"What do you mean you don't know where she is?" A dark brow narrowed in annoyance at the curly-haired Amazon standing toe-to-toe with her in the middle of the village. All around them, women were working hard to get final preparations for the next evening's celebration completed. None were aware of the unsuccessful interrogation going on between the Warrior Princess and their Amazon sister.
To her frustration, Ephiny simply smirked at Xena in response to the question. Apparently the warrior needed to work on her intimidation tactics if she couldn't scare the Amazon into telling her what she wanted to know.
"Do I really need to spell it out for you, Xena?" the woman asked, crossing her arms as she looked the warrior in the eyes. For a moment Ephiny was reminded why half the village was in lust with the darker woman. Unfortunately for them, only one person held Xena's heart; even if she didn't know it yet. "If you don't understand what I mean by 'I don't know where she is', I'd be glad to put it in a way that you do."
"I understand what you mean!" Xena snapped at the infuriating woman in front of her. The outburst managed to catch the attention of a few working women. Seeing that she was causing a scene, the warrior closed her eyes, mentally counting to ten in order to keep her temper under control. Her efforts were futile, however. "What I don't understand is how you cannot know where the queen of your people is!"
"I'm not her babysitter," Ephiny replied with a shrug as she returned her attention to the project she had started that morning. She had been 'volunteered' by Solari to help with the decorations. "Why are you looking for her anyway? Shouldn't you be out hunting?"
"I know you know where she is," Xena said, avoiding the subject change. "Don't think I'm not afraid to put the pinch on you." Ephiny looked up from the wooden bird she was painting with an amused smirk.
"I don't think my queen will be happy to learn that you killed one of her friends," she responded before going back to her artwork. The amused look on her face disappeared when she realized how horrible the bird looked. Why did Solari have to sign her up for an arts and crafts project?
A low growl made her look up once more and the Amazon found herself staring into icy blue eyes again. All humor drained from her face and she involuntarily gulped. The last time she had seen Xena look so angry was after the fight with the bard in the village.
"You shouldn't forget that I'll be participating in a few of the competitions during the festival, Ephiny. I may not kill you but if you don't tell me where Gabrielle is right now, I will make sure you experience a world of pain when it's our turn to fight." The look in the warrior's eyes told Ephiny that the words were meant as more than a threat.
"Um... I uh... that is to say I..." The Amazon fumbled over her words as she took a step away from the darker woman. "Look, I really can't tell you where she is. I promised that I wouldn't," she finally managed to get out. She closed her eyes as she waited for Xena's response, not looking forward to whatever it would be. When silence greeted her, she cautiously opened one eye; only to find a smirking Warrior Princess.
"I don't know why you didn't just say that in the first place," a satisfied Xena told her. Before Ephiny knew what was going on, the darker woman was at her side and clapping her hand on her shoulder. "It's good to know that Gabrielle has someone around here that she can trust," she continued, laughing on the inside at the Amazon's discomfort. "I guess I should get back to hunting then."
"Um... Y-Yeah. Wouldn't want us to go hungry at the uh... the celebration tomorrow," Ephiny stammered as she watched the warrior's retreating back, unaware of the amused expression on said warrior's face. The look was soon replaced with one of frustration when she remembered that she was nowhere closer to finding Gabrielle than she had been that morning.
Starting the day after the fight with Velasca, it had seemed like the bard was avoiding the warrior. That had been three days ago and Gabrielle's behavior had only gotten stranger each morning. Xena would wake up and the blonde would already be laying on her side with a silly grin on her face as she stared at the warrior. Frankly, the fact that the bard had been able to wake up before her was unsettling enough. It didn't help that when she asked what Gabrielle was staring at, the blonde would never give her a straight answer. Her friend's strange behavior didn't stop there, though.
Whenever the warrior would get ready to go out in the morning, she could always feel Gabrielle's eyes following her every movement. She would look over only to find the blonde quickly diverting her gaze to their daughter, although there would be a small, mischievous smile on her face. It made Xena think that the bard was up to something. Her suspicions were only confirmed when her younger friend would evade her questions in the evenings about where she had been and what she had done during the day.
"Xena! Xena! Xena!" The familiar, energetic voice of a certain spunky, blonde girl grabbed the warrior's attention. Deciding that she would put off wondering about the bard until later, Xena looked in the direction that the voice was coming from. She turned just in time to catch an enthusiastic child jumping into her arms.
"And what are you up to, little girl?" she asked with a small smile as she lifted the girl up to eye level. The warrior still wasn't used to the idea that she was Nexa's other parent but she was willing to try to accept it. It would just take some time; and surprisingly the woman was looking forward to it.
"She's getting herself into trouble, that's what." Xena looked over the little girl's shoulder to see her son walking over to them. She smirked at his words, knowing that the bard's daughter had problems with staying out of trouble. She was a lot like her mother in that area.
"Oh really? And just what have you been doing to make Solan say something like that?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow as she spoke. Nexa gave her a sheepish look before ducking her head.
"Nothing..."
"Are you trying to call my son a liar?" Xena asked as she shifted the girl's weight so that she held her in one arm. The blonde girl's head shot up and she vehemently shook her head 'no' in response to the question. "I didn't think so. Now how about telling me what you were doing?"
"I wanted to go on Argo," the child admitted with a small shrug, a defeated look on her face as she spoke. "Jade said it wasn't a bad idea so I tried to get on."
"More like you tried to jump on from the stall door," Solan elaborated for her. He received a glare from the little girl in response. "Hey, don't look at me like that. You're the one that ran off and tried to pull the stunt."
"You're the one that was staring at Am'wice for a long time!" the blonde shot back, sticking her tongue out victoriously at the blushing teenager. Xena shook her head at the argument.
"You know, Nexa," Xena started, recapturing the blonde's attention. Bright, blue eyes stared into hers as the little girl waited to hear what she had to say. It was at that moment that the warrior began to wonder why she hadn't seen the resemblance before. "I would have taken you for a ride if you had just asked. Now I'm not so sure if I can trust you with my horse if you're going to try dangerous stunts like that," she said once she snapped out of her thoughts.
"But-"
"No 'buts' about it. And don't give me that look. It's not going to work," the warrior scolded her, wiping the pout off the blonde child's face. "Now the next time you want to go for a ride, come tell me."
"You're always busy, though," Nexa argued, crossing her arms over her chest and looking down at the ground. Xena sighed before hugging the small child close to her torso.
"I know that your mother and I haven't really had a lot of time lately," she told the girl apologetically, "but that doesn't mean we wouldn't be willing to make time for you." The warrior smiled at the girl before placing her back down on the ground. "So don't be afraid to ask, okay?" she said as she tweaked the child's nose. Nexa's eyes brightened with delight as she nodded.
"Okay, Xena! Can we go ride now?" The warrior chuckled and patted the girl on the head.
"Do you think you can wait until I get back from hunting?" she asked. The blonde girl seemed to think about it for a moment before nodding her head once more. "Good. I'll make it worth the wait. Any chance you want to join me, Solan?"
"Um... I don't think that would be a wise decision," he mumbled, ducking his head in embarrassment as he remembered what had happened the last time he had gone hunting with his mother. "Maybe next time?" he offered, knowing that his mother was trying to find a way to spend time with him.
"I'll think about it," she told him before reaching over and affectionately ruffling his hair, much to his annoyance. Then she remembered that there were other people around and, feeling awkward about showing the tender side of herself around virtual strangers, straightened up. "I'll um... I should go. If you two see Gabrielle, tell her I've been looking for her."
Solan watched his mother's retreating back, shaking his head at her inability to show affection in strange places. He loved her dearly but sometimes he wished that she would stop feeling so self-conscious about her reputation. It wasn't like people were going to think less of her for caring. The blonde boy sighed before he turned to see a half pouting, half glaring little girl standing next to him.
"What?"
"You told on me!" the girl replied, crossing her arms as she waited for an explanation for his, in her eyes, unforgivable deed.
"Nexa, did you really think that I wouldn't tell her? You could have gotten hurt," he said as he crouched so that he was eye-level with the little girl and placed a hand on her shoulder. The girl shrugged it off and turned away from him, trying not to listen to him. "Don't be like that. I just don't want you getting hurt. You're like a younger sister to me and I don't want anything to happen to you because of a silly mistake."
That seemed to get the little girl's attention. She turned her head back so that she was facing Solan again, her eyes watery with unshed tears. For some reason she had needed to hear those words.
"I'm really like a sister to you?" she asked with a sniffle before she wiped her arm over her blue eyes. She didn't want to cry in front of the older boy over such a stupid reason. When she removed her forearm she saw that Solan was smiling.
"Of course you are. If you weren't, I would have told Xena the whole story. I don't want you getting into too much trouble, though," he answered, the smile turning into a smirk. "I don't think she would ever let you near her horse again if she found out that you had been able to actually ride Argo. And if Gabrielle found out, I don't think she'd let you anywhere near the stables or the riding circle."
The mention of the bard's over-protective nature when it came to matters dealing with her daughter made Nexa giggle before she slipped a hand into Solan's larger one. The girl smiled up at the boy before gently tugging him along behind her as she started walking. The older boy immediately realized where they were going.
Over the last few days, the two of them had been exploring the village and the areas around it while the adults prepared the celebration. Everything they saw fascinated the two explorers. The trees that surrounded the village were larger than any Solan had ever seen. He hoped that once he became more versed in the ways of the bard, he could accurately describe the beauty of the picture that the changing leaves falling from the branches produced.
Nexa, on the other hand, was entranced by the practice drills that some of the women were doing with swords and staffs. None of them were as good as Xena, but she always found herself openly staring whenever they passed the practice fields. She wanted to be able to do that someday.
The place that Nexa loved the most, however, was outside of the settlement. Her excitement started to build as she led Solan out of the village and in the familiar direction of her favorite spot. They had to make a brief trek through the forest, Nexa having more difficulty than the boy when it came to climbing over logs and rocks, but the journey was well worth it when they made it to their destination.
The little girl squealed in delight when they broke from the trees and found themselves in a clearing that had a large lake in the center. While Solan wouldn't let her go swimming yet, the blonde girl enjoyed being near the water. She usually had the chance to watch the Amazons fish and carry buckets of water from the lake back to the village.
"How'd I know you were going to lead us here?" Solan asked with a smirk. Nexa grinned in response before hurrying off to her favorite spot to sit and observe. The older boy playfully rolled his eyes before following after the hyper, little girl. When he caught up to her she was already scrambling to climb her favorite tree.
"Be careful. I don't want to explain to your mother why you have a broken arm or something," he cautioned her. The warning made the little blonde giggle as she easily stepped onto a nearby branch. "I'm serious, Nexa. Don't do anything dangerous."
"I'm an Am'zon Princess. Am'zons climb trees. I can climb trees," she reasoned with him as she searched for another branch. Her eyes lit up when she saw one she could reach and grabbed hold of it. She pulled herself up with a grunt and was soon sitting on the sturdy branch with a victorious smile on her face. When she looked down, however, a frown replaced the smile. She still wasn’t very high up. Solan seemed to think differently, though.
“That’s high enough. I don’t want you falling and breaking something,” he told her. To his frustration, Nexa smiled down at him before standing on the branch and climbing up even higher. “Fine. Don’t expect me to catch you when you fall!” The boy crossed his arms over his chest in annoyance but he still kept his eyes on the adventurous young girl.
Nexa hadn’t heard the older boy’s words. She was too absorbed in her task. It was getting harder and harder for her to find branches that she could reach without jumping. She didn’t think that Solan would like it if he saw her jump onto another branch. So caught up in finding a branch low enough for her to reach, Nexa didn’t feel the curious pair of eyes watching her.
“What are you doing?” The unfamiliar voice of another girl nearly made the blonde lose her balance. She quickly reached out with her hand and steadied herself using the trunk of the tree. When she looked over, Nexa found a dark haired girl watching her from a nearby branch, a curious expression on her dirty face. The clothes she wore weren’t much better; mud and grass stains covered most of the tunic’s fabric and the brown leggings had tears everywhere.
“Climbing,” the blonde answered, although she thought that much was obvious. Why else would she be up in the tree?
“That’s not what it looks like,” the stranger told her. “It looks more like you’re just standin’ there, starin’ at the tree. Do you think it’s goin' to talk or somethin’ if you keep lookin' at it funny?” Nexa’s eyes narrowed at the girl’s words. She didn’t like being teased.
“Well at least I’m not just sitting,” she said as she put her hands on her hips, daring the girl to come up with a response to that. Then a frown crossed her face. “Why are you sitting there?” she asked, her curiosity outweighing her anger at the girl. The stranger seemed hesitant to answer, fidgeting slightly as she sat on the branch.
“I’m stuck,” she finally replied, shrugging as if it wasn’t that big of a deal.
“How’d you get stuck?”
“How do you think I got stuck?” the girl asked, her eyes full of an angry fire when she looked back up at the blonde girl. “I climbed up here and now I don’t remember how to get back down!”
“Well that’s easy, silly,” Nexa told her, missing the annoyed look on the other girl’s face as she started to demonstrate how to get down. “Watch. It’s just like climbing up only you‘re going the other way,” the blonde explained as she looked for a branch to step down on. It didn’t take her long and soon she was staring up at the girl with an expectant expression on her young face.
“A-Are you sure there isn’t more to it?” the dark haired girl asked. Nexa nodded her reassurance and watched as the stranger cautiously reached out with her foot to a lower branch. She heard the girl whimper in fear but she didn’t say anything.
“See? It wasn’t that hard,” she said with a smile once the girl had slid off her branch and was safely standing on the branch above and to the right of her. “Think you can keep up with me?” she asked with a wide grin once the other girl was level with her but on a different branch.
“’Course I can!” the girl replied indignantly. “I’ll race you to the bottom to prove it,” she said, raising her head slightly as she issued the challenge. She didn’t wait for Nexa to answer, instead opting to start climbing down right away.
“Hey! You cheated!” Nexa called. Seeing that her new friend wasn’t going to wait for a fair start, the blonde quickly began her descent. The blonde had an advantage over the other girl, however. After climbing the sycamore tree multiple times in the last three days, she knew every branch. It wasn’t long before she was level with her new friend again.
“How did you get here so fast?!” the other girl asked in surprise, momentarily losing her concentration. The mental lapse caused her to lose her footing and she soon found herself slipping backwards. When Nexa saw the other girl starting to fall, she reached out and grabbed hold of one of her hands.
Blue met brown once more before the weight of the other girl pulled them both down. Luckily, Nexa reached out with her free hand and managed to grab hold of the thick branch she had been standing on. Her grip didn’t last long though, and soon they were falling again, crashing through numerous branches on the way down.
By some miracle, the blonde was able to focus on a sturdy branch a little ways below them and, without thinking, threw her free arm out to hook onto it. She cried out in pain when her arm made contact with the branch but she released a sigh of relief when she realized that they had stopped falling. She looked down to see her new friend clinging to her other arm with both hands; her eyes shut as she muttered something that Nexa couldn‘t hear over and over to herself.
“It’s okay. We stopped. You can let go now,” she assured the girl attached to her arm. Terrified, brown eyes looked up at her and, seeing that they really had stopped falling, tentatively reached out for the nearest branch with her foot. Once she was sure the other girl was safe, Nexa quickly dropped to the branch beneath her, using the tree trunk to steady herself again.
“You okay?” she finally asked the spooked girl standing on the branch across from her. All she received was a rushed nod in response.
“Nexa! Nexa, are you alright?!” Solan’s familiar voice called. “Get down here!” he commanded. The blonde looked over at the other girl and gave her a smile before hurrying down the tree as fast as she could with one arm. The other one hurt too much to be of any use. “Thank the gods! I thought I heard you falling and... what happened to your arm?!”
The blonde ducked her head as she tried to cover the injured limb with her good one and failed miserably. She nervously kicked at the grass beneath her feet as she tried to think of what to tell Solan. There was no doubt in her mind that he would be upset with her for getting hurt when he told her not to.
“We fell...” she finally answered him. The boy could hear her sniffling but he wasn’t sure if it was because she was afraid of him or because of her arm. He could tell by the way she was holding it that it was hurting her.
“We?” he asked when her words finally registered. ‘This had better not be another stunt that she blames on Jade,’ he thought angrily. It had become a habit for the girl to imply that a lot of the trouble she got into was because of him. If this was one of those times, he would have to talk to Xena about getting rid of Nexa’s imaginary friend.
“There was a girl up there. We was racing,” she answered through her pained tears, immediately making the boy feel guilty. “She fell and I tried to catch her. I wasn’t strong enough and we fell,” she continued before raising her eyes up to meet Solan’s. “Why can’t I be strong like Xena? Why can’t I save people?”
“Nexa...” Solan wasn’t sure what to say, so he pulled the little girl to him and gave her a hug. “You’re four years old. There are some things that you just need to wait to be able to do,” he told her. “But from the looks of it, you did save her. Is she still up there?” He felt the little girl nod against his stomach in response. Looking up, he thought he saw a glimpse of a shadow in the branches of the tree.
“Hey! Come down here! I’m not going to hurt you!” he called up to the shadow in the tree. At first, he thought that he was imagining things because he didn’t receive a response. He was about to believe that his eyes were playing tricks on him before he heard angry muttering coming from the branches above him. Soon after, another little girl was dangling from the lowest branch, trying to get down.
“I got you,” he assured her as he placed his hands on her sides and eased her down to the ground next to Nexa. The two made a strange couple to look at, both of them covered in cuts and quickly forming bruises from head to toe. One was covered in grime while the other was sporting a broken arm. He shook his head at the banged-up pair, wondering if it was a sign of what was to come of the friendship that had obviously been forged in the tree.
“Hi,” he heard Nexa tentatively say to the other little girl with a shy smile. “I’m Nexa.” She stuck her good arm out, giggling at the late introduction.
“I’m... Varia,” the new girl said before hesitantly reaching out and grasping the blonde’s hand. She reluctantly returned the smile before letting go of Nexa’s hand, quickly bringing her own back to her side.
“That’s a funny name,” Nexa said with a giggle, the pain in her arm temporarily forgotten. Varia glared in response to the comment.
“And Nexa isn’t?” she asked, crossing her arms and looking away from the blonde girl. The anger didn’t last long, however, and she was soon turning back around and facing the girl that she had met in the tree. “Thank you. You um... you saved me,” she said gratefully.
“Nexa, I think we need to get back to the village and have your mother take you to the healer,” Solan said, finally interrupting the conversation between the two children. “You need to get your arm looked at,” he added on when she gave him a confused look.
“Do I have to? It doesn’t hurt so bad. I’ll live. I swear!” she told him with wide eyes. She didn’t want to go home and make her Momma upset. That would hurt more than her arm did. Tears instantly filled her blue eyes in an attempt to get the boy to listen to her.
“Don’t even try that with me. Your arm really needs to get treated,” he told her. “Maybe if you’re good, Gabrielle will let Varia come to see the healer with you,” he offered, knowing that the other girl needed to get looked at as well. Nexa sighed in defeat before nodding her head.
“Fine. But I won’t like it,” she told the boy before she started walking towards the tree line. She held her arm close to her torso, just to make sure it didn’t move anymore than it needed to. She didn’t want to have another reason for her Momma to be upset.
They hadn’t gone very far when Nexa realized that her new friend wasn’t with them. The blonde glanced over her shoulder and saw Varia shifting her weight from foot to foot. She gave the girl a smile as she nodded for her to catch up. There was a slight hesitation before the dark-haired child ran to catch up with them. Soon, the three of them were entering the forest and on their way back to the village.
It was a quiet walk back to the settlement. One girl was busy trying to ignore the sharp pains in her arm while the other was too nervous to say anything. Solan could see them shyly glancing at each other the whole way home, though. By the time they reached the border of the Amazon village, one girl finally managed to speak up.
"Who's the boy?" the dark-haired girl asked as they entered the village, leaning over to whisper in Nexa's ear so 'the boy' couldn't hear her.
"He's my big brother," the blonde replied with a proud smile. Her words made Varia's brow furrow in confusion. Puzzled, she glanced back at the boy that walked behind them. After she studied the boy that towered over her small frame, Varia turned back around.
“He can’t be your brother. He doesn’t look like you.”
“Of course he’s my brother!” Nexa told her in an angry hiss, giving the darker girl a defiant glare. The pain in her shoulder was making the blonde irritable. If being a hero always gave her booboos, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to be one. To her annoyance, Varia returned the look with a skeptical one of her own. “Solan! Tell her that you’re my brother!” she demanded as she turned to face the older boy. Solan just barely managed to stop himself before he could crash into the body that had suddenly stopped in front of him.
Realizing that the two girls were staring at him, waiting for an explanation, he nervously rubbed the back of his head. How was he supposed to explain to a little girl the connection between him and the little blonde. Looking around for some kind of hint, he caught a glimpse of Amazons still hard at work preparing for the celebration. An idea popped into his head at the sight.
“Well, Varia. While Nexa and I don’t share the same parents,” he started off, looking straight into expectant brown eyes, “we do consider each other family. We may not be connected by blood but we are connected by our hearts.” The boy had gently grabbed Nexa’s hand and placed it over his chest to show the meaning during the last part of the explanation. “Understand?”
“Yeah... I think I do,” the girl said with a hesitant nod of her head. She looked as if she was about to ask another question but the sudden appearance of a shadow towering over her small frame blocked out the sun. She looked up to see a worried blonde woman standing in front of her.
“Nexa! What happened to you?” the woman said as she crouched down to examine the blonde girl. Sudden realization dawned on the dark-haired girl that the woman was the blonde girl’s mother and she took a step to the side. She half-hoped that the grown-up wouldn’t see her. No such luck.
“And who’s your new friend?” Gabrielle asked once she had given her daughter a quick inspection. She would have to take her to see the healer but it appeared that they would be accompanied by the strange, little girl that appeared to be trying to make herself smaller than she already was.
“Nothing happened, Momma,” Nexa said with a shrug only to be reminded of her injured arm when pain flared through the entire limb. “Owwie!” she exclaimed in a pained shriek, quickly grabbing her shoulder with her hand.
“Mmhmm... It really looks like nothing,” Gabrielle told her stubborn daughter. “Come on. How about I take you and your new friend to see the healer?” She didn’t wait for an answer, gently taking her daughter’s hand in one of her own as she stood up. She held out her free hand to the other little girl. The bard watched as the girl hesitantly grabbed hold of the offered hand before leading them to the healer’s hut, Solan trailing behind them.
When they entered the hut, the healing woman was mixing together a variety of herbs that Gabrielle didn’t recognize. The bard didn’t say anything right away, not wanting to interrupt her work. After a few seconds though, the woman was done with her task. She went to put the mixture on a nearby shelf, only to jump in surprise at the guests standing in the doorway.
“My queen! What brings you here? You aren’t hurt, are you?” the woman asked as she placed the bowl on the shelf and walked over. Gabrielle blushed as the older Amazon started to inspect her.
“Er, no. I’m fine. It’s my daughter and her friend that need to be looked after,” she told the grey-haired woman, who was now circling behind her. She could feel the healer’s curious eyes on her, trying to find any signs of a new injury, and it made an uneasy tingle run up her spine. “Really. Xena has been taking good care of me.”
“Well it’s good to know that the warrior knows something besides fighting,” the woman said as she walked around the bard once more so that she was in front of her once more. Gabrielle’s ire rose at the comment. She was about to defend her friend when the healer started speaking again. “Hm... It looks like the princess’s shoulder is dislocated. Set her on the cot and I‘ll fix it right up.”
Letting the previous comment about Xena slide for the moment, the bard led her daughter and the little girl over to open cot and had them sit down. The healer was at the bedside in no time with a sling in her hand, which she quickly handed to Gabrielle. The blonde glared at the healer before grabbing hold of her daughter‘s hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze. Nexa gave her a brave smile in return. The smile didn’t last long.
Without warning, the healer moved the dislocated bone back into its socket. The blonde child shrieked in surprise and then pain after the bone was back in place. It hurt more than it had when she had wrapped it around the branch. She bit back tears but couldn’t stop the small whimpers that escaped her throat. Seeing her daughter’s distress, Gabrielle pulled the child close to her. She whispered reassuring words into her ear before coaxing the girl into putting her arm into the sling.
“You could have warned her,” the blonde said, glaring at the healer once more. The older woman merely shrugged in response before walking away. “Hey! What about her?” She nodded towards the little girl that had walked into the village with Nexa and Solan. The healer turned to look at the girl before shaking her head.
“She’s not an Amazon. She’s not my problem.” Before the older woman knew it, her queen was standing toe-to-toe with her. While she was taller than the blonde, the angry fire in the green eyes made her involuntarily swallow and take a step back.
“She is a child in pain. It shouldn’t matter that she isn’t an Amazon!” Gabrielle growled, hiding her surprise that the child wasn’t a part of the tribe. “Then again, after seeing how you treated the Amazon Princess, I don’t think I want you taking care of her. I don‘t know how you can call yourself a healer after that little display.”
The bard didn’t wait for the healer to respond. She spun on her heels and walked back over to the cot. Without a word, she picked up her sniffling daughter with one arm and grabbed the other girl’s grimy hand with her own. The blonde turned her head to glare at the healer once more before leaving the hut.
“You know, you really shouldn’t have done that,” Solan told the healer once Gabrielle was out of earshot. “You don’t want her as an enemy.” When the only answer he got from the grey-haired woman was a sneer, he turned away and followed after his friend. It didn’t take him long to realize they were going back to the queen’s hut.
Meanwhile, Xena had returned from the successful hunt with a group of young Amazons; one of which was the friendly Iliana. While the girl was almost as talkative as a younger Gabrielle, the warrior was pleased to learn that the Amazon knew when to silence herself during the hunt. When they were free to talk, however, Xena also discovered that Ephiny was the teenager’s favorite subject. She mentally smirked to herself at the memory of the conversations during the hunt, knowing that Ephiny was going to have her hands full with the energetic adolescent.
The warrior half-listened to the chatter going on between the younger women as her eyes scanned the village for a certain bard. She was about to give up the search when she caught a shock of blonde hair out of the corner of her eye. Xena was surprised to see a furious bard heading for the hut with her daughter in one arm and an unfamiliar child holding her other hand.
Not bothering to excuse herself from the group, the warrior hurried after her friend. She didn’t expect the hostile atmosphere that greeted her when she opened the door to the queen’s hut, though. She was nearly bowled over by the pacing blonde, whose fists were clenched tightly at her sides.
“I can’t believe the nerve of that woman! Who does she think she is, calling herself a healer?” Xena heard the bard say in a low growl. “I’ve seen prison guards more compassionate than her!” The warrior raised her eyebrow at the ranting, surprised at the anger radiating from the blonde.
“Gabrielle?” Piercing, green eyes snapped towards her, softening when the bard realized who was addressing her. “Something on your mind?” she asked with a smirk. It quickly disappeared when the anger returned to her friend’s eyes.
“Xena, will you... will you take a look at Nexa’s shoulder? I took her to see the healer but that woman...” There was a growl of frustration before Gabrielle reined in her temper again. “That woman shouldn’t be allowed near a healer’s hut, much less in one!”
“Calm down,” the warrior said. “I’ll take care of these two while you fill me in on what happened with the healer.” Xena waited until Gabrielle nodded in response before going into Gabrielle’s room and grabbing the healing supplies that she would need. When she returned to the living space, the bard appeared to be in control of her emotions. “Come here, Nexa,” she told the girl, who obediently walked over to the warrior.
By the time Xena was done taking care of the two children, Gabrielle had related the story about the healer and they had both learned that their daughter’s new friend was named Varia. The warrior frowned once the bard finished filling her in. Any good healer would have tried to lessen the child’s discomfort before putting the bone back in place. Xena also found it odd that the woman refused to take care of the other girl, simply because she wasn’t an Amazon.
“Well, she didn’t permanently damage anything,” Xena finally concluded as she stood to her full height. She didn’t miss the awed look on Varia’s face as the girl stared up at her. “Although I will have to give her a proper education on bedside manners...” She received a grateful smile from her friend before the bard walked over to the two children.
“So, Varia... You’re not an Amazon?” she asked as she crouched down to their level. The dark-haired girl shook her head in response. “Well then where did you come from?” There was a shrug before the girl lowered her gaze, apparently finding something on the floor that interested her. “Where are your parents?” Another shrug. Gabrielle glanced at Xena, rolling her eyes when the warrior mimicked Varia’s action. “When was the last time you saw them?”
“I dunno,” the girl answered in a quiet whisper, adding another shrug for emphasis. “The last time I saw them, a warlord was takin’ us away from our village. He said somethin’ ’bout us makin’ good slaves. I didn’t wanna be a slave so I ran away. I... I dunno where my family is now.”
Gabrielle watched as the young girl struggled to keep her composure. The story certainly explained the state that Varia was in. It looked like she hadn’t been bathed or fed properly in weeks. Her heart went out to the child. She wondered how long she had been wandering on her own.
“Hey, it’s alright,” the bard told the girl as she reached out and pulled her into a quick embrace, her natural motherly instincts kicking in. “I’m sure we can help you find them again,” she assured the girl, giving her a quick kiss on the top of the head. She had to resist making a face when could taste the dirt in Varia’s hair. “But before we can do that, I think you need to get cleaned up.”
“That’s the understatement of the century,” Xena remarked with a chuckle. Gabrielle rolled her eyes at the comment. The warrior smirked at the action, much to the bard’s annoyance. “I’ll go see if I can get one of your many subjects to bring you some water.”
“Ugh. Please don’t call them that to their faces,” the blonde said. Her friend winked back at her in response before exiting the hut. Gabrielle shook her head at her friend’s actions before turning her attention back on the two children. “I guess after the tumble from the tree you both could use some cleaning up.”
Two baths and one very painful brushing later, Xena and Gabrielle finally had both girls tucked in to the spare bedroom. The bard had to smile at the sight of seeing her daughter with a friend closer to her age. She also had to laugh at Varia’s discomfort when they put her in clean clothes. The pout on the dark-haired girl’s had been priceless.
Gabrielle sighed as she quietly closed the door to the room, leaving the two youngsters in peace. She jumped when she turned around and met suspicious, blue eyes. A nervous chuckle escaped her throat. She knew exactly why the warrior was looking at her with an expectant expression on her face.
“H-Hello, Xena,” she stammered, not used to the woman being so close to her unless she was comforting her. “How was your day?”
“Oh, you know,” the woman said with a shrug, “same as the last three. Helping out with the hunt.”
“Oh really?” Gabrielle asked as she quickly moved away from the warrior. Xena was getting too close for comfort and the bard didn’t want to do something she would regret. Not yet, anyways. She wanted to wait until the right moment to put everything on the line. “How um... How did that go?” she questioned, trying to ignore the gaze that followed her move as she pretended to straighten her tunic.
“You know, I really want to tell you, but my memory’s a little vague,” the warrior replied. Gabrielle just knew that the warrior was smirking at her. “Maybe if you tell me what you did today, it’ll help me remember and I’ll be able to give you all of the details.”
“Well, I um... I did queen... stuff,” the bard answered, stammering uncharacteristically. She did not want to have this conversation. “You know, boring stuff that no one else wants to do.”
“Oh really?” Xena asked, repeating the bard’s words from earlier. “I find that hard to believe but if you don’t want to tell me what you did, I guess I can’t make you tell me,” the warrior said with a shrug. Gabrielle didn’t see the wicked grin on her face until it was too late.
“Xena, you wouldn’t.” The grin widened, giving the bard her answer. “Xena, I’m injured! You don’t want to harm an already injured person, do you? That’s against your code of honor, isn’t it?” The blonde was backing up as she spoke, hoping to get into her room before her friend could come after her.
“Oh, I don’t know. I think I can throw that code out for tonight,” Xena told her before running at the blonde. Gabrielle made it into her room but she didn’t have enough time to close her door. Before she knew it, she was laying on her bed with the warrior princess hovering above her, tickling her mercilessly.
“Xena!” she squealed as she tried to wriggle out of the warrior’s grasp. Her struggling was futile and her friend’s persistent hands were tickling her ribs. The bard tried to get the larger woman off her but she was so busy laughing that her attempts failed miserably. It wasn’t until she was completely out of breath that Xena finally rolled off of her.
“Alright, little bard. Keep your secret. I’ll get it out of you one of these days, though,” the warrior said while the bard fought to catch her breath. It had been a long time since they had played like that. Finally feeling as if things were going back to normal, back to the days before Perdicas, Gabrielle allowed herself a wide smile for the first time since the fiasco with the Amazons had started.
Looking over to the other side of the bed, she realized that her friend was already asleep. The bard thought for a moment before closing her eyes. She was going to need all of the energy she could get for the next day’s activity. Especially if she was able to go through with her plan.
As the bard predicted, the day of the celebration was busy. It was especially harder for her to avoid Xena. It seemed that wherever she went, the warrior followed, determined not to lose her. It didn’t matter if she would sit at a childish play or shop; her friend was right on her tail. She could tell that the warrior was enjoying her frustration by the smirk on her face.
It wasn’t until the Amazons gathered for the combat competitions that the bard finally got rid of Xena, the warrior having to prepare for her first fight. Of course, that meant she had no time to prepare the what she had planned for later that night. She sighed to herself as she collapsed on the throne that sat on a high platform in front of the fighting ring. The queen had to preside over the competition to make sure every match was a fair fight.
‘With Xena in the ring, how can any fight be fair?’ she thought with a smirk before butterflies began to fill her stomach. Her mind wasn’t on the fight in front of her, but on her plans for later that night. She suddenly felt a wave of dread pass through her. What if she screwed up?
“Would you like a drink, My Queen? You look a little parched?” Gabrielle looked over from her seat and gave the young girl a smile. She recognized her. She had been one of the Amazons against Velasca. Digging to the back of her mind, she recalled her name.
“If it wouldn’t be a problem, I’d really appreciate it,” she told the girl. She was rewarded with a smile and a cup handed to her from the tray that the young Amazon was holding. “And Elena,” she started, smiling at the surprised look on the girl’s face, “it’s just Gabrielle. Please.” The bard watched as emotions seemed to war over the Amazon’s face before Elena nodded her head. “Thank you,” she said before taking a sip of the liquid in the cup.
She nearly spit it out but managed to hold back the reflex in time to stop herself from looking like a complete idiot. She swallowed the concoction before looking down into her cup. Her eyes widened when she realized what she was drinking.
‘Wine,’ she thought. ‘I’ve never had wine before. I wonder...’ Gabrielle glanced up from the cup to see if anyone was around before realizing how stupid she was being. She was a grown woman. She should be allowed to drink.
That thought firmly in mind, the bard took another sip of the liquid. She couldn’t quite put a name to the taste. For some reason it tasted sweet, bitter, and sour all at once. Even when she drained the goblet, Gabrielle couldn’t tell which taste was dominant. She could, however, tell that she was beginning to get a little warm, even in the little bit of clothes she was in. She had decided to stick with the outfit Aphrodite had given her, although a few of her sister Amazons had added a necklace and earrings to the look.
‘Maybe if I try another one, I’ll be able to figure out what it tastes like,’ she reasoned with herself before she called Elena over. The girl filled her goblet again, smiling at the queen before migrating to the council members that shared the platform.
Remembering that she was supposed to be watching the fights, Gabrielle returned her attention to the ring below the platform. She grinned when she noticed that it was Xena fighting. Her eyes followed every graceful movement, marveling at the sight of the dangerous dance with the swords. She could see the woman’s muscles taught beneath smooth, tan skin as she prepared for each attack.
Gabrielle watched as her warrior block blow after blow before countering with an even more powerful attack. When she realized that her mouth was slightly hanging open, she shook herself out of the self-induced trance and took a sip of the wine in her goblet. She frowned when she still couldn’t put a name to the taste. She took another sip with the same end results. The bard was going to take one more when the fight grabbed her attention again.
Xena had somersaulted clear over her opponents head, landing behind her with her sword pointed at the back of the woman’s neck. Gabrielle giggled to herself when she noticed the frustrated look on Xena’s opponent’s face.
‘Another one falls to the Warrior Princess,’ her hazy mind provided as she took another sip. ‘I bet none of them fell as hard as you did,’ she thought with a goofy grin, a strange pride bubbling in her chest. A scowl replaced it when she went to take another drink and noticed that the goblet was empty again. There was another call for Elena and soon she had a full cup again.
By the time Gabrielle had finished her fourth drink, the sun had gone down and she still couldn’t tell what the wine tasted like, although she knew she was getting close. She also couldn’t figure out who kept tipping the platform she was sitting on. She could, however, tell that the fights were over. Of course, the only reason she figured it out was because every eye in the village was on her. Even then, she was slightly oblivious to what was going on.
“Oh!” she exclaimed when she realized why everyone was looking at her. She quickly stood from her seat only to fall back down. She let out a growl of frustration, glaring at her wobbly legs, before getting back up again. Keeping her arms out for balance, she shakily walked to the edge of the platform.
“Well um... er... I guess you won, Xena,” she announced, all of the words she had prepared for the intended speech escaping her mind. The bard rapidly blinked, trying to clear the cobwebs from her mind. “Wait! I have a speech in here somewhere. I know it!” she told the Amazons as she held up a hand. Gabrielle was silent as she tried to reclaim the lost words. When none came to mind, she shook her head in an attempt to clear it so she could focus.
It wasn’t until she heard the collective gasp that it registered in her head that she was falling through the air. She barely had time to panic before she landed with a loud ‘oomph’ in a pair of strong arms. She smiled when she looked up into worried, azure irises.
She heard the clearing of someone’s throat and looked up to see that Ephiny had taken her place on the platform. The bard tilted her head back to get a better view, only to have it go back too far. She found herself staring at another Amazon’s legs instead of her friend.
‘Not as nice as Xena’s legs,’ she thought with a giggle before Ephiny’s words began to penetrate her disoriented mind.
“As our queen so eloquently put it, I guess it would appear that the Warrior Princess has won the tournament,” the curly-haired Amazon announced, a smile on her face despite the black eye she had been given by the warrior. It would match the assortment of bruises she had received on her arms and torso as well. She had given as good as she got, though. “Congratulations, Xena. You truly are the Queen’s Champion.”
A roar of applause ripped through the village, along with loud cheers. Xena didn’t hear any of it, however, more distracted by the arms that had wrapped themselves around her neck. She looked down and found herself staring into twinkling, emerald eyes. Although they were clouded over, the warrior couldn’t help thinking they were still beautiful.
“Mm... a truly gorgeous Champion at that,” her inebriated friend said, apparently able to find her words once more. The warrior chuckled as she set her friend down on the ground. She had to stifle a laugh and grab hold of the bard’s arm when Gabrielle stumbled backwards.
“Yep. And you are a truly drunk Queen,” she told the younger woman. “A drunk queen that needs to get to bed,” she added on as the drums began playing around the fighting circle. She had no doubt that the blonde would be hearing a different set of drums in the morning.
“Whatever you... Whatever you say, Xena,” the blonde said as she stumbled after her friend. Before they could leave the celebration, however, the bard stopped in her tracks. Xena turned to see what the problem was, only to find a smirking Gabrielle.
“Come on. The sooner I get you back to the hut, the sooner I can give you the hangover remedy,” the warrior said, giving a gentle tug on the bard’s arm.
“Wait, Xena! There was something I was going to do tonight and I know it was important,” the blonde said, holding up her free arm as she tried to remember. Xena was about to give another tug before the hazy, green eyes lit up. “I remember! Follow me!” The bard didn’t wait for the warrior to answer, tugging her back towards the group of Amazons.
“Gabrielle, I don’t really think you’re in the right state of-”
“Shush!” the bard shouted, placing two fingers on the taller woman’s lips. “I wanted to show you what I’ve been practicing,” she explained before grabbing hold of Xena’s other hand. “Now watch. I am gonna show ya that I can... that I can dance!”
The warrior sighed as a determined expression appeared on her inebriated friend’s face. She just knew her feet were going to hate her in the morning, but she allowed the smaller woman to pull her close to her. To her surprise though, the bard didn’t step on her feet. Looking down, she saw she saw the blonde biting down on her lip, a sign that she was trying to concentrate.
Xena didn’t know how long they danced with each other. All she knew was the Gabrielle was pressed close to her, laying her head on her chest. If she hadn’t been so caught up in the moment, the warrior would have been surprised that her friend wasn’t tripping over her own feet. Instead, the rest of the world had melted away and it was only her and the bard pressed close together with the firelight dancing on the bard's skin. It was similar to the memory she had of Amphipolis. Only, Gabrielle had constantly been stepping on her feet during that dance.
“So this is what you’ve been up to the last three days,” Xena remarked with a smile. The smile grew when she got a nod in response. “Well, it paid off,” she whispered in the younger woman’s ear. She chuckled at the blush she could see spreading on the blonde’s neck. What she didn’t realize was that the bard planned to pay her back.
Just as Xena was pulling her head away from the bard’s ear, Gabrielle’s hand snaked itself behind the warrior’s neck and held it where it was as she leaned forward and soundly kissed her friend. Pale eyes widened at the action as the warrior tried to pull away. A strong hand prevented it and her reluctance only made Gabrielle deepen the drunken kiss.
Realizing that the bard wasn’t going to let her go, Xena returned the kiss. She wasn’t surprised to find that she was enjoying it. She had been waiting a long time to show her friend how she felt but there was a voice in the back of her mind, reminding her that the bard was drunk and had no idea what she was doing.
‘I really shouldn’t be doing this,’ her rational mind thought before willing herself to break the kiss. She waited to see if her body pulled away. She mentally sighed when it didn’t do as it was told. Luckily, the bard ran out of air and stumbled backwards. There was a big grin plastered on her face after she caught her balance.
“Wow!” Gabrielle told her. “I mean, wow! You’re beautiful and you can... and you really know how to kiss!” Those were the last conscious words the bard said before tumbling forward. Strong arms caught her before she hit the ground though, and curious eyes watched as the warrior that had saved her from a nasty meeting with the ground carried their queen back to the hut, bridal style.
Once they were back to Gabrielle’s room, Xena gently set the unconscious woman on the bed. She felt like she was tucking a child in as she pulled the blanket up over the bard’s shivering form. After she covered the blonde up, she took a seat on the side of the bed and shook her head. She couldn’t believe that she had let Gabrielle kiss her.
The thought of her friend made her look down at the figure on the bed. There was a sleepy smile on the face that was framed by messy, blonde hair. Xena chuckled to herself before her hand reached out on its own accord and brushed away a strand of hair in front of her friend’s face. She was surprised when a slender hand reached up and grabbed her wrist.
“Xena...”
“I’m right here, Gabrielle,” she assured the younger woman in a low whisper. “Go to sleep. You’ll regret it in the morning if you don’t.”
“Whatever you say, Xena,” her friend sighed, closing sleepy, green eyes. A few seconds of silence went by before green eyes shot open again. “Xena!”
“Still here, Gabrielle. Don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere,” she assured the blonde. ‘Unless you want me to,’ she mentally added on.
“Xena, I need to tell you something... something impor... important,” the blonde stammered.
“Tell me in the morning, sleepy head. Judging by the state you’re in right now, you won’t be able to remember what you wanted to tell me,” the warrior teased her before getting up from the side of the bed and heading for the door.
“Where are you going?”
“I’m going to let you get some sleep.”
“Come back? Please?” The pleading voice sent shivers down Xena’s spine. Her emotions warred inside her before she came to a decision and walked over to the other side of the bed and climbed under the blankets. “Thank you,” the bard whispered before rolling over and laying her arm over the warrior. While the drunken blonde was asleep in no time, Xena knew she’d be getting very little sleep that night.
While the Amazons were celebrating their new queen’s victory, the former queen of the Amazons was drowning herself in alcohol in a town near the village. A scowl seemed to be permanently etched on her face, making even the waitresses wary of going near her. She spent her time glaring at anyone that looked at her, even resorting to barking at any young man that tried to buy her a drink.
“Oh how the mighty have fallen.” A masculine voice came from across her table. When she looked up from her mug, she was disgusted to indeed find a member of the male species sitting across from her with a smug smirk on his face. She simply scowled in return.
“Not that I really care, but what do you want?” she asked when the look didn’t get him to leave her alone. To her annoyance, the dark-haired man leaned forward with a smile on his face.
“It doesn’t matter what I want. All that matters is what you want,” he told her with a smirk. “And you want that irritating, blonde Gabrielle dead.” He didn’t miss the anger that flared in the psychotic brown eyes at the mention of Xena’s sidekick. “You see, it would appear that you and I have a few things in common. We’re both warriors, we both love pain... and it would seem we both want the brat dead.”
“I want that little girl more than dead! I want her to suffer to her last breath while I destroy everything she ever loved!” Velasca growled as she slammed her drink on the table and got to her feet. The man laughed at her exuberance before standing as well and holding out a hand for her to shake. She stared at it for a moment, wondering if she really wanted to touch the man, before grabbing his arm with her own hand and shaking it.
“The name’s Ares, Velasca, and I have a feeling that we can be of great... assistance... to each other,” he told her with a confident smirk. It appeared that his new scheme was going just as planned.