A/N: Hey, guys! In the previous chapter, Little Mac challenged Bald Bull in a rematch and managed to defeat him, becoming the Major Circuit Champion. Now he will have to travel to Washington to compete in the World Circuit. Let's begin.

Chapter 12: Meeting with the President

(''ACDC Town- Mega Man Battle Network 5 OST'')

''You were great in yesterday's match, Mac. But for the World Circuit, you will have to be in top physical condition.'' said Doc.

Little Mac did his usual two-hour training, and everything was familiar to him: running outside behind a bike, weightlifting, quick punches... He wondered what he will face in Washington after becoming the Major Circuit Champion. ''Do we have anything planned?'' he asked.

''Yes, President Reagan has heard about your performance, and was impressed by it. The news of your victory against Bald Bull is in all the newspapers, and he would like to see us tomorrow morning at 9 o'clock.'' replied the coach.

So how are we going to do with the World Circuit headquarters? We have to get organized.''

''That's exactly what we will do. We will be at the airport after lunch, and the flight will last five hours. However, remember that in Washington, the time zone is three hours ahead of Los Angeles, so it will already be night on arrival. We will go to book a hotel and tomorrow we will go to the White House to meet the President, then we will look for the headquarters of the World Circuit.''

''OK. I hope we make it in time, however, making the calculations, it would be 9 PM or 10 PM at the time of our arrival. I also hope not to miss dinner.''

''Don't worry about it. The time zone does these effects, but I think when we get to the eastern part of the USA, it should be dinner time.''

After organizing what to do for tomorrow, the two stopped for lunch in a restaurant at 2 PM and ordered a chili dog, then, after a quarter of an hour they reached the airport. Once they got on the plane, they waited.

Three and a half hours passed, and the plane had reached the eastern region of the United States. Night had fallen, and the sky was dark. Nothing could be seen except the clouds and the stars.

''What time is it?'' asked Mac, after sleeping for two hours.

Doc checked his watch.''It's 8:30 PM. The plane crew said it's almost dinner time.'' he replied. So they took off their seat belts and went into the dining room. The main dish was jambalaya, a rice-based dish with meat, seafood and vegetables similar to a certain Spanish dish(1). ''The fact that the President wants to meet you is surprising.'' said the man.

''I know. I wasn't expecting it at all.'' Mac replied, while detaching the fruit from oysters and lupines and eating them together with shrimp. ''He'll probably ask me how it was possible that I managed to get so far, if that were the case, I should tell everything.''

''Maybe. Everyone is very curious about your achievements.''

For second, there was a plate of pork ribs with barbecue sauce, and after half an hour, dinner was over.

(''ACDC Town- Mega Man Battle Network 5 OST-s'')

''We will arrive in Washington in one hour. Please fasten your seat belt.'' said a flight crew man's voice from a loudspeaker, and everyone left the dining room to return to the main room, sit down and fasten their seat belt.

An hour later, the plane landed on the port of Washington. As Mac had predicted, it was 10 PM. ''Thank goodness we had dinner, or we would have gone to bed tonight on an empty stomach.'' he said.

''Yeah. And going to bed without dinner is pleasant at all, kid.'' said Doc.

The two took a taxi to a hotel, and once they got there, they booked a room and spent the night there.

''Well, what a day. I'm exhausted. Goodnight, Mac.'' said Doc Louis.

''Goodnight.'' Mac replied, and the two fell asleep.

The following morning, Mac woke up, hearing a loud sound. He slowly opened his eyes and realized that the sound was the alarm clock. It was now 7:30 AM. ''Doc, are you awake?'' he asked Doc, hoping he wasn't still asleep.

The man yawned. ''Yeah, I'm awake. What time is it?'' he asked.

''It is 7:30 AM. We must be in the White House in an hour and a half.'' replied the boy.

''Oh, right! We will also need suitable clothes. Since we are going to meet the President in person, we have to be presentable.'' said the coach. He opened the closet and took two pairs of trousers, two white shirts, two black jackets and two blue ties.

After having a breakfast of pancakes and waffles, and having prepared and dressed, they went down at 8:30 AM asking for directions to the White House. Fortunately, it wasn't far, so it only took them a quarter of an hour to get there, and they entered shortly after.

(''Hyrule Castle- The Legend of Zelda A Link Between Worlds OST'')

As soon as they entered, they met an MP. ''You're there. The President is waiting for you in his office. I'll take you guys there.'' he said, and led them to the office of President Reagan, a man with gray hair. He looked rather old(2), with a wrinkled face.

''Welcome.'' he said, shaking hands with Mac and Doc, then turned to the boy. ''I heard about that boy's feats in boxing last night, and I was amazed. Little Mac, would you mind telling us how it happened?'' he asked.

Mac was a little embarrassed, but after a short sigh, he spoke. ''It's a long story. Throughout my life, I have always been bullied because I was short, to the point where someone might even think I suffered from dwarfism, and I was treated like a laughing stock. The worst happened last year, when my little brother Mark was killed by my bullies because he supported me. He was only twelve. So, this year, I decided to become a boxer in an attempt to prove that everyone was wrong about me, but my career started badly and my previous coach abandoned me. I'm seventeen, so there's only so much you can expect from me, but after that, I was going to throw in the towel. That's when I met Doc.'' he explained.

''It's amazing that you came this far at such a young age. I will follow your next matches.'' said the President.

''Thank you, sir.'' replied the boy, and shook President Reagan's hand before leaving the room. He didn't know though that a reporter had seen it all.

(''Hyrule Castle- The Legend of Zelda A Link Between Worlds OST-s'')

When Mac and Doc left the White House, they ran into a crowd of people, including paparazzi and fans, and they asked him a lot of questions, putting such pressure on him that he couldn't answer for embarrassment. ''Guys, don't suffocate him. We've just been in an important meeting, so please don't put pressure on us.'' said the man, then, he turned to the young man. ''Something wrong, Mac? You looked uncomfortable in the crowd. Didn't you want to be appreciated?'' he asked.

''Yeah, but I'm not comfortable in the crowd. Now I understand what Bald Bull meant, and he's right: those paparazzi have given me no respite. Besides, I didn't join the WVBA out of personal fame.'' replied the boy.

Doc smiled. ''And that's why I like you, son. Despite the success, you stay humble.''

The two went to look for the World Circuit headquarters, and managed to find it with a little help from passersby.

''I'm curious about what I'm going to face. I feel ready to face my opponents.'' said Mac determinedly.

''The first match is tomorrow. Your opponents are all tough, so stay focused during the matches.'' said Doc. The World Circuit matches will start soon, and it will get tough.

A/N: Alright. This chapter is a little filler, but the World Circuit will start in the next one. I hope you enjoyed it, and continue to follow me to stay updated on my stories. See you soon!

(1): Jambalaya is a typical dish from the USA very similar to the paella, a typical dish from Spain, but it originated in France. They use the same ingredients, and the reason it looks so much like it is because it was an attempt to import paella to America, where it was difficult to get saffron because the import costs were too high, so they replaced saffron with tomato.

(2): In 1987, Ronald Reagan was 76 years old.