Koopin had rarely ever gone into the Club 64 itself, having always preferred his more local club the 1.2.8 which was much closer to home.  But he could appreciate its calmer air and quieter ambience.  The occasional beat of a double bass filtered smoothly across the air, as a small clientele huddled around both tables and bar, talking amongst themselves softly.  Out of all the small groups within, James' eyes went towards a pirahna plant arguing with a koopa and a goomba, gleaning the source of the argument to be about paying wages within Bowser's army.
Doing his best to ignore the group, despite still not understanding how pirahna plants were even alive or how they moved around, the raptor sat up at the bar with Koopin, the koopa asking:
	"Um, scuse me sir?"
The bartender was a rather stout-looking toad with purple spots on his fungus-topped head, wearing a beige shirt while polishing a glass.  His moustache bristled softly, eyes hidden beneath a pair of thick bifocals.
	"Yes youn'un?"
	"Uhhh I'm looking for Wart.  You know someone by that name?"
	"...ahhh yes, wuz expectin' you.  Come on in through the back."
Inviting them behind the bar, he opened up a back door that lead into a dark corridor.  The hallway was rather ominous for how little lighting there was, but it had just enough overhead lights to show a bannister and stairs for them to navigate.  After a small trek further down into the apparent depths of the town, deep enough that James could hear the faint trickle of running water from the sewers, they reached a larger room.
He flicked on a light to reveal a boxing ring, with seats against two walls and two stools on the inside of the square ring.  It appeared to be well-maintained owing to the lack of dust and the taut condition of the ropes.  James turned round to the barkeep with impressed surprise.
	"Woooow...I never knew something like THIS was here."
	"Just an ol' sideroom," said the barkeep slyly, "nothin' special.  Not many fights get set up here but I lend it out to other people who wanna use it.  Keep it separate from the bar, keep it classy if ya know what I mean."
	"Oh I bet, man this looks great!  So this uh Wart, he a boxer I take it?"
	"Sure is.  You just wait righ' there."
	"Okay."

The two sat down on two less-dusty seats and sighed with intrigue at the place, with Koopin setting down his backpack which contained his sparring gear.  James was still worried at the idea of Koopin taking on an opponent, but the feel of the old boxing ring brought back memories for him, a wry smile coming to his lips.
	"Something up James?"
	"Heh yeah...was remembering the time I used to box."
	"You used to box?!"
	"Eeeeyup."
	"Huh, you never told me.  What was it like?  Were you a pro?"
	"Naaaah just amateur fight night, local spot, nothing special.  Sarah convinced me to enter to try and do something productive with myself, plus get money for the bar as a bonus."
	"How'd ya do?"
	"Uhhh...third place."
	"Awww...you're number one in my book."
	"Hah, laaaame...but thanks.  ...you really wanna do all this world warrior thing?"
	"Oh yeah!" said Koopin boldly.  "No way am I stopping now!  I mean, there's a lotta things in life you can do, but when you commit to something, you gotta COMMIT to it, you know?"
	"Oh I know, believe me I know."
	"So do I."
The third voice responded to them from the stairway's half-light.  A stocky-looking shadow, somewhat taller than a koopa but still a few inches shorter than James, stood framed in the doorway.  Walking a little closer into the fuller light of the boxing ring area, was a Birdo wearing a light summer coat.  Koopin's eyes widened with surprise.  Her voice was somewhat nasal, which surprised James more on how she could be able to sing so well the last time they met, as Koopin stuttered:
	"O-o-oh wow...um...h-hello miss."
	"Hello to you too," said the Birdo coyly.  "Are you boys waiting for someone?"
	"Uhhhh y-yeah um, the bartender let us down here, hope that's okay."
	"Ohhh it's perfectly fine dear.  Who are you waiting for may I ask?"
	"Uhhh I dunno if you know him, some guy called Wart?"
	"...ohhhh yes...that old rogue."
	"You know him?!"
	"I AM him."
Catherine smiled with her eyes, leaning against the boxing ring's side with a smirk.  At least as best as one could smirk with such an odd ovoid mouth, the two visitors reeling back with surprise even moreso.
	"Y-you!?  ...you're the...boxer I gotta fight?!"
	"Mmhmm!  Surprised are we?"
	"W-well yeah, I mean, I thought you were a singer!"
	"I am, but I also have another life...or used to."
	"H-huh?"

The birdo pulled out a photograph from her pocket, showing it to both Koopin and James.  It was a simple picture of herself, looking coy in a yellow dress with a sweet dainty posture towards the camera.  James slightly grimaced, finding her to be not his kind of girl.
	"This is me about a month ago," she explained, "and this..."
She pulled out another photo, one that looked almost identical to James other than a different blurry background and blue boxer clothes of shorts and tank top.  Koopin however gasped with utmost shock when he noticed something different in the photograph.
	"...hoh my gosh it's...like two completely different people!"
	"...I don't get it," said James.
	"Huh?!"
	"So what, you were a former boxer, that doesn't make you COMPLETELY different from who you are."
Catherine blushed, taking this to be a compliment.
	"Hmhmhm, you're very sweet dear.  It's lovely for someone to be able to see me, the way I truly am."
	"Uh...wh-what?"
	"Look a li'l closer at the boxing one," said Koopin.
James' eyes slowly scanned the photograph.  The posture, the build, even the very look in her eyes implied something that had once been there.  It took him a while to realise as he slowly gazed with realisation, before returning the photos back.  Catherine merely chuckled and said:
	"You were very sweet not to notice at first glance."
	"Honestly, I still can't tell until I REALLY looked.  I'm not from around here."
	"I can see that."
	"I mean you...well...you got this whole air about you that makes me see you totally as a girl so...it's not really a problem I'm seeing here in these two photos, know what I mean?"
	"I do...regardless, we're not here to talk about that.  We're here to see if YOU are able to become stronger, mister...?"
	"OH um Koopin," said the koopa, offering a handshake.  "Koopin Kennidon."
	"Catherine," said the birdo who shook his hand, "as you well know."
	"So uh...why the name Wart?"
	"It was my old boxing name.  I always did like history, ha ha ha."
	"Heh, r-right.  Um...h-how do we do this?"
	"You have your gear sweetie?"
	"Yep, it's in my bag."
	"Then step up into the ring and we can begin.  Come on now, don't be nervous!  It's just a little fight dear, don't worry about it."
Despite the rather impromptu meeting, Koopin climbed into the ring with his sparring gear on, ready to show himself towards his first real opponent.  He was admittedly nervous, but not for the fact he was about to fight.

	"I just...can't believe my first fight for this is...well...the divine miss Catherine!"
	"A lot of people get thrown off by that, but that's where you have to prove yourself.  Never underestimate an opponent, no matter how weak, or petite, or clumsy they may look."
She slipped on some red boxing gloves as she said this, as well as disrobing herself of her coat to bring out her blue shorts and top, which had been hidden beneath the boxing ring inside a personal bag.
	"Why did you hide that there?" said Koopin.
	"Believe me Koopin, you're not the first who faced me like this."
	"So...why-sorry, I don't mean any disrespect but, WHY are you part of this?"
	"I know your Master well.  He's an old softie and he loves to make me a 'rookie killer' of sorts."
	"R-r-rookie killer?"
	"If you can't beat me...well...there's not much hope for you coming up ahead now is there?  I may not be a martial artist but I'm certainly a good enough boxer to stop any normal amateur from passing by, unless they were good enough."
	"U-um...I...I just wanna prove myself, th-that's all, I-"
	"Koopin," said FG, "if you wanna back out, there's no shame in i-"
	"N-no.  No!  I'm not backing out!  I'm not gonna waste miss Catherine's time by just cowering out of a fight just because I didn't expect her!  I'm here to fight, I'm here to prove myself that I can!"
	"...alright then."
James sat down at a seat and waited for the fight to begin, nervous as he was of the birdo's skill and how badly this could all turn out.  Koopin readily began to work himself up into a proper vigour, as did Catherine who limbered up slightly with a few twists of her neck.
	"Now remember," she explained, "you fight by your own rules, I fight through mine.  You do Toad-Kwon-Do, I do good ol' boxing."
	"U-um...isn't that kinda unfair to you?"
	"That's how the world works dear!  So many different styles, so many ways to battle with opponents who use many different limbs and ways.  Boxers, wrestlers, stick-fighters and the like!  I'm going to be an easy fight compared to who else you're gonna fight.  I'm not even going to use my legs."
	"R-right...well...long as you're okay with it, then I am too.  Is there like a round or something, how long do we fight?"
	"Until one of us...can fight no more, and hits the canvas."
	"R-really?!"
	"How else would a fight end?!  It ain't over 'til the fat lady sings sweetie, but thankfully I slimmed down so you're out of luck there.  Now...are you ready?"
	"Yeah...y-yeah, I'm ready."
	"Then let's begin round one!"

With the ding of a bell, Catherine charged forwards ready to give Koopin a run for his money.  As much as he tried to brace himself for the battle ahead, he still let his guard down in having to fight her, when she came close to gutpunch him.  He winced and shoved her away, trying to hit back.  But hesitation was already apparent on his face, as he would flinch and try to jab her away from him.
Catherine however took this to her advantage, readily punching away both his hands before bopping him twice on the nose in rapid succession, forcing him back into the corner as he winced.  Koopin tensed himself up, getting into the zone as he tried to focus on his opponent.  He put up his fists and cautiously came forwards, waiting for the next punch to come.  The birdo cautiously made a right hook, which Koopin dodged before trying to hit back with an uppercut.  But Catherine knew the moment he dodged this would happen, and simply moved back before leaping forwards with a good straight punch to the face, straight between Koopin's eyes.
James struggled not to get involved, sitting on his seat with claws piercing the sides of it as he watched and waited.  Seeing the koopa try to reach out with punches inbetween dodging jabs was painful, as Koopin winced with each little tender jab that softened him up for fiercer hooking blows.  Knocked left and right, as well as backwards into a stumble that had him on the ropes, it was all too much for FG to bear without saying something.
Not that Koopin wasn't entirely useless, managing to block the odd punch every once in a while whenever his senses sharpened enough.  Grabbing Catherine's arm before punching her across the jaw, he took his chance and charged forwards with several more punches, hooking from the left and the right to batter her cheeks with his protected fists.  But the birdo was tougher than expected, taking one hit rather solidly before quick-jabbing Koopin straight between the eyes once again, making him flinch and back off once again.

This only allowed Catherine to come in close for an offensive combo, breaking through Koopin's guard before a solid blow landed square across his jaw.  He stumbled and groaned with a panting breath, feeling the pain throb hungrily in his mouth like an ulcer.  Finally James had enough, standing up and roaring:
	"FOR FUCK'S SAKE, JUST KICK HER ALREADY!"
	"Wh-wha?!" said Koopin half-dazed.
	"Didntcha hear her at the start of the fight?!  She sticks to her rules, you stick to yours, use your advantage god dammit!"
	"B-but...I don't...I-i don't..."
	"He's right sweetie," said Catherine.  "And here I thought you were just letting my guard down!"
	"I was just...I-...ugh, James!"
Koopin held up a hand to temporarily stop the fight before letting his frustration release.
	"I am TRYING to fight here, could you PLEASE not start screaming your head off when there's nobody else around!"
	"You're acting like an idiot!" said FG, "you got all that training you learnt back at the dojo and you're not even using half of it!"
	"I was gonna, I'm not an idiot!"
	"Prove it then!  That's what this is all about right?!"
	"Oh NOW you want me to prove myself to you?!  You were so worried before, why can't you just tell me for once what you really wa-"
	"JUST SHUT UP AND FUCKING KICK HER!" roared James.
The koopa's frustration welled up inside of him, eyes squinting hard as he stomped his foot down into a stance.  His focus came back with a piercing stare, which Catherine smiled at as they resumed their battle.  She hopped in towards Koopin's right, wanting to trick him into a dodging jab to allow her a good uppercut, only to be shut down by a powerfully-straight thrusting kick from Koopin into her belly.   She could feel his power borne of an insulted fury he was trying not to release.
	"OOF!  There we go, now you're getting the hang of it!  Come on boy, show me what you got!"

He charged straight in crying out with a renewed vigour, quickly punching out a three-hit combo to make Catherine guard before snap-kicking straight into her belly.  Knocking her back and making her drop her guard, he slammed out a furious hooking right punch, pounding her across the cheek as her oval mouth quivered from the pain.  She didn't mind, she was enjoying the feel of a good fist on her face again, her old boxing ways slowly coming back to her.
The birdo quickly charged in, blocking high and low with both hands to smack down Koopin's knee from thrusting, punching upwards straight into his jaw and even further bruising it as he stumbled backwards.  He quickly dodged however with a new adrenaline surge, using his momentum to send out a turning roundhouse kick, straight into Catherine's shoulder.  It hurt quite solidly, but not enough to slow her down as she punched unexpectedly at Koopin's shelled front.
The force of her punching charge was enough for Koopin to feel, a dull vibration pounding through his belly as he groaned and fell back, before springing off his back leg to deliver a high-rising knee thrust into the air.  His knee connected hard against the birdo's guarding fists, but even then she was overwhelmed by his force of momentum, making her break her guard before Koopin came down upon her with a mighty aerial punch, swinging down his fist like a hammer straight on top of her head.
	"OW!  NNNNGH!  ...hhhahahaha, very sneaky!  You certainly been paying attention in class haven't you Koopin?"
	"P-plenty enough," he said shakily, "I try and do my best and nothing less!"
	"Hahaha, now don't get TOO angry, or else all that focus will just snap like a tightened rubber band."
He took the advice to heart as he focused hard and started to calm down, the fury of his exertion starting to wear off as exhaustion began to creep in.  He breathed hard in a deep breath, and waited for Catherine to come close, beckoning her in.  She swiftly dodged twice, both to the left and to the right in order to throw off the koopa with a feint.  She was successful enough to punch through, breaking the guard and hitting him twice before Koopin shoved her away and made a high-rising axe kick.  With one foot on the ground, the other swung high above both of them before crashing down onto the mat.

Catherine however had dodged the attack before Koopin could even kick high enough, strafing around in order to attack his exposed side of the body.  But the koopa was now more focused, and swung around with a vicious haymaker to try and ward her off, before spinning around fully to deliver a roundhouse kick of ferocious proportions.  It worked like a charm, for Catherine tried to get in close after dodging the haymaker, straight into Koopin's foot.  She went spinning off her feet, before falling onto the canvas.
She slowly got up soon after, before stumbling back onto her knees.  Her eyes were throbbing with dazed bewilderment at such a knockout kick, grabbing her head with one hand softly.
	"A-are you okay?" asked Koopin softly.
	"Y-yes...wow...that was...some kick you had there."
	"Hhhhehehe...um...l-lucky shot.  Lemme help you up."
He gently took her other hand before slowly pulling her back on her feet, the birdo still rather dazed from her many blows to the head.  She was slightly wobbly, and in no condition to fight further as she said:
	"Well...I think we both know who won this fight hmmm?"
	"R-r-really?  Y-you don't look THAT bad, honest!"
	"Hahaha, you're sweet but really, that kick of yours has left me rather dazed and I have to retire for now.  You know what that meaaaaaans."
She said this with a rather singsong voice, teasing Koopin with a tender kiss to his battered cheek, making him blush.
	"Wh-wh-what?  What does this mean?!"
	"It means silly that you won the fight.  Now you only have three more warriors left for you to face before you can complete this little journey of strength of yours."
	"Wha-seriously?!  I won?!?  ...oh my gosh I won!  I WON!"
Catherine giggled at Koopin's overexcited demeanour, patting his cheek and slowly climbing out of the ring to change and sit down somewhere.  Koopin still stood in the ring, slightly shaking with the realisation of winning, his excitement struggling to contain itself in order to not look like a bad winner.  But before she left, the birdo pulled out something else from her bag.  A small pink star, sizeable enough to be a badge with a pin-like clasp upon the back of it.
	"Here...proof of your victory."
	"Huh?  Wh-what's this?"
	"A gift.  Part of an old emblem we used to have back in the old days of the tournament.  I still have a few of these lying around and I'm quite sure my other fellow fighters also have a star each for you."
	"Wow...it...it looks so lovely."
	"As lovely as me?"
The birdo winked and made Koopin blush, who could only nod and smile before she blew him a kiss.  The koopa however asked:
	"What's this thing attached to?  I mean it's kinda got this clasp on the back of it and all."
	"Oh that's part of the full badge of the tournament.  There were seven warriors originally who hold seven stars in total.  Whosoever had all seven stars, was proof that he or she was the greatest warrior in all the land."
	"Woooooow...so, where is this badge?"
	"I don't know, honestly.  I don't even know if they still make them anymore, I just thought it would make a nice gift for you as proof of your victory."
	"Well...it definitely is.  Thank you miss Catherine."
Koopin bowed humbly so before climbing out of the ring, standing beside James who looked down on Koopin with a renewed pride, the two of them admiring the new star.  Catherine simply chuckled and headed off to a private room of the club, after making sure she was not dizzy enough to leave unaided.  But then she turned at the last minute, saying:
	"OH, of course silly me, I forgot to tell you!"
	"Yes, miss Catherine?"
	"The next opponent dear!  You still have to find him!"
	"O-oh yeah!  Um...you know where he is?"
	"I'll give you a clue...something fun for you to figure out.  What lies beyond the sea and sits for a thousand years?  ...when you figure that out, go there and find someone by the name of Kuribo.  See you on the stage boys!"

With that she finally left, the divine miss Catherine returning to her room in order to nurse her bruises, while Koopin did the same by going home.  He was bubbling over with excitement the moment they got out, onto the open road back to Koopamuir.  Koopin was as happy as a clam, punching the air with both fists as he cried:
	"I can't believe this, I won!  I won James!"
	"Yeah yeah I know, I saw ya man, I was there!"
	"I-i just...I mean...she was a professional boxer!  I beat a professional!"
	"Well...didn't you say you beat Chan before back at the dojo?"
	"W-well yeah, but I mean, a professional OUTSIDE the dojo!  I mean this is just GREAT, I-ungh!"
	"Woah woah, careful now, don't get too excited."
James hurriedly pulled Koopin close to nurse his wounds, gently rubbing across the wounded jaw which still throbbed plentifully so, as Koopin said:
	"S-sorry...nnngh..."
	"Maybe you should give that jaw of yours a rest for a while huh?  Won't look too good if a tour guide can't speak without wincing every five minutes."
	"H-haha, d-don't you dare make me laugh."
	"Right, sorry...come on, how about you and I have a nice day in bed together?  No worries, no problems, just you and me and a nice warm duvet."
	"Mmmmmm...just what I need right now...but it's not even night yet."
	"Nnnno," said James with a slow shrug.  "But you had a pretty rough day, you need to recover.  Trust me I know, when you've been in a good fight, your body's gonna beg for rest sooner or later."
	"Yeaaaaah I guess so," said Koopin.  "...feel so bad though about sleeping half the day away."
	"Yeah, but you're just resting up, not sleeping.  Oh, also, sorry about getting angry back there."
	"Oh no no it's uh...it's fine, I uh...kinda needed that.  I dunno why I keep forgetting to use kicks when fighting!"
	"Well it's probably something you never DO normally so your body's just not used to it as a quick method of attacking.  I think."
	"I guess...what you think Catherine meant by that riddle before she left?"
	"I dunno, I don't care.  Something about a thing beyond the sea that sits for a thousand years and then look for a guy called Kuribo, honestly I think we both need a good sleep to figure it out."
	"WE?!" said Koopin with mock outrage.  "What did YOU do when I was fighting up there?!"
	"Uh, giving moral support, hello!"
	"Yanno maybe you need to step it up a little James.  ...maybe if you had a cheerleader outfit-"
	"Oh my god no.  No, just...just no."
	"Awwww come on James, I bet you look adorable in a skirt."
	"D-dammit no, once was enough!"
	"ONCE?!  Oh my stars, did you actually wear a skirt once?!"
	"NO, NEVER, I MEANT, THAT WAS A TOTALLY DIFFERENT THING I SWEAR!  I've never worn a skirt in my life, ever, uh uh, no way!"
	"HAHAHAHAHA-A-AAAH, ow, ow, hhhhahaha!"
Koopin started laughing on the way home, wincing inbetween chortles as his jaw started to ache.  The soothing evening came down upon them with a dark orange hue, and by the time they reached home, Koopamuir was ablaze within an amber sunset, pulling arms around each other as they headed inside.  James soon joined Koopin in bed, making sure he was well-rested with warm company in tow.  It was also to help reassure himself that despite all his bruises, Koopin was tougher than he thought, especially after several years of training.

After a few days' rest, Koopin was right as rain and back at work, managing to keep himself balanced between recuperating his wounds, while still working unabated.  He was able to hide some of the more visual bruises thanks to some tips from James out of all people, who bought him some foundation cream to hide them.  Koopin had already figured out Catherine's riddle, and was soon setting up for a trip overseas with James in tow a few weeks later, using up his vacation time.  But he did not tell him where until they reached the docks.
	"Have ya figured it out yet?" asked Koopin.
	"Uhhhh not yet," said FG.  "Something that sits for a thousand years, gotta be like a temple or something right?"
	"Hehehe, nope!  But good guess!"
	"Is iiiiit somewhere we've been to before?"
	"Nnnnnooooo."
	"Is iiiiit an island?"
	"Nnnnnoooooooope!"
	"Hmmmm...alright, I give up."
	"Hehehe, hold on."
Koopin soon approached the harbour master with his tickets in tow before proclaiming:
	"Two return tickets to Rogueport please!"
	"Wait, Rogueport?" said James.
	"Yep!"
	"...that sounds familiar."
	"I told ya about it a few times, but you've never been so now's a good time!  Rogueport sits on the remains of a thousand-year old city, which was destroyed by a great catastrophe that lied hidden beneath the ruins.  The Thousand-Year Door Saga."
	"...waiiiit didn't you tell me Mario dealt with this?"
	"Yep, sure did!"
	"God damn, Mario does everything, and he doesn't LOOK that strong."
	"It's the clothes, everyone thinks that.  Alright, ready to go?!"
	"Sure am, I'm actually pretty excited to see a whole new land!"
	"Then off we go!"
With a whole new area of the Mushroom Kingdom to explore, James was all the more curious to see what lied within Rogueport.  A town of many secrets, but only one of which they were on the lookout for.