her eyes. It was now morning, and Amélie was standing over her. She hadn't even realised that she had fallen asleep. "Morning, Grandma," she mumbled.
"Ton beau-père s'appelle ton école et se dit que tu vas rester ici aujourd'hui," said Amélie. "Nous allons avoir une journée de famille." (Your stepfather called your school and told them that you're staying here today. We're gonna have a family day.)
Katrina rubbed her eyes and sat up. "Has the hospital called back yet?"
"Non," said Amélie, "mais nous attendons pour l'appelle." (No, but we're waiting for the call.)
The two went downstairs to eat some breakfast. While they were eating, the phone rang. Von Kaiser jumped up to answer. "Guten Tag? … Ja. … Ja. … Okay, wir sind bald da." (Hello? … Yes. … Yes. …Okay, we'll be there soon.) He hung up the phone and looked towards Amélie and Katrina with a warm smile. "Joseph ist jetzt bereit für Besucher." (Joseph is now ready for visitors.)
Hospital rooms are eerily like hotel rooms; the bed is comfortable, but doesn't feel like home, the windows are huge, and you have to search for a while to find something to watch on TV.
Joe sighed. He certainly was feeling better after his surgery, but he was very lonely in this room all by himself.
All by himself; no one was in the bed on the other side of the room? There must not be many patients in this hospital today.
"Joseph?"
Joe looked up. A nurse was poking her head inside. "Your family is on their way to see you."
Joe brightened up. He had really missed his family. While he was waiting, he found that Life with Johnny in California was airing its final episode that day. The end of an era, he thought.
As the first commercial break came on, the door opened. Amélie slipped into the room. Once she was in the room, she went right over to her son's side and kissed his forehead. "Oh, je suis tellement reconnaissant que tu y vas. Je t'adore." (Oh, I'm so glad you're okay. I love you.)
"Je t'adore aussi, maman," said Joe softly. "Est-ce que Viktor et Katrina sont ici?" (I love you too, mum. Are Viktor and Katrina here?)
As soon as he asked, Von Kaiser entered the room, with Katrina trailing behind him. Von Kaiser kissed Joe's cheek, and they pressed their foreheads together. When he let up, Katrina took his place and hugged her father. "I love you, daddy."
"Je t'adore aussi, ma brave fille," said Joe, kissing his daughter's forehead. (I love you too, my brave girl.)
When the commercials ended, the four sat together to watch the finale. By the end, they were thoroughly satisfied with the conclusion. By then, the nurse had come back. "Mr. Beaufort, you should be clear to leave by tomorrow morning."
"D'accord," said Joe. He turned to Katrina. "Tu sais, demain c'est l'anniversaire de la jour que je te prendre a la maison." (You know, tomorrow is the anniversary of the day I first brought you home.) He held her close. "Et je ne vais jamais changer." (And I would never change that.)
Katrina nuzzled into the crook of her father's neck, happy that he was all better.
The next day, as agreed, Joe was discharged from the hospital, and the three of them went to the arena. The other boxers were happy to see him doing better. "Ye shoulda seen yer li'l lass," said Aran in a teasing manner, "she was cryin' on me shoulder-"
"No I wasn't!" Katrina protested, punching him on the arm to get him to stop lying. Aran just laughed. As the adults talked, she decided to wander off, and found Pierce writing on a clipboard. She looked over his shoulder.
MINOR CIRCUIT
#4 Joseph "Glass Joe" Beaufort
#3 Viktor Von Kaiser
#2 Thomas "Disco Kid" Miller
#1 James "Narcis" Prince
CHAMPION King Lulu Hippo
MAJOR CIRCUIT
#4 Katrina "Chaton Cheri" Beaufort
#3 Barnaby "Bear Hugger" Forrester
#2 Amar "Great Tiger" Khan
#1 Romeo "Don Flamenco" Cabello
CHAMPION Riki "Piston Hondo" Kobayashi
WORLD CIRCUIT
#5 Aran Ryan
#4 Soda Popinski
#3 Bahadir "Bald Bull" Tiryaki
#2 Bradley "Super Macho Man" Cash
#1 Beth "Flying Feather" McCauldy
CHAMPION Xander "Mr. Sandman" Whittier
"What are you doing?" Katrina asked, making Pierce nearly jump out of his skin.
"Just making sure the rankings are all in order," said Pierce. "We've got a new guy coming in today."
As he was saying that, the door closed. Katrina looked up. Whoa, she thought. That was Doc Louis! She remembered watching his title fight years ago. And by his side was…Maxwell Vancelli?
"Doc, great to see you again," said Pierce. "And I'm guessing you're Little Mac?"
Mac nodded. Once the registration was complete, he looked up and around at the arena, quite impressed.
"Come on," said Katrina, "I'll show you your locker." She took his wrist and the two ran off.
And that's the end of Ma Fille! To continue the story, check out Shining and Sweet!
