Hard-Won Lessons

[Parker]

Continued From

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The medical wing was quiet compared to the storm of the arena, the only sound the low hum of fluorescent lights and the occasional shuffle of trainers moving in and out.

had endured the poking and prodding with her usual mix of impatience and charm, though the moment the adrenaline finally bled out of her system, everything hurt more sharply. Her ankle throbbed in rhythm with her pulse, her ribs ached from the suplexes, her jaw still smarted from the stiff shots she’d taken.

The doctor had taped her up with an ice-packed ankle brace, handed her a prescription for the swelling, and all but ordered her to stay off the leg for the next twenty-four hours. The crutches were a cruel accessory, functional, yes, but hardly glamorous. Madison had tested them in the hallway before venturing out, and her gait was awkward, unpolished, each shuffle a reminder that she was better suited to stilettos than medical hardware.
When she pushed the door open into the waiting area, she had to pause, adjusting her grip on the crutches and letting her eyes sweep the room. And there, across the way, was Valerie. Still waiting for her.

A tired but genuine grin tugged at her lips, the kind that was equal parts exhaustion and bravado. Madison started her slow shuffle across the tiled floor, her weight dipping with each uneven swing of the crutches, hips swaying despite herself. She looked every bit the battered heroine, hair damp from her quick rinse, fresh clothes clinging to still-sore muscles.

“Hey, babe,” she called out, her voice warm but husky from the strain. “Good news, I’m going to make it.” The words were light, joking, but her smile softened as her green eyes found Valerie’s. Even limping, even bruised, Madison’s instinct was to perform, but here, in this quiet moment, the bravado dulled at the edges, letting the affection shine through.

[BlackAkuma]

”Power Couple?”

”The Blonde Bombshells? No, the Blondeshells!”

”#The Golden Dolls!”

Valerie usually didn't pay much attention to internet scuttlebutt - heck, she still hadn't bothered to set up her LAW social media account, putting that off as long as humanly possible. It was all a bunch of nonsense and memes and idiots and occasionally racist idiots, so she didn’t feel she was missing out on too much. YouTube was about all the social media she could take, if that even counted.

Even so, she couldn't help but take a peek online after Madison’s match, looking to see what the public perception was. The Golden Girl seemed to have an instant fanbase, with her flamboyant style playing well to the crowd, and them loving the way she fought back from the Ankle Lock and pulled a comeback win. She even had a Reddit group already started up, r/Golden Girls. Not too many people on it, but that would grow.

And there was no small amount of speculation about her and Valerie as a team. Quite a few people were already pegging them as partners, with some of them even going as far as to call them partners.

But there were also a few - a small few, lost in the shuffle, dismissed as haters - who were coming up with darker conclusion that Valerie had come to at ringside: Madison Knox had cheated.

Valerie replayed the scene in her head, over and over, trying to reason her way into an answer that didn’t make her friend out to be a cheat, but she could never quite make it fit, and she was still trying to square that circle when Madison came her way. Her face, hardened in thought, softened the moment she saw her with the crutches, and her instincts won out as she made her way over.

”Hey. That’s uh…that’s good. Good news.” She chewed her lip, fidgeted, did everything she could to hide her mood and failed miserably. ”Come on,” She stood on Madison’s bad side, ready to help her if she slipped on the crutches. ”I’ll walk you out.”

The subject was on the tip of her tongue, but she didn’t know how to broach it quite yet - or maybe, she just didn’t want to. Without thinking, her eyes kept going to the spot on Maddie’s hair, where she’s seen the knuckles come down from…

[Parker]

“You sound disappointed. You didn’t leave your wallet at home, did you? If it’s too much trouble, we can postpone my celebration dinner.” Madison’s voice carried its usual lilt of playful superiority, though her gait betrayed her—each uneven step on the crutches tightened the line of her jaw. She wore her strong face well, but the shadows beneath her eyes and the stiffness in her shoulders showed the cracks. She wasn’t built to hide in sympathy. No, what she craved was adoration, attention, not pity.

“I shouldn’t be out of commission for long, so don’t go getting emotional on me.” The words came with a sidelong glance, the kind that was all tease and challenge, daring Valerie to keep up with her.

Valerie, of course, matched stride for stride, her easy pace contrasting Madison’s awkward plod on the crutches. She didn’t have to strain to notice the little things, either, the way Madison’s hair, damp and slightly frizzy from her rinse, framed her face in looser waves now that the braid wasn’t as taut. Her gaze lingered just a little longer at the back of Madison’s head, where the long clasp tethered the braid to her golden mane.

At first glance, it was just another piece of Madison’s flashy jewelry, gleaming faintly under the hallway’s overhead lights. Gold, decorative, befitting her style. But on closer look, the textured ridges seemed less ornamental, almost shaped, contoured in a way that might settle snugly across knuckles. Valerie remembered seeing the braid it had secured, dangling loose when she’d helped Madison backstage. While she hadn't gotten a clear view of how the headpiece became a punching implement, the plated surface was no doubt what she saw.

Now, firmly fixed again, it looked like nothing more than an elegant hairpiece. Easy to dismiss. Easy to explain. Easy to conceal all in plain sight.

“We should schedule a taxi or something. Even if it's close, the doctor says to stay off the leg and rest up.”

[BlackAkuma]

Valerie always did like Madison’s hair. The way she braided it, the time she spent on it. They both had pretty much the same color, but you could tell the differences between them just by looking at what they did with it. For her part, she was always happy to just tie it up in a ponytail and be done with it, mostly so it wouldn’t always get in her eyes when she moved. Madison made hers more like a work of art. She put the time in. She had the style.

But when Valerie looked closer, and closer, and closer…yeah, there it was. No doubts now. Where she’d even found that thing, she couldn't guess. Etsy, maybe. Whatever it was, it was effective, sneaky, and she got the general impression that this wasn’t the first time Maddie had used it.

And now came the awkward walk.

Valerie had a little laugh as they went along, trying her best to stay jovial as Maddie chatted, her usual bright self. She had a fun way of defusing a situation, even when there wasn’t an obvious situation to defuse, with this demeanor that drew you in and kept things light. It almost worked, too - she didn’t have to force that laugh too hard.

Did she know that Valerie know? Was she just playing dumb? Just pretending? It was hard to tell, and a small, niggling part of her wanted to just let it go. She could ignore it. Water off a duck’s back. Right?

Wrong. She sucked at hiding stuff like this. It’d just drag her down all day if she didn’t get it off her chest. Best to rip the band-aid off now. They were more or less alone, now, save for the occasional passerby.

”Maddie.” Valerie stopped walked and stood back with folded arms, her eyes cast to the floor. ”You…why did you cheat?”

[Parker]

Normally so quick to catch when someone was sizing her up, Madison was dulled now, softened by exhaustion and the comfort of familiar company. In Valerie’s presence she didn’t need the armor, didn’t need to be the Golden Girl or the Knox legacy. She could just… be. And maybe that was why her guard slipped enough to let this moment sneak past her.

“Mmm, yes dear?” Madison’s voice carried that lilting cadence of amusement, even as her steps faltered. She caught the way Valerie slowed, head tilting curiously as she realized she’d forged a few strides ahead. Her awkward rhythm on the crutches made it more obvious, every uneven shuffle echoing her fatigue.

She braced herself, turning with a small hop of her good leg and a scuff of rubber tip against the hallway floor. Madison leaned her hip into the armpit rest of one crutch, easing her weight onto it with an attempt at grace, though the faint grimace at her ankle betrayed the strain.

“At what?” she asked, brows raised, genuine confusion softening her usually sharp expression. Her lips parted just slightly as she studied her friend, eyes clear but tired. The blonde’s dampened hair clung neatly to its shape, haloing her face in loose waves instead of spilling free as it usually did. Despite the weariness in her frame, there was a curious tilt to her chin, a lingering warmth in her gaze that seemed to say: of all the people in the world, it’s only you who could ask me this without immediate reprisal.

[BlackAkuma]

Valerie wasn’t sure what to expect when she brought the subject up. Anger? Shame? Would she be mad, dismissive, hurt? A part of her didn’t want to rock a boat that was going along so smoothly, and she very much wanted to listen to that part. This was a mystery box, and while she had no idea what was inside, she could hazard a reasonable guess that she didn't like it.

But they had to be honest. That was how friendships worked, and this was a friendship she wanted. Needed, maybe. So out it came.

And what she got in response was…nothing.

Valerie blinked, surprised, as Maddie gave her what amounted to a straight denial. She didn’t think, she couldn’t think, that she was just going to let it go at this point, did she? That this was something she could sweep under the rug.

Valerie chewed on her lip, unsure of how to proceed. She took a quick look around, making sure they were as alone as you could expect to be in one of the most active buildings in all of Tokyo, then stepped forward and pointed at her hair, where the apparatus was so carefully concealed.

”Maddie, come on, don't do that.” Her shoulders slumped, as if her friend’s tiredness was infectious. ”That. That knuckle…thing.” She held up her hands, fully on the defensive. ”I’m not mad or anything, I’m just trying to understand, because it doesn’t make any sense to me. Why?”

[Parker]

“What am I doing?” Madison blinked, her brows furrowed as her gaze followed Valerie’s restless eyes, flicking from shadow to shadow before finally settling back on her friend. There was the mildest crease of worry in Madison’s face, but not for the reasons Valerie might have assumed. It wasn’t guilt, it was concern for her friend.

When Valerie started to clarify, spelling out what she meant, Madison’s expression smoothed out, and then all at once she laughed, the sound airy and light. She pressed a hand against her chest like she was physically releasing the tension. “Oh… you had me going for a moment there. I thought something was actually wrong.”

Her lips quirked into a faintly smug smile as she shifted her weight, balancing herself more comfortably on the crutches. “Darling, there’s nothing to be mad about. I wouldn’t even call it ‘cheating’.” She rolled the word off her tongue with the same dismissiveness as if it were a passing bad smell. “It’s branding. The big right hook has always been a Knox trademark, and I’m just carrying on the legacy. It’s what people expect to see. What they want to see.”

Madison’s tone was featherlight, her hand making a casual wave as if brushing away Valerie’s anxiety entirely. To her, it was simple: spectacle. Family tradition. Nothing to get worked up about.

[BlackAkuma]

When Maddie laughed, Valerie relaxed. Not because of anything she said or did to ease the tension, just out of reflex. The woman had a naturally calming way about her mannerisms, with a peculiar ability to spread her emotions out. When Maddie was happy, you wanted to be happy. Her mother, the second Valley Doll, was the same way, but it was something Valerie had never mastered.

It almost, almost worked, too, and Valerie could resist the urge to ease up as her friend pressed a caring hand on her chest. At least she knew Maddie wasn’t trying to deceive her or act like she was stupid - no, she just didn’t see anything wrong with what she’d done, genuine and true.

…though, maybe, that made it worse.

Valerie canted her head to the side, ever-so-slightly, as Maddie explained herself. There was some sense there, she could definitely relate to upholding the family legacy. She’d busted out the Death Valley Driver a few times to end a match, a movie she was 90% sure her grandmother had adopted solely because of the name. But…

”Okay, but like, the knuckles. Ending with a punch, I get, sure, fine, but you didn’t just punch her out, you used that thing—a foreign object.” Her brow furrowed up and she looked about, as if someone would materialize out of the ether and tell her that she was not, in fact, crazy for saying this. ”Maddie, babe, that’s cheating. You would’ve gotten DQed if the ref saw you, that’s cheating all day. It doesn’t get much more cheating than that.”

[Parker]

Madison shifted her weight, the rubber tips of her crutches squeaking against the floor as she leaned in, giving Valerie a look that hovered somewhere between exasperation and amusement. A smile tugged at her lips, the kind of smile that said you’re cute for worrying, but you’ve got it all wrong.

“Val, darling…” She let out a little laugh, shaking her head just enough to make her braid sway. “I had Muriel beat before I even thought about slipping that clasp. That pedigree? She was cooked. Everyone knew it. The knuckles weren’t the reason she stayed down, they were just…” she paused, searching for the word, “…embellishment. A little flourish. The fans got their storybook ending.”

She pushed herself upright, the faint wobble in her ankle hidden beneath the deliberate swing of her crutches. “If Muriel had the strength to win, she wouldn’t have been flat on her back long enough for me to decorate the finish. The referee’s hand hit the mat, the crowd popped, and Madison Knox walks away with her hand raised. That’s the only truth that matters.”

Her smirk softened, though her tone stayed breezy. She tilted her head, eyes glinting mischievously as she balanced her weight onto one crutch. “Honestly, it’s very sweet you’re so worried about me getting disqualified or whatever, but everything worked out fine, so it’s no bother.”

She gave her hair a flip over her shoulder, chin high despite the crutches beneath her. “Winners don’t waste time second-guessing how they won, Val. They just make sure everyone remembers that they did.”

[BlackAkuma]

This was the reason Valerie didn’t talk to people. Stuff like this, right here.

She didn’t know how well they could handle each other in the ring, but when it came to verbal combat, Maddie was the clear winner. In another life, she could’ve been a top-tier saleswoman. It wasn’t just what she said, but how she said it. Full confidence.

‘Embellishment’. Fancy word, and it was taking real effort for Valerie not to buy into it. She wanted to. But the more she thought about it, the harder it was to ignore the little holes in this logic, the more it stuck in her craw. ‘That’s the only truth that matters’.

”I just…” Valerie started to raise her hands, trying to work her way up to something big, before she deflated. She didn’t even know what she wanted to say, couldn't fight the right words. Not here, not now, not with Madison so happy about her big debut. She’d won in her first match, against a veteran. That was a big deal. She thought back to her first match, against Ryu Hiroshi, how big of a moment that had been for her. Did she want to ruin that for her friend?

No. No, she didn’t.

”I just need time to digest. I guess. It took me by surprise.” She gathered her spirit and stepped forward to put a hand on Maddie’s shoulder. ”Listen, we’ll do the dinner later, okay? You need to get off that ankle for a little while, anyway, then I can give you that big tour I talked about.”

Valerie gave her a little squeeze, then stepped back with the best smile she could muster, keeping a good face. This was Madison’s Big Day.