Following One’s Dreams






The mid-June sun beat down on the young koala female walking down Nine Mile. In her hand was a small scrap of paper on which she was placing the hopes of her uncertain future. Cathrine Sol had just recently celebrated he eighteenth birthday and a s such, had been kicked out of her home. It was nothing personal, she knew that, it was just the way things ran in her family and she had already come to terms with that.

She sighed softly as she continued down the deserted sidewalk, the discussion with her father still fresh in her mind.


It had been two days prior to her eighteenth birthday. Cathrine and her father had been sitting on the porch of the Sol family's two-story home. The setting sun cast the sky in beautiful shades of purple, pink, and orange. A gentle breeze blowing through and Cathrine sat enjoying it all.

"Have you decided yet?" Her father had asked, referring to her recent indecision on what to do with her life now that she had graduated.

The young koala had been putting up a farce of uncertainty the past few days. It wasn't as if she didn't have many options, quite the contrary actually. She graduated top in her class and offers to go to the University of Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State as well as offers from UCLA and UNLV. However, she didn't feel as if college was the best course of action for her at the time.

"I'll take your silence as a 'no’,” her father had gone on. He sighed and shook his head in resignation. "You mother is worried, you know. You have so many opportunities waiting for you. She's afraid that you'll miss out on them."

"I know, Daddy," she had replied. "But I don't think college is the best for me now."

It was the truth, but she knew that it hurt her father to hear it repeatedly. Truthfully, Cathrine had already made up her mind as to what she wanted to do. Ever since she could remember, she'd been a fan of boxing, but kept her love of the sport a secret from her mother knowing that she'd disapprove of it. Now, she wanted to pursue the sport as a
career, but she knew that she lacked proper training and knew not where to find it.

"Then what do you want to do?"

Cathrine sighed. Deep down she knew that she couldn't keep her choice a secret from her father. Taking a deep breath, she told her father.

"I see." That was all said after Cathrine had told of her choice. For minutes all he did was look out at the front yard and Cathrine feared for the worst; to be told to forget such a foolish dream and banish all thoughts from her mind. To be forced to go to a college with learning if she even could box.

Finally, the silence was broken by the sound of a pencil scraping on paper. Curious, she looked to her father.

"Here," he said simply handing her the paper. "Go find this person and see if this person will help you."


The act had caught Cathrine by surprise and even now thinking about, she wondered if her father hadn't already knew of her dream. She had taken the slip of paper, it was the same one that she now carried, clutched tightly in her hand. Of course her had known, he knew her better than anyone. The paper contained the name of one her father's friends
who ran a gym near Detroit and was supposedly an ex-heavy-weight champion, though she had never heard of him before.

So here she was wandering down Nine Mile completely lost.

"Where the hell is that damn gym?" she grumbled to herself.

"You wouldn't happen to be talking about the Victory Fight Gym, would you?" came a soft voice from behind her.

Cathrine gave a gasp of surprise as her heart stopped for a brief second. She turned around only to see a young vixen no more than her own age standing behind her smiling, brown eyes sparkling in good humor. She was modestly dressed in a black T shirt and tan denim shorts, her dark blonde hair tied back, and her bare feet clad in open toed slip-ons.

"Yes, actually," replied Cathrine, recovering slightly from her shock. "You wouldn't happen to know where it is, would you?"

The vixen's smiled broaden. "As a matter-of-fact, I do. It's where I'm currently heading."

"Oh thank God," sighed Cathrine. "I thought I'd be walking all over trying to find it."

The vixen simply laughed. It was a soft laugh that somehow seemed to fit the young girl. Everything seemed soft about her. Her voice, her stance, her laugh, even her off orange fur seemed soft.

"Oh, my name's Julia Kirks," stated the vixen offering Cathrine her paw.

The koala took Julia's hand and shook it warmly. "Cathrine Sol."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Cathrine." Julia started continuing down the road, "C'mon, the gym's only a little ways farther."

Cathrine nodded silently as she followed the vixen. Along the way, Julia told a lot about the gym. Apparently it was founded five years ago by Albert Nicoli as a place for him to train and to teach other about boxing. What really surprised Cathrine was hearing that gym housed a karate dojo on its second floor. Still, as she listened to Julia talk,
Cathrine began to understand why her father had sent her to the Victory Fight Gym.


The Victory Fight Gym was not as close by as Julia had made it seem. By the time they reached the gym, Cathrine's feet like lead and her legs were sore. Even so, she was still excited. Her heart rate sped up and butterflies flew rampant in her stomach as excitement and nervousness flowed through her body.

The building itself didn't look all that impressive. It was an old two story building made of cracking and crumbling red brick that looked as if it had definitely seen better days. Flecks of broken brick and dry mortar lined the sidewalk in front of it, what windows that could be seen were darkened and obstructed view to the inside and the one door that Cathrine saw looked to be made of some of steel or iron, she wasn't sure which.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" The koala asked, unable to keep a slight tremor of apprehension and anxiety out of her voice.

Julia nodded as she pushed the door open, motioning for Cathrine to follow. The young koala did so and the sight that greeted her made Cathrine stop in amazement. Inside the gym was nothing from the outside might have suggested. It was huge plain and simple. Her parent's house could easily fit inside with room to spare. Weight benches and leg press machines lined the wall to her left. Racks of various weights, medicine balls, and free weights were next to those. To her right, heavy-bags, speed-bags, and dodge-bags, and an assortment of training mats. To top it all off was the regulation sized boxing ring in the center of the large room where two foxes were sparring under the guidance of a male wolf.

"This place is..." Cathrine trailed off, unable to voice her feelings about what she was looking at.

"Amazing?" supplemented Julia. "I know. That's what I thought when I first joined four months ago."

"Julia, there you are," came a male's voice. "We were starting to worry."

Cathrine let out a soft gasp of surprise as a male fox walked over to them. He was tall, extremely tall for a fox. Well over six foot and he was built. The white tank top he wore was tight against his well muscled chest. Long red hair was tied back and his orange fur had a glossy shine to it. Deep, dark brown eyes stared down at the two girls watching their every move. All in all, to Cathrine, he was a very good looking male and it took a phenomenal amount of effort not to let complete nervousness take control of her.

"I'm sorry I'm late, Aubri," started Julia. "You know that my chores at home have to come first. Parents demand it."

Aubri let out an exasperated sigh before letting a wide smile grace his features. "Yeah, I know, but you know Al is going to want to know what took you."

Now it was Julia's turn to sigh. "I know and I even brought my excuse with me this time." She pointed to Cathrine. "Aubri, I'd like you to meet Cathrine Sol."

The taller fox turned his full attention to Cathrine and suddenly, the young koala felt extremely self-conscious, fidgeting with nervousness and wishing she had put a little more effort into her appearance. The loose pants, baggy shirt, and denim jacket didn't seem all that appealing suddenly.

"Fresh blood, eh?" he stated at last, a slightly feral grin playing on his lips. "Name's Aubri Griffon, but everyone calls me Aub." He offered his paw the young koala.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Aub," Cathrine couldn't keep the shakiness from her voice as she accepted the fox's outstretched paw, surprised at how gentle his grip was given the fox's size. Once more she marveled at how any fox morph could reach the height Aubri had and wondered briefly if he might actually have some wolf heritage.

The older fox turned his full attention to Julia once more, releasing Cathrine's paw. "You go get changed and I'll take Cathrine here to see Albert." He looked at Cathrine, "since I'm going to assume that reason you came here was to train under Albert, right."

Cathrine nodded. An unnatural shyness stealing her voice as the butterflies in her stomach intensified. Vaguely she wondered if everyone's personality at the gym was like Julia and Aubri's. She shook her head lightly, dispelling the thought and regaining her composure.

Already Aubri had started walking towards the ring and she had to jog lightly to catch up.

"You're going to like it here," Aubri stated as Cathrine caught up to the speeding fox. "Al's a greet teacher. He can be a little harsh and stiff at times, but I've yet to see a good teacher that wasn't"

He stopped suddenly, catching Cathrine off guard as she ran into him, letting out a soft "oof" as she tumbled back a few steps.

"By the way," Aubri started, "is boxing the only sport you're interested in or are there any other sports that have caught your interest?"

"Justh boxthing," Cathrine replied rubbing her slightly sore nose. There had been other sports that she'd participated while in school, track and softball, but neither sport had truly captivated her full attention the way boxing had.

Still, the question had thrown Cathrine off, if just a little. Never before had she actually thought about anything outside of boxing as a career, yet her she was with her life long dream within her grasp and doubt had started to surface. What ifs began to pour into her mind, putting her own resolve into question. Was she strong enough to even
start training? Was this just one gigantic mistake? Had her father sent her here in the actual hope to discourage his daughter from following a foolish and dangerous dream?

No. She couldn't let doubt and fear get in her way now. It was too late and she had come too far to give up now. Even if she couldn't get training here she'd go somewhere she could. This was her dream and she refused to give up on it.

Her resolve once more firmly in place, she rushed to catch up with Aubri, who had once more started on his way towards the ring. As she followed, Cathrine found herself unable to keep her eyes off the older fox's gently swaying tail.

"Just in case you get interested, the owner of the dojo upstairs gives out free lessons to all of Albert's students."

The sound of Aubri's voice tore Cathrine's attention away from his rear to his head. It took a few moments, but she soon caught on to what the older fox had just said.

"I'll keep that in mind," She replied off-handedly as Aubri assisted her into the ring.
The two foxes who had been sparing earlier now gone and the ring was devoid of all life save the lone figure of a male wolf leaning against the far ropes.

"Have someone to meet you Albert," Aubri stated. "Cathrine, I'd like you to meet the owner, founder, and head trainer of the Victory Fight Gym and possibly on of the best heavy-weight boxers this state has ever seen, Albert Nicoli."

Cathrine stood in awe as Albert approached them. He was tall, at least two or three inches taller than Aubri and was muscular, his arms at least twice if not three times the size of her own. Every inch of his body was pure muscle. From his thick neck to six-pack abs, to his tree trunk legs, not an inch of fat could be seen anywhere. Brown almond
shaped eyes gazed down at her from underneath the shadow of his black, slightly combed back hair that matched his slightly graying brown fur coloring.

"Cathrine Sol, am I correct?" asked Albert, his voice soft and deep, almost fatherly.

"Yes sir," Cathrine replied smartly, her mind still trying to cope with actually seeing this massive figure in front of her.

Albert chuckled. "Not quite what I was expecting, I'll admit," he stated. "More petite than I would have thought possible for Theodore Sol to produce. You must take after Jenna."

"You know my both my parents?" Cathrine blurted out, unable to catch the outburst in time. She had already suspected that this the same Albert Nicoli whose name was on the paper her father had given her, but she was stunned to learn that he knew of her mother as well.

Albert simply nodded. "Yes I do, Cathrine. I was surprised to hear from Theodore after so long and was even more so when he told me that his youngest daughter wanted to become a professional boxer. Hell, I'm even more surprised now that I've gotten the chance to really look at you."

A cold numbness ran through Cathrine’s body as the slow realization that there was a strong possibility that Albert wouldn't even bother wasting his time on someone as frail and weak as the koala looked, the fear that her entire trip had truly been for naught paralyzing her body.

"Still," Albert continued, "I've your father for years and he wouldn't have even bothered to send you if he didn't think that you had even a little potential."

As quickly as it come, the fear left her body as relief swept through her body like a tidal wave taking away all doubts and previous anxieties. She gave a silent thank you to her father, knowing all to well that if not for him, Albert would never had even considered to train her.

"I'll train you," continued the much older wolf. "And turn even the smallest potential into raw talent that you will forge into pure skill."

"Thank you, Mr. Nicoli," Cathrine bowed deeply, unable to properly express the gratitude that coursed throughout her body.

"Albert, please. Just call me Albert." The wolf smiled. "Being called mister makes me feel older than I am." He then turned his attention to Aubri who had been patiently waiting by the ropes.

"Take Cathrine here, to see Layla. Oh, and have Julia come to my office. I want to talk to her about coming in on time."

Aubri grinned. "Sure thing, Al. The way you talk, one would almost thing that this was a full time business or something." He sat down on the second rope and held an opening for Cathrine to exit through.

She nodded her thanks as she left the ring with Aubri soon following. Excitement washed over her mind and body. She had made it and now she had finally taken the first step towards making dreams a reality.


A few minutes later found the koala sitting in a small room, with the sound of a shower running coming from the back, unseen area of the room. Dim light from an overhead fixture illuminated the small room Cathrine sat in. Aubri had left after showing the young koala to her seat and was presumably now looking for Julia.

She looked around the room from where she sat, though there wasn’t much to see. A wooden bench similar to the one she now sat on was across from her, a sports bra and a pair of boxing trunks lay upon it. Behind the bench, a set of lockers were situated making Cathrine wonder if this was the locker room, though the thought was soon quelled when she spotted a punching bag not far from her seat.

“So,” came a husky feminine voice, “you’re the new kid.”

From behind the lockers stepped female wolf. She was clad only in a pair of black panties, water dripping from her dark gray fur and black hair. She was at least as tall as Aubri and just as well built, her well toned muscle rippling under her glossy fur as she walked over to the bench across from where Cathrine sat and picked up the sports bra and slipped the garment on in one fluid motion.

“Don’t talk much, do you.” The wolf said casually as she pulled on the shorts before taking a seat across from Cathrine. “I’m Layla, Albert’s daughter. You can call me Nicoli or just Nicki. What’s your name?”

“Cathrine Sol.” The koala was amazed at Nicoli’s figure. The wolfess had the muscle structure of a bodybuilder yet moved with all the grace and lithe of a world class gymnast. Almond shaped eyes watched the koala as she fidgeted nervously.

“Humph. So that makes you Theo Sol’s kid, I presume. That’s a bit of a surprise.”

“How do you know my father’s name?”

“Simple,” replied Nicoli, “my father. He thinks quite highly of Theo.”

“He does?” stammered Cathrine, uncertain what to make of what she’d just learned. If Albert and her father had been such close friends, then why was this the first time she’d heard any about it?

Nicoli nodded as she pulled a pair of black boots out from under the bench. “Not that it means anything, though. Don’t expect any special treatment or anything.”

Cathrine nodded. She had never expected any special training to begin with and she wasn’t going to expect any now. If anything, she now expected to be pushed harder. Letting out a soft sigh, she began wondering if she could do this.

“You’ll most likely be starting weight training and basic exercises right away, of course,” Nicoli continued. “But it’ll be a few months before Dad starts whit your formal training.”

Cathrine looked up at the female wolf in confusion. “Why’s that?” she asked softly.

Nicoli stood up and opened a nearby locker, pulling out a roll of tape. She began taping her fists. “There’s a big mixed fighting tournament coming up that’s going to be held at the Joe next month. Dad’s going to be sending three of us to represent our gym and he’s going to be holding a tournament in a couple of weeks to determine who he’s going to send.”

She finished with the tape and placed it back in her locker. “The rest of us will be going to support the winners, of course, but it’ll be holding most training up until it’s all over.”

She shut the locker and pointed to one just below it. “By the way, that locker’s yours. Number two-oh-eight. Comb’s forty-one, twenty-three, four. Don’t forget it.”

Once more Cathrine nodded. Her locker number and combination all ready memorized. She forced out her past fears and doubts, reminding herself that she was already too far in to back out now.

“When you do start training, it’ll be with Julia and the rest of Dad’s first years.” Nicoli went on, now making her way towards the exit. “For now, why don’t come out and watch me and Thomas spar? It’ll give you a good idea as to what to expect next month at the big tournament. Oh, and you may want to upstairs and introduce yourself to Blair. He’s the owner of the dojo upstairs and is training most of us in basic karate.”

Cathrine got up and followed Nicoli, causally wondering why Nicoli would suggest that not knowing how soon she’d get her answer.


***

Albert nodded curtly to Cathrine as she and Nicoli approached the ring. A male fox stood next to him. He looked a bit like Aubri, but was slightly shorter and had more of a runner’s build then Aubri. Two black marks that looked like teeth lined either side of his muzzle and dark brown eyes stared down at Nicoli as she entered the ring. Cathrine took notice that neither fighter were wearing any form of gloves and that while Nicoli wore boots, the male fox wore any footwear at all.

Most of the students were gathered around the ring including Aubri and Julia, who looked rather dejected although she smiled warmheartedly as Cathrine approached.

“Got everything set up?” inquired Aubri.

Cathrine nodded as she joined the pair. She looked up at the ring and asked, “What exactly is going on?”

“It’s what Albert calls an ‘endurance’ match,” said Julia. “We do them on odd occasions. Basically it’s the same as how the main tournament next month will be held. We’re allowed to use any style of fighting we want and it goes on until you are determined unable to continue to fight or are down for a ten count.”

“This is the last one until after the tournament,” added Aubri.

He looked up at the ring. “In any case, this will be an interesting match.”

Both Julia and Cathrine looked at Aubri in confusion.

“Why is that?” asked the koala.

Without looking away from the ring Aubri replied. “Although he’s been here for almost two years now, Thomas and Nicoli have never had an actual match before. Hell, they’ve never really sparred together until just recently.”

The girls let out an ‘ah’ of understanding and turned their attention to the ring as the fight began.

It started slow with both fighters circling each other, throwing out an occasional jab or hook, but it soon sped up as Nicoli feinted to her right miming a jab to Thomas’ left. Taking the bait, the fox side-stepped to his right only to find himself stepping into a trap as Nicoli caught him the mid-section with spinning back kick forcing Thomas to take a few steps back.

Nicoli quickly continued her assault, following up with quick series of body blows and jabs, pushing the fox back into the ropes and locking up with him. Albert stepped in at this point to separate them and Nicoli moved back to center ring allowing Thomas to move away from the ropes.

The female wolf smirked slightly as the fight resumed. Moving in quickly she aimed a strong left hood to Thomas’ mid-section. Thomas countered by side-stepping to the right, twisting to the left, and catching Nicoli’s arm all in one fluid motion. Still holding Nicoli’s arm above his head, the fox then proceeded to attack the wolf’s mid section with the back of his free arm.

He kept the attack for nearly thirty seconds launching four or five hits, by Cathrine’s count, before releasing the wolfess’ arm and giving the back of her leg a sharp kick causing Nicoli to let out a sharp, short gasp that was followed by a deep growl as she dropped to one knee, quickly retaliating as she spun on the knee and lashed out with her other leg in a sweep effectively knocking Thomas off his feet.

Cathrine watched in mild awe as Thomas kipped up to his feet almost as fast as he hit the mat. At the same time, Nicoli spun through the sweep and was fully on her feet. She gave a feral grin before she rushed Thomas throwing a flurry of jabs and hooks, all seemingly aimed for the fox’s head.

Cathrine’s mild awe turned to admiration as she watched Nicoli’s attacks switch up from head blows to body blows, staying on the offensive as she skillfully blocking all of Thomas’s attacks while never stepping out of her attack rhythm. The young koala felt that Nicoli not only had the advantage, but that she had the fight won. Not only was the wolf taller, but apparently stronger as well. Added to that, Nicoli had landed more blows total than Thomas, her fur glistening slightly and her breath coming lightly.

The bulk of Nicoli’s attacks had put Thomas on the defensive, forcing him to duck and weave through the myriad of the she-wolf’s brutal assault. Nimbly he dodged hooks, jabs, and body blows while having his own attempts for an offensive attack stopped far short of even getting out. Deftly he looked for any opening that he might have been able to exploit, then, to Cathrine’s surprise, he did, and exploit the opening Thomas did.

It came as Nicoli moved forward for a left jab. Her right arm dropping from its guard about an inch or so as she over-stepped the blow giving Thomas all the opening he needed. Dropping low, the fox ducked under the punch, then quickly leapt forward grabbing the wolf’s shoulders as leverage effectively pulling himself towards Nicoli and slammed his right knee into the wolf’s unprotected chest.

Nicoli gave a gasp of pain as the blow connected, stepping back a few feet as Thomas released her and was completely off balance for the fox’s next series of attacks and let out grunts of pain as she repeatedly assaulted by a flurry of alternating shin kicks as Thomas targeted her unprotected ribs.

Cathrine watched in stunned fascination as Thomas his attacks in a literal blur, leaping in the air, spinning once clockwise, and snapping out with his right leg just as he finished his rotation connecting with the side of Nicoli’s head. The wolf’s eyes rolled back in her head as she fell on her side lying motionless as Thomas landed. The fox moved towards the far corner as Albert stepped in for the count.

“Not quite what you expected, huh?” came Aubri’s voice.

Cathrine looked up at him. The fox was grinning slightly though his eyes shone with a mix of deep seriousness, concern, and slight worry.. Numbly she nodded in response to his question. The realization of what Nicoli’s suggestion had meant fully hitting home.

“Yeah, it surprised me at first, too,” Aubri went on. “Boxing my be what Albert specializes in, but he thoroughly endorse learning multiple styles of fighting. Most of us who train here know at least one other fighting style.” He nodded towards the ring where Albert had finished with the ten count and was checking on Nicoli.

“Thomas uses at least three different styles, including boxing; Nicoli has been taking lessons upstairs; and I, personally, have been getting private karate lessons for about ten years now.

“In any case,” continued Aubri, “let’s get you introduced to the champ there.”

Aubri lead Cathrine closer to the ring where Thomas stood talking idly to a female black squirrel.

“...leading you to another impressive come-from-behind victory for you, Thomas,” the squirrel finished as Aubri and Cathrine approached.

Thomas didn’t reply, choosing instead to glare at the pair. His dark brown eyes boring holes into the koala’s psyche, causing to swallow, nervously realizing that this fox may not be as big as Aubri, but was infinitely more dangerous than the taller fox.

“Who’s the girl?” Thomas asked at length, his voice a mild baritone and laced with slight maliciousness, eyes never leaving Cathrine.

Aubri smiled broadly, apparently unaffected by Thomas’ glare and dark tone. “Thomas, this is Cathrine Sol. She just arrived today and Al’s agreed to train her.”

Thomas smirked the darkness in his and voice lifting slightly. “Fresh meat, eh?” He walked over and around Cathrine, making the young koala feel even more uncomfortable. “She might do well in the feather-weight division, if she gets some muscle on those arms of hers.”

He extended a hand to Cathrine, smiling. All traces of the previous dark undertones erased, the smile warm and welcoming. “I’m Thomas Rivinian. Sit back and enjoy the show for the next few weeks. Should prove to be interesting,” he turned to the squirrel, “right, Ginger?”

“We’ll see, Thomas,” Ginger replied. “In any case, I’ve got to go find Marcus. I’ll to you later.” She walked past them towards the locker rooms. Stopping just long enough to whisper, “Don’t worry about Thomas, hun. He acts and sounds rough half the time, but he’s generally a nice guy.” to Cathrine as she passed.

Cathrine blinked a few times in surprise as she watched Ginger walk off. Turning back to Thomas she accepted his outstretched paw. “I’ve never seen anyone fight like that before,” she stated as she shook the fox’s paw, wincing slightly at his rough grip.

“It’s my family’s style of fighting.” Thomas replied, releasing Cathrine’s hand. “It’s a mixture of tae-kwan-do and kick-boxing. Plus I’ve added some things from what I’ve learned from Albert and Blair.”

“Speaking of whom,” interrupted Aubri,” we should get you upstairs to him, Cathrine.” He looked at Thomas. “Care to do the honors, Tom?”

The other fox simply shrugged. “Sure, I don’t see why not. Just let me get a shower in first.”

“You can wait until tomorrow to meet Blair,” came Albert’s voice. The wolf was looking down at them from the ring. Nicoli stood just behind, one arm clutching her ribs, blood trickling from her lip. She glared slightly at Thomas, who seemed to pay her no mind.

“I think it’s time we get young Miss Sol acquainted with the way things run around here.”

Cathrine looked up at Albert in slight confusion, unsure of exactly what he meant. The dark glint in his eyes sending a cold shiver down her spine, as a feeling of unease rose in her mind, telling her tat an inquiry would be unwise and that she didn’t want to know what her curiosity would reveal.

Albert chuckled, obviously noting the worried expression that the koala wore.

“Rules, Cathrine,” he said gently. “I’m gonna give you the rules for the gym. There’s not many but they’re all important so be sure to follow each one.

“Rule One: Always be here on time for your lessons and training. Pretty much consider this your part-time job from now on sans pay. Tardiness is not acceptable and will be punished in cruel and unusual ways.” He looked at Julia, “Isn’t that right, Miss Kirks?”

The young vixen in question merely nodded in agreement, the expression on her face a kin to that of a little child forced to stand the corner for behaving badly.

“Rule number two:” Albert went on. “Treat your fellow students with respect. Playful jibes and harmless practical jokes are fine, just don’t take it too far. If you have a problem with someone, either let me or Layla know about it or settle the problem in the ring.

“Third rule: Make sure you always have your equipment. You have a locker, use it. You should leave at least one gym outfit in your locker, but be sure to switch it every few days. We don’t need the locker rooms smelling like a dead skunk....again.”

This comment was received by quite a snickers and chuckles from those gathered. Even Cathrine had to chuckle, her body starting to relax as she listened to Albert’s rules.

“Now for the most important rule,” Albert went on. “Always, and I mean always, follow the rules of the match regardless of what your opponent does. Always show your opponent respect even if they show you none. Put your all into the fight and with all your heart and soul, never lose sight of whatever drives to fight. Whatever the reason, let it fuel your will to fight and feed off it.”

Albert got out of the ring and placed a hand on Cathrine’s shoulder, what he said next was soft enough for only the young koala to really hear clearly.

“Remember that last part and remember it well, Cathrine,” he stated. “For it was something your father taught me. Consider it...a lesson and message from your father.”

Cathrine nodded in silent agreement. Her heart, mind, and soul were much lighter than before and her worry now completely melted away, the words of her father’s lesson imprinted on her heart. The true message, a lesson well learned. Trust, respect, desire, these were the things that she believed in and she was happy to know that Albert Nicoli believed in them too.

Cathrine let out one last soft sigh as Albert turned his attention back to the rest of his students. A slight smiled played upon her lips. Her dreams were that much closer to coming true and with her father’s lesson, she felt that truly nothing could stop them from becoming a reality.