Fiona saw the column coming, and knew she couldn’t dodge it this time, and in slow motion, with Barry in the stands looking on gleefully. Dang it, I wanted to put this clown in his place, this sucks–

Kieran appeared in a blast of smoke, using whatever strange ability he had been keeping hidden to try to grab her out of the way. But the ability sapped whatever stamina he had, and the column of gravel impacted him, spraying bits of rocks, and he sprawled over.

“Ow, damn arthritis,” he grumbled.

“Dang it Kieran, you were supposed to be the one to win it!” Fiona hopped to her feet, pulling her hammer back out and deflecting the column of rocks away, and whittling away at Finks ammo of rocks. Finks at least had the grace to not swipe at Kieran again and was swinging his staff and whip in a rain of blows that she dodged, deflected, or otherwise leaped over in a burst of daring agility.

She was panting, this guy was making her work for this victory, for once! And that thrill of combat was a rush she was almost giddy about. My place isn't supposed to be running a store, it’s supposed to be running a battlefield–no, bad mentality! She shook her head to clear that intrusive thought away, and reached into her coin pouch. Only a few remained, and Finks paused, weapons ready as if daring her to attack. He flexed his shoulders and smiled.

“Neat tricks. How’d a merchant like you get this far in life?” he sneered.

“Baby, buy me dinner, and I might tell ya,” she said in a teasing tone. Even though this guy was working for Beardless to ruin everyone else's fun, she couldn’t help but applaud his skill. “One hit apiece, winner takes all. Let's make it a good match, yeah?”

“Oh, I want to win. Putting on a good show is a bonus,” he added with a flex of his arm and a confident grin. “Now I get why the dragon had problems with ya, you’re tough to hit!”

“Eh, a little rusty,” she added with a shrug. “Cool trick with the gravel. Telekinesis?”

“Geomancy,” he grunted, and waved the gravel into the air in a small figure-eight pattern. “And a little bit of telekinetics. Did a stint with the adventurers guild a while back, but my talents were appreciated over at the quarry up in the mountains. Made good money.”

“So, why the melee?” she asked, trying to figure a way past that annoying defense. She could just smash past it, but she needed an impact blow beyond what even she was capable of.

That gold of hers was vibrating on her hip again. She reached out to it, and grabbed one coin, and kept her eye on Finks. The metal felt soft to the touch, and she glanced at her weapon head. Her mark kept fluttering, as if trying to nudge her.

Wingding, what’re you telling me? I can magically alter gold another way, maybe? She pondered this for a second. Wait. Gold’s super heavy. I wonder…

She flexed her hand, and tried to will that strange magnetism to wrap around the coin itself. The coin vibrated–and then the metal started turning warm in her hand, and almost…liquified? It was shimmering and almost like quicksilver, and she wiped it on the head of her hammer, where it instantly solidified into a gold sheen over the head, and glowed.

Finks frowned at this new development. “Oh, I heard about you. You became a merchant recently, huh? What’s that fancy ability?”

“I call it my ‘Midas Touch’ ability,” She announced with a leering smile, and pulled out all the coins from her pouch, and repeated the process. But Finks wasn't’ going to wait to find out what she had planned, because the staff and that whip of gravel lashed out, impacted where she’d leaped back from a split second before.

But she had bought herself enough time to coat that weapon in a golden luster, and it almost seemed to ring like someone was rubbing their finger across a crystal glass. The head of the weapon glowed even brighter, and she gave it a test swing at the column of gravel.

The impact was substantial. Bits of rock pinged from the mighty blow, showering the arena with little bits of detritus. She hefted the weapon in both hands, feeling light on her feet and confident. Sacrificing gold for enhancement? Oh, yes, please! More concerning was figuring out how to transfix them back into coins afterward, but that wasn’t a ‘now’ problem. Finks came at her with a timed salvo of strikes from his magical rock whip, and lashing out with his staff.

His face wasn’t edged with fury. It was edged with confidence, and maybe even a little bit of respect. “Well, well. Little elf girl does have some magical tricks. Don’t feel bad about losing, I’ve gotten pretty good at getting to the top three every tournament.”

He swung the column, and she smashed more rocks away. He kept at it, trying to score a hit, but she kept deflecting it, the gold flaring a brilliant golden color with each strike, and she struck his staff–and shattered it into little wooden matchsticks! She didn’t waste the opportunity and launched her backswing.

There wasn’t enough of that rock to cushion the blow, and she sent him skyward with the blow, and he landed flat on his back, the bits of rocks now raining onto the ground. She twitched when a rock landed on her shoulder, and looked on with confidence as the motes winked red on Finks’ armor.

“We have a winner!” The announcer called out from the stands, and Fiona almost forgot there was a crowd of thousands looking on, and cheering at her. She walked over to Finks, who tilted his head up from his prone angle, and looked miserable. “Fiona Swiftheart has captured the melee victory–and our hearts if I must say! Bravo to her and Sir Kieran, of His Majesty's guard Corp!”

Fiona stood before fallen foe, and put the gold-covered hammer into her holster before leaning down and gripping the massive man's hand firmly, and hoisting him up to his feet., smiling faintly. “Wow. I might have actually had a challenge there, big guy. Well played!”

“Your prowess is not to be underestimated, Miss Swiftheart,” he responded in a nod of respect. He waved over to the elder guard, waiting with the rest of the other entrants by the side. “Might want to call over your buddy.”

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Kieran, come on over!” she called out to the elder guard, who was walking with a slight limp. She took his hand up in congratulations, and the crowd went wild. “Well Kieran, guess the wife will be quite proud of the accomplishment. You did pretty good there,” she told him confidently, and he smiled even as he rubbed at his back with one hand.

“It's proof that the old man can keep up with the young ones. Those are some interesting class abilities,” Kieran commented, and also took the moment to shake Finks hand firmly. “Finks, was it? Whatcha do for a living?”

“Smash rocks into smaller rocks, and some recreational fighting. I get paid better for smashing rocks,” he added with a small smile. “Looks like I’m eating crow, Miss Swiftheart. If I heard right, someone was betting on me winning. Wouldn’t know anything about it, cuz I did this for fun. Might be, their name rhymes with Mary,” he added with a haggard grin.

“Trying to buy my favor, big guy?” she retorted casually.

“Hah. Nah, you learn a lot about a person by engaging in sports with them,” he answered. “Well, at any rate, good fight. Looks like I gotta step up my game. And someone doesn’t appear very happy up in the lofty heights, either.” She followed his gaze at the crowd.

Fiona’s eyes tracked up to Barry, looking like the ugliest bird of prey up on his high perch, and his brow was twitching. He was not happy about this slight, and she made sure to send him a knowing smile. He responded by doing a slow, exaggerated clap.

I’m gonna get you for this, was the intent she was getting. And he knew he couldn't, because his dad would know if he stooped to underhanded tactics.

Stranger still, just like that blonde tramp next to him, her little mark was giving the impression of a heart filled with lead. This guy had all the privilege in the world, and still hadn’t found happiness? Or, that’s the gut feeling she got from this strange weight of hearts.

Wait, I’ve got it. The Weight of Hearts. Oh, that is a snazzy ability name! I’m keeping it, you loveable Wingding! She thought to her mark–that is, if such a thing were possible.

Lucy was already bounding down the steps, to meet her in the arena grounds, beaming with excitement. Bonnie and the others also made their way down, looking as cheery as ever, and came over to congratulate her. Bonnie was amazed, and super clingy–she must have thought she could face some serious harm in the arena, and she wasn’t wrong. A few of the contestants were in obvious distress, a few held limp limbs, and the mages on standby were already at work.

“Man Fi, if I hadn’t seen you in action enough times already, I would have been sweating beads! Kitsune do that, they sweat, it’s kinda gross,” she added with a chuckle, and made way for Lucy and Darla to get in on the group hug. “Hey, I was here first, stop stealing the ginger cookie away!” Bonnie protested.

“Oh, I guess you do like sweet, and spicy,” Darla responded with a wicked grin, and Greg also gave Fiona a congratulatory hug as well, once the crowd was cleared. Darla pointed to Lucy, looking slightly intrigued. “So what’s the commotion, Miss Princess? You miss me between the weekly visits to my shop, incognito?” Darla commented with a nudge at Lucy, who looks a little flushed.

“W-well, it’s hard to find good coffee anywhere else. Also, keep it on the down low, like my dad,” she added with a gentle wave of her hand. “Fiona, great fighting! When you guys are done here at the festival today, can you meet me at my apartment in the evening? It’s away from the palace, nice and quiet.”

“Are you inviting all of us? Shall I inquire if this is business, or personal?” Greg asked with a raised eyebrow.

“The answer to that one comes later,” Lucy added while gently tapping her finger on his nose. He wrinkled his nose in response, but otherwise didn’t break his expression. “Sorry, sorry, I’ll clear out of here, good melee, everyone! The fighting spirit of Fiefdala, and all its talent, was on full display today, and I look forward to next year!”

Fiona wanted to say something, but paused. She still didn’t know the angle, but her attention wasn’t on the announcer calling her out, and Kieran. One of his sons, a young man with green eyes and messy brown hair, accompanied his father and scolded him.

“Dad, you could've gotten hurt, Mom’s gonna kill you when she gets a hold of you!” he spoke sternly to his father, who let out a soft laugh. “I'm serious dad, you don’t have anything to prove to anyone!”

“Ah, son, a man keeps his promises. As do fiery-haired elven,” Kieran said, as the announcer called for them again. “Well, this is us, shall we?”

A moment later, they were on the stage, with the lizardman making a congratulatory remark. “Now, as is tradition, the prize pool got quite a bit bigger this year. Guess everyone was curious to see the Champion of Fiefdala show up!” he added as he extended a broad hand to her, then Kieran. “And old master, you have many winters behind you, but you fight with cunning! Covered your teammate to avoid a disqualifying blow!”

“It is what I have instilled in many a competent warrior. Our strength in our country is not in the individual strength of one, but of the support and care of many,” he announced to the crowd, via the relay.

Man, I need to up my speech skills, this guy gets it! Fiona noted with intrigue. She should say something to the crowd to inspire them.

“Uh, Same deal, I uh–I didn’t have a speech. But uh, I love the festival, and the snacks, and the fact that there’s so much culture and talent on display!” Fiona almost stumbled on her opening, but quickly recovered. She found firm footing in realizing this tourney, and the festival was a window into the very heart of Fiefdala itself.

A place that was now, to her, a home. “Anyway, Sir Kieran had it right. The strength of a nation comes from its individuals, working toward something greater than themselves. Which is why I’d like to donate the winnings to the outskirts of Fiefdala, for those impacted by the skirmish with Douglas the Red, to help them rebuild.”

The announcer looked on in surprise, but Kieran wore that quiet smile of his, and despite the age on his face, youth still sat in his eyes. “I’ve got no objections to that. It’ll go to good use. Harenfield was hard hit, and I propose they start there, to get builder teams out to repair the structures.”

“Hear, hear!” Lucy called out proudly. “The generosity of the winners of the tourney should not be underestimated! Just uh, stop by her store and take a gander. She’s gotta earn a living too,” she said with a shrewd nudge to Fiona. That burning, tingling feeling in her cheeks was back, and she wished her face would stop doing that! “Now, I believe I have a date with a pie, I’ll catch you all in a bit!” Lucy called out to the crowd, and they slowly dispersed back to the stands, where another event was due to take place in a little while.

“Well Fi, always making a splash, are ya?” Greg asked a little while later. The sun was a golden and slowly turning into an orange orb on the horizon now, and painting everything with a healthy glow of autumn light. “I swore, Barry was going to have a stroke.”

“If he does, just remember we can’t do worse than him,” Fiona growled under her breath. Greg cleared his throat loudly, as if suppressing a chuckle. “Any idea of what Lucy is up to?”

“Not a clue,” Bonnie shrugged while walking beside her, as they headed back to take a look at some of the merchant stands. “I can’t believe you donated all that money.”

“Bah, the look on Barry’s face was worth it, and I’m sure I made Lucy feel all melty on the inside,” she added with a sly smile. “Besides, we’re doing alright.”

“For now,” Greg commented, a look of concern etched on his face, the way he scrunched his eyes. “I’ve been running the numbers, and–you know what, doesn’t matter. I might be just overly conservative in my estimates. What did our champion want to check out next?”

"Me? Oh, I have no idea. What do you guys check out every year?” Fiona asked. "Hang on. I wanna see crafts!"

"An eye for finer things? Oh, this should be good," Greg replied with his contented smile.