Disclaimers: Well... This is going to seem a little bitter...but why in the hell am I bothering with disclaimers when TPTB can just up and steal the premise for this entire series with out even kissing me. 'Cause I sure got fu***d! For those of you who haven't seen Lifeblood, or is that Life Blood? Whatever. Suddenly out of no where a woman from the future appears in the middle of the Amazons. Huh. Imagine that. So, I am not making any money for this, even when my stuff gets 'borrowed'. (Maybe I should be flattered.) Xena, Gabrielle, Ephiny, Mel and Jan are not mine. HOWEVER, Candace, Taylor, Skye, Terra and all the rest of the folks are mine! ALL of the concepts herein are mine. I could change all the names and the story would be the same! Maybe I should change the names. Give me your feedback. UgoXena@aol.com

Violence: Nope. Too much Luuuuv happnin'. Hooo mama!

Sex: Well, as we left our characters last, they were in an interesting dilemma. Someone's gettin' some at some point. It's sex between women. Lots of women. Not all at the same time. (See how you think? ;) If you could get arrested for reading this where you live, I would avoid it like the plague. If you are underage, click on the little 'x' in the right hand corner and come back when you're old enough.

Spoilers: Yeah. K?

Disclaimers for the disclaimers: OK, you remember that one thing I said I wasn't doing? (Not talking taxes here) Well, I'm gonna do it. In a way that may seem odd. If you have a problem with that you can e-mail thatslife@toobad.com, or visit the web site at www.itsmystoryandicanwritewhatiwant.com

You can e-mail comments to UgoXena@aol.com (this is the real one)

©Kandis Glagow 3-20-00 see this? It's a copyright. That means it's mine. K? Nuf sed!

Part 11

Dinner turned out to be a very quiet affair, and Skye once again felt all the pressure. The tension at the table was beyond anything she had felt before, but strangely enough it wasn't the same tension as it had been in the past. Some barrier had been breached, and the feeling was one of anticipation and raw sexual energy. Skye looked around, then glanced at Terra. The emotions were getting to her. She reached a hand over to her lover and caressed her thigh. The long leg jumped at her touch, but neither of them withdrew.

Terra leaned over to her lover. "Is something the matter, Skye?"

Skye groaned under her breath, "You could say that." She gave a lopsided grin, squeezing the strong leg under her fingers.

"Oh really? Can you hold it for just a few minutes? I...OH!" She looked around to see if they had noticed her. What she saw confused her.

The table of women looked at her with far away eyes. They had no idea what was going on with the two younger women. It really didn't seem that they cared. Jan and Mel had already excused themselves to the Library, and they hadn't noticed them leaving.

"Um, could you excuse us?" Terra spoke to the four remaining women.

There was silence for a span.

"Miss Candace?" Skye had never seen any of them acting so strangely. It was as if something had happened that had scared them, but they weren't scared.

"Humm?" She looked up from her food. She was the least effected of any of them.

"Excuse us?"

"Oh! Sure. Sorry."

Skye frowned at her look alike. This was beyond weird. Another wave of emotion hit her and she grabbed Terra. She would figure this out later. Right now she needed relief. The kind only her lover could give her. They hurried out leaving the four to face each other.

Xena cleared her throat. "Guys we can't sit around and pretend we're not here."

Gabrielle frowned. "We can't what? That makes no sense, sweetheart." Xena shrugged.

"We can't ignore each other like we're not here." Taylor tried her hand at the explanation.

"Like we're not here? Good, babe. I understand completely." Candace laughed.

"We can't pretend like the others of us don't exist." Gabrielle used more words to try and explain. It didn't work.

"How about this, we can't pretend nothing happened. And we can't ignore each other." Candace was proud of herself.

"That's it exactly. Now, can someone please tell me what happened." Taylor wanted answers.

"Honey, you kissed everybody you could get your hands on, and you want to know what happened. If you don't know, we're in big trouble." Candace was the only one left out of the kissing spree her intended had embarked on.

"But I don't know why I did it." She shook her head.

"How about 'cause you think I'm cute." Xena waggled her eyebrows.

"Great, Xe. Now I'm narcissistic. Yes, you're beautiful. Happy?" Taylor got a little huffy and tried to pout again.

"And you, Miss Gabrielle, you didn't even try to stop her. As a matter of fact, you wrapped your legs around her waist, doing who knows what, and moaning." Candace pointed a finger at the Regent, and the women at the table near them turned to look at her.

Gabrielle whispered, "We might want to take this somewhere else."

"Good idea." Xena stood, towering over the table. Three hearts beat a little faster at the power she possessed.

Taylor wiped at her eyes. "This sucks."

"Come on, Junior. It's not that bad." Gabrielle smiled at her, and Taylor felt even worse.

"But, I did this. What was I thinking? Don't answer that." She knew what she was thinking, and it excited and scared her at the same time. She was sweating.

"It's alright, love. We'll figure this out together. There has to be an answer." Candace leaned in and kissed her fiancée sweetly.

"There is. We are quicksilver. It is its nature." Gabrielle recalled the words of the Goddess.

"But it's wrong." Blue eyes filled with turmoil as she gazed at the Regent.

"Who says?" Xena was not sure it wasn't, but she wasn't sure she had ever heard anyone say it was wrong.

"Xena, you can't tell me that it's alright with you if I want Gabrielle." Taylor could not believe they were even having this conversation.

"Why not, I do." The table was silent. All eyes turned to stare at Candace.

"You what?" Taylor couldn't believe what she had just heard come from her lover's lips.

"Oops. That was a slip." She dipped her head low and blushed. She had felt inklings of attraction the night they had shared a bed. It was all in innocence, but the trickle of desire that had started then was now running rampant. Watching Taylor kiss her, had been slow torture in more ways than one. She had wanted to be the kisser and the kissee. IT was so confusing.

"That's something that shouldn't just slip, Cand." Gabrielle was shocked

"Sorry. I can't seem to help it. Wish I could." She really wished the tension and fire running through her would stop, but it kept raging.

"You do?" The Regent wasn't sure if she liked that.

"Well, yeah. You think I want to feel like this? Can we leave? This is hard to talk about in here. Too many ears." Candace lowered her voice to a whisper.

"But, I..." The Regent wanted answers to her questions. Candace wanted her, but didn't want to want her. She was upset by both thoughts.

"Gabrielle? Let's go. You can get all your answers in a minute." Xena had to take control of the situation before they revealed too much to too many.

The group stood and all the women in the room stood as well. Candace and Gabrielle nodded and the Amazons returned to their seats. Green eyes rolled in their heads. Now was not the time for pomp but it happened all the time. They left the hall and stood gathered in the fresh night air. Xena took a deep cleansing breath. It was still so warm from the heat of the day, making her feel a tad uncomfortable and sticky.

"Anyone for a swim?" Her blue eyes took in all of the women standing around her. It was her self-control that would hold them all together, or apart, as the case may be.

"That sounds wonderful. This heat is killing me, and I think my chin could use a cold pack." Taylor absently rubbed her sore chin.

"She really got you good, Junior. Not bad for an old woman." Xena and the others laughed.

"Puuhlease. She caught me off guard." She tried to make an excuse as to why a much smaller woman had gotten her so good.

"Riiiight. She's good, Tay. Ya gotta admit that much. Us little girls can get scrappy." Candace poked her lover in the ribs.

"Are you callin' her a girl? I'm tellin'." Taylor encircled her waist and bent to kiss her.

"Ohhh. Noooow you're gonna kiss me. You had better make it good."

"I'll do my best." She bent her head and stole soft lips to her own. She pressed in and felt the arms she craved wrap around her neck. She was trying not to make comparisons, but she couldn't help it. The connection she shared with Candace was fulfilling and soulful. They fit. When she had kissed Xena, it had been raw power. It had shaken her to the core. Kissing Gabrielle, though she had been unaware at the time, was different as well. It was similar to Candace, yet less of a heartfelt connection and more raw desire. Pure sex. She was in love with Candace, and that was the difference. Thank goodness.

Candace broke the kiss and looked into the deep blue of her lover's gaze. She witnessed the love there, and was eased in her emotions. She had been a little worried, she admited to herself. But Taylor loved her, but more than that she cherished her. No matter what transpired between the four of them, she was secure in what they were to each other. Soulmates. The perfect connection. They were all different pieces to a puzzle. They each fit together with the others, but she and Taylor fit together at the most important place. They fit at the very heart.

"I'll get a blanket. Be right back." Candace turned her back on the group.

At just that moment, a rather loud moan ripped through the air and hit the four women like a bolt of lightning. Candace was glad her back was turned. The look on her face would have given her away. She felt the tension behind her rise many levels. She turned rapidly back to the group.

"We can't do this."

"Do what?" Taylor squinted at her.

"THIS!" Exasperated, she threw her arms out wide indicating what exactly this was.

"We're not doing anything." Xena grinned evilly at her.

"Xe, you know what I'm talking about." Her green eyes implored the warrior for help.

"Candace, will you relax? Nothing is going on other than we need to get a grip on our emotions." The warrior was being ever so helpful.

"And you think swimming naked with each other is a good way to do that?" She crossed her arms stubbornly and tapped her royal foot.

"Who said anything about naked?" Gabrielle was getting in on the fun now.

"Yeah, babe. Are you going naked?" Junior had her own teasing going on.

"Taylor! GAH! Give me some credit here. I swim naked...and so do you." Green eyes tried to bore a hole through Taylor's thick skull. It didn't work.

"I do? What if I don't want to?" She grinned at her lover.

"Guys, I'm serious." She dropped her shoulders dejectedly. They never listened to her unless she used the royal thing on them.

"I am too. Let's go for a swim. I'm hot. I'm sweaty. And it'll give us a chance to talk." Xena made the final decision for all of them.

Another passionate moan wafted across the compound and Candace grimaced. They were asking for trouble. No doubt about it.

=/~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Hey, Belle? What was up with the girls tonight? It was weird." Jan stood high on the ladder looking for a particular scroll.

"Maybe they were in a quiet mood." Melinda was sure she knew the trouble, but she wasn't sharing with Janice. The doctor would most likely have a field day with it, and she couldn't do that to her friends. They needed to figure things out amongst themselves, without Jan's help.

"Well, Junior wasn't in a quiet mood this afternoon."

"Yes, deah. What was this I heard about you and she..." Mel was still studying her writing. She flitted her hand trying not to laugh. She knew the two were like teenage boys when they were together. For them, being naked in the same room was akin to locker room humor. There was nothing to worry about.

"Nothin' happened. We were wrestling." Jan shrugged as if that would guarantee her innocence.

"Naked?" Mel looked over her glasses at her lover. She was going to get the most mileage she could out of this one. So far so good.

"She smacked me in the ass. Should I let her get away with that?" Jan tried to look defensive.

"Heavens no deah. Gettin' smacked in the ass is ground foah maja retaliation. But naked wrestlin'? Honestly Jan. How people will talk." Mel threw her hands up and waved them around.

"They're Amazons, Mel. They'll make stuff up to talk about if they have to." Jan huffed and wished she still smoked. It would relieve some of her tension.

"They will at that. But to give them fuel for the fiah, Jan, you know bettah." Mel shook her head and put her blue eyes back to her scroll. Jan was getting herself deeper and deeper, and Mel was letting her dig.

"Well, the guard was uninvited!" The doctor was getting truly defensive now.

"What on earth would have happened had she Not walked in? I shuddah to think!" Mel shook in feigned fright.

"MEL! You know better." Janice's retort was matter-of-fact.

"Do Ah?" Mel suddenly realized her fearful emotions were about to tumble out. This was not good.

"Don't you?" Her voice was suddenly soft. She was surprised that Melinda would ever think she could be unfaithful. She loved Melinda with every fiber of her being. The tall professor was the very reason she was still alive. Of that fact she was quite certain.

"Well...Ah usually do. Janice this is a silly thing to be talkin' about. Let's change the subject." She tried her best to avoid this entire conversation. It just showed that after fifty years together, she had never forgotten the feeling of walking in on Janice and 'the other woman'. She wasn't really the other woman, but it had always felt like it.

She had been so in love with Janice, it was nearly painful for her to be in the feisty blonde's company. They had been at a dig in India of all the dirty, hot, dusty places in the world. It was all because they had heard a rumor that some evidence of Xena had shown up there. The rumors were true but the heat was unbearable. Melinda was miserable. Janice had agreed to take her off site for the weekend. Knowing that a bath and a decent meal was what it was going to take to keep the upper-class, southern woman sane. While they were there, Melinda had finally made up her stubborn southern mind to go to the small green-eyed doctor and tell her what was in her heart no matter the consequences. The seedy hotel she had taken Melinda to was not the best in the known world. It was a place where you could either plan a murder or start a religion, but it had running water and that was enough for now. Their rooms in the grubby hotel had been adjoined, at Jan's request. To this day she didn't understand why.

She had been frantic enough from the heat, her nerves playing a large part in the droplets that caused her to glow. Women never sweat. She hadn't announced her entrance into Jan's room, and the doctor hadn't locked the door. She had burst through the door between their rooms. The sight she beheld cooled the heat in her veins immediately. She expressed her 'sorrys' and exited the room, too upset to cry. She dashed out her front door and down the hall. She wasn't sure where she was going, she only knew she needed to get away as quickly as she could. She had heard of Janice's penchant for women. It was a well-known fact among the crew. As far as Mel knew though, the doctor hadn't been with anyone since they had met. Now she had seen for herself the fallacy of that idea. Melinda had held a secret hope that she could be the object of the blonde's desire, not some tramp off the street. Obviously she had been wrong. Jan had never so much as made a remark of interest to her, let alone hit on her. She had been dreaming again.

Jan swore loudly and flew out of the bed. She was still in her pants and she grabbed her white cotton oxford off the floor. She flung the shirt on without buttoning it and sped down the hall, calling after the woman she loved.

Melinda heard the voice that followed her.

"BELLE! Wait! SHIT on a shingle! BELLE!"

The professor kept running until she reached the stairs. She made it as far as the first landing before the much faster, and less high-heeled, archeologist caught up to her.

"Damn it, Melinda! Wait!" Jan caught her arm and spun her around.

The tears that had gotten lost in the moment earlier were now very found. Mel dropped her head trying to hide them. She wiped at them trying to eliminate any evidence of their existence.

"Ah. Ah...Ah'm sorray for bustin' in like that. How you must think of me." She wiped at her nose. She couldn't help but notice that Jan's shirt wasn't buttoned, and her ample breasts were threatening to make a glorious appearance. She cleared her throat and looked into pained green eyes.

"Mel, I'm the one that's sorry. I shoulda locked the door. I'm sorry you had to see something that disgusts you so much." She shook her head in self-recrimination.

"Which paht?" She was going to tell her no matter.

"I'm sorry?" Jan frowned. She let go of the taller woman's arms and took a step back.

"Which paht do you think disgusts me?" She crossed her arms and waited for the answer.

"All of it?"

"Is that a question or a statement?"

"Both?"

"Not good enough."

"What do you want from me, Mel?" She felt like she was at the inquisition. She was nervous and scared. She loved Melinda desperately, but the good Southern Baptist woman was way out of her league, and she knew it. She had never let on about her feelings before, and she wasn't about to start now. The woman from the room stepped into the hallway and called to her.

"Dokta. You come bahk? Eeyes? I wahting."

"Yes, doctor. You have someone waitin'." Melinda pointed with her chin and set her jaw.

Angry fire lit sapphire eyes, and Janice knew if she let the professor go now she would lose her forever.

Jan kept eye contact with Melinda and answered the woman in the hall. "NO. I'm not coming back. You can go!"

"But, doktah. I maek you fill so gud. Come bahk." The voice was seductive and soft, but it made Janice sick to her stomach. The doctor bowed her head and closed her eyes.

"Just go, please." Jan didn't understand what was going on, or why Melinda was so angry with her. She hoped she could say the right things to get her to stay. She raised her head and stared into the blue angry depths that held her destiny. "What do you want from me, Melinda? I'm sorry you saw what you saw, but I can't take it back. Please don't leave, OK?" Her emerald eyes begged Melinda in silence.

"Janice, the only thing Ah'm disgusted with is the fact that you took some strangah to youah bed." She huffed her response and Jan frowned.

"And you think I should remain celibate on these digs, is that it?" She was getting hot under the collar she didn't have buttoned.

"Ah didn't say that eithah." Her heart started to pound because she knew the next question.

"Then who the fuck would you suggest!" Her sex life was really none of the professor's business, and this line of conversation was turning dangerously telling.

"Me." Mel pulled her self to her full height, standing as proudly as she could. Expecting the rejection, she prepared to leave with more dignity this time.

Jan almost lost her legs from under her. "YOU? Are you kidding?"

"This is hahdly anythin' Ah would joke about." She was using her best southern bearing.

"You're fucking serious!" The doctor was shocked, but sounded more amused than anything. "Belle, you don't know what you're saying." Now she sounded defeated. Jan rubbed her eyes so that Melinda wouldn't see the emotions welling up within her.

"Ah assure you doctah, Ah know exactly what Ah'm sayin'. Ah am just vera sorry that Ah am not youah cup of tea, Janice. If you will excuse me." She tried to push the smaller woman aside.

Janice stopped her by grabbing both of her arms, pushing her back against the cool concrete of the wall. Her shirt opened to show Melinda a glimpse of what she would soon enjoy. She pressed her solid body against the long, lean form of the professor. Without so much as a by your leave, the small tough scientist took control of Melinda's lips with all the passion she could muster.

Melinda touched her lips at the memory and smiled. It was the most bittersweet experience she had ever had.

"Helloooo. Mel, you in there?" Jan saw the faraway look in her lover's eye. There was something bothering her, and Jan was set to find out what.

"Humm? Oh my. Yes, sweetheart. Ah was in India for a moment." She smiled at her lover sweetly, looking over her glasses.

"Yeah? Wanna reminisce?" She waggled her brows and grinned at her lover.

"Janice, you ah incorrigible." Melinda shook her head.

"Really, Mel. What's the matter? You've been acting funny the last few days." Jan stepped down off the ladder and squatted next to her partner. Her callused finger ran a path up the long arm of her lover. "What's wrong?"

"You'll think I'm silly."

"I already do."

Mel giggled. "Ah suppose you do. Ah was thinkin' back, not to the love we made, but to what happened before hand."

"Aaaah, you never have forgiven me for that." Jan bowed her head. She had hated herself for a long time after. Sure, their relationship had begun at the time, but if she had waited, Mel would have come to her and the professor would never have seen what she did. And Jan would never have had to live with the look on Mel's face branded on her memory.

"That's not true. It was not my place to forgive you in the first place. You didn't know how Ah felt. But, do you have any idea what it feels like to always have the memory of seeing your lover in the arms of anothah woman? Ah know we weren't together at the time, but Ah loved you with all that Ah was even then. Ah am havin' a stupid feah of that happinin' again."

"Ah, Mel. I would never touch another woman." Finally the issue came to light. Mel was afraid that she would fall for the wiles of some young Amazon. If Melinda could see the beauty that she was, this wouldn't be a problem. Of course beautiful women had insecurities as much as the next person, Jan needed to assure her lover of her undying commitment to the good professor.

"Even if she threw herself at you? Ah mean…look at all these beautiful women runnin' around heah. Ah'm sure at least one of them is lookin' your way."

"Honey, they can look all they like. I belong only to you. I have since the minute I laid eyes on you."

"Then why, Jan? Why did you sleep with that woman in India?" Strangely she had never asked that question. Mostly, she thought, because she didn't want the answer.

"Fifty years later, and now you ask me. I was lonely. I wanted you so badly, but I knew you wouldn't want a rough piece of leather like me. So, I did what I could to make me forget…if only for a minute. You know she was the only one after I met you, and we didn't even get that far. She was just starting to...never mind." Jan bent to one knee. "Look, Belle. I love you with everything that I am. Marry me."

"Marry you?" She was taken back. Did she actually hear what she just thought she had?

"Yeah. If Taylor and Candace can do it, we can do it. I want to finally make an honest woman out of you, but more than that I want to commit the rest of my life to you. Please, say yes."

"Yes, Doctor Janice Covington, Ah will marry you. Now kiss me before I swoon!"

The tight young warrior stood to her full height, taking her intended's hand in her own. She pulled the petite appendage to her lips and kissed it sweetly. She then bent to Melinda and gently pressed her lips against the softness of her lover's. It was as sweet as any they had shared. It was sweet in the knowledge that they were making the love they shared formal, in a way that they never could have in their own time. They were getting married.

=/~~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Oh yes Terra. Mummm. Touch me there again. Yesssss! GOD, I love you." Skye pressed her body into Terra's hand as tightly as she could. The fullness was exactly what her body craved. Her lover touched her intimately with a probing tongue, and her legs shuddered in anticipation.

Terra felt the soft walls of the small blonde contract on her fingers, and she knew Skye was close. It was these small moments in time that they shared their souls. She ached for this in the very marrow of her bones. She pushed as deeply into Skye's depths as her long fingers would allow. She curled them up, stroking them slowly toward her, running her fingertips across the soft span of nerves she knew would send Skye rocketing. She pushed again, and the keeper of her very soul moaned from her depths. Her tongue brushed back the hood of the engorged bundle and flicked along the tip.

Skye declared her release with a moan. Her toes curled. The pleasure that had been building from her center was pulsing out and away to her legs. "Yes, baby! Oh my Terraaaaa!!" The walls of her sex pulsated with the power of her orgasm. She felt Terra's strong fingers push up into her again, filling the void that only she could. She let the wave brush over and across her skin as little tingles leapt along her body. She grabbed Terra's dark hair into her hands and tried to pull her closer. Terra slid her free hand up and pulled one of the petite hands into her own larger one. Their fingers entwined in the passion. Skye pulsed one more time and lay peacefully back. Small shakes went through her when Terra removed her fingers. The tall warrior slid up next to her and softly kissed her neck.

"I love you, Skye. You are so beautiful."

"Mmmm. You are so good to me. How do you know what I like? Hum? Have you been talking with Taylor and Xena again?" A small blonde head nestled sweetly in the crook of a strong shoulder.

"No. I just read you. I remember what you enjoy, and I try to do those things."

"Well, you may continue with those things." Skye kissed her lover sweetly and pulled her close. "Ter, are you ready?"

"Ready for what, Skye?" Her voice was soft and sounded far away.

"Ready to face Creighton."

The young warrior's reply was quick, but it was a question she had been asking herself for the last month and a half. "I think I was born ready for this day. He stole from us so much of our time together. Not to mention what he put you through. I'm ready. Are you?"

"I don't have that much responsibility as far as actual war making goes. I just tell you when. I hope I know. I hope I know."

"You will. I have faith in you."

"You do?" She was surprised.

"Of course. You know that." She snuggled closer, think for a minute. "How are you lessons with Melinda going?"

"They are good but confusing sometimes. I love the religion, but the history is so incredibly boring. What do I need to know the history of the world for?" Skye sneered, then stuck her tongue out.

"Because, when time is set right you will be living in that world. You'll want to know it. Won't you?" Terra was wishing she was in school, as they called it. She loved to learn new and interesting things. But Xena needed her to teach.

"I suppose you're right. It just seems like so much all at once. I'm learning the entire world history in a two-month period. How are the Amazons taking to learning assignation techniques?" She thought about the tender way Terra touched her, marveling that she could kill anyone.

"Lissa is really good. She's strong and sneaky."

"Sneaky?" Skye giggled at the thought of a sneaky Amazon.

"That is so cute." She loved to hear Skye's laugh. They had had very little to laugh about before they had come to this wonderful place. Now they laughed as often as they breathed. And they made love almost that much.

"Thank you." Skye planted a kiss on Terra's cheek. "Now tell me about your sneaky Amazon."

"Well, she's just sly. She's good at finding ways to infiltrate different situations. Plus, she has a penchant for observing habits and body language. She could tell you most of routines of the women in the compound. She can remember all of the details right down to what they eat and when."

"And all that is important?" She had never asked Terra about how she did what she did. She only knew when it happened.

"Sure. If you want to kill a person efficiently, you have to find out where they are and what they do on a regular basis. Plus knowing what and when a person eats can provide all kinds of opportunity."

"Great, baby. Remind me not to eat the same thing all the time." She ran the tips of her fingers along Terra's naked chest. She was getting so strong and filling out nicely. She loved the extra muscle and her deepening tan. Melinda had said that the sun was bad for her, she was sure that was true, but it looked good on her lover. She bent to the soft skin of the broad shoulder and pressed her lips to it. She tasted the slight saltiness and nipped lightly at the tight muscle.

"There is one thing I like you to eat all the time." Terra grinned.

"Really? Is it poisonous?"

"I hope not. We'll both be dead in the morning, if not sooner." Terra captured the soft lips of the small blonde once again. "Skye, look at me."

Emerald eyes glanced shyly up. She loved when Terra spoke her name in that serious tone. "I love you. I truly love you. With all my heart, and with all of my soul. No matter what happens, that is one thing you can always count on. No matter where you go, I will always find you."

"Where am I going?" Skye frowned.

"Nowhere I hope. But if you do, you won't get far." She pulled the smaller woman safely into her arms. She wrapped her up tightly and never wanted to let go.

"One thing is for sure, Ter. I will never leave you. Someone would have to carry me away bodily, struggling all the way. I love you, too."

They settled into a passionate embrace that led to interesting eating habits.

/~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>

Xena and Taylor were in the water first, naked as the day they were born. Candace decided that two naked warriors was not the worst thing she had ever seen. She sat next to Gabrielle thinking heavily about what all of these feelings meant. She had a deep seeded idea that this was not a sexual connection, it was just presenting itself in a way that the four of them understood.

"Gab?"

The blonde Regent was standing removing the last of her clothes. None of the four was what you could consider to be shy, but Candace blushed looking up at her friend. She looked away quickly, wishing the feeling coursing through her would cease. It was getting darker and she hoped Gabrielle wouldn't notice.

"Yeah?" She glanced down at Candace. "What is wrong with you? Are you blushing?"

She cleared her throat. "No?"

"Is that a question?"

"No, I am not blushing." She lied horribly.

"You ARE. You have seen me naked before. This is really getting to you isn't it?"

She threw her body back to the soft blanket. It was a bad idea since Gabrielle had taken to standing over her. "Nice view, Gab. Do you mind?"

"Not really." She smiled wickedly and shook her chest.

Candace closed her eyes. "Stop! Listen, do you not feel this? This uncontrollable urge to just...just, ride the Happy Ship."

"The What? The Happy Ship? Is that anything like 'taking a nap'? 'Baking cookies'? Maybe 'playing with the little man in the boat'? Huum?" Gabrielle couldn't hold back a laugh.

"Exactly. We can not ride the Happy Ship together! We just can't."

The royal bard sat down next to her twin, placing a comforting arm around her. Naked as she was, it wasn't all that comforting. "I feel it. Trust me I feel it. But I don't know what to do with it. It's powerful and seductive. Something that makes me think we need to handle whatever it is with great caution."

"I agree."

"Now kiss me." Gabrielle moved in teasingly.

"KISS YOU! No way." Candace shook her head vehemently

"Gross, huh?" It was the 'I am not sure I don't want you to want me' thing again.

"No. Scary." She kept her head down for fear of seeing what she wasn't ready for.

"You are the only one who hasn't kissed everybody." She was sure now. She wanted a kiss from the shy woman beside her.

"So I'm not the 'ho you three are." Candace ribbed the Regent with her elbow.

"I am not a 'ho! C'mon. It'll be fun." She pulled Candace's chin up to meet her eyes. She leaned in slowly.

"That's what I'm afraid of." She closed her eyes and waited. Soft lips touched her own and she melted. It was not the overwhelmingly powerful kiss of the warrior's. It was sweet and unhurried. She felt a probing tongue brush her bottom lip, and she couldn't refuse the request. She invited the discovery and cherished in it. They moved smoothly as one, tasting the nectar that was theirs. Candace moved her hand to the back of Gabrielle's head and pulled her closer. The kiss deepened, and she discovered a new type of passion in the bond that they shared. Her heart raced, as a moan she couldn't hold back escaped. Gabrielle returned the kiss with abandon. They didn't hear the approach of silent feet.

"Can't leave you two alone for a minute can we?" Xena smiled. Two sets of sparkling blue eyes watched the small blonde women share the intimate moment.

They slowly broke their kiss and stared at each other.

Candace looked down and smiled. "That's was...." She touched her lips and tried to find the right word.

"Beautiful." Taylor answered for her.

"Do you really think so?" The singer was unsure.

Taylor sat down beside her and grinned at a now blushing Gabrielle. "Yeah, I do. You two know each other better than any one of us knows the other. You just shared that in a new way. It was beautiful." She kissed her intended's temple. "Are you done, or can I get you to swim with us?"

"I'm done, I think. Are we finished here, Your Highness?" She nodded at Gabrielle.

"Yes. I believe we are." Her voice was far across the lake when she spoke. She hadn't been expecting to enjoy that as much as she had. Candace was right, they had something they needed to figure out before it got out of hand. And boy, did it have the potential to get out of hand…in a hurry.

Candace removed her clothes and she and Taylor ran to the shore hand in hand. They dove in soon after reaching the water. Candace floated quietly, reveling in the coolness of the liquid surrounding her. After the heated kiss, she needed to cool off. Taylor swam up next to her, placing two supporting hands on her back. Candace smiled at the touch. She ran her arms up and around the strong neck of her intended.

"Hey you." She felt herself lifted slightly until she was no longer floating in water, but in the arms of her firefighter.

"Hey, back attcha. You OK?" Taylor's blue eyes shone gray in the moonlight.

"Oh yeah!" She pulled Taylor closer, placing her lips close enough to the tall woman's, so that if she wanted to, Taylor could take them.

"Reeeally. Mumm. What shall I do about that?"

Candace danced around her mouth with her own. "It's up to you."

"That kiss got to you didn't it?" Taylor gave her a knowing grin.

"Uh huh." She returned the grin

"How much did it get to you?" She raised her brow. She should be jealous, but it was Gabrielle, and she had kissed her too. She knew the effect.

Candace whispered against her lover's cheek "That, you have to see for yourself."

Taylor supported Candace's weight with one muscular arm, holding her easily. She ran her other hand across the soft skin of Candace's abs, down through soft curls, along very swollen, very wet lips. She moaned at the readiness. "I guess so." She slipped her long digits between slick flesh, sliding two fingers deep inside her tight entrance. Candace arched in her arms, trying to meet the slow push. It was solid.

Xena sat next to her beloved, leaning into her ear as she went. "That was an interesting thing to witness my dear."

"Gods, I'm sorry, Xe." She bent her head so she wouldn't have to look her lover in the eye.

"Why are you sorry? Remember how you felt when Taylor kissed me?"

"Or when you kissed her back, you mean. Yeah, I remember. Hooo. Do I remember." She blushed at the heat she recalled had crawled between her legs.

"That's probably how I felt watching you two. I should get upset, but instead I felt it. I felt what you felt. The insistent drive for more. The breathing. The rush. I felt it. Do you understand?"

"I think so. Like earlier. I felt the power when you and Taylor kissed. The heat! Gods! The heat! Ohhhhh. I understand." Gabrielle felt a stirring in her abdomen. "Xe? Do you feel that? "

Xena was thinking the same thing. She felt it. The warrior bent to Gabrielle and kissed her passionately. Gabrielle was shocked by the power of it. She broke the kiss, breathless.

"Xe?"

"Let's use it."

"What is that?"

Xena pointed with her chin. "It's them."

Green eyes turned to the women making love in the lake. The tension was palpable. Gabrielle couldn't say 'no'. She lay back to the blanket and her lover lay next to her. Xena captured her lips again, gently running her tongue along the opening. There was no resistance. Tongues danced intimately, sharing the steps they had forever. Xena drew her hand up along Gabrielle's side and cupped a pert breast in her hand. She stroked the hard nipple with her thumb.

Taylor jumped at the contact. Her breast tingled from the hand stroking across it. She moaned deeply, and then realized that both of Candace's hands were around her neck. She broke the kiss she was sharing with her lover. The feeling ceased and she shook her head.

"Taayyy. Please."

"I...jus..." Candace pushed into her hand more insistently and she forgot what she was saying. "Never mind." Her lips were soon entwined with the singers again, the invisible hand again was on her breast. The intensity grew and she let a high pitched whine rise from her chest. This was interesting, not to mention erotic. She was making love and being made love to. And she knew the other hand as well as she knew her own.

Xena moved her mouth to a tight breast and her perception changed. Her eyes were closed, but she knew the breast in her mouth was somehow different. Tighter, rougher. She knew she was making love to Taylor. She opened her eyes and the emerald of Gabrielle's met hers. They were as shocked as she was.

"What the hell?" Gabrielle used one of Candace's favorite expressions.

"We're connected."

That was all she said before she bent to her wife again. Gabrielle felt Xena's lips on her breast and the connection was soft and sweet. Candace.

Felt a breast touch her lips, even as Taylor took Candace's own sweetly in her mouth. It was odd, but so real. Taylor's long fingers pressed deeper and Xena moaned in passion.

The tall warrior 's walls contracted as she was penetrated by long strong fingers. She slid her tongue along the slick folds of Gabrielle's center. Her mouth captured the swelling ridge of nerves and Candace voiced her desire.

A soft mouth engulfed her even as Taylor's fingers thrust further into her sex. The firefighter kissed her more deeply as she felt the hand between her legs. It stroked and seduced her. Her legs spread and the mysterious, long fingers entered her wetness. She caressed her lover in time to the movement between her own legs.

"Mmm that... is ssss...o...perfect. Xena, turn around. I want to taste you."

Xena turned her body so that her own sex was centimeters above Gabrielle's waiting mouth. Gabrielle licked her lover sensuously and Candace tasted Xena on her lips.

Taylor nipped lightly at the engorged nipple in her mouth. Gabrielle felt the shocking tingle run from her nipple to the swollen bud in Xena's mouth. She ran her tongue up the small crevice of Xena's tight back end, pushing gradually into the tight bud. Candace screamed and knew she was close to the edge of a great release.

"Good GGOD! Uuuhhh. Don sto..p don't." She moved one hand down and grazed across a taut nipple with her thumb. She squeezed it lightly. She wanted Taylor to follow her over.

Gabrielle's heart jumped when a small hand played with her sensitive nipple, and sparks shot to her core. She thrust her tongue into Xena's small puckered bud, while the long fingers of the firefighter continued to stroke Candace and the warrior. It was like having three people making love to her while she made love to three. The mutual orgasm wasn't long in coming.

Candace screamed first. Her very soul released into the air and she floated. She heard her lover give in to the passion and let her deliverance be known. Candace's soul was soon joined to her lover's and they entwined becoming one. That one was soon joined by a third, and finally a fourth. It was a oneness that could never be shared by mere physical coherence. They became truly the one that they all were. Deeply. Intimately. Powerfully. They now knew what it was truly like to become one with the other parts of themselves. Whole.

Skye sensed the connection just as Terra pulled the powerful orgasm from her body. The raw power ripped through her and traveled to her partner. Terra screamed her freedom into the Amazon night. Their hearts melted together, and for a brief moment they combined, half way surrounding the power of the four.

Melinda's eyes flew open when she touched the oneness that drew them all together. Janice sensed the force as well, but she concentrated on the pleasure of her lover. The shock of the connection sent them both reeling. They both felt their inner beings leap from within them to join in unison with two others. These four encompassed the center, drawing it tighter. Covering it. Sheltering the core as was their purpose. They were the armor.

It was completion, as none of them had known it before. It was deeper than any physical act could ever draw them. Through this one revelation, the center knew itself. All thought, feeling and desire was known and shared. They were one.

The armor was not one with the core, but it knew its purpose. From now until it was no more, it would keep the essence safe.

It was far beyond them. Beyond their small physical understanding. But there was one thing they did understand. They knew they would never be alone again.

=/~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>

Continued in Part 12.