The Arena

Act of Passion

Training sessions were still against Fry. Other fighters would swap partners but neither Isabella nor Fry would. They would swap weapons, testing her arm in each weapon and defending each weapon as Fry would use different ones to attack. The stubbed practice spear often left small bruises on her back and thighs but Isabella was sure she could defend herself against a real one if threatened. A stubbed wooden pole was just not threatening to her and she often found herself laughing at the weapon in the man's hand. Fry was the same height as her and faster on his feet but she was seeing a pattern in his attacks. Just as she got used to one weapon he would pick up another and use it to attack, using a different method. The shield she wielded soon became a weapon as well as she learnt how to use it to shove and hit. After trying each weapon of choice Fry had pointed out that a top heavy hammer was her best option. Not only was she able to wield it perfectly but it went well with her family line of blacksmiths. During her hammer practices Lukas watched her, ignoring his opponents and defending himself with ease as he did not watch them but her. His eyes following Isabella's every move as she spun, sending the skirt out wide and showing her legs in the tights. Fry had pointed out several times that Lukas was staring at her but Isabella would delicately shrug her shoulders and say he could stare as much as he wanted. At one point she thought she would lift Fry's spirits by telling him Lukas must be jealous that Fry was training with her and not him. Fry was smug about it and that night Isabella heard the men speaking about the training session.

"You need to get her to spin out that skirt more often." One fighter said to Fry. When the others all agreed and made their own comments Isabella heard Lukas put in a few words and felt her heart pound heavy.

"You are just jealous." Fry said with a laugh which the others joined in.

"Of what exactly?" Lukas asked. The others were silent as Isabella held her breath to listen to their conversation.

"That I get to train with her," Fry's smug voice had a little laugh in it as well as confidence. "I get to see her up close every day and even get to touch her." She almost laughed. Fry had never touched her inappropriately and even made sure his hands never touched what they should not.

"Yes but she still admires me." Lukas had said which ended the conversation with laughs from the other fighters.

Every lunch break Isabella would sit with Fry and speak of techniques of the other fighters. Each night they would shout at Fry for giving her, their secret moves but Fry would just tell them wait until the next fight and take it out on him then. One voice she never heard complain was Lukas. He did not speak and once he was in his cell she did not see him or even glimpse in to check if he was watching her. The training sessions were more popular, the boys were still fighting on the seats but they were joined by their mothers and fathers. A few women who Isabella knew were her age would come in and sit down to watch for a while. Never did she hear them say a bad thing about her. The gossip she heard was more about her bravery than stupidity. Every now and then she could even hear them talk of James and how he was furious with her at the same time as telling everyone they were getting married. Whenever James was at the training session, Isabella would pretend she did not know he was there, ignore him and be friendlier toward Fry. Fry had asked after the first time and she was forced to explain to him. After that he would play along. The victim from her last fight had the men weary of her, none would get too close when she had a weapon in her hand and called Fry brave for training with her. None were too happy about the group fight but had all agreed it was better than one on one with her.

Adrenaline once again surged through her veins, this time Isabella was ready for the roar of the crowd with a smirk on her lips. She knew this day would come, the day she would have to defend herself against each of the fighters, including Lukas. Fry had promised to have her back but she was more worried about Lukas, the last group fight he submitted to Lukas in seconds. None of the fighters spoke, few glared at Isabella and Fry as they strapped their armor on but none spoke words of warning. One by one they jogged out to select their weapons, Fry jogged out before Isabella and once she jogged out she selected her weapon of choice. A hammer felt perfectly fitted in her hand as she twirled her wrist and looked up to her father before standing beside Fry. Ready for the fight she watched as Lukas strode to the weapons, selected a sword and approached. Some fighters did not wait for him to join the circle before they rushed him, most however went for Isabella. Blocking all attacks with the shield and hammer, Isabella swung her hammer at any chance she got. She kicked at a knee cap and smacked the shield forward forcing the men back. Her hammer collided with a shield, bouncing the shield back into the head it was meant to be protecting. That fighter fell to the ground as a hand grabbed Isabella's hair and pulled back. She grunted from the pain and kicked back, when the hand released she swung the hammer and struck a chest hard. Another down. Flicking her now loose hair from her vision, Isabella looked for her next opponent and looked over to Lukas who stood above fallen fighters, one of which was Fry. One fighter stood between them, his back to Isabella and concentrating on Lukas as if she were not even there. Shifting the hammer in her hand, Isabella threw the hammer to the last man standing. The weapon flipped in the air until the handle smacked into the base of the man's skull sending him sprawling to the ground. Lukas looked up from his stolen defeat and smiled at Isabella.

"You just disarmed yourself." He said, testing the weight of the sword in his hand. Stalking over to her, Lukas kept the smile as he slowly walked in a circle that got smaller with each step he took forward.

"That is what you think." Isabella said before flicking a sword in the air with her toe. Catching the handle with her free hand, she blocked the swing from Lukas' sword that she knew was too slow for him with her shield. He was holding back. Throwing the shield arm she hoped to push the sword from his grip with no such luck. Lukas grabbed her sword arm at the elbow and pulled her close, pressing his lips onto hers. The crowd screamed with excitement, cheering, whistling and banging their feet to show encouragement to the sudden act of passion between the two fighters. Despite the force Isabella was using against Lukas, she was trying her hardest to push him back. When Lukas let her go he smirked down to her, releasing her arm. She frowned at him before dropping her shield and sword and walking away. Mind filled with questions and body filled with sensations she did not know how to describe, she ignored the guards stares, the one she knew she would be getting from her father and the offer to escort her back to her cell.

How dare he? Isabella fumed on her cot. Her mind repeated that question over and over again as she could not take her mind away from her first kiss. Stolen from her by a man she idolised and looked up to with admiration. She did not know if she was more upset that she could not be angry about the kiss, there was nothing wrong with it, in fact she had rather enjoyed it, or the fact that he had done it in front of everyone. Her stomach fluttered the moment their lips touched and that flutter travelled to other parts of her body. For a moment she had closed her eyes to enjoy it until she realised where she was. A small smile crossed her lips as she touched her fingers to them. The darkness of her cell slowly glowed brighter as a light shone down from the barred window.

"Isabella?" A voice called down from behind the flickering light. Standing up, Isabella looked up at the window, stepping back until she could see a face peer in at her.

"Father?" She asked confused.

"The warden would not allow me to see you." Edmund said as he moved the light aside.

"What is wrong?" She asked, concerned that perhaps her father had some bad news.

"What is wrong is a man just kissed my fiancé." James butted in, his face appearing by the window.

"I am not your fiancé." Isabella frowned at him, only looking at him for a second.

"Actually." Edmund said before he bit his bottom lip. Isabella scoffed the men and threw her hands in the air.

"Whether you want it or not, my love, we are engaged to be wed." James smirked down to her. "The moment we get you out of this hell of a prison. If you ever make it out whole."

"In that case I hope I do not make it out whole." Isabella snapped, crossing her arms.

Lukas lay awake in his cell, the material made him feel as though he were a free man, not locked in a cell at night. The other fighters slept off pain, after going into their cells they went straight to sleep. None of them had seen what he did. If they had he would never have heard the end of it. A soft voice filled the air, Isabella. She was talking to someone but he could not make out the other member of her conversation. Perhaps she was talking to herself. Moving closer to the bar he hoped to catch some of her words.

"That is none of your business." She snapped. Someone else spoke. It was only a mumble to his ears but he could hear someone there, as if they were outside her cell on the other side of the wall.

"No I did not plan it, but that is beside the point."

"You are infatuated with him." The voice accused with a louder tone.

"I barely know him." Isabella did not seem happy to be sharing words with the unfamiliar man.

"You have been obsessed with him since you first saw him." Blacksmith Edmund said.

"I was not obsessed." Isabella said hurt. "Any way I did not plan it nor did I ask for it. It is not some plan of mine to call a wedding off I did not even know I was having. I do not know what provoked it or if there were any emotions behind it." Isabella got louder as she spoke, anger evident in her voice, at whom Lukas did not know but he did know what she was talking about. The kiss. It was true, she had no part to play in his little act but if he knew she would be in trouble with her father for it then he may not have done it. As for his emotions, he had no idea which one acted out first but one of them won and he wanted it to keep winning. Perhaps he should not have glanced at her father after she walked away with that smug grin.