Author's Note: This chapter contains some rather explicit sex passages and not between two people you would expect. Please read at your own caution.
As Lyceus winds his way through the early morning patrons come to break their fast at the Inn, all around him he hears talk of Cortese and of his sister.
"Hades, I think she's more trouble than anything, but she's got a damn good point."
"Xena's blessed by Ares 'imself, she is"
"Comin' to do drills this noon, Claudius?"
"Say, Lyceus," one man reaches out and grabs the young man's arm as he passes by, "You seen that sister o' yours lately?"
Lyceus shakes his head, "Nah, but I'm sure she'll be back for drilling this afternoon." The man releases his arm with a grunt and Lyceus continues on his way to the kitchens. Upon entering, he sees his mother once again at her work.
"Mother," he says. Cyrene looks up from the large pot of soup she is stirring.
"Oh good, you're here. Have you seen Xena?"
"No, I was just going to ask you the same thing," he replies. His mother shrugs, once more taking a handle on the long wooden spoon protruding from the pot.
"She'll turn up. Perhaps Gabrielle has seen her."
"Has she been down yet?" he asks.
"Nope. She's probably still in her room. Would you mind going up to fetch her? I could use the extra pair of hands. Many of the girls didn't come in today."
"Why's that?"
"I have a feeling their husbands didn't want them around here. Maybe they think it'll get a little rowdy."
"Hmm," Lyceus considers, "I'll go get Gabrielle. See you soon, Mother. I'll be here to help for a bit until we have to go down to the fields." Cyrene smiles and watches her son's retreating back as he goes to do his bidding.
Lyceus pauses before the room which belongs to the bard. Running a hand through his curly black hair, he raises a hand to knock on the door.
"Gabrielle!' he calls, "It's Lyceus." He hears the bed-frame creak, two feet on the expanding wooden floorboards. Her hears voices. "Hold on," he says to himself. There's two voices in that room. All of a sudden, the door swings open and instead of the blonde hair and green eyes of Gabrielle, there greets him tussled black hair and blue eyes. "Xena!" he exclaims.
"Good morrow, brother," she says. Lyceus glances over her shoulder to the bed wherein lies a bard, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. His immediate reaction is surprise, and then it turns to pain. No, he thinks, she wouldn't.
"Xena, what are you doing here?" he asks. Gabrielle gets out of the bed and paces barefoot over to his sister's back. She lays a hand on her shoulder, moving her aside so that she may greet the young man.
"It's not what it looks like," says Xena, raising her eyebrows in an innocent expression.
"What's going on?" says Gabrielle, "Good morning, Lyceus."
"You know you have your own bed, Xena," says Lyceus, "And where have you been? Everyone's been looking all over for you."
"I, uh..." begins Xena.
"Is something the matter?" asks Gabrielle.
"Nothing," says Lyceus, "Mother would like you down in the kitchens." With that, he turns and leaves the two puzzled women in the threshold.
"Lyceus, wait!" Xena calls. But, he is already disappeared. Xena steps back inside the room and closes the door behind her. She looks down at herself; only a scrap of a towel covers her body. She meets Gabrielle's eyes, and she finds the bard trying not to laugh.
"This is great," Xena deadpans.
"He'll be all right," Gabrielle soothes, "I'll talk to him." Xena raises a hand to her brow, seemingly in pain. She then moves back to the bed and begins to hurriedly dress herself in her almost dry leathers.
"How are you feeling this morning?" asks Gabrielle. Xena shoots her a look, her hands busy on the ties to her pants.
"How am I feeling? Like Hades' damned," she shrugs on the vest, "I've got to turn a bunch of farmers into warriors; I've got to defeat a warlord without so much as a nick on my sword; and now both my brothers hate me." Now dressed, she bends down to pick up the sword and scabbard from where Gabrielle had put it on the floor last night.
"They don't hate you, Xena," says Gabrielle, "Lyceus is just a little jealous and Toris... well, Toris will come around. You'll see."
"No, you don't get it!" says Xena, her eyes wide, "Toris I can deal with. We've always been at odds. But, Lyceus is another story. There's no one in the whole world I love more than that boy. And if I start doing things to screw that up, then I am the monster Toris says I am."
"Xena, you don't actually believe––"
"Yes, I do."
"This is just some silly crush. Lyceus just has a crush on me. It'll blow over in a day."
"You don't understand," says Xena, "When we left to go to the hall last night, Lyceus and I got to talking. He said he was sorry that he jumped to conclusions when he accused me of hurting you. He said that he just felt overprotective, that he thinks he's in love with you. Gabrielle, he said he was going to make an offer to you." Xena looks away, toward the window.
"What?" says Gabrielle, her voice low, "You mean of marriage? But, Xena, he can't be more than fifteen summers old."
"When he makes up his mind about something, there's no changing it. We're the same in that respect. He made me swear not to tell you, but... Don't you see? He's going to think I'm trying to steal you away from him."
"Well, are you?" she asks, quietly. Xena meets her eyes, her shoulders sinking in defeat.
"Yes," she answers, "But, I didn't think you felt the same. I thought maybe you might return my brother's feelings."
Gabrielle closes the distance between them, taking the scabbard from Xena's hand and lying it on the bed. She refuses to have a weapon of war between them. How should she respond? If she says the truth, then this Xena will most definitely expect a physical response. And she's just not sure if that is right at the moment. How would she ever be able to face the older Xena? Then again, if she denies feelings outright for this young warrior, it could really harm the trust building between them. Xena is even liable to act out in anger, in pain, like she is wont to do. Oh, it's too early in the morning to be dealing with all this!
"Do you?" presses Xena, putting a few gentle fingers below Gabrielle's chin to raise the green eyes to her own. Gabrielle looks up and swims for a moment in those blue pools. She knows she cannot lie, not in something like this. She takes a breath.
"I think Lyceus is a wonderful person and he is sure to make someone a great husband. I just... it's just that my heart belongs to another," she says.
"I'll kill them," she says. Gabrielle smiles, tears inexplicably in her eyes. How can she not know? Can't she see?
"You don't know?" says the bard, still holding Xena's stare. The blue eyes widen.
"Please say it's me," Xena pleads. Gabrielle takes Xena's larger hands and cups them in her own; in them she envisions her heart.
"It's you," says Gabrielle, "It's always been you. It always will be you." If there was a deadness in Xena's eyes before, now there blazes life once more. She stoops, intending on the bard's lips, but Gabrielle puts a hand on her chest. "I can't," she says.
"But, I thought...?"
"I love you, you have to trust that I do. But I can't be that way with you."
Xena's look is incredulous. "Why?"
"Please, Xena. Just trust me."
"No, I want to know why," she steps away from the blonde, then darts a hand to the bed to pick up her scabbard once more. "If you love me, why don't you want to be with me?"
"Sex isn't always a part of love, Xena," says Gabrielle, desperate to have this conversation over with. The young warrior begins to pace.
"True. A sister's love or a mother's or a friend's. But friends don't look at each other the way you look at me. Friends don't respond the way you do to my touch. I know you want me, just as much as I want you––"
"Xena."
"You're hiding something. There is a reason isn't there?" Energy is rolling off the warrior, in bright waves of heat.
"Yes, there's a reason," says Gabrielle.
"Then what in Hades is it? I have a right to know."
"It's complicated," Gabrielle shakes her head, takes a seat on the bed.
"I know what it is: you don't really love me. Maybe you're just trying to get in my good graces now that I have power. Maybe you just want to stay close to me so that you can sway my decisions. If you didn't love me, I wouldn't listen to you any more and all your plans of peace go right out the window. No! Maybe you're not even peaceful, you might be a spy. Maybe you're even with Cortese!" Xena hears an unintelligible mutter from the bard. "Speak up!" she demands.
"I feel like I'm betraying her!" Gabrielle's voice rings out. Xena stops her pacing. She looks to the bard who sits on the bed, tears streaming down her face.
"What?" she says, her voice still cold. "Betraying who?"
"The other Xena..." replies Gabrielle in the smallest of voices.
Xena throws up her hands in exasperation. She allows herself a few calming breaths. Shaking her head, her hands on her hips, she says, "Gabrielle, you're in love with a dream." Turning, she leaves the bard standing alone in the room.
The days pass quickly in a fogged reverie. The rain held for a few merciful hours each of the three afternoons and Xena led intensive drills down in the pasture, the numbers of her legion grown more than double its size. With this, she is pleased. She looks with vigour at her men, who now move in synchronised grunts absent her vocal commands. With their swords, they cross left from shoulder to hip, cross right, drag across, overhead slash, thrust forward. She watches Lyceus drill among them, his movements steady, his sword arm sure in its course; she can tell he is angry. He had been working with quiet determination these days, spurred by what purpose she did not know. They had barely exchanged words, other than to do with preparations and strategy. Xena knew by way of some stealthy shadowing, that Gabrielle had tried to talk to him and the exchange nearly broke her heart.
Gabrielle had cornered him by the stables as he heaped forks of hay in the troughs for the horses. Xena slipped through a loosened wall plank and listened to the bard.
"Lyceus," she said. Her brother looked up, his cheeks colouring at once. He averts his eyes to his task immediately.
"I'm busy here, Gabrielle," he tries. Xena nearly smiles at his feigned stoicism.
"I brought you some cider," says the bard, offering him a cup. Lyceus takes it graciously, still not meeting her eyes.
"Thanks," he says, taking a sip.
"Listen, about what happened the other day––" she begins.
"No," says Lyceus, "It's okay. I understand."
"What do you understand?" says Gabrielle.
"I understand why you would want to be with her instead of me. Really, I was kidding myself," Lyceus smiles self-deprecatingly.
"Why do you say that?"
"She's perfected it to an art really. Getting people to follow her, trust her, love her. Mostly, she's just done it to Toris, just to take the piss you know? I swear, any girl that Toris even looked at twice, any of his mates, Xena would make it a point to charm them all, steal them right from under him. It used to make him so mad. He doesn't even know about Alaethea, yet. Why should I think I'd be any different? I liked you, so of course she would too."
Gabrielle frowns and heaves a long sigh. She steps closer to Lyceus, placing a gentle hand on one of his not clutched around the cup of cider.
"Lyceus, you don't think she's doing that with me, do you?" she asks.
"How should I know? The thing is, Gabrielle," he sets his cup down on the edge of one of the troughs, and gathers the bard's other hand in his own, "now, this is embarrassing for me to say, but I love you. It hasn't even been a week and still I feel that I've known you for lifetimes. Never have I seen such kindness and wisdom in a woman. What I'm saying is, if there is even a chance that you feel my sister doesn't love you, that she just wants to– you know– with you, then I'm saying choose me. I love you, I'm sure of it. You would make the loveliest of wives, and I a husband that would tremble at your feet. And if this war claims my life, that I would have it with you at my side."
"So, that's why you wish to marry so young," says Gabrielle, almost mutely. The two are standing very close. From the shadows, Xena holds her breath in her aching chest. "You're afraid you're going to die," she continues.
"I won't deny that I have the fear," says Lyceus, "and I guess war spurs many hasty acts, but this is not one of them. I figured if I saw love and recognised it for what it is, then I should grasp it with both hands. We live day by day, Gabrielle."
"Indeed, we do," answers the bard. She closes her eyes for a moment. Then, she disentangles her hand from Lyceus' and places it on his chest. "I think you're wonderful," she breathes, "You will grow to be such a good man. And I have more love for you than you could possibly understand..."
"But," says Lyceus, his eyes sinking.
"But I cannot love you as a wife loves her husband. You are and always will be a brother to me. And as someone who loves you, I am telling you there will be others worthy of your affection. And this war, it does terrible acts to the poet's spirit. You are not a warrior, Lyceus, you love freely and have such a gift of words. War will destroy that, I am certain of it."
"So you're saying you cannot love me as a warrior?" he asks, confused.
"I think you cannot love yourself as a warrior," she replies.
"If it was for you, I would lay down my sword. But if you say I don't get your love in exchange, you cannot ask me not to fight for my homeland and for my people. You cannot ask me not to fight for Xena." His eyes are fierce and his sister feels a swelling pride at the sight. Gabrielle is quiet for a moment, she withdrawals her hands from his and steps back.
"No, I can't. You do what you think is right."
"So, it's her then?" he asks.
"Yes, Lyceus, it's her. It has always been so," says Gabrielle.
Xena remembers this exchange with a twisting in her gut as she watches her men drill. She and Gabrielle barely had a chance to eat together, let alone have a discussion in the last few days. Right now, Gabrielle is across town, deep into managing their projects of fortifying walls and getting together medical supplies might they have use for them when Cortese attacks. Life had been a whirlwind of sleepless nights and endless planning and negotiation. But it had all been invigorating to Xena thus far; if not for the thrill of leadership and the use of her mind and her many skills, then for the distraction it offered from her thoughts of the blonde bard. At that reasoning, Xena steps forward, hearing the distant thunder over the countryside.
"All right, break!" she yells. The men breathe a collective sigh of relief, throwing their swords down onto the ground and grabbing half-drunk skins of water. Xena strides through her tired legion, noting any injuries, any signs of weakness. Nearly all their eyes gleam up at her with fire and energy, and this makes Xena smile. "I have a proposition for you all," she says, watching their ears perk up, "We go a little later today and have proper contest between us, just sparring, no weapons." There is a cheer among the men, who begin to shove one another in friendly taunts. A couple of the men hit Lyceus on the shoulder with the flats of their swords. "We'll run a gauntlet challenge, team up with a partner and we'll fight in deuces." There is clamouring among the men in choosing partners, and many approach Xena herself for the honour, but their commander strides purposefully to Lyceus.
"How about it, brother?" says Xena. Lyceus glances to Dimas, back yesterday from his travels to Potidaea.
"Sorry, I've got a partner all ready," he says. Xena narrows her eyes.
"I'll be your partner," comes a voice from behind them. It is a woman's voice. Xena turns around to find Alaethea striding toward them with purpose. She has abandoned her usual dress and opted for a tunic and fitted pants.
"You haven't been trained," says Xena in the most even of voices.
"Oh come on, Xena, I've messed about with you and Toris for gods know how long. You know I'm a nasty fighter," she drawls. Xena barely smiles.
"All right then," she turns back to her men, "Form up!" The obey her and form a ovule shaped ring in the field. "Okay, first match is Claudius and Dacien, and... let me see, who is as mule-headed," the men chuckle at her words, "Exetus and Lester, step up!" The four men take position and at her command begin to spar with each other. Xena looks with confidence on their new skill; they look less like a sloppy bar fight and more like foot soldiers now. A few more matches are called, each man taking their win or loss with equal amounts humility and pride.
"You have the hands of a god," comes Alaethea's voice at her elbow, "to be able to shape these farmers into soldiers."
"No, just patience and belief in a cause greater than oneself," replies Xena, still watching the fights.
"Nothing is greater than you," says Alaethea, stepping close to the warrior's side. Xena can feel the warmth from her body. She allows herself a brief chuckle at the brunette's words. "I'm serious, Xena," she continues, "nothing is more great than the achievements you make for yourself." The warrior meets her eyes with catlike sharpness.
"What about the greater good?" says Xena, her voice threatening. Alaethea laughs, and hooks an arm through Xena's.
"What of the bard?" she asks, meaning the question like an insult.
"What about her?" says Xena.
"I've heard her tell a few stories at the Inn these past few nights. She's quite a talent."
"Yes, she is."
"Quite a pet you've made of her. Quite a pet she's made of you," says Alaethea, her sumptuous mouth quirking.
"What's that supposed to mean?" sneers Xena, wrenching her arm from the other woman's grasp.
"She's making you docile, like a housetrained pup. You know what all her stories are about? Self-sacrifice, forgiveness, peace. That's not you, Xena."
"How do you know what I am?" demands the warrior.
"Oh, I know you better than you think," says Alaethea, she lowers her voice and presses her lips very close to Xena's ear, "You are destined for greatness, to be my warrior queen." Blue eyes narrow, eyelids drooping like shrouds. Damn her, thinks Xena.
"Then let us achieve it," says Xena striding away and pushing through the circle of men. She marches toward Marius and Archer still brawling in the mud and lifts Archer up by the back of his vest and launches him a few feet away; she then hauls Marius up by his collar and lands a solid punch across his face, throwing him backward into the other men on the side. "Let us see competition worth the viewing!" she yells, "Lyceus, Dimas, square up!" Xena looks to Alaethea still on the sidelines and beckons her into the ring. Lyceus and Dimas take the ring, stretching their arms and grunting plans of attack briefly between them. Xena pulls Alaethea close, her actions rough and calculated. "Dimas feints twice with his left jab, then throws a hard right," she says. Alaethea nods. She had never fought beside Xena; it had always been either against her in a sparring match, or it was careful lessons by the river that usually led to less warlike actions. Even in this silly contest, she knew she had to prove something to her warrior friend.
"Prepare to meet your match, Xena!" calls Dimas with good humour.
"Where?" she responds. There are chants beginning to take the form of her name. Xe–na, Xe–na, Xe–na, they call. She looks to Lyceus, readying himself, flexing his hands.
"Begin!" someone calls. Lyceus rushes her, taking her to the ground in one brazen tackle. Xena rolls from the hit, leaping up onto her feet. Her brother does the same. From the corner of her eyes she can see Alaethea ducking from Dimas' right jab. Good girl, she thinks. Lyceus has his fists up and ready for her assault, and when it doesn't come soon enough, he thrusts forward with a jab. She blocks. He throws another punch, which she blocks just as easily. At the third swing, she ducks under it and grabs his arm and twists it up and behind his back; she kicks him in the arse and sends him sprawling forward. She sees Dimas land a punch in Alaethea's gut, which stuns her. Lyceus turns and charges again, but Xena emits a loud battlecry and leaps over him to land behind Dimas. She karate chops the side of his thick neck and allows Alaethea to gain back her position. But Lyceus capitalises on his sister's momentary distraction and grabs one her arms, swinging her off balance. He lands a punch in her ribs, then another on her shoulder. Xena crunches her body in defence and attempts to swing a leg under Lyceus' legs to drop him, but he anticipates and jumps over them. She sees that Alaethea is holding her own, rolling atop Dimas and pinning him to the ground by straddling his chest. Lyceus swings but Xena catches his fist, he attempts to swing the other but she grabs that one too. They are in a contest of strength now and Lyceus knows he will lose. His pride is strong though and he holds out for another moment until Xena gets a knee to his chest, still holding his hands, then proceeds to walk up his front to launch herself in a backflip. She lands low and sweeps a powerful leg under his and drops him hard to the ground. She is quick to stand and place a boot evenly on his chest. Alaethea still has Dimas on the ground and has his arms pinned beneath his sides. There is a great cheer among those watching and Xena steps off her brother's chest and extends a hand down to him. He looks at her a moment, then meets it with his own as she helps him to stand.
"Good fight," he says.
"Yeah," agrees Xena. They exchange breathless smiles.
Far up on the hill that looks down in the southern pasture, stands a blonde woman escaping for the moment her dull duties of wall-building and herb-gathering. Gabrielle had ventured across town when she noticed that men weren't back from drills as early as they usually were; she had an important message for Xena anyway. When she crested the hill and saw the villagers fighting each other, she thought Xena had lost control and they were turning on each other. But then she noticed the cheers and shouts and she realised it for the contest it was. Good thinking Xena, she mused, get them to feel like brothers in war. Her eyes sought out the warrior in question and was surprised to see Alaethea close by her side. Toris' fiance leaned close to her ear and said something that spurred Xena into violent action. What was this? thought Gabrielle. She watched the fight between the four friends and saw that it seemed to have put Xena and Lyceus back into that indestructible friendship that they have. Perhaps her words did have some affect on the young man.
Yet, she became more surprised when Xena called it a day and the men started to gather their weapons and supplies and scatter off toward their homes for dinner. Xena and Lyceus clasped arms and the young man started back toward the Inn without her. The warrior then turned to Alaethea. Gabrielle watched as the brunette woman extended a hand to the dark-haired woman, and as Xena took it, allowing herself to be led in the opposite direction toward the river. Her curiosity piqued, Gabrielle began to walk in pursuit of them.
Employing all the stealth techniques that the older Xena had taught her, Gabrielle managed to follow them to the banks of the river without being discovered by her younger version. From the dense foliage that lined the banks of the river, she was now in hearing and seeing distance of the two. She knew she shouldn't be sneaking around like this, but something in their behaviour seemed to beg a follower.
"I'm covered in mud," says Alaethea, looking down at her tunic.
"Only one way to get it out," says Xena, crouching into an attack position.
"I dare you," challenges Alaethea. In a fluid motion, Xena sweeps the young woman up in her arms and launches them both into the chilled stream. Alaethea shrieks and struggles to stand in the waist high water. Gabrielle has to force herself to smile at this abandon with which they play. This is good, isn't it? But she can't help the sinking in her gut.
"Xena," says Alaethea, searching in the water around her for the disappeared swimmer. She is yanked underwater suddenly and in a moment, Alaethea surfaces sputtering and coughing with a lecherously smiling Xena close by. "You're cruel," she says, pouting.
"That I am," says Xena, "Good fight today."
"Yeah?"
"I mean it. You got Dimas pretty good."
"Yeah well, he's always been a leg man," she replies, giving Xena a telling glance.
"You didn't!" says Xena.
"Why, does it make you jealous?" Alaethea steps closer to the warrior.
"No, just ashamed," Xena teases, backing up a little toward a rock that jutted out into the quick of the stream. Gabrielle has to strain her ears to hear Alaethea's next words over the rush of the water.
"Don't you miss it?" she says, swimming closer to Xena.
"Miss what?"
"Me, what I can do for you?" says Alaethea. Gabrielle swallows. She knows she should leave, but her body is rooted beside the tree.
"Well, I don't know Alaethea, what can you do for me?" Xena intones. The slighter woman pins Xena with her body against the rock, the water flowing through trying to separate them.
"I can set you on your true path, Xena," she says, tracing a wet finger over the skin of her shoulder.
"And what is my true path?" asks Xena, breathing heavily.
"Conquest," she says, "power, skill. Some day you will have whole nations bow at your feet. And I among them. Put aside your silly notions of love, Xena, they'll only distract you. I can offer you service, devotion." She trails her finger over the edge of the warrior's vest, along her chest, dipping below into the cleavage. Xena catches Alaethea's hand and spins them around so that the brunette is now pinned against the rock. Xena squeezes the wrist in her own, pressing it flat against the rock as if she intends to disarm the girl. She then bends her head and attacks the pale skin of Alaethea's neck. The young woman cries out in pain and pleasure and claws at the sides of Xena's face to bring her lips to meet her own. They kiss heatedly, tongues tangling together, teeth biting lips, hands tangled in each other's wet hair. Gabrielle can barely retain her breath; her jealousy fans like fragippani flowers in her chest and she feels their sub-tropic sap run between her legs. She watched as they continued to devour each other. Xena had now pushed Alaethea into a standing position, so that they stood half in the water, bent over the submerged rock; her thigh comes up to force itself between the other woman's legs. Alaethea now laying laterally, Xena rakes her teeth down the length of her neck, tearing the seam of her tunic along the side and ripping it to the edge of her breast. Her teeth find their way along the revealed skin and Alaethea writhes beneath her hands. Trailing one of those hands behind Alaethea's knee, Xena drags her legs apart. She makes expert work of the laces of her trousers and pulls them down just enough to gain access to her intent. With a quick movement, Xena dips her hand into the front of Alaethea's pants and Gabrielle hears a cry of utmost ecstasy pierce the air.
"Yes," Alaethea hisses, grinding her hips against Xena's hand. She thrusts hard into the woman, knowing exactly how rough to be. In her eyes is a blue fury, incredible desire. After a particularly hard thrust, Alaethea cries out again. "This is what you are," she says, riding Xena's hand. She grabs at the warrior's thigh, guiding it to aid in the force of her hand. "Say it," she yelps, moaning.
"This is what I am," grunts Xena, beginning to grind her hips over Alaethea's thigh.
"Yes. Oh, yes, gods," cries Alaethea, "Say you'll forget the bard." In an instant, Xena stills her motions. Pulling her hand from its burial in the woman's dark wet depths, she pushes herself into a standing position. Alaethea makes a groaning, half-animal noise.
"Xena!' she cries, looking up to her in vulnerability. Xena's eyes are set in a hard mask as she tries to calm her breathing. "Come back. I need you inside me."
Xena shakes her head and turns, swimming through the slipstream and over to the other bank of the river. She leaps up with power and grace onto dry land, then brings two hands up to wring her sopping mass of black hair.
"Xena!" yells Alaethea, "How dare you!"
But Xena does not answer her and continues up the embankment to the denser foliage. Gabrielle does not have time to move out view and as Xena passes, she turns and meets the green eyes of the bard. There is a look of utter astonishment that crosses her face at Gabrielle crouching there. They are out of view from where Alaethea still sits on the rock.
"Xena!" she screams. A flock of blackbirds take off from the trees.
Gabrielle walks over to where Xena stands still with that shocked expression. She does not approach any further and attempts to keep a void of emotion on her face. She knows that she fails however, and can feel the tears well up in her eyes. She says the only thing that comes to mind. "The leaders of Meride and Potidaea will be arriving tomorrow to meet with you, General," she says, then turns and walks ahead of the stunned warrior princess.
