Xena-

The plan was set in motion. Ares had taken her deal, as she expected he would. It had been harder than she had thought. He had been cautious of her seduction, but in the end, had fallen for it all the same.

Xena knew he expected her to keep up her end of the deal. She counted on it.

The Warrior Princess had never broken a promise in her life, and had never been to a point that she would twist her own morals to survive.

But Ares had left her with no option. Why did he deserve her trust? Xena even had her doubts about his end of the bargain; she didn't completely trust he wouldn't harm Gabrielle. But she knew he trusted her to uphold her end.

And so, Xena, for the first time in her life, was going to break a promise. She had agreed to give herself to the God of War, and fully intended on going back on it. But not right now.

No, right now, Xena was basking in it. Her tongue massaged Ares' own, both fighting for the upper hand. His mouth clashed against hers, drawing Xena in like a moth to the flame. Ares cupped her breast, rolling his palm rolled over her nipple, causing it to flush and harden. Xena released a soft moan as he squeezed it, before giving the other an equal treatment.

His mouth finally left her own, only to begin a trail of kisses down her neck. In return, Xena started to nibble his ear.

She had almost forgotten what it had been like to be with him, how he could make her feel things no one else, God or mortal alike, could.

The God of War pulled her closer by this point, leaving no room between their bodies. He pressed himself against her, his arousal hard against her thigh. Xena rubbed herself against him, creating the perfect amount of friction. Ares made a deep, guttural, sound before hoisting Xena up to allow himself better access to her breasts. He took one of her nipples between his teeth, and Xena whimpered at the sensation, wrapping her legs around his waist.

Ares growled, and swept her back onto his bed, straddling her.

He had been waiting for this for a long time, and had trouble restraining himself.

As much as Ares wanted to plunge into her right then and there, he waited, not wanting to hurt his Princess. He wanted her to enjoy herself, first.

The Warrior Princess had been expecting that Ares would simply take her. It was not as if he was a selfish lover, most of the time he always helped her finish first, but only because she saw the need in his eyes. Never mind her pain. But when his fingers began tracing circles on her inner thigh, she wondered if perhaps he saw her own need, sparkling in those baby blue's of hers. She arched her back as Ares started to make circular motions at her clit, rubbing her in all the right ways.

He remembered how she liked it, remembered how to get the responses he wanted from her.

She cried out in pleasure as she hit her orgasm, and the mere expression on her face made Ares want her even more, his erection pressing against his leather pants.

He stripped, freeing himself, now that Xena was ready to go. She was laying on his bed, still a little hazy from his earlier ministrations.

"Ares,"

She murmured, almost like a plea. He wouldn't hold back now, her saying his name like that was too much to handle.

The War God pinned both her wrists behind her head, holding them with one hand.

He took her hard and fast. Any other mortal might have broken, but Xena relished in it as much as he did, panting heavily. There would be enough time for romance later, for now, he was finally getting what he wanted.

He came in her right after she hit her second orgasm, and collapsed beside her. Victory was his, she was his, and Ares wrapped on arm around her waist to hold her close.

Xena appeared fully flushed, a ripe color to her cheeks.

She brought her wrists down and rubbed them, already seeing a pair of brusises on each.

It had been quite a while since Xena had been with anyone, and she, for a moment, wondered if it was Ares who really was getting the better end of their deal.

She cursed inwardly at having enjoyed it so much.

Xxxxxxx

Xena hadn't signed any contract, Ares had trusted her word for their deal. She was his, now and forever.

The Warrior Princess was almost beginning to believe it, herself.

For the next two weeks following the deal, Xena had played her part to perfection. She and Ares never fought, and most days went the same.

In the mornings, she woke up with her head against Ares' chest, one of his arms draped over her waist as she curled her body against him.

He allowed her to pick out her own dress, creating a collection of clothes in her closet for her to choose from.

They were all to his liking of course; not a one that didn't show off what she had to offer, but it was a start.

They would eat breakfast and train for sometimes hours. When Xena practiced fighting with Gabrielle, she always had to hold back, the young bard not as skilled as she needed to improve herself.

But with Ares she could put everything she had into a fight, feel the rush of power flood her veins as she parried and thrusted.

Every night he took her. Sometimes it was rough and hungry, other times it was almost sweet and sensual.

One night, Xena could have sworn he was going to say he loved her.

And could she stop him? She had promised her heart to be his, and maybe it was, her own feelings resurfacing over the past few weeks. Xena came to the conclusion that one could offer their body, their soul even, but their heart? No, love was an entirely different matter.

But some nights, after they had been with each other sometimes several times, and after she just lied there with him and they talked for hours into the night, Xena came to a realization.

Ares may not have been able to take her heart, to earn her love, and yet she was giving it to him all the same.

Xxxxxx

Xena never forgot she was his slave. It was always in the back of her mind. No matter how tender his words, how much her heart swelled for him, all of what they had was a lie.

And perhaps that was what kept Xena from ever truly giving him her heart. Because love should have been unconditional, and he had always been selfish when it came to her.

Still, those two weeks into their deal were...blissful, to say the least.

It was only the next week that things fell worse than they had ever been.

The day started out like any other, and Xena and Ares had sparred for at least two hours before he was called to a meeting on Olympus. It had something to do with an alliance with the Norse Gods against the Egyptian ones, but Ares didn't mention the ordeal often.

He had left Xena after they ate lunch together. She knew he would likely be gone until dust, and took to chatting with two priestess she had made friends with.

The girls must have realized Xena was there to stay, and finally had the courage to speak with her when they "mighty War God" was away.

It was nearly evening when Xena went back to the his chambers. He had insisted that she wait for him there when he returned.

Xena dressed in a short, sheer, crimson colored number, (his favorite color) and lounged on the bed reading a book while she waited.

There was a knock on the door.

Not Ares, Xena knew. Ares wouldn't have knocked.

A small voice came from the other side of the door.

"I have food for the Lady Xena."

Xena's brow furrowed. Ares always ate dinner with her...

"Come in."

Xena said. Something about that voice felt familiar.

The door opened, and a young woman shut it behind her quickly.

"Xena!"

Gabrielle exclaimed, embracing her friend in a tight hug. Xena grinned, but her smile quickly faded.

If she were going to go through with this, it meant betraying Ares. It meant that everything they had built would be broken.

That bastard deserves it, how many times has he betrayed me?

Xena scolded herself, remembering how the War God had allowed Posideon to gift her to him.

She shook the thought from her head, they would need to move quickly.

"Gabrielle, how did you get in here?"

Her friend was dressed in the rather scandalous priestess dress-robes, the color of strawberry wine.

"I posed as a priestess. I've been here for days, Xena. I pretended to want a job, and learned that Ares left the temple every day around noon."

A surge of pride leapt through Xena. So the bard hadn't just planned on barging into the temple and demanding Xena's release. She had learned a lot from her time traveling with the Warrior Princess.

"We have to move quickly. Ares will be here by dusk, maybe sooner."

"Errr, Xena, do you want to maybe change?"

The bard asked, looking Xena's appearance up and down.

"No time. Come one, we have to leave now if we want a chance of making it out."

Xena didn't have her weapons with her, as they were still in Ares' possession, so they would just have to make a run through it.

"This way, Gabrielle. There's a pathway that leads outside through here."

Xena grabbed her friend's hand and pulled her into a hallway, and through the entrance to the under-ground tunnels.

They made it into the stone tunnels; Xena struggled to remember exactly which twists and turns would take them outside the temple.

Her memory served her correct, and within a matter of minutes the women emerged into a dark grey sky.

"Argo?"

Xena asked.

"She's tied out by a tree just a little that way. I couldn't risk Ares recognizing her."

The blonde gestured towards the tree-line.

Xena broke into a run, Gabrielle beside her, and for the first time, the Warrior Princess broke a promise.

Hello! Let me know how you think Ares will react to Xena's betrayal. Is Gabrielle still safe from his wrath, or are all bets off the table? Stay tuned to find out! :)