AN: This was semi-inspired by a fic request that was sent in a while ago that I wasn't able to make work at the time. Since then, I'm still not entirely sure I made it work, but oh the well. It's done. I hope you guys enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Xena.
Xena was almost sure the gods were laughing at her. They had to be, for if this wasn't some joke one of them had set up, it was just the Fates being cruel. Or her own mind turning against her, betraying her with its distractions.
Adorable distractions, distractions that she longed for on an almost daily basis, but distractions nonetheless.
Distractions that came in a small package of barely suppressed rage, bardic talents the likes of which she hadn't seen in years, and a smile that had her heart racing with barely an effort. Distractions that had just been added to with her change of clothing, showing off the lithe muscle and soft skin that had formerly been hidden by her blouse.
The Amazons had been good for Gabrielle, they really had been, but they'd been awful for Xena's self-control. Whoever had decided to give Gabrielle her newest outfit, the short skirt and the deep v-top that clung to her every curve and shifted ever so slightly with her every move, had earned both a place in the Elysian Fields and Tartarus- which one, Xena still wasn't sure yet, but either way, it didn't truly matter.
Xena wasn't a stranger to naked women- more often than not she had bathed with her female soldiers and the women who had trailed behind her troops, who would cook and clean and tend to her men when the battles were done, and her bed had housed many. But none of that, none of the naked breasts and bare thighs could compare to what that outfit was doing for her.
Probably because it was Gabrielle wearing it- enough Amazons had worn similar around the village, when they weren't in their fighting leathers, but none of them had drawn her eye quite like her friend.
Friend. Nothing more, Xena reminded herself on a frequent basis, though her heart would throb to remind her otherwise. Just a friend.
But even friends could admire the now visible strength that had been hidden under the old, hand-me-down clothing a few sizes too large, could appreciate the shape years of laboring on a farm had sculpted her arms and legs into, and could take notice of how traveling seemed to agree with her, helping to strip what remained of the baby fat. Friends could be aware of the way their friend's eyes lit up while telling a story, the way their smile grew whenever they encountered something new, the way they shied a little bit closer when the wind rustled the leaves in a particularly violent manner. Friends could notice. Right?
Well, even if it wasn't typical friendship behavior, she was going to Tartarus anyway. Might as well look while she could.
And, Xena realized as Gabrielle laid out her plan, perhaps have a little bit of fun.
"You want to…hunt me?"
"Track you, Xena," Gabrielle said with a small sigh, shaking her head. "Ephiny and Eponin taught me how, back when we were in the village, but I never get to practice. Either the bad guys show up before I can hunt them down, you get dinner before I can start looking for tracks, or I'm the one being followed. If I don't practice, I'll never get any good."
"True," Xena agreed, nodding. "Though I'm not sure where I come into this. Let's just give Argo a head start and you can search for her."
"Except Argo's just a horse. A very smart horse," Gabrielle quickly amended when Argo snorted and turned to look at her, almost as if she was glaring, "but a horse can't climb a tree. A horse can't set its own traps, or mess with mine, or whatever it is bandits and warlords will be doing. But you can."
"So let me get this straight," Xena said after a few moments of thinking. "You want me to run off tomorrow morning and lead you on a wild goose chase through the forest until you either give up or catch me?"
"Or you catch me," Gabrielle added. "You can set your own traps, if you want, and whoever catches the other first wins."
"Gabrielle," Xena said, her tone almost pitying, "do you really think you could catch me?"
Gabrielle's smile was a challenge, brazen and bold, as she shrugged. "Scared to find out?"
If Xena were to take a moment to think about, it was actually a great plan: give Gabrielle the training she needed, practice a few of her own skills she had let get rusty from disuse, and have a day for them both to relax in relative safety- a good idea all around, and for good reasons too. But put up against a challenge, Xena didn't take a moment to think about anything.
She just smiled her deadly smile and nodded.
"You're on."
Xena was honestly proud. Watching as Gabrielle picked her way through the trees, following the path Xena had left for her that morning, Xena was proud. A few months ago, Gabrielle wouldn't have been able to follow a hoard of rampaging warlords down anything but a clearly marked path, the subtle changes of someone passing through a forest invisible to her.
Gabrielle was following the wrong path, one Xena had laid hours ago as a decoy that would lead through a series of traps and to a dead end, but still. Xena was proud.
She became even more proud as Gabrielle paused, her staff in hand, poking at the ground Xena had placed the trap around.
For hours she had been watching Gabrielle from the trees- watching her set up her own traps around their camp, ensuring that Xena wouldn't be able to make her way back in without getting caught; finding the trail and keeping to it, even when it fell away as Xena took her across rivers and over hills; the couple of traps Gabrielle had been able to avoid, though this was her first time trying to disarm one.
She was proud, even as she hoped Gabrielle would never need to use these skills, for they were still good to have.
"Come on, Gabrielle," Xena whispered under her breath, her eyes quickly finding the thin line of copper wire she had set up earlier. Her staff was just a few inches off from hitting it, safely triggering the rope pull that laid a few inches beyond it. She knew something was there- if she would just sweep instead of stab, she would get it.
Gabrielle jumped as, before her, a rope loop snapped shut, bouncing into the air before her. Had she stepped in it, she would have been yanked upside down by her ankle, leaving her stranded. Shaking her head, Gabrielle smiled and continued on down the trail, her eyes picking up the line of bent grass once again after a few moments of searching.
For a moment Xena sat there, beaming as she watched her walk away, before setting back down the way they had come to start setting a new trail. The one Gabrielle was following would run out soon, and eventually she would realize it was a trick. It wouldn't take her too long to get back to the start- mile wise, she wasn't far from the camp. Xena had made sure that her paths, while winding and wide-spread, wouldn't take either of them too far from Argo and their things. If Gabrielle went straight back towards camp to try to find another path, she would get there soon.
Leaving Xena just enough time to work.
She had woken up early, even earlier than usual, to set up a couple of random mini trails before setting up her true false one. Unsure of what Gabrielle would do when she had woken up, Xena had wanted to be prepared. A couple of false leads with simple traps that she could easily expand upon later had been set, giving her more than enough time to make the full one while Gabrielle checked those out.
Not that they were needed, much to her slight annoyance, for the moment Gabrielle had fully woken up, she had, instead of getting started, settled in for breakfast.
Not that Xena had been totally surprised. Except when their lives were directly in danger, Gabrielle always thought with her stomach. And it had given her enough time to lay the full trail, one that would truly test Gabrielle's tracking abilities. But Xena had still chuckled and shaken her head when she watched her from the tree line, soaking some of their jerky in some hot water while snacking on some fruits and nuts they had gotten from the last village as she waited. A breakfast like that had taken Gabrielle a while to get through, giving her all the time she had needed.
Reaching their camp, Xena carefully jumped over the line of traps Gabrielle had set- she had only placed them on the forest floor, leaving the trees clear to be traveled through, something she'd have to point out to her later. Smiling at Argo as the horse glanced up at her, momentarily distracted from her grazing by her owner falling in, Xena took a moment to breathe, biting back a yawn as she allowed herself to momentarily relax for the first time all day. She wasn't tired, nowhere near, but the relative calm and warmth of the day had been dragging at her, almost asking her to rest. There hadn't been hide nor hair of anyone other than themselves (a fact she had confirmed and reconfirmed almost obsessively throughout the day), so it was safe for her to do so.
Glancing up at the sun, after a few moment of consideration, Xena walked over to the log they had dragged into the camp the night before to serve as a seat and sat before it, leaning back so she was resting against it. If she had to guess, it would be at another few hours before Gabrielle came back to the camp proper, more than enough time for some food and something to drink to perk her back up.
She kept it simple- there was no time for anything real, though their recent trip through a town made it nicer than it would have been normally. A piece of bread, some fruit, and a sliver of jerky for her to gnaw on slipped into her pouch for later replaced the leftovers from whatever they had caught and killed themselves the night before; a nice break, overall, especially paired with the rest of the tea Gabrielle had left from that morning- cool, from sitting out of the fire the entire day, but Gabrielle had covered the pot with a cloth to keep it bug free, making it still drinkable.
It was strangely bitter, the tea, as if Gabrielle had thrown in some pine needles along with their other herbs while brewing it, though the taste last only lasted for a moment. Tilting the pot towards her, Xena peered in, wrinkling her nose when she picked out the burnt remains of the leaves that stuck to the metal- Gabrielle had probably gotten too distracted by the thought of their exercise this morning to keep a close enough eye on the fire and lost track of time, over brewing the drink. It wasn't overly unpleasant, just a moment or two before the other, sweeter herb tastes drove it away, so with shrug Xena downed the rest of her drink with her food.
She was content. Her stomach was full, her friend and her horse were relatively safe, and the afternoon was awfully nice. Warm, warmer than it had been the last couple of days, with a lovely breeze to cut the heat so it wasn't stifling. There was nothing around for miles that could hurt them, she had made sure of that. And the log was actually quite comfortable, shifted as she was so it cradled her upper back, allowing her head to rest on the softest of the wooden spots. If she just closed her eyes, just for a minute…
It was Argo's squeal of pain that had Xena stumbling to her feet, wildly blinking her eyes as she tried to make sense of the world around her.
It was late afternoon, just an hour or so away from being dark, half a day later than it had been when she had sat down to eat. Gabrielle was nowhere in sight or hearing- when before she had been able to hear the distant rustling of her as she made her way through the forest (Gabrielle, for all of her new abilities in tracking, had never learned how to just keep quiet, leaving her audible for a couple of miles in every direction if you knew, like Xena did, how to listen), now there was nothing but the drone of bugs as they went about their lives. And there was Argo, her hind leg lifted awkwardly into the air, caught in one of the traps Gabrielle herself had set up.
Shaking her head, trying to clear the fog that had overcome her mind, Xena muttered a soft shushing sound as she drew her knife and approached the horse. Even if she couldn't think straight, even if she had no idea what was going on, she could at least fix this.
"Argo, now!"
As if by a miracle, the rope holding Argo's leg dropped, allowing the horse to stand on her own once again without any kind of help. Rearing up, Argo lashed out at Xena, her hooves almost brushing against her face as she forced her to stumble back, the knife falling from Xena's hand as she backed away from the animal.
Backing right into one of Gabrielle's traps, the net rising from the leaf covering to encase her and force her into the air, hanging there, defenseless, as Gabrielle ran from the tree line, smiling victoriously.
"I win," Gabrielle squealed, bouncing up and down as she stared at Xena, the two of them eye level from the trap's low hanging. Leaning up on her toes, Gabrielle placed a kiss against Argo's muzzle, something the horse quickly shook off when she had pulled away- her eyes would have rolled if she had been human, but even as it was, it was clear Argo was affectionally annoyed with the young woman. "Xena, I won," Gabrielle said again, stopping in her bouncing to gently tap her still captured friend with her staff, Xena's miffed expression only deepening at the minor insult. "I caught you."
"You turned my own horse against me." Although her head was still fuzzy, it was clear enough for her to realize what had happened- and be absolutely betrayed. "Argo," Xena said, her pout clear, "how could you?"
"Oh, don't blame her," Gabrielle said, turning Xena's attention back to her. "I bribed her with apples when I came back and found you asleep." Reaching up, she scratched Argo under her chin, smiling softly as the horse lifted her head to better allow her access to her neck. "She's a quick sell, though, I tell yah."
"Asleep…" Shaking her head again, the last of the fuzz finally starting to fade, Xena just raised her eyebrow as she realized what Gabrielle had done, her suspicions only confirmed as Gabrielle's face flushed with almost shame as she refused to meet Xena's eyes. "Gabrielle," Xena said calmly, forcing her to look up, "you drugged the tea, didn't you?"
"Not a lot," Gabrielle quickly said, shaking her head as she took a small step back from the net. "I found some valerian a few days ago, and I know how you get around lunch." Relaxed after a morning of no fighting, tired of traveling, more than alright with stopping for a little while, especially if there was a lake nearby to do some fishing- oh, she knew how she got around lunch, and Xena had to bite back the smile that threatened to tug at her lips. Good. Gabrielle had used the information she had observed to her advantage. Good.
She gave Xena a small smile, though it fell at the carefully crafted look Xena continued to give her. "I didn't use much," she added softly, slowly beginning to cave in on herself, drawing her staff closer to herself in an almost protective stance. "I… just…" Her voice fully trailed off as she watched Xena, trying to gauge her response. Trying to figure out just how much trouble she was in.
Instead, Xena just smiled and laughed, shaking her head slightly at her own fall into the trap.
"No, Gabrielle, that was good," Xena said, shifting so she was more comfortably trapped in the net- she had yet to make a move to escape, though it wouldn't take her long or be that hard to do so. While the overall construct was sound, Gabrielle had done nothing to close up the top, making it more like a tall hammock then a real trap. But it was a start. "You successfully lowered my defenses, caught me off guard, and turned one of my allies over to your cause. You did well. You won, fair and square."
She wouldn't mention the dead giveaway the bitterness of the tea would be to anyone else, or that Gabrielle had only won because she was, in fact, Gabrielle, perhaps the only person who she trusted, the only person who served as a constant distraction to her daily life and good judgement. Anyone else, and she never would have even entered the camp, much less drunk anything they had made. And no warlord or professional thief that they were hunting would ever make that mistake either. Not that it mattered, for Gabrielle had, in fact, won.
"What do you want as a reward?" Shifting once again so she was sitting up instead of laying in the net, Xena looped her arms through two of the holes and leaned forward so her face was against one of the others, allowing her to fully face Gabrielle as she spoke. "I could try and catch some eels in the nearby river. Or there were a few fruit trees a while away. I could double back, see if anything's ripe. Or-"
Her words were cut off as, quicker than she could truly process, once again leaving her mind in a daze, Gabrielle pressed a quick, chaste kiss against her lips.
Perhaps, Xena had to wonder as she watched Gabrielle pull away, her face and neck a brilliant red as she once again refused to meet Xena's gaze, though this time with a small smile present instead of the worry from before, perhaps the gods weren't quite laughing at her. At least, not in the way she had first thought.
Though the Fates were still cruel, because even as she watched, Gabrielle's smile turned into a smirk before she turned on her toes and took off running, yelling over her shoulder that it was Xena's turn to perform for their exercise.
Leaving Xena cursing as she scrambled out of the net, almost falling to the forest floor in her haste to take after Gabrielle; though even her fall couldn't stop the wide smile that had overtaken her as the hunted became the hunter.