Chapter 2

After a month long excursion to Constantinople, the meeting with Justinian did not bode well for anyone present. Ellac certainly lost his temper with the arrogant Byzantine Emperor and Anastasia wasn't able to save the deal that the emperor proposed years ago. Justinian promised not to invade the Hun Empire for awhile until he built up his own name and empire for himself.

That deal, sadly, was no longer in effect and Anastasia feared for the safety of her entire family and all the people present in the empire. Entering into Pannonia, she hopped off her horse and glared at her husband. She gave the horse to one of the stable boys and he ignored her harsh glare and handed off his horse as well. Adjusting his cloak she grabbed his shoulder and spun him around.

"That was a waste of a trip, Ellac!" she growled and he frowned. "Just what did you think you were doing back there? He could have killed us because of the way you acted! Now look what you have done, you've endangered our children and all the tribes under our reign!"

"So the peace treaty is off. We knew that was going to happen sooner or later," he said and she shoved him. Cera and Arielle were making their way over and he glared at his wife. "Let's not do this right now in front of them."

"Fine but this isn't over," she warned.

Cera ran towards Ellac and jumped into his arms. He kissed her cheek and she wrapped her legs around his waist, hugging him tightly. "You were gone so long!"

"I know but I will be staying here for awhile." He said and her entire face lit up.

"Did you bring me a present?" she asked curiously.

"Cera!" Anastasia chastised and she bit her lip.

Ellac smiled and brushed a tendril behind his daughter's ear. "Not this time. This trip was not very good." He explained in words that she could understand and she frowned confusedly. He moved on to a lighter subject. "So, did Bakkah have the baby yet?"

Arielle scoffed, "no and Kreka is getting really mad about it too," she snickered and Cera nodded vigorously.

"Grandma says that Kreka Khatun is very impatient," Cera added and Ana covered her mouth, laughing under her breath.

"Oh, mother," Arielle grabbed her hand, "grandma and Gabrielle are waiting for you inside."

Anastasia frowned at her husband and shied away from her, knowing what was going to happen later in that conference.

Gabrielle slammed down the papers on the floor and glared at two monarchs. "What the hell is this? You not only pissed off Justinian but he took the peace treaty away. Now he is definitely going to attack us."

Ellac wagged his finger back and forth. "No he won't. I have this under control."

"Do you?" Ana combated. "This is not how the meeting was supposed to go. Ellac ruined everything. He lost his temper and started making death threats against Justinian! He was never our ally but he certainly isn't our friend now! You ruined this peace treaty!"

Xena interrupted before Ellac was about to yell at her daughter. "What if you sent me and Gabrielle to Constantinople?"

"No offense mother, but you would probably kill him," the queen said and Gabrielle almost nodded in agreement.

"I will not. Right, Gabrielle?" she widened her eyes and the governor smiled sheepishly. "Come on! I'm much better now."

"You wanted to rip that boy in half at the party," Gabrielle mentioned and both monarchs frowned, eyeing the commander with pursed lips.

Anastasia crossed her arms. "What boy? And what party?"

Xena cast a large smile at her daughter. "Sweetheart," she began and her daughter's eyes bore into her. "It's no big deal. Nothing happened. The boy is fine. There was no party. Moving on to more important matters," she cleared her throat and Ana shared a wary look with Ellac. "So, Gabrielle and I should go talk with the emperor and sort this out. We can discuss a new treaty."

"I don't know mother, he is very difficult to deal with. He also hates Odoacer and the two are fighting over territories right now. He's going to target us next and who knows? Maybe Odoacer will team up with him and he'll wipe us all out!" she shot a mean glare at her husband.

Gabrielle massaged her temples and took in a deep breath. "I have an idea. I'll send Justinian a letter asking if we can meet to discuss a new treaty. If he declines then we go from there. How about that?"

Ana nodded and Ellac sat with a big frown on his face. She hit his shoulder and he nudged her back. "Works for me," he finally relented. "So, what went on while we were gone? Did you two throw a wild party?" he jested.

"Absolutely not," Xena lied and Gabrielle scratched her head anxiously. "Gabrielle will write the letter immediately and send off this afternoon. It'll take a couple of weeks to reach the bastard."

Anastasia's mouth gaped. "Mother you haven't even gone to speak with him and you're already calling him horrible names."

"It's in my nature," she joked and her daughter shook her head. "You should rest. You both look exhausted."

Ellac chortled and elbowed his wife. "They're trying to get rid of us."

All four of them exited the king's quarters and Xena bickered with Gabrielle as they walked far behind Ana and Ellac. Csaba waited patiently for his parents to get out of their meeting. He saw them walking towards the staircase to retire to their bedroom and he caught them before they could leave.

"Mother!" he called out and she spun around. "Nice to have you back," he smiled and looked at his father, "father."

"Csaba," Ellac raised his eyebrow, sensing that his son was going to ask him something urgent or something he wouldn't approve of. Even though he was technically an adult, he still had to ask permission from his parents to leave the premises especially after what happened with the Onogur tribe.

The prince looked at both his parents' light eyes and they folded their arms in unison. "I want to go hunting with Oran. I will be gone for a few days. Is it okay if I go?"

Anastasia frowned, not too fond of Ebnedzar's son even after all these years living with him and his family. "Do not go outside of Pannonia territory. Stay close by."

"I'm not a child."

"I don't care!" she yelled and he bowed his head. Ellac squeezed her arm and she softened. "Yes you may go."

He beamed and kissed both of her cheeks. "Thank you. I will be back in three days. I promise." He ran off and Ellac cocked his head confusedly. Anastasia trailed up the stairs and he followed her.

"You're too hard on him," he said in a hushed voice so others would not hear.

"I am not," she bitterly said.

"Yes you are. He is twenty one years of age, Ana."

"Shut up, Ellac," she lifted her robes and walked up the stairs. He slapped her behind playfully and she gasped then spun around and smacked his chest. He smiled charmingly at her and she shook her head. He hastily grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her over his shoulder. "Ellac, put me down!" she slapped the back of his thighs as she hung upside down.

He held her ankles so she wouldn't whack him in the face and grinned as he walked up the stairs casually.

"You put me down right now!" she ordered.

"Not until we get to the bedroom," he whistled down the hallway and she groaned loudly, her arms dangling by her ears.

Two days after the conference, Gabrielle was able to write a lengthy letter to the emperor and hoped for the best. She really didn't want an Emperor Zeno repeat. He destroyed Pannonia and killed so many soldiers, not to mention, he nearly killed Xena, her best friend, her lover of many years. He didn't want that to happen again so she prayed to herself that Justinian would be somewhat amenable.

To distract herself, she thought that sparring with Xena would get her mind off of things. Although after the third fall to the ground she was beginning to regret this decision. She wiped the sweat off her brow and eyed the arrogant commander. She put up her wrapped fists and held them close to her face.

Throwing a punch forward, Xena blocked it immediately. She sent a roundhouse kick and that was blocked too by Xena kneeing her in the shin. Ignoring the pain settling into her body and the bruises forming, she decided to go for a move that Xena taught her many years ago. She ducked and slid beneath the wily commander and grabbed her by the arms and flipped her onto her back.

Proud of herself that finally got the commander on the ground she straddled her legs on either side of Xena's waist and pinned her arms to the grass. "Ha!" she spat in her face. "I finally got you."

"One out of fifty. Nice job, Gabrielle," she smiled and the governor gasped. "Get off me."

Gabrielle raised her eyebrow and bit her bottom lip. "There's nobody out here, Xena. We're all alone in this field. The camp is far away." She leaned downward and Xena's eyes widened and she softened her lips. Gabrielle head butted her in the forehead and then got off her.

Xena groaned and sat up, rubbing her forehead. "That was a dirty trick, Gabrielle."

"You fell for it!" she laughed loudly barely able to contain herself. She bent over, wrapping an arm round her muscular abdomen and laughed until she started crying. "You actually thought I was going to kiss you and you fell for it! I can't believe it."

"Yeah, yeah," Xena got up and brushed the grass off her pants. "I'm going to get you back when you least expect it." She unwrapped her wrists and threw the bandages into her saddlebag.

Gabrielle's smile faded and she slowly took the bandages off her wrists, taking a few steps back so her partner wouldn't retaliate. Xena smirked and jumped forward, scaring Gabrielle. She screamed and then covered her mouth and Xena chuckled deviously.

"That is not funny!"

"That should teach you not to mess with me."

Gabrielle scoffed and quickly tucked the bandages in the saddlebag and put her fists up in case she was going to get punched in the face. Xena climbed onto her horse and put a hand to her hip. "I'm not going to hit you."

"Not yet!" the blonde said.

The commander rolled her eyes and stretched her hand out. "Get on the horse, Gabrielle."

"How do I know you won't throw me off?"

"Just get on the horse."

"I don't know if I can trust you."

"Get on the damn horse!" she hissed and Gabrielle hopped onto the steed hesitantly and wrapped her arm around Xena's waist. "Hang on tight."

The governor's face drained of color and Xena kicked the horse then they took off riding down the hill. Gabrielle yelped and wrapped her other arm around her partner's waist, squeezing tightly so she wouldn't fall off. This must be all part of her plan, she thought. She kept thinking Xena was going to throw her off in the middle of the ride.

Ellac rolled over onto his side staring at his sleeping wife. He grinned and slipped his hand beneath the blanket and gradually lifted up her gown, tracing his fingers along her stomach. Anastasia frowned and slapped his hand.

"I'm trying to sleep," she mumbled.

He kissed her bare shoulder and his fingers traveled up her abdomen and cupped her breast. She groaned and rolled her shoulder backward. He smiled and brushed her hair behind her ear and nibbled her neck softly.

"For the love of god Ellac!" she snapped at him and rolled over onto her back, looking into his serene green eyes. From the look of it, he definitely wanted more from her and she cocked her eyebrow. His fingers started taking off the straps of her gown and she grabbed his wrist. "No!" she warned and his smile grew. "Ellac, no!"

She grabbed a pillow and smacked his face. Chuckling, he threw the pillow off the bed and wrapped one leg over hers. She pressed her hand against his lips and shook her head.

"Stay away from me," she warned and he grabbed her wrist away from his mouth and leaned down to kiss her and she turned her cheek. "No, no," she closed her lips and he grabbed her slender waist, pulling her close. "No, this is how I got pregnant with Cera."

"And?" he inched closer, kissing her neck.

She scoffed and punched his shoulder. "So, you should stay far away from me!"

"So you get pregnant again, who cares?" he smirked and she gasped loudly.

"Well, I care, thank you very much."

Ernak burst into the room and Anastasia screamed and hid underneath the blankets. He smiled at his brother and nodded. "So you two finally settle your differences, eh?"

"Ernak get out!" Ana yelled from underneath the blanket.

"Bakkah is finally in labor and I'm so excited!" Ernak said and Ellac plopped back down onto the pillows, gazing at the ceiling. "I hope it is a boy. I have the perfect name picked out. Mother is with Bakkah in the women's quarters. She won't let me come in but I will wait. I am patient. I have been patient for nine months." He said proudly and placed hands on his hips. "Nine months and three days..."

"Great, Ernak. Now leave," Ellac pointed to the door.

The younger brother nodded and slowly backed away and closed the door behind him. Anastasia ripped the covers off herself and punched Ellac in the shoulder.

He grunted and rubbed his shoulder. "What was that for?"

"How come you were never that excited with our children?" she scowled.

"Hey, I was very excited," he slyly grinned, holding a hand to his bare chest and she smacked his face with a pillow. He felt the bed move and he sat up, watching her struggle to grab her clothes. "Where are you going? We aren't finished here."

She wagged her finger. "Don't come near me," she said seriously. He ignored her and began climbing out of bed. "Don't! I mean it!" she grabbed her boots and ran into the bath chambers and closed the door. He sighed and leaned his shoulder on the door.

"Come on, Anastasia!"

"Don't you touch me or I will tell my mother!" she yelled from the other side of the door.

He cringed in disgust. "You ruined the moment."

"Good!"

Gabrielle slipped into the hot bath water and hissed as the water touched her bruises. She looked at the eyes floating above the surface of the water and stuck close to the edge of the bath. Xena smiled, creasing her eyes and Gabrielle smoothed water over her bare arms. Xena dipped down under the water and Gabrielle panicked, fearing that she was about to be pranked by her.

Xena rose to the surface and ran her palm over her wet hair and winked at Gabrielle. "Still scared?"

"Just a little bit," she muttered. Xena reached behind her and saw her flinch. She grabbed the vial of oil and waved it in her face. Gabrielle laughed nervously and swam to the other side of the bath.

Xena oiled her arms and then handed the vial over to her anxious partner. "You don't trust me?"

"Nope," Gabrielle was not afraid to admit that.

The commander rolled her eyes and set the vial down and ran the oil left over on her palms into her long hair. "Suit yourself, Gabrielle. More oil for me."

Gabrielle grumbled and sank further into the hot water and then saw Arielle walk up with a towel wrapped around her body. Oh good, a distraction, she thought. "Arielle, I didn't expect you to be up so early."

The princess shrugged. "Leila told me that I smell like a dog." She said and smiled. "Ladies," she turned around and took off her flats and Xena raised an eyebrow at the girl's hair drenched in mud and bits of grass.

"Arielle, what were you doing this morning?"

She froze and began taking the towel off slowly, revealing her thin body covered in dirt. "Oh you know, playing around outside." She quickly slipped into the hot water and wrapped her arms around her chest. Gabrielle shared a smug look with Xena. "What?" she began to panic.

"Better not be with that boy. You know the rules. I'd hate to have to tell your mother about this."

Arielle gasped, appalled that her grandmother would suggest such a thing. "Grandma, I'm shocked! You think I was with Loric? I was outside practicing my archery." She sank deeper into the water and Xena nodded.

"Uh huh then why are you covered in mud?"

"I told you, I was playing."

Gabrielle hid her smile and tried to play along with Xena's game. "I thought you were practicing archery?"

"Oh yeah…playing and archery. Same thing…" she nervously eyed the two women.

Xena frowned. "Arielle! You stay away from that boy or I will go talk to him myself and I know you don't want that."

Arielle's eyes grew in fear. "No, please! I promise I won't go around Loric anymore. We're just friends."

"That's what they all say, right, Xena?"

"That's right and when they get too close they might touch you or worse, even kiss you," Xena teased with a smile and was nudged in her shoulder blades. She scowled at the coy-playing blonde behind her.

"Grandma that is disgusting. I don't want to kiss him. He's my friend!" Arielle stuck her tongue out and reached for the vial of oil and both women eyed her small breasts and widened their eyes. Arielle casually poured the oil into her palm and saw their shocked faces. "What now?"

Xena kept her eyes glued to her granddaughter's chest and Arielle's cheeks reddened. "When…did you get those?" she pointed at her chest and Arielle wrapped her arms around herself, slightly embarrassed. Gabrielle kept gawking as did Xena, at the nine, almost ten year old.

"Stop staring!" she pleaded.

"You're definitely not going to be around anymore boys," Xena shook her head.

Gabrielle gripped her shoulder and whispered, "They're not that noticeable. I mean, they're hardly there!" she tried to lighten the mood but got a slow head turn and a dagger for eyes glaring at her. "You're right. Definitely no boys," she nodded and swam away to conserve her life.

Xena swam closer to her granddaughter, making the poor girl even more nervous. "Nothing else has changed with you…right?" she whispered.

Arielle contorted her face in confusion and rubbed the oil into her curly hair. "No?"

"Good," she smiled and pats the princess on her head.

"You're not going to tell mother about this are you?"

"Are you crazy? If I told her she would lock you in a cage," Xena joked and Gabrielle laughed nervously but she knew that Anastasia might do something like that to her own daughter. Xena tried to keep her away from boys when she was a child and that didn't go too well.

"What?!" Arielle breathed heavily.

"Tatli kiz, I'm just joking," Xena said and looked at Gabrielle with wide eyes."Seriously though, when did you get those?"

"Grandma!"

Csaba came to the Akitziri tribe just like Farah told him to and he met up with her in a secluded area after he asked to see her. He was lucky that he was the king's son because he didn't know if he would be allowed to see her. There were guards everywhere outside the yurt and they were all glaring down at him as if he had done something wrong.

When he first arrived he was nervous but he wasn't half as nervous until he actually was with Farah alone. She was very nice when they met back in Pannonia during the party and even though it was awkward when he awoke to her beside him in his bed, she was still very nice. He only had three days and he kept reminding her of that but she was not concerned about the amount of time they were spending together.

He had to leave in the morning so he would be able to make it back in time so his mother wouldn't kill him. So far, they walked together in the forest outside of camp and she asked him a lot of questions which he kindly answered. He told her that she was the prince of Pannonia and son of Ellac and Anastasia and she seemed very impressed by that.

He was too shy to ask her any questions so he let her do most of the talking. Their second day spent together they walked by the Caspian Sea and they were all alone. There were no guards, no civilians and no animals nearby either. His heart raced and she smiled at him and began undressing herself.

"Whoa, what are you doing?" he grabbed her hand so she couldn't unbutton her dress anymore.

"Going in the water?" she stepped away and stripped herself down to her undergarments which she wore a knee length black gown and he turned around. "You're really shy, aren't you?" she asked and he said nothing but closed his eyes in case she appeared in front of him. "It's not like I'm asking you to get naked. Besides, I've seen you without half your clothes on!"

His eyes shot wide open and he turned around, staring at her slender body in that tight dress and he sighed heavily. "Won't you get in trouble if we're gone too long?"

She folded her arms. "Won't you? You didn't tell your parents where you are, did you?" and he lowered his gaze. "Me either. They don't know I'm here with you. So are you coming in the water or what? Or am I going in alone? I guess you can be my bodyguard," she shrugged and slowly backed away and into the water.

He watched her descend into the sea and now the water was up to her knees and she ran her fingers through her long hair. "I have a question," he said finally.

Farah nodded. "Go ahead, ask me."

"Are you from Banat?"

She sat in the water and bit her upper lip. "Maybe."

"Are you…someone important?"

"Are you asking me if I'm royalty?" she asked and crossed one leg over the other showing her slender thigh. He anxiously kicked some dirt and she nodded. "Alright Csaba, yes, yes I'm royalty. Czarina Farah of Banat. Happy? Now will you come in the water?"

He smiled and wagged his head, not very eager to get in the water with this young woman. She was trouble and that look on her face was very enticing and seductive. He wanted to get in the water with her but he kept thinking of his mother and what she would say. He was told to treat women very nicely and this situation was not exactly what he wanted to be put in the middle of.

"How did you know I was from Banat?" she asked and splashed the water with her foot.

He didn't want to put Kreka's name out in the open so he lied. "You look like you're from there."

"Oh yeah? What do you think of the women of Banat?" she raised her eyebrow and rose out of the water, separating her wet locks with her fingers. She stepped closer to him and traced her fingers on his gold vest.

He took in a deep breath and looked into her light green eyes and big smile, complementing her olive colored skin. Erzibet was definitely not like this and he didn't know whether to step away or stay standing where he was.

"Um…" he stammered.

She wrapped an arm around his neck. "You don't think I'm pretty?"

"No! I mean, yes, you're very beautiful," he finally said aloud and she grinned from ear to ear.

"Farah!"

She gasped and shoved Csaba to the side. "Go hide behind that tree!" she whispered and he frowned then hid behind a tree. He peered over and saw a teenager in a blue dress and ornate headpiece walking towards the seashore.

"Farah, I've been looking everywhere for you," the girl smiled. "Where are your clothes?"

"Oh I was just swimming. What are you doing here, Ebru?" she folded her arms, smiling at her younger cousin.

"Your sister has been asking for you. We're supposed to have dinner in my father's yurt, remember?"

Farah nodded, playing along but she completely forgot about the dinner. "Oh right. I'll be there. Just let me get my clothes. I'll meet you at the yurt."

Ebru eyed the clothes sprawled across the sand and nodded. "Alright but don't be late again, okay? My father doesn't like it when you're late." She warned and walked off.

She breathed a sigh of relief and Csaba came out from behind the tree. "Listen, I have to go. You'll come to see me again, won't you? I'll be here for another month."

He was tempted to say no and he was already trying to figure out something to tell his parents so he could leave Pannonia again. "Yes, I'll see you."

"Great. What about in four days? Can you come back?"

There was no way he was going to be able to convince his mother and father to leave Pannonia again just a few days after he returned. "Sure," he said and inwardly kicked himself for saying that aloud. "Wait, what does 'czarina' mean?"

"It's like…a princess," she smiled and ran off with her dress and boots back to the tribe. Princess, he thought. Kreka was right. She definitely had a good eye for those things. He snapped out of his daze and ran back to where he kept his horse. He would return early and thought maybe that if four days passed by he could come up with another excuse to leave again.

Gabrielle sat in front of the mirror, brushing her short hair and eyed Xena through the mirror putting on her black tunic. "Ernak's son is so cute," she said and Xena nodded. "Arielle was so mad that it wasn't a girl."

"Wait a year I'm sure someone else will have another baby and then maybe she will get a girl cousin," Xena joked and rolled her sleeves up to her elbows. "I have to go train the army now. We are still meeting up later to spar, right?"

Gabrielle paused and an unsettling feeling overcame her. "Oh yeah, sure…"

"It's not a trick, Gabrielle." She grabbed her sword and black cloak lined with animal fur around the collar. "Or is it?" she wriggled her eyebrows and left the bedroom.

She stepped outside the yurt and threw on her cloak and saw Csaba walking towards the Adame. "Csaba!" she called and he turned around with a ghostly face. "Just in time. Ready to help me train the men?"

He thought that she knew something about Farah but was relieved to find out that she knew nothing. He smiled and nodded. "Yes, of course. I just need to get my sword," he thumbed at his home and she pulled out an extra sword from her belt. His smile dulled.

"I have one for you. This one is much better. Made in Banat. What do you think?" she admired the blade and his eyes went wide. She saw his expression and lowered the blade. "What's wrong with you?"

"Oh…uh, nothing. It's a really nice sword. Since when do you get your swords made in…Banat?"

"Since Gabrielle asked your father for more weapons. She really knows how to sway people with her words," she handed him the sword and he grabbed it, staring at the curved blade. "One clean swipe and it could slice someone in half!" she said with excited wild eyes and he cringed slightly at her enthusiasm.

"Grandma…that is brutal."

"Yeah…" she sighed, feigning concern. "Come on let's go. I can't wait to kick those men's asses in training. They won't be able to walk straight for a week!"

For the last couple of hours Xena had the young soldiers, just a few years older than Csaba and some even younger, running around the field to build their endurance. After she heard a few of the younger soldiers complaining of her strict regiment she decided to punish the entire army because of a small group of boys.

All two hundred of the young soldiers were doing pushups for the last half hour and Csaba stood in front watching sweat drip off their foreheads and some of their arms shaking as they held their sore bodies in the upward position of the pushup. He hated to say it, but he felt bad for these men.

She walked casually in front of the first line of men, eyeing them to make sure they didn't fall down while resting in the upward position. She eyed everyone carefully and heard two young teenagers, barely what she would call men, whispering to each other. She marched over to the two boys in front and they lifted their heads.

"Something you'd like to share?" she knelt down and the boys shook their heads.

"Grandma," Csaba began and she whipped her head around, "err…I mean commander," he corrected, "are you going to make them do pushups all day?"

She smiled and walked over to her grandson. "They need to learn discipline. They shouldn't mouth off in the middle of training. Down!" she yelled at the men and they grunted, forcing their bodies down to the ground and their chests two inches off the grass.

"I mean, shouldn't we be teaching them strategies and battle formations?"

"Csaba, we already have an army of thousands. These are new soldiers. They don't know how to do anything. So it's up to me to train them. Up!" she yelled and all the men groaned, pushing their bodies upward in the resting position. "And when your father comes to observe then he will see that these boys are ready for battle. Down!"

He nodded and his eyes scanned the two hundred young men struggling to keep their weight off the ground. "Maybe you're being too hard on them."

"Oh yeah? You think so?" she smiled wickedly. "Get on the ground!" she yelled and Csaba gasped.

"What?"

"Get on the ground!" she ordered and he dropped down to the ground in the downward pushup position just like all of the other soldiers.

Arielle walked into the training field and chuckled at all of the young soldiers moaning and groaning. She cocked her head at her brother and started laughing. "Csaba! Did you mouth off to grandma again?! When will you ever learn?"

"He thinks that he is better than everyone else," Xena said and Arielle kept laughing. "Up!"

Csaba grunted and shook his head listening to his sister laughing at his demise. He felt humiliated in front of all these young recruits. His grandmother was giving him the same treatment as the soldiers and he felt like definitely didn't deserve this.

"Tired already, Csaba?" Xena asked.

"No."

"No, what?"

"No commander…" he grumbled.

Xena grinned and put her boot on her grandson's back and he struggled to keep his elbows straight. "Arielle, what are you doing here? You're not allowed in the training fields."

The princess wiped her eyes of the tears due to laughing so much. "Right, right. My mother wants to see you. She's with Gabrielle."

"Alright fine. Training is over for today but we resume in two days!" she said to everyone and all the men dropped their bodies to the ground, grunting and moaning. Their arms probably felt like limp noodles, she thought.

Xena walked into her daughter's room and found Gabrielle by her side talking in hushed tones. Becoming anxious as the doors closed behind her and her daughter staring at her with those big azure eyes, she approached both women and smiled.

"If this is about what happened with Loric. I think you should know that –"

"Xena!" Gabrielle hissed and Ana creased her eyebrows together.

"Who is Loric?" the queen asked.

The commander blinked rapidly and was hit in her back by the blonde governor. "Oh, nobody important. Anyway, so, Arielle said you wanted to see me. I hope this is important because I was in the middle of training those brats."

Anastasia looked at her mother and Gabrielle very carefully and decided to ignore whatever was going on between the two for now. She would figure it out later, she hoped. "Anyway, Arielle's birthday is very soon and I want her tenth birthday to be special. I had Tuya make her a dress a few months ago." She smiled gleefully and opened a large chest and pulled out a red and gold dress. "What do you think? I know she doesn't care for dresses but maybe I can get her to wear it for a few hours."

Gabrielle gawked at the tight bodice of the dress and Xena rubbed her chin, trying to hide her frivolous expression. "Um…the dress is a little tight," she said, trying not to hint anything about Arielle's sudden change in her figure. Xena snickered and Gabrielle elbowed her.

"Well, she is thin. Is it too tight? Do you think that Navaz will want her to wear a looser dress?"

"Yes!" she said immediately and Xena simply nodded along with Gabrielle's exclaim.

"I suppose I could ask Kreka to loosen the seams." She sighed and lifted the dress, cocking her head from one side to the other as she stared at the bodice of the gown. "Tuya might get angry if Kreka alters the dress. She worked very hard on this. I think it will be fine." She smiled and Gabrielle averted her gaze. "You both hate it, don't you?"

Xena shook her head. "No, the dress is very beautiful, Anastasia. You know that she just…doesn't like dresses."

"But Tuya made it and she will want to see it on Arielle. She can wear it for two hours during the party and take it off."

Xena gently patted her daughter's shoulder. "Good luck with that." She turned to Gabrielle. "So, ready to spar or what? I'm on a roll, Gabrielle. I made those boys do pushups for half an hour and they ran around the field for two hours."

The governor looked at her partner nervously and stuttered. "Well, uh, I don't know…I…"

"What's the matter? Are you scared?"

"No!"

"Then let's go spar. I'm ready to kick your butt, governor. Come on, show me what you got."

"Why don't we play a game of chess instead?" she suggested and Xena folded her arms. "Okay, I can tell that you really want to spar so…I guess we can…" she ran out of the room and Xena scoffed.

"Did you see that?" Xena looked at her irked daughter. "She is just waiting to taste grass!" she clapped her hands together and briskly walked out.

Anastasia sighed and folded the dress up and placed it back into the chest. She knew that Arielle was going to throw a fit when she had to tell her to wear the dress but she hoped that her daughter would at least obey and wear it until Tuya saw her in it.

She had been planning this party for the last three months and her own mother never gave her a special birthday when she turned ten for many reasons. She wanted to make sure that her daughter had everything that she wanted and more. Although, she never felt like her mother neglected her as a child. In fact, she was always there for her every single birthday except one. She always gave her gifts and made her feel as special as she could no matter what was going on. There could have been a war or battle going on but she always made sure to send gifts or come back on her birthday.

"Mother," Csaba walked into the room and she spun around with a smile on her face.

"Tatli cocuk, thank you for coming back on time. You know I don't like you spending time with Oran especially when you two go hunting." She raised her eyebrow and he bowed his head. "So, what did you catch? A fox?"

He didn't want to look at her in the eyes because then she'd know that he was lying so he looked at the dress inside the chest. "Is that for Arielle's party?" he asked and she frowned at him.

"Yes…"

"She will look great in that dress," he stalled and she folded her arms, suspicious of him dodging the question. "I was going to ask if I could go hunting again. Oran and I weren't that lucky. We didn't catch anything."

"Again? Csaba, your sister's birthday is in five days. I don't want you getting into trouble."

He only needed three more days until he could see Farah again. He didn't want to break his promise but he also didn't want to anger his mother either. He knew how important this party was to her. He watched her work on it for months and send letters to Navaz, Fairuza and Tuya.

"I'll only be gone a day this time. I'll be back in time for Arielle's birthday party. Don't worry mother!" he gave her a big smile and she squinted one of her eyes, boring into his soul.

"Alright…" she garbled. He grabbed her into a hug and kissed her cheek. "Stop it," she slapped his arm and he laughed nervously. "Just like your father. Now I know where he gets it."

Ellac stepped into the room and Anastasia gasped, hiding behind her son. "Ana, you've been ignoring me for days now."

Csaba cringed at his father and looked at his mother's frightened face. "What is going on here?"

"Stay away from me," she pointed at her husband. "I have tea. Kreka gave me some."

Ellac crookedly smiled. "Good. So now will you come to the bedroom or what?"

Csaba groaned. "Nauseating. I'm leaving."