The darkness that enveloped them resounded with eerie quiet. It seemed that even the animal world was in mourning on this day, the hum of animal calls usually present absent. The only noise was the crackling of their small campfire and her companion's disturbed movements next to her. Xena looked to her best friend, whose erratic actions denoted her distressed sleep. The warrior put a reassuring hand on Gabrielle's shoulder causing her movements to quiet. The turmoil that was playing out in her friend's sleep, the death of Eli, was the same cause of her sleeplessness.
Xena sighed rolling to her back allowing her to look up to the clear night sky. Stars shone like tiny vessels on an endless ocean. Her inner turmoil tossed around inside her like a storm created by Poseidon. The death of Eli was the tip of a wave of change that was beginning to seep through the Greek world. The twilight of the Gods, a story thought only to be a myth, had motivated Ares enough to act on it and now left her with a deep sense that she was unwittingly going to be playing a part in it. Looking down to her now protruding belly, Xena rubbed it tenderly. Her child, its conception brought forth by the one God. Its soul mixed with one that she had called her enemy. Deep down Xena wondered what this would do to her child. Better yet, why her child? Why had she been chosen to become a pawn in this one God's upheaval of the known worlds?
A startled cry beside her caused Xena to turn to Gabrielle. Her friend bolted upright shedding her blankets and looking around frantically, her Sais shimmered as they were brought up defensively. After searching the darkness around her for a moment, Gabrielle turned to her friend.
"Xena?" she asked her voice shaky. Xena stood, meeting her friend's gaze and seeing the hurt there. Gabrielle quickly dropped her Sais to the ground, rubbing her face distressed. A tear ran down her cheek, prompting Xena to wipe it away. The warrior woman pulled Gabrielle into a strong embrace, wishing she could take away her pain. The young blonde then began to cry, finally feeling that the rift that had formed between them had disappeared. Xena's words had continued to haunt her within her dreams. Her accusations flung at Gabrielle to cover her own hurt inside.
"Gabrielle, it will be ok," Xena stated soothingly. Gabrielle pulled away, looking up to her friend with sad eyes.
"Xena, I keep seeing his death...." Gabrielle stated quietly, her gaze turning down to the ground, no doubt searching for answers. Why did Eli have to die for peace to progress? Realistically, Gabrielle understood that Eli had made himself a martyr to his cause, that his followers' faith was now twice as strong but deep down it still did not feel right.
"Gabrielle, Eli would not want to cause you grief and hurt over his death. Even though we do not understand or perhaps even agree with it, his faith has taken him on another path, a path that he chose. The best we can do is try to move on," Xena watched as Gabrielle's gaze continued to search the grassy floor beneath them. Gently Xena reached out and brought her friends chin up until their gazes meant once again. "Okay?" Xena asked, once more putting a reassuring hand on Gabrielle's shoulder.
Gabrielle simply nodded, knowing that her warrior friend spoke the truth. It did not make her dreams or thoughts of remorse go away; perhaps she should have stopped Ares. Seeing that her friend remained unconvinced but not open to discussing it further, Xena indicated the fire.
"Let's warm up eh? If we cannot sleep, we may as well keep each other company," Xena suggested as she sat down next to the fire, Gabrielle sitting down quietly beside her. The warrior pushed their small pot over the fire; perhaps some tea would calm both their minds and help them sleep.
An uneasy silence settled between them as they waited for the water to boil. Gabrielle watched the fires flames dance around, the heat doing nothing to warm her insides. An icy cold retained its grip on her body involuntarily causing her to shiver. Gooseflesh covered her body despite the fire causing Xena to pull her best friend close to her, rubbing her arms in an effort to stop the shivering. Pulling a fur from her bedroll, the warrior pulled it up around them both. Gabrielle brought the fur around her tightly, the coldness slowly receding. Xena left her arm around her friend, reassuring that things would be right again.
After several moments by the fire, Gabrielle's body began to relax, Xena feeling the distinct difference with a sigh of relief. The warrior knew that Gabrielle's body reacted very physically to emotional turmoil within her. The silence between them was now comfortable, no conversation was required it was enough that they had each other physically close. A sudden weight on her shoulder and Xena knew that Gabrielle was resting her head there. Giving her a heartfelt squeeze, Xena noted the now regular, soft breathing pattern of her friend. Hearing the soft boiling of the water, Xena cautiously moved the pot off the fire with her foot careful not to disturb Gabrielle. I guess you do not need tea, the dark haired woman thought with a small smile. Steeling herself for a long night, Xena pulled her end of the fur tighter. If Gabrielle needed her to chase bad dreams away, she would do it gladly.
Dawns early rays were starting to creep through the horizon when Xena awoke, her senses disturbed by the sensation of being watched. The dark haired warrior scanned her surroundings, the fire now little more than smouldering ashes. Gabrielle's weight remained on her shoulder; her soft intake of breath telling her she remained asleep. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, then recognizing a familiar sensation Xena cursed inwardly.
"Ares..." she muttered under her breathe as the God of War appeared opposite her with a charming smile on his face and a knowing chuckle on his lips.
"Oh Xena, I do love how you do that," the broad shouldered man stated chuckling, looking down at Xena as her pathetic sidekick slept on clueless. Ares could see the anger in the dark haired woman's eyes, taking a breathe before speaking Ares knew she was reining herself in.
"Ares, you wake Gabrielle and I will give you something to think about," Xena threatened, pointing her finger at the God accusingly. "Don't you think you've caused us enough grief for one day?" the warrior continued angrily. Ares shook his head disappointedly as he casually flicked a bolt of lightning into the fire pit causing the fire to burst up, lighting the clearing. Resting his hand on the hilt of his sword, he assessed his object of admiration for a moment noting that even without her armour and in dim light, Xena's beauty was like no other. If the God of War was truthful with himself, he ached for her like it was nobody's business.
"Xena...Xena. You will come to realize that the followers of Eli will be nothing but trouble. You may not like the Gods of Olympus," Ares paused, thinking over his words carefully, "but better the Gods you know, than one self-proclaimed God," Ares stated, watching Xena's response.
The warrior woman scowled at Ares, her anger evident on her face. The only reason she was not up in Ares face was that Gabrielle remained out like a light.
"Ares, I do not care about any of the Gods agendas. People have the right to choose who they follow and with whom they put their faith," Xena said almost calmly. This caused Ares to laugh and then his face turned very serious, a snarl turning his handsome features angry.
"Of course, but they suffer the consequences afterwards," Ares replied, his deep voice sounding dangerous. Xena was preparing to tongue lash the God when he held up his hand, indicating her to remain.
"Wait Xena, those thoughts are not good for the baby," the God chuckled, his voice resonating with mock concern. "Congratulations by the way," Ares replied deadpan. Xena rubbed her belly protectively.
"What do you want Ares because you have gloating already covered," Xena proclaimed, the sun's rays now starting to shed more light over their campsite.
"True," the God stated serenely. "I just wanted to continue our conversation privately," Ares offered. "It seems though that my advice is falling on deaf ears," he started to pace back and forth, and then stopped looking directly to Xena. "And her!" he stated, pointing to Gabrielle with a slightly frustrated tone, "I was just starting to like the 'new' her but it seems that old annoying sidekick remains under her warrior facade," Ares added, seemingly disappointed.
Xena looked to Gabrielle, knowing the offer Ares had put forth. He had proposed the same one to her many times. Xena knew how much Gabrielle had changed over the last couple of seasons but despite her recent warrior bravado, the warrior knew deep down the world continued to change and affect her. The bard was just getting better at hiding it.
"What can I say, she is very smart," Xena added quietly. Ares looked to her, a silence falling between them for a moment. Xena could see his eyes roaming her body and ending on her belly.
"Just remember," Ares, stated, "I offered you the world. That child could have it all..."
"It will have all it needs," Xena interrupted, feeling Gabrielle shift her weight beside her. This apparently took away the rest of Ares' speech because he paused for a moment, anger in his eyes. The God of War was still having problems believing that Xena was pregnant and the child was not his.
"We will see," the God of War replied simply before disappearing in a flash of light. Xena looked out into the darkness of where he had been and could not shake the feeling that those words had been a warning. The weight on her shoulder disappeared as Gabrielle sat upright, groggily opening her eyes. The blonde-haired woman looked to Xena and looked to the morning sky.
"Xena, have I been sleeping on your shoulder all night?" her friend asked guiltily, stretching and yawning. Xena looked to her friend with a smile, glad she was unaware of Ares' little visit. He had caused her enough pain for one day. Looking her friend over, Xena could see that Gabrielle's half-hooded eyes gave away her continued tiredness. It had been late in the night before she had started to get decent sleep.
"Yes but I don't mind. I think just this once we should go back to sleep," Xena stated, as she rose from her place by the fire and sorted out her bedroll. Smoothing out the edges, she motioned for Gabrielle to lie beside her. If nothing, the last day had reminded her that relishing in life's pleasantries was okay because you never know what the fates have in store for tomorrow. Sleeping in was definitely one said pleasantry.
"Seriously?" Gabrielle stated, now more awake as she quickly lay down beside her friend, not liking the cool morning air. Once under the fur cover, she turned to Xena who was looking up at the disappearing stars. "I think I should mark this down in my scroll," she said with a smile. Of all their years traveling together, Gabrielle could count on one hand how many times she had been 'allowed' to sleep in. Xena turned to her with her own smile.
"Don't get used to it," she replied simply, rolling over and falling easily into slumber. Gabrielle smiled to her back, watching as a stray ray of sunlight hit them both. The blonde closed her eyes, snuggling underneath the covers, knowing that after their last couple days sleeping in sounded like a great idea.
*End*