Gabrielle could feel many pairs of eyes, both familiar and unfamiliar, staring at her as a hush fell over the village and the Amazons stopped whatever they were doing. None of the looks she could feel on her were as frightening as the glare that Velasca was leveling at her. It was also true that none of the looks she was receiving felt as loving and supportive as the one she could feel coming from Xena. Before she could figure out how she knew it was Xena's eyes that were focused on her, one of the Amazons standing beside Velasca erupted in laughter.
"You? You're the one that Terreis entrusted the future of our tribe to? You have got to be kidding me." The bard found herself hard-pressed to hold her head up with a sense of pride she did not feel as the laughter rang in her ears. To her surprise though, the reigning Amazon queen quickly put a stop to the laughter with a hard elbow to her follower's side, causing her to bend at the waist and try to recover the breath she had lost. Before the other woman could accomplish the small task, Velasca had brought an elbow down on her exposed back, knocking her to the ground and giving her a good taste of the dirt that they stood on.
"Now Eva... is that any way to treat our 'true' queen?" she asked the downed woman with an arrogant smirk before looking back up at Gabrielle, who was stunned by the display. How could she treat one of her own followers that way? "I hope you'll pardon Eva's rude behavior. As great a fighter as she is, I still haven't been able to drill any manners into that small mind of hers."
Gabrielle looked from the back of the short-haired redhead on the ground to the piercing brown eyes of the queen that stood in front of her. She was reminded of Callisto's muddy brown eyes but Velasca's lacked the fondness that the insane blonde had developed. Instead, she saw anger, possibly even intense hatred, burning in the dark irises behind the cover of insincere politeness.
"I... Was that really necessary?" she asked when she finally found her voice again.
"Was it necessary? Gabrielle, this is a tribe of warriors. Discipline is always necessary," Velasca told her as the Amazon known as Eva started to rise to her feet once more. The action prompted the acting queen to throw a kick at her head, successfully knocking the other Amazon unconscious. A chuckle escaped her throat as she crouched down next to fallen woman and took her chin in her hands. "Most definitely necessary."
Seeing the satisfied smile on the other woman's face as she crouched next to Eva took Gabrielle back to her own time with Perdicas. How often had she found herself in the same position that the redhead was in? An involuntary shudder ran up her spine as she fought off the memories. It wouldn't be very impressive to her future subjects if she ended up in a flashback like she had when she was fighting Ephiny.
"What's the matter, Blondie? Do you not agree with my methods?" the Amazon asked as she got to her feet and crossed her arms, waiting for Gabrielle's answer.
"Not really, no." There was a collective intake of air as the Amazon tribe held their breath to see what Velasca's response would be to the unspoken challenge that Gabrielle had made with her words. Most of those in the tribe were wondering why neither Velasca nor Gabrielle had offered a royal challenge yet.
"And how would you propose I handle such outbursts as hers? With words? From what I've heard about you, those seem to be very precious to you," Velasca inquired as she took a step closer to the blonde. Gabrielle heard the group of travelers move behind her but put a halt to their advancement with a gesture of her hand. As nice as it was knowing that her friends were there to back her up, the bard knew she had to handle Velasca on her own or the other Amazons would never respect her, let alone listen to her decisions.
"What you've heard about me and who I really am are two different things," Gabrielle said, making sure to maintain eye contact with the other queen. "Do you really want to take the chance that the stories you've heard are true?"
Even from her position behind Gabrielle, Xena could clearly see the flash of doubt flicker through Velasca's eyes. She didn't blame the Amazon, either. She knew Gabrielle better than anyone, yet the way she had issued the dare had made shivers run up the warrior's spine. She was again reminded that this wasn't the same innocent bard that had traveled with her all those years ago.
"So what's your answer, Velasca? Are you going to risk everything on a few stories you've heard about me or are you going to step down peacefully?" Gabrielle asked again. Everyone in the village held their breath as they waited for Velasca's response.
"My, my, my... it would seem that those stories didn't cover everything about you," Velasca said with a chuckle. "Well then, you are the rightful queen. It is my duty as an Amazon to step down and allow you to rule now that you've returned." The darker woman kneeled before pulling the queen's necklace off of her neck and removing the queen's mask. She politely handed both objects to Gabrielle, but the bard could see the hatred burning behind the royal façade that Velasca was putting up.
"Thank you. The tribe is eternally grateful to you for ruling in my absence," the blonde said as she made a mental note to keep an eye on the deposed queen. "Now if you'll excuse us, we've had a long journey and we would appreciate it if we could retire for the evening."
"You're the queen. You don't need to ask for our permission," Velasca reminded her as she stood back up. "However, Ephiny is still a traitor to the nation. She should be punished accordingly." Gabrielle watched the Amazon's dark eyes focus on the curly haired blonde that was standing behind her before quickly speaking up.
"Ephiny is under my custody at the moment. If I decide a crime has been committed, then we'll talk," she said, rewarded with a small sigh of relief from her friend.
"But she went to the centaurs and gave them valuable information!" Velasca protested. "Because of her, we lost sisters to those animals and we can never get them back."
"From what I've heard, Ephiny had her reasons for divulging that information," Gabrielle countered. "Now if you'll excuse us, we'll be going to the queen's hut. And I mean all of my guests. That means Solan and Armon are coming, too," she clarified before leading her group to the hut, leaving no room for the former queen to object. She could feel Velasca's hateful eyes burning into the back of her neck all the way to the large queen's hut. A sigh of relief escaped her when she shut the door on the angry glare.
As soon as she turned away from the wooden door, she was faced with two pairs of bright blue eyes. One was filled with concern, the other with curiosity.
"Gabrielle, are you alright?" Xena asked as she shifted Nexa's weight in her arms. The blonde Amazon smiled and nodded her head before reaching over and taking her daughter from her warrior friend.
"I'm fine. Just not sure if I should have provoked her by keeping the boys with me and Ephiny out of prison."
"Well, it wasn't the smartest decision, that's for sure," Ephiny chimed in from her spot leaning against the wall as she crossed her arms over her chest.
"I don't see you complaining about being a free woman," Gabrielle said with a half smirk, which was returned by the curly-haired Amazon. "I'm sure that a few of the guards in charge of the prison are on Velasca's side. I don't need my source of information looking like she got run over by a carriage."
"Why they run Eph'ny over?" Nexa whispered loudly in her mother's ear. Gabrielle sometimes had to wonder if her daughter's whisper was louder than her normal voice.
"It's a figure of speech. She's not really going to get run over, Sweetie," Gabrielle clarified in a whisper that matched her daughter's before setting Nexa on the ground and kneeling down so she that she was eye level with the small child. "Now, why don't you go in the other room and play with Jade? I'm sure he needs some company."
Nexa appeared reluctant to leave the bard. She looked from her mother to Xena before returning her gaze back to her mother. Realizing that it was a time for adults to talk about grown-up things, Nexa conceded.
"Okay, Momma," she said with a wan smile before giving her mother a hug and running off to one of the many other rooms in the hut.
"I'll uh... I'll go watch her," Solan offered, not wanting the spunky blonde to be by herself in such a new place.
"Thank you," Xena and Gabrielle said simultaneously. They looked at each other as Solan walked by. Both would much rather be spending time with the little blonde girl but real life stood in the way of that so they were grateful that Solan was willing to do what they couldn't at the time. Once Solan was in the other room with Nexa, the warrior and her bard turned back to the others in the room.
"So, I take it that the little display out there was Velasca's attempt to get on my good side?" she asked Ephiny, who nodded her response.
"And I take it your display out there was a bluff to get her to back off? Or do you really plan to take on the queen of the Amazons?" Amarice asked in a skeptical tone. While she knew of Gabrielle's fighting skills -she had witnessed the sporadic sparring sessions she had with Xena- she was still doubtful that the little bard could take on the bigger, more experienced woman.
"Amarice..." Xena said in a low growl, her icy blue eyes narrowed at the young woman. She had been there when Xena found Gabrielle in the prison so why couldn't she believe that the bard could hold her own?
"It's alright, Xena." Gabrielle held up a hand to stop the warrior princess from continuing. "As for your question," the bard said, turning to Amarice, "I mean what I say. When she challenges me, I will do my best to take care of the problem." The bard's refusal to use the word 'if' didn't escape the group. Gabrielle decided to end the meeting between the travelers there, giving them the chance to do what they wanted to relax before the real trouble began.
The bard, however, went to her sleeping quarters and took a seat on the edge of her bed. If she was going to be a good queen she'd need to focus on the tasks ahead of her; like defeating Velasca. Focusing on the upcoming battle with the former queen took Gabrielle's mind off of other things, such as what was going to happen after she took control of the Amazons after Velasca was taken care of. She didn't want to think about how she was going to live without Xena again while she was ruling her people. So instead, she thought about what would happen to Velasca. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't hear her warrior friend enter the room as the sun was setting.
"Gabrielle?" The blonde jumped slightly at the sound of her name. "I thought I'd find you in here. Any reason why you're hiding away from the rest of us?" Xena asked. She was answered by a shrug. The warrior rolled her eyes before taking three long strides across the room and sat down next to her friend. "Comfy."
"I thought so," the bard quietly agreed, looking down at the sheet that covered the large bed. Silence washed over the two friends as they sat on the edge of the bed. One was too afraid to speak, the other too inexperienced in comforting people. Finally, one friend decided to speak up. "Hey, the position of stoic warrior in this partnership is already taken. You don't want to make her angry by trying to steal that part from her, do you?"
The blonde smirked at Xena's attempt at humor, but it wasn't what the warrior was used to. It seemed tired and strained. Seeing this, the warrior draped an arm over the bard and pulled her closer. She smiled when she felt the blonde relax into the embrace.
"I'm sorry. I'm just worried," Gabrielle admitted with a sigh as she rested her head against Xena's chest. She was greeted by the sound of the warrior's heartbeat and she found herself listening intently to the calm rhythm that it produced. She reveled in the sound before the low hum of Xena's voice reverberated in her chest.
"Mind telling me about it?" Gabrielle glanced up, just barely able to see an arched eyebrow over one blue eye. She mimicked the expression, only there was a half-smirk on her face. "What?"
"First you tell me not to take your place in this partnership and then you go and try to take mine," Gabrielle told her with a chuckle before she sighed again. "I guess I haven't been one for sensitive chats lately."
"I know. I'm highly disappointed," Xena said with a small smile on her face. "Now stop changing the subject and tell me what's wrong."
"Pushy, aren't we?"
"Gabrielle..." Xena growled, leveling a glare at the bard.
"Alright, alright!" the blonde conceded, although she didn't move away from her spot against the warrior's chest. She felt comfortable there and didn't want to leave the secure embrace of her protector. "I was just thinking-"
"That's always dangerous," the warrior teased. Gabrielle scrunched up her eyebrows in mock annoyance before slapping Xena on the thigh.
"You're so funny. Now do you want me to tell you what I was thinking about or not?" she asked and was answered with a nod from her friend. "I was just thinking -okay, trying not to think- about what is going to happen after the whole Velasca situation is taken care of." The bard used her hands to illustrate what she was talking about, almost smacking Xena in the face.
"Gabrielle, I know you don't like killing but-"
"No, no Xena. I already know what I'm going to do with Velasca. She nearly destroyed the Amazons. The worst thing I can do to her is banish her from the tribe. If I kill her, it will be giving her something that she would want," Gabrielle told her, further confusing the warrior.
"Then what, exactly, were you trying to figure out?" Xena asked, a perplexed expression on her face. Gabrielle's own expression sobered as she tried to figure out how to voice her thoughts.
"I was just... what happens after that, Xena?" she finally asked before ducking her head so that she was looking at the floor.
"What do you expect will happen?" the warrior asked, not liking where this conversation was going.
"I... I don't know. I guess I expected that I would stay here with the Amazons. I can't leave them. They need a queen that they can trust to stick with them. I can't just dump Ephiny on them after being gone so long. What kind of queen would that make me?" Xena's shoulders slumped slightly when she didn't hear the bard mention her in the plans for her future.
"I see... well, I guess it would seem that you were able to figure things out after all," the warrior said as she stood up from the bed and headed for the door, leaving a disappointed Amazon queen on the bed. "I'm sure the Amazons will be happy to have such a dedicated queen," she added on when she reached the doorway before slipping out of the room.
"Xena?" Gabrielle called out. She sighed when her friend didn't return. "Way to go, Gabrielle. You just went and made your best friend angry at you and you don't even know what you said," she grumbled at herself before smacking herself in the head. "Stupid, stupid, stupid."
"You know, that's been known to cause brain damage." Gabrielle felt a tingle run up her spine when she heard a voice that she never thought she would hear again. She looked up from the floor to see the leather-clad form of the God of War.
"What do you want now, Ares?"
"Now what kind of welcome is that?" he asked with a smirk as he took a step forward. "Especially when all I want to do is help you."
"You? Help me? That's funny," Gabrielle told him as she stood up from her spot on the bed, "but I'm not really in the mood for jokes so you should probably just save yourself some time and leave."
"Hey, it's not that incredulous of an idea. I did try to help you once before. You just didn't want it," Ares reminded her, crossing his arms over his chest.
"The last time you wanted to help me I was trapped in a prison where I was forced to fight for my life. If I didn't want your help then, what makes you think I would take it now?" she asked. "Besides, if I accept your help I'll have to repay you for it and I'm still not interested in becoming your warrior queen, even if you have developed a bigger vocabulary since last we met." A scowl crossed Ares face at her refusal and the jibe she had made at his expense. He was the God of War. What did it take to make a mortal work for him?
"Velasca isn't Xena, little bard," Ares reminded her. "She won't take it easy on you and she won't think twice about killing you."
"Try that line on someone who hasn't constantly had their life threatened everyday for years," Gabrielle told him. "I lived with an abusive husband and then spent six months in a prison. Do you really think that I'm not used to dealing with people who couldn't care less about me?" She placed her hands on her hips while she watched him try to come up with a response. The most he could do was stammer. "Now leave, Ares. I'm not interested in what you're selling."
"Fine. But don't come crying to me when you and everyone you ever loved are stuck dealing with Hades," he said before disappearing into thin air once more, leaving a chill running up Gabrielle's spine as the only evidence that he was there. Once she was alone again, the bard let out a huff of air and collapsed back on the bed.
"What if he's right? What if I can't beat Velasca? Nexa, Xena, Solan, Ephiny... they'll be killed and the Amazons will be destroyed," she spoke to herself. "What do the Fates want from me?" She waited for what seemed like an eternity, as if someone was supposed to respond, but no answer ever came.
She sighed for what seemed the millionth time that day and pulled herself further onto the bed. Deciding that she might as well get some rest, she pulled the covers over her and closed her eyes. The empty space next to her, however, kept her awake much longer than she wanted and she could feel her heart yearning for its other half to return to the room. Just like the answer she had waited for, the other half never came and Gabrielle fell asleep feeling more alone than ever.
As the bright rays of the sun tickled her senses, Gabrielle realized that she wasn't as alone as she had been when she had fallen asleep. She could feel a body smaller than her own curled up beside her. When she opened her eyes she found her daughter laying next to her still wandering in Morpheus's realm. What surprised her the most was what she found when she raised her eyes from her daughter. She nearly jumped out of the bed when she saw her dark warrior laying on the other side of Nexa, a protective arm snaked around her middle. Gabrielle smiled at the picture before carefully reaching over and gently stroking the side of the warrior's face.
“What would I do without you?” she whispered as her hand made its way over to the dark locks of hair that spilled over the side of Xena's face. Without her consent, the digits began playing with the silky strands.
“You'd lose a nice head of hair to play with.” Gabrielle pulled her hand back in surprise when the warrior spoke. Xena still hadn't opened her eyes but the bard could see a small smile fighting to take form.
“You're not talking about yours, are you?” the bard asked before reaching over again and taking a few strands between her fingers. “No, you can't be talking about yours. This mop that you call hair could only be good for fish netting,” she continued, although there was a smile on her face to take the edge out of her words.
“Hey, you're the one I caught playing with it,” Xena reminded her while arching an eyebrow. Gabrielle blushed before ducking her head out of the warrior's view.
“You got me there,” she shyly admitted before looking back up at Xena. “I guess it is good for more than just fish netting.” Xena waited patiently for the bard to say more but silence was all she received for her efforts.
'I guess I have to do this the hard way,' she thought to herself, mentally rolling her eyes in the process. “Gabrielle, is there something you wanted to tell me?” she asked. The bard seemed to contemplate the question for a moment before answering with a question of her own.
“Why did you leave me last night?” The words were spoken quietly but the force behind the question left the warrior reeling. How could she explain that she had been upset about her missing part in the bard's future without revealing too much? Gabrielle must have taken her silence as a refusal to answer because she turned on her side, facing away from the warrior.
Xena sighed to herself before reaching over to lay a reassuring hand on Gabrielle's shoulder. She stopped for a moment before deciding to go through with the motion. She flinched when she felt the bard's body tense beneath her hand.
“Gabrielle, I left yesterday because I...” The warrior stopped to consider her next plan of action. Did she really want to risk their friendship by explaining herself? Settling on a compromise, Xena continued. “I left because I was being stupid. You started talking about what you were going to be doing with the Amazons and when it looked like I wasn't included...”
“You thought that I was going to leave you for the Amazons?” Gabrielle finished for her when it seemed like the warrior could say no more. She turned to face her friend in time to see the warrior nod her head in the affirmative. “I can't say I blame you for thinking that. I did take a while to get to my point. I guess I just kind of started babbling because I was nervous,” she told her with a smile before reaching her hand up to her shoulder and placing it on top of Xena's. “The truth is, last night I couldn't stop thinking about what the future holds for us. You're my best friend and I could never force you to stay here with me.”
“Gabrielle, you wouldn't be forcing me to do anything,” Xena assured her, now wishing that Nexa wasn't between them so she could pull the bard closer to her. “Just say the words and I'll stay here with you.”
“But Solan won't,” Gabrielle pointed out. “I can't ask you to leave your son again. He needs you as much as you need him.”
“Solan is almost an adult. Soon he's going to want to leave me so he can start a family and a life of his own,” the warrior reminded her friend. “Until then, I'm sure we could stay close by. Trust me; I'll be around so often that you'll be sick of me.” Xena immediately regretted her choice of words when she saw the flicker of doubt on Gabrielle's face before the bard turned away from her again.
“The last time you told me that, you never came back,” she said in a strained voice as she tried not to let her tears fall. “I've already spent one lifetime separated from you. I had Nexa there to keep me holding on but I'm not sure if-” Xena's hand quickly shot out and made the bard roll over so that she could look her in the eyes.
“Gabrielle, you once made me promise that no matter what happened to you, I would not turn into the monster that I used to be.” She waited for the blonde to remember that moment sitting by the fire where Xena had uttered one of the hardest sentences she had ever said. “I've kept my promise despite how hard it has been since I learned about what happened to you. Now I want you to promise me something.”
“What?”
“Promise me that if something ever keeps me away from you, you won't... you won't do anything stupid.” The warrior turned away from the bard's gaze as her voice began to catch and tears tried to escape her eyes. The feel of small fingers on her chin made her lift her head back up. She found herself looking into soft, emerald eyes while Gabrielle spoke.
“I promise.”
A pounding at the door made the bard groan in aggravation. She gave Xena an apologetic smile before carefully getting out of bed so that she didn't wake up Nexa. After quickly changing into something more presentable than her sleeping shift, the bard went to the door and opened it to find Ephiny waiting for her.
“Eva is waiting outside. She said that Velasca needs to speak with you,” the Amazon warrior informed her. “Gabrielle, you know exactly what she wants. Maybe it isn’t such a good idea for you to go meet with her by yourself.” Concern was etched on the other woman’s face as she spoke and the bard almost agreed with her before coming to her senses.
“She won’t hurt me now. It would look suspicious to the Amazons if I had a fatal accident while we were out,” she assured her friend. “Thank you for caring, though. It means a lot to me.”
“What are friends for?” Ephiny asked with a small smile. “Just be careful, alright? I don’t want to explain to a certain warrior princess why she no longer has a best friend if Velasca does something stupid.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve learned a few tricks since the last time I was here,” she told the other Amazon with a wink before making her way past her and heading for the door.
“Don’t I know it,” Ephiny mumbled to herself, rubbing her jaw as she remembered the fight in the town. Gabrielle didn’t hear the comment, however, because as soon as she opened the door to her hut she was met with an angry glare from Velasca’s supporter, Eva.
“Took your sweet time getting ready, didn’t you?”
“Sorry. I didn’t think Velasca would appreciate it if I showed up in my sleep shift,” Gabrielle apologetically explained. Eva simply shrugged before walking away from the hut. The bard quickly followed after her, hurrying so that she could walk beside the angry Amazon.
“So... how long have you known Velasca?” she asked while remaining completely aware that she was taking a big risk by trying to start the conversation.
“Long enough. Why do you want to know?”
“I just wanted to know how long you have to know someone before they’re allowed to beat you up.” Gabrielle mentally winced at her words, wishing that they hadn’t brought up memories of Perdicas; or the glare that Eva shot at her.
“I’ve known Velasca since we were children. We’ve been best friends just as long. I should have known better than to have such an outburst yesterday,” she said through grit teeth, her anger just barely in check. “Now if you’ll be kind enough to drop the subject, she’s waiting for you.” Thinking that the subject was closed, Eva started walking again.
“Eva, best friends don’t hit each other because they voice their opinions,” Gabrielle pointed out once she caught up with the other Amazon. She saw Eva look at her out of the corner of her eye before she continued. “What happened yesterday wasn’t your fault.”
“What do you know?!” Eva snapped at her. For a moment there was silence before the Amazon took a calming breath to regain her composure. Gabrielle could still see the buried fury in the young woman‘s posture but she could also see that she was trying to restrain it. “Stop trying to win me over because Velasca is my friend. She was there for me when I needed her and she was there for this tribe when it needed her. You weren’t,” she said in a shaky voice before walking away again, not bothering to see if the bard was following her. Gabrielle watched her for a few moments before silently walking behind her until they reached a clearing outside of the village where Velasca was waiting for them.
“Thank you, Eva. That will be all,” the former queen told the girl, although she kept her eyes on the bard. Gabrielle could almost feel the hatred radiating from the Amazon’s eyes.
“Are you sure it’s wise to stay with her alone?” the young Amazon asked, traces of concern in her voice.
“Don’t worry. She already has what she wants. There’s really no reason for her to harm me,” Velasca assured the young woman. “Besides, didn’t you say yesterday that she was a joke? Now go on, Eva. Gabrielle and I really need to discuss a few issues.” Gabrielle’s escort hesitated for a moment before bowing to Velasca.
“As you wish,” she said. She then left her friend and former queen behind with her inquisitive new queen. Once Eva left, Velasca turned her attention back to Gabrielle.
“Now that we have some privacy, why don’t we have a little talk, hm?” she suggested before walking further away from the village. The bard took a quick glance behind her before following after her enemy, praying to Artemis that Velasca didn‘t decide to do something stupid while they were alone.