As they entered the centaur territory, Amarice noticed that Xena had become tenser than she usually was. It had been happening ever since they made the decision to visit the village. She knew it wasn't because of the centaurs. Despite the conflicts they had had when the woman was a warlord, Amarice remembered that Xena and the centaurs had come to a kind of truce. So, the young warrior found herself pondering what was on Xena's mind.
Xena, on the other hand, was wondering how Solan would react to seeing her again. She hadn't visited since the time she was with Gabrielle, when they stopped Dagnine. The two of them had parted as friends, but Xena knew that someone's mind could change a lot in the time that went by in a year. Gabrielle was an example of that.
Xena smiled when the sound of gently rustling leaves reached her ears. Looking up, she spotted a blonde boy trying to hide in the tree branch above her.
"You can come down now, Solan." She chuckled when she heard the boy's grunt of frustration.
"I thought I had you this time, Xena." he admitted as he dropped to the ground. I've been practicing ever since you left last year."
"Well, you're getting better. Keep working and you'll be sneaking up on the best of them." she praised the boy, hiding her worries beneath the surface. She didn't want her son following in her footsteps. His next words put her fears to rest.
"Nah, I don't have fun sneaking up on just anybody. I only wanted to be able to sneak up on you." he said, shrugging one of his shoulders.
"Oh really? You know, a great warrior needs to be able to sneak around." Xena pointed out.
"I kind of decided I don't want to be a warrior." he admitted reluctantly, rubbing the back of his head in a sheepish manner. Xena breathed a mental sigh of relief. "Actually, I'd rather be a bard, like Gabrielle, so I can always make sure there's a happy ending." The blonde boy looked around, peeking behind Xena and Argo. "Where is Gabrielle? I wanna tell her the news." Xena sighed and tried to think of what to tell her son. There was something about the way he talked about her old friend that told her the young boy had a crush on her.
"She's... not with me anymore. I'm traveling with Amarice now." she finally told him, introducing Amarice with a nod of her head in the Amazon's direction. The Amazon smiled at the young boy and almost had to laugh at the disappointed expression on his face. Apparently Xena wasn't the only one that had been fond of Gabrielle.
"It's nice to meet you, Amarice. My name's Solan." he introduced himself politely before turning back to Xena. "I'll go tell uncle Kaleipus you're here. He'd meet you himself, but he hasn't been doing so well." Solan had a sad look on his face as he turned away and began running toward the civilized part of centaur territory.
Xena looked behind her to tell Amarice to go ahead when saw the amused expression on the Amazon's face.
"What?" she asked in a low growl meant to be playful. Amarice, knowing she was joking, simply chuckled.
"Oh nothing. I just never pegged you as a person that was good with kids." she explained. Xena simply continued to stare at her, hiding her surprise at Amarice's boldness. Perhaps they had been getting closer over the last year and a half. "Of course, it shouldn't shock me. You took care of Gabrielle all that time." The words were out before she could censor them and Amarice knew she'd crossed a line by the look on Xena's face. "I'm sorry, Xena. I didn't mean to say that." she apologized hurriedly as she was faced with an angry warrior princess. An icy glare was her response as Xena turned her steed to ride into the centaur village.
"Don't be sorry. Just improve." was all she heard come from the warrior's lips. Amarice sighed and smacked herself in the head.
'Smooth move, Amarice. Now you've scared her off and she won't want you to travel with her anymore.' the young warrior thought as she followed after her mentor on Ice. 'Fine then. It's not like I've never been on my own before. I can learn just fine by myself. She'll just be missing out on my company.' she decided, raising her head back up. She had been able to survive without Xena before. She could do it now, too. 'Then why do I feel like I just lost something?' she wondered as her horse walked into the village.
After purchasing a stable for Ice, Amarice tried to figure out where Xena went. She walked aimlessly through the streets, trying to find some clue as to where the other warrior had gone. If she was going to leave Xena, she was going to ask if the woman really wanted her to leave. She didn't want to just walk out on her like Gabrielle had. As much as she had heard about the former Amazon, Amarice didn't like her. She had left Xena, and her people, for a man that, according to her dark friend, she hadn't been interested in when she lived in Potidaea. To her, it seemed like Gabrielle had abandoned her best friend and the Amazons for some man that didn't mean that much to her in the first place. She'd have to have a word with the bard if they ever met.
Amarice's attention was caught by the blonde boy they had run into earlier. He was running from a hut and Amarice guessed that there were tears streaming down his face. If Amarice remembered right, she could recall the boy mentioning an uncle that wasn't doing so well. It was her guess that his uncle had taken a turn for the worse. A few moments after she had seen the boy run by, Xena was sprinting after him from the same hut.
"Solan, wait!" Amarice watched as her companion ran after the boy, calling out for him to stop. She desperately wanted to know what it was that had happened. Deciding it wasn't her business, though, she headed for the tavern. She'd wait there for Xena, if the woman ever came back.
---------
"Rosaline, I've been meaning to ask you something." Gabrielle admitted as her friend wrapped her shoulder. She glanced over and received a questioning look from the brown haired woman who was treating her injuries. Returning her gaze to the doorway in front of her, Gabrielle continued. "You have an accent that isn't from anywhere in Greece. Where did you come from?" She heard a chuckle so Gabrielle turned to face her friend to see what was so funny.
"I was wondering when you'd ask that. I have to admit though, I didn't think you'd realize I wasn't from Greece." she said with an amused expression. An indignant look passed over Gabrielle's face before Rosaline continued. "You've obviously been further than this little town. I can see that now. I doubt you've ever left Greece though."
"You're right. I've been all over Greece but I've never actually been able to leave it." the blonde admitted. 'But who knows... maybe if I had stayed with Xena, I would have.'
"Well, have you ever heard of an island called Britannia?" Rosaline asked as she finished the last bit of wrapping on Gabrielle's arm.
"I've heard of it, but I don't know much about it." The blonde's eyes began to widen as realization dawned on her. "You mean you're from Britannia?" she asked. Rosaline smiled and nodded. "But... But that's so far away!"
"I see you know your way around our world. Yes, it is far away, but I am happy to be here. Greece is so different from Britannia. It's quite a refreshing change, actually."
"Don't you miss your family?" Gabrielle asked curiously, her eyes now alight with something she had thought she lost years ago.
"I don't have a family. I was an orphan." Rosaline admitted. She still had a smile on her face, however. "Don't worry. My life at the orphanage was very nice. They took good care of us. Once I was old enough, though, I left and trained to be a healer. Once my apprenticeship was over, I came here. It's not as busy and the scenery is prettier." she explained. "What about you, Gabrielle? I don't believe you've ever told me about your family." The blonde visibly stiffened and Rosaline wondered if she had touched a subject she shouldn't have.
"I have a younger sister, Lila, and she was really the only one that tried to understand me. My parents, Herodotus and Hecuba, they're nice people and they only wanted what they thought was best for me. They had me betrothed to... Perdicas... when I was ten years old. We were to be wed on my eighteenth birthday." Gabrielle said quietly, her gaze shifting to the ground. "I know they thought that's what I needed, to get the stories out of my head, but I didn't want to marry him. I wanted to travel the world and become a bard, telling stories that would go down in history."
"You mean your parents are the reason why you're married to that... that... that bastard?! How could they do that to you?" Rosaline asked furiously.
"No, no, no! Just wait for me to finish. Please..." Gabrielle pleaded as she calmed her friend down. A few moments later, the healer nodded.
"It was the year before I turned eighteen when Draco and his men showed up to take our village. The women were being rounded up as slaves. I tried to stand up to them." Gabrielle laughed bitterly as she remembered offering herself for the others. "I was so naïve. What made me think I, a poor peasant girl, could stand up to a trained fighter? Lucky for me, that's when she showed up."
"She?"
"Xena. She saved our village and I eventually ended up traveling with her. It took a little bit of stubborn persuasion, but I did it. Then, we spent our time going on adventures and helping those that needed it. She even helped Hercules out!" Rosaline smiled gently and motioned for Gabrielle to keep talking.
"Have you ever heard of Prometheus?" she asked before launching into one of her stories.
---------
Xena combed the forest as she searched for her distraught son. She was feeling a little uneasy herself. With Kaleipus dead, who would take care of Solan? She couldn't leave him here with someone she didn't trust. She couldn't keep him with her. Her line of work was too dangerous. The only person she did trust had abandoned her. Xena stopped in her tracks.
"Mother!" Cyrene lived alone and probably wanted some kind of company. She'd be perfect for raising Solan. Deciding to file that idea away for the moment, Xena took off after her son again. "Solan! Solan, where'd you go?" she called out to the trees. Not too far off, she heard familiar sniffles. She smiled sadly to herself and followed the noise until she came to a small river running through the woods, her blonde son sitting next to it.
"Leave me alone. I don't want to talk to you." he told her as she took a seat next to him. "You'll just go away like Kaleipus did. Just like mother and father did." Xena's heart ached for the son that had lost so much.
"Solan, you can't let death stop you from getting close to someone ever again..." she advised him. He turned to face her, an angry and hurt expression on his face.
"What do you know about it?" he spat at her. Xena sighed and put a hand on his shoulder, relieved that he didn't pull away.
"I know a lot more about it than you think." she told him. "And it took a very special friend to teach me that even though they're gone, they're still with you. You just have to close your eyes," she told him, "and look in here." she instructed Solan, tapping his chest where his heart would be. Solan did as he was told, and after a few moments the tears stopped. The only thing heard throughout the forest was the sound of the birds and her son's sniffles.
"What happened between you and Gabrielle?" he asked, opening his blue eyes that were so like her own. Xena's mask almost went back up, but she knew that if she put it back on now, she'd lose her son forever.
"Well Solan... she realized that the life on the road wasn't for her and that she'd rather have a family."
"I thought you were her family, though." Solan said with a confused expression on his face.
"That's what I thought, too..." Xena admitted quietly. "I guess not, though, because she married a boy from her village."
"Wait. I thought she was married to you?" Solan asked. Xena could feel her face blushing as she comprehended Solan's question. She hadn't thought that anyone could read her feelings for Gabrielle.
"W-what? Gabrielle and I were just really good friends, Solan." she told the boy, who now had an amused expression on his face.
"I'm sure, Xena." he told her with a smirk before standing up again, Xena following suit. He shifted on his feet before looking up at the woman. "Thank you, for everything." he said gratefully. "I guess I should start asking around the village for a place to stay. It shouldn't be that hard."
"Solan, before your uncle died... he asked me to take care of you if anything ever happened to him." Xena started off, feeling a little nervous. "So, if you really want to, I have a place you could stay." she offered. Before she knew it, her arms were full of a boy squeezing her in a hug.
"Thank you, Xena. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" he cried into her leathers in relief, glad that he wouldn't have to leave his older friend.
"It's no problem, Solan. We'll leave tomorrow, if you want. Tonight, we'll have the funeral pyre for your uncle." Teary blue eyes looked up at her and the blonde head nodded.
"I'd like that very much. Will Amarice be coming with us?" Xena pondered this for a moment, wondering if the Amazon would be willing to continue traveling with her after she snapped at her like that.
"I sure hope so. I don't think you could put up with just me on the road." The warrior winked at the blonde boy before heading in the direction of the centaur village. "Come on, Solan. Let's go get ready for tonight." she said.
---------
"I don't understand. If you were such great friends with Xena, why are you with Perdicas now?" Rosaline asked as she handed Gabrielle a cup of tea. They had moved from the healing room to the healer's bedroom so they could have more privacy. Nexa was now sitting on her mother's lap, bouncing up and down.
"It was all my fault." the blonde started off, a sad, faraway expression on her face. "Perdicas had me convinced that he needed me. That I was the only one that could stop him from being sent into a pit of despair. Xena was so strong. She never needed me for that. She never needed me for anything." Gabrielle sighed as she stroked her daughter's blonde hair. "So, I married Perdicas instead. The day after our wedding, the murderess Callisto came to kill me. She almost ended up killing Perdicas, but Xena saved him. Sometimes... I wish she hadn't." She added the last part so quietly that Rosaline wasn't sure if she had actually said anything. Sensing that this was something that Gabrielle hadn't even wanted to admit to herself, Rosaline wrapped her friend in a hug.
"When I see what he does to you, it makes me wish he was dead, too." she assured her younger friend. There was an awkward silence that filled the room before Gabrielle spoke again.
"We're leaving, you know." she told the healer. "Tomorrow morning, after he leaves with the rest of the council on their trading expedition. Nexa and I are getting out of here." Sea green eyes looked up into warm brown ones for some kind of reassurance that she was doing the right thing.
"Good girl. I'm proud of you, Gabrielle." Rosaline assured her.
"But I feel so guilty leaving you behind. You've done so much and I've never paid you back."
"Gabrielle, getting out of that house will be enough payment. I don't want to see you hurt anymore." The blonde's eyes filled with tears before she began whimpering. It wasn't long before Rosaline was holding a sobbing woman and a young child in her arms.
"I d-don't know w-where I can g-go." Gabrielle stammered as sobs wracked through her small body.
"Shh... What about Xena? You could go back to her." Rosaline suggested. She regretted it when hard green eyes looked up at her.
"I abandoned her. She won't want me back. I wouldn't even want me back." the blonde told her. "Besides, she has her friend Amarice now. I may not leave the house very often, but I still hear stories about her and her new companion." There was anger in Gabrielle's voice, and something akin to jealousy.
"Gabrielle, people can have more than one friend." Rosaline reminded her.
"But I want to be more than friends." the blonde admitted before she could stop the words from escaping. She immediately pulled away from the healer and turned her back to her. "I... I didn't mean to say that." she stammered, wrapping her arms around herself. "I have to go." she said. Before Rosaline could say anything, Gabrielle had turned around and was taking Nexa from her.
"Gabrielle, wait!" Rosaline called after her friend. It was too late though, and the small blonde was already out the door. "Bloody Hell... that's one way to say good-bye to a friend." she cursed as she stared after the retreating blonde's back.
---------
From the corner of the room, an invisible Ares watched the scene unfold before him. Gabrielle surprised him. He didn't think she'd ever get the guts to actually leave Perdicas. Of course, he also hadn't predicted Xena getting another annoying sidekick. This was not going how he planned...
"I'll have to remedy that." he said with a chuckle before vanishing, a smirk on his face.
He reappeared in front of the town's meeting house. After slightly altering his appearance, he made himself visible to the mortal eye. He then proceeded to enter the townhouse, where the meeting between the council members would be taking place in just a few moments. He didn't have to wait long for the leaders of the town to start filing into the small room and start discussing the best trade routes to take on their expedition.
They were halfway into the meeting when one of the mortals brought up an issue.
"Perdicas, I don't think you should be leaving your woman at home on her own." . Apparently, Ares wouldn't be working on his own in convincing Perdicas to stay with Gabrielle. He smirked silently as he realized this. "I mean, you two do have a daughter and you're never around. Someone's got to teach the daughter how to stay in line. You leave the kid at home with her mother all day, and she'll be trying to think for herself." Perdicas' growl was audible, even from where Ares was sitting. The God of War decided to add on more to the flames.
"You know, I also heard that she was planning on skipping town while we're gone? Looks like someone is losing control of their family." He chuckled. The look of sheer rage on Perdicas' face was priceless. Ares almost felt a little sorry for the former bard. Almost. It was her fault Xena wouldn't come back to him, and she was going to pay for it while he tried to get Xena back on his side.
---------
Gabrielle was sitting on the floor with Nexa, playing a game that involved clapping their hands together. Her daughter seemed to enjoy it and every time their hands clapped together, the little girl giggled in amusement. A few times, Gabrielle had to laugh as well. As she thought about the future, she realized she could do it with a smile. She'd be leaving this house. She didn't know where she'd go, but she was getting out of this Tartarus on earth. She and Nexa would be able to be a family that didn't have to live in fear... A smile came to her face again, unaware that her dreams of the future were about to come crashing down on her.
She almost missed the sound of the door closing, it was so quiet. Not so much the sound itself, but the fact that Perdicas had tried to close it quietly, sent alarms off in her head. Gabrielle listened closer and heard the almost silent footsteps on the floor. If she hadn't been listening for them, she surely wouldn't have heard them.
Gabrielle's heart began pounding in her chest. Perdicas was mad and he was planning something. The blonde closed her eyes and listened, the whole time keeping a protective distance between her and Nexa.
It didn't take long for her to hear what she was waiting for. The sound of the floor creaking right behind her. She could even hear the sound of the wind as Perdicas' fist traveled through the air. Using reflexes that she thought were long forgotten, Gabrielle brought her hand up and grabbed Perdicas' wrist. She used his surprise to her advantage and stood up, still keeping a strong grip on his forearm.
"Let go of me, you stupid whore!" he yelled, trying to yank his hand away from her. Gabrielle let go, causing him to stumble backwards. As soon as he was free, he was rushing at her. Gabrielle quickly picked Nexa up and moved to the side. She wasn't fast enough, however, and Perdicas was able to make contact with one of her legs. The former Amazon fell to the ground, careful to make sure that she landed on her back so that Nexa didn't get crushed.
Her head hit the wooden floor with a thud and for a moment, stars filled her vision. Once she was able to see straight again, she found Perdicas on top of her once more. She didn't know where Nexa had gone, but she hoped it was somewhere safe.
"I can't believe you would have the nerve to even think about leaving me!" he growled at her before slapping her across the face. Gabrielle's eyes widened. How did he know?
'Rosaline!' she thought for a moment. 'No... she wouldn't do that.' Gabrielle didn't have any more time to ponder this, because Perdicas was picking her up by the hair. It was as she was standing that she noticed Nexa hiding underneath the kitchen table. 'Good girl.' she thought as Perdicas turned her around. A fist greeted her and knocked her back to the ground. Gabrielle almost choked on the blood streaming back into her mouth from her nose. As she brought her hand up to cover her nose, she noticed Perdicas bringing his foot back. 'Not this time!' she thought before rolling backwards out of his foots range of motion.
"Get back here!" he roared at her after he regained his balance. Gabrielle simply got to her feet and shook her head.
"I'm leaving, whether you want me to or not, Perdicas." she told him in the bravest voice she could muster. Not waiting for a response, she calmly walked towards the kitchen. She refused to let Perdicas know she was afraid of him. She needed to be in charge.
"You had better not take one step out that door, Gabrielle!" he called after her. Gabrielle ignored him as she bent down to pick up Nexa. He wasn't going to stop her. Not now. Not anymore.
She was almost to the door that led outside when she felt a white-hot pain lance through her shoulder. It took everything she had to stop herself from dropping her precious bundle. She frantically glanced over to see what had caused the pain and she found a knife handle sticking out of her shoulder. She nearly fainted just from the sight of it. She didn't even have time to pass out, though, because Perdicas was grabbing her by the hair again.
"The only way you're leaving me is if I kill you. And believe me, I'll let you take your precious daughter with you!" he growled in her ear. Gabrielle froze for a moment, fear for her daughter taking over her body. As gently as she could from her position, she set Nexa down. Thinking of it as a surrender, Perdicas loosened his grip on her hair. This gave her the room she needed to reach her hand over and pull the knife out of her shoulder.
A scream ripped through the air as she pulled the blade out, not caring if she ruined the muscles and tendons in the process. All she knew was she had to get away. Before Perdicas could register what was happening, Gabrielle was cutting her hair to get loose from the monster that held her. Once she was free, she staggered forward out of his reach and turned around, pointing the knife at him.
"Don't come after us Perdicas. Don't. I'm tired of listening to you. Of being afraid of you." she told him, shaking the blade in his direction. "Nexa and I are going to leave now. You're going to stay here. We won't ever see each other again." she told him before turning her back to him and taking Nexa by the hand.
Perdicas' anger clouded his thinking, making him forget the threat that she had made to him a month before. Without a second thought, he grabbed onto the other wrist of the little girl, yanking her towards him. She was Gabrielle's weakness and he knew it.
"What are you going to do now, Gabrielle? I have your precious little girl. You had better come back to me, or who knows what I might do to her... I wonder if she screams like you do?" he asked, running his free hand through the little girl's hair. The former bard didn't need to think twice. She calmly walked back over to Perdicas, who had an arm open for her. "That's what I thought."
"Perdicas?" Gabrielle said quietly as she allowed him to wrap an arm around her. He looked down at her, but didn't see the angry fire in her eyes until it was too late. "I hate you!" she screamed before shoving the knife into her husband's side. The feel of the blade entering Perdicas' body made something inside Gabrielle snap. She pulled the weapon out and watched her nightmare's eyes glaze over. Then, she stabbed him again; and again; and again. All the rage from the past three years was leaving her body as she forced the knife into his skin over and over again. Three years of being afraid. Three years of being in pain. Three years of worrying if she'd be able to protect her daughter. All of it was put into the final blow that she sent into Perdicas' stomach.
Gabrielle released the handle of the knife and watched as the man in front of her crumpled to the ground.
Perdicas was dead.