The Demons Inside Us

This is my first Xena Fanfiction, I've only just watched the entire series all the way through! So please if there are any story issues that don't seem right to you let me know (or if I recall an event in the TV show incorrectly, pop us a PM). The way the show was written and the show in general inspired me to write this so here we go.

The story is set just after the events of Illusia. Everything happened as it did in the episode.

Disclaimer. The Xena Warrior Princess series and its characters are all copyrighted property of MCA/universal

The cold breeze flowed through the Warrior Princesses jet black hair as she scouted the area around the camp she and Gabrielle had stayed at the previous night. It had been the first night since the death of her beloved son that she had slept the whole night through. Although she had settled things with Gabrielle the death of her son still weighed heavily on her shoulders, she missed him dearly and the thought of not seeing him in her current lifetime was torture beyond believe. The breeze that had previously been slow picked up and a chill ran down her spine, "Ares" she said cooly.

"The one and only my love" he replied in his arrogant tone before showing himself to his beautiful chosen.

"If I had a dinar for every time I asked you what you wanted you'd be out of business." she stated with the typical Xena smirk. Ares always got under her skin, she didn't know if it was feelings that she tried to bury deep inside her or if it was the fact that once he had turned her and the possibility that he could do it once again shook her to the core.

"Well it's a good job that that isn't the case then isn't it." he replied, however when he started talking again his grin was lost and a stern and serious look appeared on his face "I've come to tell you something Xena." The confusion on the Warrior Princesses face was obvious, he'd tried many approaches on trying to get her back none of which so far had succeeded. She could hear the stir of Gabrielle awakening in the distance, she'd soon be wondering where Xena was.

"I'm listening, but make it quick!"

"I've come to apologise." he stated stepping forward. He was now so close to Xena that she could feel his breath of her lips, she could smell the war lingering on him and most endearing of all she could feel his heart beat quicken alike her own. Realising she was beginning to feel like a teenage girl that had a crush, she began to laugh.

"An apology?! By the Gods Ares you expect me to accept an apology from you and believe it! I'm not as goat crazy as you think I am! " Ares turned his back, she could sense his anger and his irritation.

"You never take me seriously Xena! Never! I came here to apologise and give you my respects. The death of your son, I can tell has been extremely hard on you and me trying to take advantage didn't help you in any way. I need you Xena. I can't explain why I'm so drawn to you."

"You came here to say that?"

"Well yeah"

"You really are going soft aren't you Ares. What would the followers of Ares God of War think of this little speech exactly? I personally think you'd be the laughing stock of Greece."

"I'm past that Xena. I don't care what others think as long as I have you by my side. I want you to be my wife, to be the mother of my children and to be the one that I say I love to day after day." His hand was now caressing her cheek, running smoothly across her silky skin, her sparkling ocean blue eyes closed at the sensation flowing through her body.

"Ares" she moaned before opening them again. Her movement was as quick as a flash at the sight of Gabrielle moving closer towards them. Xena had opened the distance between the two and composed herself.

"Xena, what's going on?" Gabrielle asked confused by the close proximity that the God and her best friend had been in.

"Gabrielle! How lovely to see you" said Ares, the annoyance was clear through the way he said her name. 'she always seems to interrupt us' he thought 'just when I seem to be getting somewhere there she is'.

"Why are you here Ares? If Xena hasn't said it a thousand times, she's just not interested!"

"Anybody else would think that you were jealous Gabby!" The use of her nickname coming from his lips was disturbing to say the least. "But I shall be on my way. Xena?" she had been standing quiet for the last few seconds, still trying to get over the loss of control that had just happened. She looked into his eyes and was surprised to see what was there, it was pain. The God of War was actually in pain.

"Xena, I meant what I said. I can change, truly I can." In a flash of blue light he was gone leaving the two friends reeling in disbelief. Gabrielle was confused about the closeness that she had just sensed, she knew that Ares and Xena had something, what that something was she didn't know, she didn't even think that Xena knew what it was. Xena was however, in a state of astonishment, was the God of War yet again trying to put on another act in order to get her to join his crazed world. She would have come to that conclusion straight away had she not looked into those brown depths of his. His eyes spoke words that she had never thought possible from the man she despised yet yearned. She saw the pain that was there, pain that she knew she had caused over the many years they had been in contact. But pain that he had only brought on himself, teasing her with his games and his tricks.

"Xena?" she heard through her deep thoughts. "Xena, what's happened?" she hadn't known she was looking at the ground for when she looked up Gabrielle was within the same distance Ares had just been. She composed herself shifting her feet slightly to form a more confident stance.

"Nothing Gabrielle, just Ares trying to get to me" Xena replied, however it wasn't convincing enough as her friend kept prying.

"It didn't look like nothing when he had his hands on you." It sounded harsher than she intended, however it did bring Xena's full attention to her.

"He didn't have his hands on me Gabrielle you must have been mistaken. He was just talking about the same god like crap he normally talks about. Have my children, rule the world with me, blah blah blah. You know what he's like." by the time Xena had finished her poor explanation she and Gabrielle were back to the camp. "We need to pack up, we've got a long journey to Amphipolis ahead of us. I was hoping we'd get there before night."

"I know what your trying to do Xena and it's not going to work! We've got the whole journey to talk about this." With that Gabrielle began collecting the bed rolls and Xena put out the fire. The journey ahead she knew was going to be long and tiresome and with the added Gabrielle interrogation she knew it was going to be one to forget.

So you made it through it! What did you think? Thanks for reading and please leave a review your comments do help improving writing and shaping the story. Thanks again :)