The Young Gladiatrix

Father

The heat of the day hadn't ended, the sun still beating down on the sand of the arena. Ash, Stafford, Howard, Neville and Decimus had been allowed to head back to the arena to be in the sun if they wished. And of course, they had jumped at the opportuinity once Ash and Howard had cooled down after their training session.
Ash had opted to go out in just her chest wrappings, shorts and boots. Whilst the knights and Decimus opted to wear just their jodhpurs and boots. The long sleeved shirts they wore had been left in the barracks. As they sat in the shade, Ash gazed down at her body. The bruises. The scars. Shaking her head slightly, she tied her hair up quietly in an attempt to get it off of her neck. Lord Stafford watched her for a moment. "Something the matter, Ash?" he asked, watching her. "No no, I'm fine. Just thinking" she smiled in reply, glancing over at the rail and the lances.
Sir Neville followed her gaze. "The rail and lances?" He tried to understand what she was thinking, without asking why she gazed at the rail and lances. Ash merely shrugged. "It was a stupid idea anyway. A stupid thought" The three knights shared a look for a moment. "An idea is not stupid, Ash. A thought isn't either"
Sighing, Ash looked to the knights. "I'd like to challenge one of you to a joust. You decide who takes the challenge. I'd just like to remain focused, y'know? And I feel as though the more I practice with challenges with you, the more focused I will be" Lord Stafford instantly gained a smirk on his lips. "I'll accept your challenge" smirked Lord Stafford.
"As will I" said Sir Neville, glancing at Lord Stafford. Two challenges. Ash smiled at them. "It's a tournament then, gentlemen. But not today. It's far too warm. And my shoulder hurts" When she said her shoulder hurt, Decimus moved to kneel behind her. "Let me see" he said, moving his hands to her left shoulder, pressing down slightly. "Muscles feel tense, and there's the visible bruising. You need to relax more, love. And you need to stop taking those hits and deliver some yourself" he chuckled softly, kissing the side of her head softly before moving back to her side.
The interaction hadn't gone unnoticed by her father who was still hanging around the arena. The man, filled with rage, marched over to his daughter, her fiance and the knights. Dragging her up by her arm. "What on earth are you doing with a guard?" he hissed, squeezing her arm. Her lance arm.
Ash desperatly looked to the knights and Decimus for permission to retaliate. But she didn't have to. Lord Stafford and Sir Neville broke Kaiser's grip on Ash's arm with swift kicks to his gut. Lord Stafford instantly taking Ash in his own arm, keeping her with him. "You don't have a say in her life anymore, Kaiser. You haven't had a say in her life since she was a child" sneered Decimus now, moving past the knights to Ash's father. "What's she doing with a guard? I'm her fiance. What's she doing with knights? They're her friends, her teachers. Her fellow knights. But what you just did. And how she reacted? She is trying to obey the knights code of chivalry. And she did obey it. You" he jabbed a finger in the mans shoulder. "Shouldn't even be around her anymore. She has no desire to talk to you again"
Kaiser's eyes burned with hatred and anger. His daughter was engaged. All without his permission. And she was damn near naked around 4 men. He seethed as he spoke. "She's what? Your fiance? I don't think so" Ash gritted her teeth as Lord Stafford held her away from her father. She wasn't retaliating yet. Nor was she breaking the code of chivalry. But she wasn't far from it.
Without warning, Ash dragged herself away from Lord Stafford. The knight shocked at her sudden strength. She walked up to her father, standing before him. She was much smaller than him, with him being over 6ft and her being a mere 5ft 3". "You don't think so, what? You haven't been in my life since Niero took me away from you. Do you even know that I turned 18 recently? Decimus. He's the one I love. He is my fiance. And there's nothing you can do about it. Lord Stafford. Sir Neville. Sir Howard. They're my friends! My fellow knights! And they've taught me more than you ever did. They cared about me when you didn't. And I care about them. You want to kill me so badly? Then try it. Try it when there are men around us that wouldn't hesitate to spill your guts" she hissed, her eyes like fire as she spoke.
Kaiser, lost in the anger, swung a fist for Ash. Not expecting her to dodge it, and kick his legs from under him. "I'm not so easy to take down anymore. I have the knights. My FRIENDS to thank for that. Do you even care that Niero died? They were supportive when I mentioned him even though they didn't know much about him. But you. You weren't even there. You weren't even at his funeral! I'm not going to lose my cool anymore with you. I feel like I've already flouted the code of chivalry more than once here. But stay out of my life. Stay out of my love life. Stay away from me. Stay away from Decimus. And stay away from Lord Stafford, Sir Neville and Sir Howard. We don't need you interfering with our training or anything ever again"
Ash stood now and turned her back on her father. She looked far from pleased with herself and how she'd handled that. But she'd said what she wanted to say. Or at least, half of what she wanted to say. She went into Decimus' arms, the elder wrapping his arms around her waist as he kissed the side of her head softly.
The fire in Kaiser's eyes hadn't died. He stood, glaring at the group. His eyes burning into the back of his daughter. "You marry out of this families name. You're not welcome back in it. And I won't be the one to walk you down the aisle" he seethed, turning on his heel and leaving, his eyes still aflame.
"Wouldn't want him to do it anyway" snorted Ash, turning in Decimus' arms to watch her father leave. The knights merely snorted. "What a shameful excuse for a father" commented Lord Stafford. Ash shrugged. "I cannot wait to drop his name. But. Did I flout the code of chivalry in what I did and said?"
The knights merely shook their heads. "No, you didn't. You defended yourself, Decimus, and us. And in defending those you cared most about. You proved yourself as a chivalrous knight. Which is highly respected, Ash" replied Sir Neville with a smile.
Ash smiled in return as the group headed back to where they had been sat previously. They continued to talk over the challenges that had been made. Laughing and joking of what was to come.
And it was a lot.

1. Black Knight Vs Lord Stafford
2. Black Knight Vs Sir Neville

[Authors Note: Updating again! I need a lot of time to work on the first part of Kingmaker. So I'm continuing this whilst I do that. This story is still going after all!]