Candles cast the only light in Gabrielle's bedroom. It was musty and stale with memories. Xena found a rag doll on the floor by the window. It was old but cared for and it had that faint scent of lavender; a fragrance Lila used. She propped the doll upright on the window ledge and gazed a moment into the darkness outside. The storm had receded but it was still cloudy. There would be no stars tonight.

She sat briefly on the mattress but then rose to her feet and paced. The silence was deafening. It pressed on her spirit like a stone. Gabrielle. I really wish you were here right now because I need you. Nothing feels right. Nothing has since I died. Xena fiddled with the doll again. Lila's upset, Eve's angry and I feel….empty. This is such a mess. Frustrated she tossed the toy across the room. The doll bounced across the floorboards and tumbled to a halt beneath the bed. She closed her eyes and tried to will her anger back down. Focus is what I need.

Xena stepped toward the bed and crouched down to retrieve the toy. Her fingertips brushed a satchel as she stretched her arm below the cot frame. She pulled the bag out intending to reach again for the doll but the distinctive rustle of parchment stopped her. The satchel was stuffed with scrolls. Gabrielle. You are with me after all. A pained smile crossed her lips and she emptied the contents onto the floor and sat down; resting her back against the bed.

The scrolls were neatly bundled save one. She unfurled the solitary story. It was crumpled and ink stained as if Gabrielle had struggled to write it. She traced the familiar script of her bard with a loving hand.

"A friend in need. I sing of Xena and the end to her lifetime of journeying." Xena let the scroll drop. "Well this is gonna' need a rewrite."

Unwilling to revisit the grisly details of her death she reached for another scroll but found her fingers brushed against a letter instead. She tugged the parchment free and raised it to her face and sniffed. Disappointment settled in. No lingering scent of Gabrielle remained. Just musty old leather.

Dearest Lila,

I'm entrusting my scrolls to you for safe keeping. I promised the courier you would feed him the best stew this side of the Acropolis for delivering them into your hands so don't disappoint me baby sister.

It is done. I've laid her ashes to rest next to Lyceus as promised. My heart yearns for home but this land holds too many memories of her and I'm not ready to face them yet.

Please don't worry about me. I'm not alone. I carry you in my heart, always.

Gabrielle.

It was a subtle goodbye. Wherever her bard had gone she didn't intend to return. Xena's fist closed tightly around the letter. It didn't matter.

"I will find you," Xena vowed, closing her eyes. "I will make this right. And I know just where to start."

*****

Eve twisted uncomfortably in her sleep, sweat starting to plaster her slightly curled locks to her forehead.

She was trapped by fire; icy spirit hands pinning her firmly to the flagstones. A vast unseen weight crushed her ribs against her lungs. She could barely breathe. The coppery tang of blood flooded her nose and mouth. She choked on it whilst above her the spectral figure of a young girl coalesced into being. She was dressed in a simple white kimono, her long black hair neatly tied back. Her dark eyes held a sadness that seemed beyond her years. She knelt in supplication holding an elegant katana lightly in her upturned palms. The girls lips began to move in earnest as Eve struggled to make out the words.

"Eve!"

She frowned. That sounded like her Mother.

"Eve!"

She startled awake gasping for breath to find Xena crouched at her side, worry clouding her eyes.

"You alright?"

Eve sat up in the cot and gently batted away her mother's fussing hands.

"I'm okay. Bad dream is all," Eve said, "Nothing to worry about."

"Some dream," Xena observed and rested back on her heels. "I know how they can be."

"Suns up," Eve murmured, keen to change the subject. She regarded her mother silently for a moment. It was then that she realized something had changed. There was a new purpose in her mother's eyes. "What's next?"

A loud clattering of pans sounded from the next room.

"Breakfast," Xena replied with a half smile, "And then there's someone I need to see."