Ash scowled after her for just a second before shaking her head and turning towards the training ground, "Why must some people be so ill-tempered?"
Luna sighed lightly and fell into step beside her, not even trying to make excuses for the hawkwing woman. It was clear, though, that she had her eyes on Ailanthus in a far more romantic way than her words let on. Her response to Ash had been textbook jealousy and nothing more. Still, she said nothing about it because it would merely irk Ash even further.
Ashterra, though, seemed destined to be irked on that particular morning judging by the scene that was going on when they entered the training grounds. Ailanthus leaned against the wall, appearing bored at best and annoyed at worst. The blue-haired, emerald-eyed Ryn glared up at the taller Blazewing.
"You willfully stole my match!" He accused, continuing when Ailanthus merely denied having done so, "I had my eye on her first and I'd wager a great many find her attractive. Get in line," he growled.
Ailanthus responded in an even but bored tone, "I asked for a match, nothing more and nothing less, you are wanting to leverage winning a duel to get yourself a date. That hardly seems honorable," his eyes moved around the courtyard and caught sight of Ash, at which point he smiled easily and nodded a greeting, "I must apologize that you had to walk in on such an unsavory confrontation. Young Ryn has not quite learned the ways of our temple."
While Ryn was growling that he wasn't young, Ailanthus decided to ignore him and walk up to Ash. Executing a slight bow in greeting, he looked between the two of them and offered a kind welcome. Motioning to one of the small arenas, he invited Ash to join him so they could discuss the match.
Ash followed his lead and ignored Ryn until they reached the small fighting area marked on the ground, looking over it critically to determine whether it would be enough space for her to be able to make use of. While she didn't necessarily need a large arena like some mages since she could at least somewhat fight close-range, she wasn't a melee combatant.
Glancing at Ryn with a bit of annoyance in her gaze, she silenced his arguments, "I said we would discuss a duel, I did not say I had accepted. This kind of behavior leads me to believe that you haven't learned a lesson from all of the scolding you received and does not lend itself towards making me want to duel you. Beyond that, I have already told you that I have lived over a thousand years, to those like myself and Ailanthus you are, and always will remain, very much young. I am not interested in the heartbreak of falling in love with someone with a hugely different lifespan from my own," she said before continuing in a bit of a dry tone, "And even were I to be so inclined, you are not my type. I am not some damsel to be coddled and paraded about like a trophy and every time you have spoken to me, that has seemed to be your intent."
He backed down almost immediately, though he voiced that he was still interested in dueling Ash solely to test his own strength. Ailanthus told him to watch their fight and then make his judgement anew before turning his attention to Ash. The terms of their exhibition match were simple enough: his strength would be brought down to the same level as Ashterra's and they would fight with all of their spells and weapons made non-lethal as the goal was not to kill or even wound each other at the end of the day.
Standing on the far side of the arena from him, she watched impartially as a crowd began to form while Ailanthus took care of the small ritual necessary to allow for the match. A familiar scowling face watched from within the crowd, though Ash paid her no mind and instead took a deep breath to prepare herself as she decided what spells to weave first.
Ailanthus readied his blade as another Blazewing stepped to the side of the arena in order to give them a proper count, his own blade shining with Virtus' blessing for the match. As soon as the blade touched the ground, both combatants launched into action.
Ailanthus quite literally launched himself towards Ashterra, using his wings to further his speed even more. A single blow, after all, would be all it took to end the match though she'd likely need a healer if he landed the strike, as it would still quite severely bruise. Everyone around seemed to think the match already over, their expressions vaguely interested in Ailanthus' flawless movements as they paid no mind to his opponent.
In the short time it took Ailanthus to cross the arena Ash had already woven five spells, casting her shield around her just before he was close enough to be a threat. Next she launched the arrows she'd crafted, watching as Ailanthus dodged all of the dense clusters though he let a single arrow graze him as if to test whether or not it was real. That arrow happened to be part of an illusory cluster and passed through him though it likely imparted a strange feeling from its interwoven magic to judge by his expression.
He closed quickly for another blow, finding his leg trapped in a vine that crept its way out of the ground to try to trip him. Far too experienced for such tricks, he slashed it immediately and closed the distance for another blow. She was already weaving more spells, though he hoped to close fast enough to keep her from casting them. His blade shattered the shielding spell she had and he quickly moved for another strike.
She was suddenly close, far more so than he expected considering he'd only ever seen her cast magic. The dagger in her hand struck out at his dominant wrist, a gust of wind from another spell aiding her in throwing his sword arm wide.
Mischief entered her gaze at that point and instead of finishing the fight, she drove him back using twelve Earthen Rain arrows. Faced with what felt like hail with a side of icy rain, he let her have her way.
Most opponents would have been soaked and shivering, but Ailanthus was a Blazewing and the fire of his wings caught and burned strong with his intense interest in the battle that was ongoing between them. The crowd seemed to think Ashterra had made a mistake, letting him go like that instead of taking the win that had been in her hands.
Ailanthus was not quite so sure as they were. The proud daughter of Lord Sidus would not have allowed him to retreat unless she had a plan already in mind to force things to continue to be in her favor. The distance he'd taken already worked in her favor marvelously, giving her ample time to weave more spells, only a few of which he could glean the purpose of at a glance.
Readying his blade once again, he took a deep breath and watched as she mirrored him, though it was her dagger at the ready instead. Wondering if she intended to cross blades with him, he launched himself once more.