It was a brisk day in late February. Katrina was putting her books back into her bag. Dad and Vati were picking her up from school early, for that evening, they had a flight to catch. They were going to spend March Break at an international boxing tournament that the WVBA had been invited to attend.
"Hey, do you have a pencil?"
Katrina turned around. A boy called Harry Bauer was tapping her shoulder. He was a thin boy with bushy red hair and glasses; his appearance sort of reminded Katrina of a rabbit. She handed him a pencil out of her case, to which he thanked her.
"Please excuse the interruption, could Katrina Beaufort please come to the lobby with her things."
Katrina took her bags, bid her class farewell, and went to the lobby, where Dad and Vati were waiting for her. "Viens, Katie," said Dad, "on va pour manger un dîner tôt avant notre vol." (Come on, Katie, we're going to get an early dinner before our flight.)
After a quick stop for burgers, Katrina, Dad, and Vati arrived at the airport to get checked in, through security, and in the waiting area. "Bist du aufgeregt, Kleiner?" (Are you excited, kiddo?)
"Yeah," said Katrina, bouncing in her seat. She couldn't wait to get there and see the sights. Around her, she could see the other boxers arriving to wait for the plane as well. Since it was still a bit before the plane was due to take off, she played a game on her phone where she had to match rabbits to make bigger rabbits.
"6:00 pm flight to London, now boarding."
Everyone was getting on the plane. Katrina had the window seat in a row of three seats on the right side of the plane. She noticed that now that they were on the plane, Dad was getting antsy. She guessed he was nervous about flying. Vati put a hand on his leg. "Es ist okay."
After everyone was boarded, the flight attendants had given their safety presentation, and everything was in order, the plane took off. Katrina saw Dad put one hand over his heart and squeeze Vati's hand with the other. Katrina instead watched out the window, trying to make out objects on the ground from so far up.
Since they were going to be on the plane for several hours, Vati handed Dad an eye mask and urged him to get some sleep. Once Dad had calmed down, Vati looked over at Katrina. "Was ist mit dir, Kleiner? Bist du in Ordnung?" (What about you, kiddo? Are you okay?) Katrina nodded.
The plane merrily chugged along until they arrived at their destination. It was very late at night when they arrived, and so once the league arrived at the hotel, they all went straight to bed.
A few days later, it was the WVBA's time to enter the tournament. The first fight was going to be Glass Joe against the host's #3 in the Minor Circuit.
"In this corner, we have the WVBA's trooper, the unrelenting jobber, Glass Joe! And in this corner, we have the smug, the fancy, the beginner, Narcis Prince!"
"James Prince!" Narcis was not fond of the nickname he was given.
As the two fought, the other WVBA boxers were hanging out in the backroom. Flying Feather was showing them the pictures she took the previous day, when she, her wife, and their daughter had gone over to Bristol to see some of her family. "Aunt Alice was really happy to see me," she said. "She doesn't get many visitors."
A few hours later, after matches upon matches and Dad getting the honour of having his ass handed to him in two different countries, Katrina, Dad, and Vati decided to visit a nearby shopping center to pick up some souvenirs. When they arrived, they found that Narcis and his kid sister had had the same idea. "You know, I've heard of your dad before," said the sister to Katrina. "His perseverance impresses me."
"Yes, yes, perseverance," said Narcis, not looking up from his pocket mirror. "Lacey, I think I'm going to transfer to this WVBA or whatever it's called. At least there, the boxers show some respect."
His sister shook his head. "I'm Lacey," she said. "I can help you find a shirt to take home with you." She and Katrina went into a little shop, while Dad, Vati, and Narcis all went their own ways.
Inside, they tried on multiple shirts with the Union Jack print, until Katrina fell in love with a pink shirt with a Union Jack heart print on the hem. "This is the one." Lacey even offered to split their receipt. Katrina found her very kind.
That night, when they arrived back at the hotel, Dad ruffled Katrina's hair as they retired for the night. "Aimes-tu London, ma belle?" (Are you liking London, sweetie?)
"I love it," said Katrina. She sat down on her parents' bed and put the TV on.
"Das Wetter könnte besser sein, aber ansonsten ist es schön," said Vati. (The weather could be better, but otherwise, it's pretty nice.) The three of them settled in to watch a show together.
