A/N: I wanted to apologize for it taking so long to update. I have had my hands full lately with school, work, and life. Thanks for standing by and encouraging me to keep posting. As always, I'll try to post more regularly and not leave readers hanging for such long periods of time. As a comment for this chapter, we've reached the point in the story where Gabrielle and Xena both have made their feelings clear, so the question becomes, "where to from here?" I'm looking forward to exploring several different options and I can't wait to write what happens next.

(I)

The borderland proved to be a suitable place to spend the winter. Xena was able to negotiate with a friendly tribe and rent a hut for the season. The tribe leader, who was eager for coin, also offered Xena his eldest daughter for a reasonable price. Though Xena declined, she suffered continuous teasing from both Alix and Gabrielle about the subject. After only a few days, the three women had arranged the hut to their liking, and soon created a cozy home for the winter.

Alix had finished building a small fire inside the fireplace; she grabbed her bow and headed out for the wilderness, anticipating a successful hunt. Gabrielle's attention quickly fell onto her friend when she realized she was heading out alone.

"Alix… you should take Xena with you." Gabrielle suggest politely. "Just until we're sure it's safe around here."

"Don't worry, Gabrielle." Alix smiled. "The tribes are friendly. If anything, they'll probably try to sell me our lunch instead of allowing me to hunt for it."

Gabrielle laughed lightly, but soon her serious tone returned, "We've only met one tribe, there are others. We're visitors here, and some may even see us as intruders."

Alix sighed, "Gabbie, I can't drag Xena along with me every time I go out for a hunt. She has her own things to do."

"Then I'll come with you." Gabrielle reached for her staff.

Alix began to object, but realizing it was futile, she allowed the blonde to come along. As they left the hut they passed by Xena, who was tending to Argo.

"Where you heading?" Xena asked casually.

"Down by the river." Alix replied as she shielded her eyes from the high noon sun, "If we're lucky, we may sneak up on some deer."

"It's unlikely." Xena replied. "I'd head east, towards the valleys. The deer are more likely to have retreated there for the colder months."

"Well, they have to drink don't they?" Alix asked.

"Yes." Xena's eyes lifted from her work, "There is a stream that runs through the largest valley. It's ideal hunting ground."

"And you got this reliable information from the tribe leader." Gabrielle raised an eyebrow.

"He managed to get the point across to me, yes. I went to check it out myself this morning." Xena remarked, as she countered Gabrielle's teasing. "There's plenty of wildlife running around. You'll find something."

"You heard the lady." Alix clapped Gabrielle's shoulder, "To the valleys we go."

Gabrielle shrugged and shook her head slightly as she turned to head east with Alix. After they had walked for a while, Gabrielle began to worry if they were heading in the right direction.

"Alix, I think maybe we've made a wrong turn." Gabrielle gazed around at the ominous wilderness. "Xena said she made the trip there and back this morning, we should have come up on it by now."

"I'm sure it's just a little further." Alix reassured. "Xena was on horseback this morning, she made the trip a lot faster than on foot."

Gabrielle pondered this thought for a moment and then accepted that it was logical. "Still…" She began cautiously, "If we don't find the valleys soon, let's just head back. We can catch fish from the river."

"Aw, come on, Gabbie. Why settle for fish when you could have deer?" Alix asked playfully as she slowly turned Gabrielle around and pointed her towards the direction of a young buck, which was grazing on some dry grass a few hundred feet away.

Gabrielle's eyes lit up with excitement. "Look at the size of him! That would feed us for weeks."

"He has a good coat as well." Alix added. "We could use the extra fur." Slowly, Alix reached for her bow and pulled an arrow from her quiver. "Stay here. I'm going to try for a closer shot." Alix whispered as she hunched over and slowly made her way through the brush.

Gabrielle watched with admiration as Alix crept upon her prey. Her movements were graceful and quick, which reminded Gabrielle of a large mountain cat sneaking up on its unsuspecting victim. Finally close enough for a respectful shot, Alix lifted her arrow to the bow and pulled back its heavy string, causing the muscles in her arm to flex. Steadily, she held this position for several seconds. Gabrielle marveled at the amount of strength Alix exhibited to hold the arrow so securely upon the string. Within the blink of an eye, Alix released the arrow, penetrating the target directly in the neck.

"Perfect shot!" Gabrielle exclaimed as she ran up next to Alix. "Where did you learn such concentration?"

Alix shrugged, "I've just always been good with the bow. I prefer it over the sword, but bows and arrows are useless in hand to hand combat."

"Well, with hungry bellies to feed, your skills won't go to waste this winter." Gabrielle smiled.

"I look forward to the practice." Alix replied as she threw the bow over her shoulder and headed off down the hillside towards her prey.

Gabrielle caught up with the warrior a few moments later. Alix removed the arrow from the buck's neck, wiped off the blood, and slid the arrow back into her quiver. "No point in wasting a good arrow." She remarked.

Suddenly, a thought struck Gabrielle, "Alix, how are we going to get this beast back to the hut? He's too large."

"He's too large now, is he?" Alix laughed. "You didn't seem to think so when we first spotted him."

"That's before I thought about carrying him back to camp." Gabrielle frowned. "We could go get Xena. She could bring Argo…"

"No." Alix interrupted. "We can't just leave him here. There are plenty of other animals nearby who would dive into this feast the moment we turn our backs. Besides, I can carry him." Gabrielle attempted to avoid looking skeptical of Alix's claim, but failed. "Here." Alix handed the blonde her bow. "Carry this for me, and I'll toss our friend, here, upon my shoulders."

"Alix, I'm not sure if you should…."

"Trust me. I've carried much larger." Alix replied as she bent down and heaved the dead animal onto her shoulders. With a loud grunt she lifted to her feet and slowly began walking back towards the hut. "Well, are you coming?" She turned back to the awe struck Gabrielle, who had yet to move a step.

"Is there anything you can't do?" Gabrielle asked with a sudden hint of infatuation in her tone.

"I thought we already covered that? I'm a horrible bargainer." Alix reminded.

"You're not a horrible bargainer." Gabrielle smiled as she began walking next to her friend.

Alix's stride was noticeably shorter now that she had the deer upon her shoulders, but she had no problems keeping pace with Gabrielle as they made their way back to camp.

"You seem to forget that I paid twenty dinars for Xena's pack."

"And seven for this necklace." Gabrielle's hand immediately reached for her neck as she clutched loosely at the jewelry.

"I don't consider the necklace a bad purchase. It's well worth seven dinars. You haven't taken it off since I bought it for you."

Gabrielle agreed, "I don't want to take it off, it's a lovely piece. I fear that I might lose it." A smile quickly flashed across her face, "Thank you again for buying it for me. It was very kind of you."

"It was a pleasure." Alix quickly replied. "It looks much better on you than it did hanging in that merchant's shop." Alix noticed Gabrielle's cheeks turn red and knew she had succeeded at making the woman blush.

When they reached the hut, Xena was waiting patiently by the fire outside. Impressed that Alix was able to carry the large creature on her shoulders, she made a joking comment about Alix being more useful than a pack mule, but then got down to business as she began preparing the deer for food. Later that evening, the three women huddled inside their hut, seeking warmth from the chilling winter weather. The first snow would fall any day now, but with plenty of food and a roof over their heads, they felt prepared for whatever Mother Nature had in store.

Alix had cuddled up close to the fireplace and within minutes was dozing contently. Gabrielle was writing about the day's events, specifically the hunt she had gone on with Alix, along with the strength and concentration she had witnessed from the other woman. Xena was busying herself with repairing one of her boots, but glanced over and happened to read a few of the words on Gabrielle's scroll. Noticing Alix's name, she felt a tinge of jealousy knot up in her stomach.

"Writing about the hunt?" Xena asked, keeping her focus on the sole of her boot.

"Mmhm." Gabrielle replied distantly as she continued to scribble down the events.

"Must have been exciting." Xena added.

"It was."

Xena watched for a few moments as Gabrielle quickly filled up the scroll. "Is there really that much to say?"

For the first time, Gabrielle looked up from her scroll, "I want to get all the details down. I need to make sure I describe it exactly as it happened, moment for moment."

A disapproving sound formed in Xena's throat, "Why?" she asked gruffly.

"You should have seen her, Xena. The way she stalked towards the buck, she was quick and light on her feet, and so graceful. Then, when she had a clear shot, she pulled back the arrow with tremendous force, and you could see the muscles under her skin bulge. It would have been enough to make any man's arm shake, but she held it there… so steady…." Gabrielle paused as she replayed the imagine her mind, "It was like she was a statue… she held it until just the right moment and when she released the arrow, it flew through the air perfectly and pierced the buck's neck, dropping to the ground effortlessly. It was the cleanest shot I've ever seen. She was even able to save the arrow. Everything about it was so… beautiful."

"So, you suddenly find it beautiful to shoot animals in the neck?" Xena scoffed.

Gabrielle felt the tension rising between them, "No, it's not that. You know I don't like to watch animals die, but there was just something about the way she did it. It was like… art." Gabrielle paused for a moment and the excitement returned, "And then she lifted the deer up on her shoulders and began walking back to camp. I knew she was strong, but I never imagined…" Gabrielle trailed off. "Anyway, I just want to make sure I get the details right. When people read about her, I want them to know exactly what it was like. She can be like a role model for hunters, both male and female."

"A role model?" Again, Xena felt the stinging pains of jealousy, "Why are you trying to turn her into some hero?"

"I'm not." Gabrielle quickly defended. " I just think that it's important to document her superior hunting skills."

"She got lucky." Xena spat. "She didn't even make it to the valleys. She just happened to come across a deer and her first shot was the kill shot. It was luck."

"Xena, how can you say that? You weren't even there."

"I didn't have to be there. I know enough about hunting and enough about Alix to know she got lucky." Xena threw down her unrepaired boot. "You shouldn't worship her like that. You're going to give her an ego she can't contain."

Gabrielle felt a surge of anger rush through her body. "I disagree." She stated boldly. "I think Alix is an exceptional hunter, and she deserves the proper praise for providing food and fur for us all. How can you be so judgmental over her, when she's the reason your belly is full tonight?"

"My belly would not go empty without Alixandriah." Xena's eyes narrowed.

"You're being ridiculous." Gabrielle stood to her feet. "Face it, you're not the only heroic warrior around here any longer." She grabbed a fur and headed out of the hut.

Gabrielle's words burned through Xena, causing her to jump to her feet as well and follow after the bard. Not surprisingly, the winter air was bitterly cold. Instantly regretting her hot headed decision, but too stubborn and angry to turn back now, Gabrielle immediately began the struggle to build a fire.

"What are you doing?" Xena demanded.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Gabrielle shot back as she glanced up at the taller woman.

"Do you plan to spend the night out here?" Xena's voice was drenched with a tone unfamiliar to Gabrielle.

"Maybe I will." Gabrielle remarked. "It couldn't be half as cold out here as it is in there."

"Spare me the bit, Gabrielle." Xena held up her hand.

"What is it about her, Xena, that bothers you so much?" Gabrielle asked as she furiously sparked at the flint rock in her hands, hoping to ignite a fire. "You act like you can't stand for another woman to be strong or powerful… or talented in some way. Do you really think you're the only one? Zeus' gift to womankind?"

Xena's face burned bright red with resentment, "You know I don't think that." She hissed.

"Then what is it, Xena? Alix is your friend. She fought in battle with you. You were willing to leave the Empire in order to protect her and her lover. Why would you do all of these things if you despise her so much?"

"It's not that I despise her… It's just…. " Xena's voice calmed. "She's not good enough…."

"What do you mean she's not good enough? Not good enough for what?"

"Gods, Gabrielle, must you always play the naïve, love struck, young girl?"

Overwhelmed with the conversation and the failure to start a warm fire, Gabrielle angrily threw down her flint stone, jerked up from the ground, and turned to face Xena, "Love struck?" She repeated in a much higher voice, "You think I'm love struck after Alix?" Xena's lips pierced together as she hesitated to reply. Gabrielle shook her head, "So, that's it. She's not good enough for me? That's what you meant…" Gabrielle swallowed heavily, "Well, I guess you aren't good enough for me either, are you, Xena?" she folded her arms. "Or is that other way around? Maybe I'm not good enough for you?"

"That's not what I meant." Xena's voice cracked in the icy winter air.

"Then for once in your life, why don't you just say what you really mean?" Though she was angry, there was a sense of desperation in Gabrielle's voice, "Just say it…"

"Gabrielle, I love you… I do…. but…" Xena dropped eye contact and hung her head; "I can't give myself to you. I have to be prepared to sacrifice everything, including myself, and I can't do that if we…"

"I don't believe you." Gabrielle interrupted as tears began forming in her eyes, "You're still not telling the truth, Xena."

"I am." Xena emphasized, her voice trembling. "I know that the second I give in to you, I'm going to want to spend every moment holding you, protecting you, and nothing else… I have a duty to the people, to myself, to the Gods… love would hinder my abilities to fulfill that duty."

A few tears streaked Gabrielle's face, "So, it's not that you don't love me, it's that you wont…"

Xena stepped forward, "I can only love you so much…" She clarified. "I know that isn't fair… that's why I don't want this to go any farther than…" she paused, absorbing the pain covering Gabrielle's face. "Gabrielle, please understand. I do love you. I do." She reached out gently and pulled the bard closer. "If I could give you what you wanted, I would."

"Xena…" Gabrielle whispered, "All I've ever wanted is to be with you… but you won't even give me that. Instead, you've convinced yourself that I'll only get in your way."

"No, I'd get in my own way…"

"Because of me." Gabrielle pulled away from the embrace, "I can't decide whether you're incredibly selfish, or just completely ignorant. You don't want me as your partner, but you don't want me to be with anyone else either? I don't love Alix, Xena, but I can't deny that she's shown me so much about myself and about what I want in my life. She has every quality that makes her a powerful warrior and yet, she's still capable of love. Why aren't you?"

"Gabrielle…" Xena stepped forward once more.

"No." Gabrielle held up her hand. "Don't… I don't want to hear anymore excuses." She turned to walk back into the hut, but turned quickly for one last comment, "She's more than good enough, Xena…. Just for the record."

Xena's mouth gaped open as she watched the bard retreat to the hut. She felt a cold chill race down her back, and slowly lifted her head towards the sky to see a few snowflakes beginning to descend from the clouds. She sighed heavily and bent down to pick up the flint stone that Gabrielle had cast away a few minutes before. After several tries, the spark caught and she was able to get large fire going. She grabbed a few extra furs from Argo's pack and made a decent bed on the ground. She had slept outside in much worse weather than this, so she had no fear of the winter cold. After a few minutes, she was able to find warmth from the fire and furs though the snow continued to fall around her.

(II)

Daylight the next morning came quickly, and Alixandriah was up and out of the hut not long after the sun had risen. The snow-covered ground quickly took her aback, but she was even more surprised to see Xena's body huddled near a fading fire.

"Xena!" Alix exclaimed as she bent down next to the warrior and lifted her shivering body from underneath the icy furs. "What are you doing out here?"

Xena shakily rose to her feet, realizing must have been passed out too long to rebuild the fire. Her face was pale and her lips were blue, causing Alix to immediately be concerned over her health. "Come on, you have to get inside and get warm." Alix tugged on the warrior, who gave no resistance.

As the small door to the hut swung open forcefully, Gabrielle jerked up from her sleep in time to see Alix practically dragging Xena in from the outside. Gabrielle quickly rushed over to help the women.

"Throw some extra wood on the fire." Alix instructed as she gingerly placed Xena on her bedroll. "And hand me your extra furs."

Gabrielle did as she was told, and watched carefully as Alix began rubbing Xena's arms and legs, in an attempt to warm her body. Gabrielle quickly realized Xena had spent the night outside and immediately felt anger rise within her. Why would Xena be so stubborn as to spend the night in the snow?

"Xena, why didn't you come inside?" Gabrielle's tone was harsh. "You could have frozen to death out there."

Xena's weary eyes glanced over at the bard, but she gave no reply. Instead she pulled the furs up around her, and pushed Alix away.

"Xena, I need to get you warm…" Alix explained as she reached down once more for Xena's arm.

"I'll be fine." Xena replied in a whisper. "I just want to rest." She added softly as she gazed into fire.

Gabrielle and Alix exchanged questioning looks. "You should eat something. I can make some stew; that will help keep you warm." Gabrielle suggested.

"I'll take care of the chores… and the horses." Alix volunteered. With a heavy sigh, Alix lifted to her feet, grabbed a heavy coat from her pack, and headed out of the hut.

Once alone in the hut, Gabrielle could no longer hide her frustration, "Do you feel as if you've accomplished something by sleeping in the snow?"

"It wasn't such a bad idea when you were threatening to do it." Xena's hoarse voice replied.

"I didn't know it was going to snow, Xena. If I did, I would have dragged you back into the hut myself." Gabrielle filled a pot with water and began throwing in chunks of deer meat into it. "Gods, I've never met two women more stubborn than the both of you." She turned quickly and placed her hands on her hips, "Between the two of you, I constantly have my hands full. You're like children."

Xena shook her head and let a small laugh escape her body. "You don't find yourself a bit stubborn as well?" She asked critically.

"This isn't about me." Gabrielle shot back, "I'm not the one who spent the night outside. You didn't have to do that."

"Well, I couldn't just come back in and crawl into bed with you, could I? You've taken that way from us. We'll never have that again." Xena's bitter tone stabbed at Gabrielle's heart.

Gabriele hung the pot over the fire and turned around slowly to face Xena, "Are you accusing me of ruining our friendship?"

"You didn't ruin it, but you had to go and make it complicated…" Xena continued. "Things were fine the way they were. I could deal with all of this before you…." Xena held back the words. "I hoped it would never happen, but I realize now that I was a fool to think it could be avoided. I should have spotted it from day one."

Gabrielle's eyes widened, "What do you mean by 'it,' Xena? My love for you? Is that what you're so affectionately referring to?"

"There's a word for it, Gabrielle." Xena scooted closer to the fire, "You've read about Sappho. You know what the women who lived on the island were referred to as."

"Lesbos." Gabrielle concluded. "Is that what you think I am?"

"Isn't that what you are?" Xena countered.

"I don't know." Gabrielle shook her head, "I don't know, Xena. All I know is that I wanted to be with you, because you were everything to me. Now, I just feel so lost and so confused and angry…. I always had this fear that we'd never be together, but something convinced me that you'd understand… that you, of all people, would comprehend that love knows no boundaries… I thought…." Gabrielle hesitated, "I thought we'd be together. I thought you'd love me the way I love you. You're right; I've been nothing more than a naïve, young girl. I always have been when it comes to you."

"It can't be." Xena's eyes filled with tears and she quickly blinked them away. "The sooner you realize that, the better off we'll be."

"I realize." Gabrielle whispered.

"I'm sorry for what I said about, Alix." Xena cleared her throat, "I had no right to interfere or say anything at all. Whatever happens between you two is no business of mine."

Gabrielle felt the heaviness of the conversation begin to lighten, and she understood that Xena was ending the discussion. "So, that's it? We can't go back to what we had and we can't move on from where we are." Gabrielle sat down next to Xena. "I don't think I'll ever be able to stop loving you, Xena."

"We can move forward from this, Gabrielle." Xena reached out and placed her hand on Gabrielle's arm, "Maybe, one day, we can even go back."

Gabrielle looked away for a moment, "Tell me that you'd say that to anyone."

"What?" Xena asked, her eyes darting back and forth.

"Tell me that if anyone, man or woman, told you they loved you, that you'd tell them you couldn't be with them because of your duty. You would, wouldn't you? You'd turn down anyone, not just me…" Gabrielle's eyes softened as she waited for a reply.

"….Yes." Xena answered steadily. "I'd turn down anyone."

"And if you weren't out to redeem yourself and save the world?" Gabrielle sniffled.

"I'd be with you…" Xena nodded.

"Gods…" Gabrielle immediately stood to her feet and shook her head, "It just never it sounds any better." She wiped at the tears in her eyes. "It sounds so selfish."

"I'd be a lot more selfish if I gave up on my promise, my mission, for my own personal pleasures."

"Xena, maybe you need to learn how to balance both…" Gabrielle argued, "It doesn't have to be one or the other. Hercules never stopped himself from loving; you shouldn't either. You've convinced yourself that love is going to make you weaker, but it would give you so much strength, if you'd just let yourself give in. You're afraid, and that's understandable, but the fear is what makes you weak."

"I don't trust myself enough…. Not yet, anyway."

Gabrielle had no further argument left in her. "I'm not going to leave you, Xena. But I'm not going to wait around for something that may never happen."

"I understand." Xena's response was quick.

Gabrielle ran her hand through her hair and let out a deep breath, "Alix…."

"You don't have to explain anything to me." Xena interrupted. "I'd prefer if you didn't."

Gabrielle nodded, "Okay." She turned slowly and walked back towards the pot to stir the stew. Allowing the previous conversation to drift away, Gabrielle focused on the stew. "This is almost ready." She called over her shoulder.

The door to the hut suddenly opened and Alix quickly rushed inside, "Zeus' sake! It's a blizzard out there!"

"It's still snowing?" Xena asked concerned.

"It's coming down heavy out there, and quickly. We may need to bring Argo and Tallus inside." Alix suggested.

"Argo is not coming inside." Gabrielle protested the idea. "She stinks."

Xena cast Gabrielle an offended look, "Argo does not stink… no worse than Tallus, anyway."

"Xena, she smells like sweat and feces." Gabrielle remarked.

"Well, it hardly seems fair to leave either of them out there in this weather." Alix moved towards the fire to warm herself. "I admit we don't have much room in here as it is, but…"

"We can't keep two horses in here all winter. We'll have to build a makeshift barn for them. I'm sure the tribes have plenty of hay for their horses. We could buy some from them." Gabrielle lifted the pot from the fire and sat it down on a small table to cool

"That's a good idea." Alix agreed. "And we'll do that as soon as the storm lets up, but for now, they need to come inside."

Gabrielle let out a frustrated sigh, "All right… all right…. But keep them on that side of the hut." She pointed towards the door, and away from the food. "And if either of them decide to 'drop' anything while they're in here, you're to clean it up immediately."

Alix smirked, "Yes ma'am."