Thanks for reading for this long, guys! Here, we'll learn a little bit more about Khan Kubrat's motives for marrying Arielle.
Chapter 48
When it came time for Csaba to depart for his mission he didn't know that Farah would take it so hard. She sobbed days before he left Pannonia and wouldn't allow him to leave the bedroom right up until the final moment before he mounted the horse. Even though she was going to be without him for the majority of her pregnancy he knew that she wouldn't be alone. She had the entire family here to support her yet leaving her, seeing how distraught she was, killed him inside.
Two weeks after he left, Arielle kept pressuring Xena to leave to Kubrat's tribe but as usual the two butted heads. Xena decided to stay until Anastasia arrived which infuriated the stubborn empress. She wanted to at least see her daughter before she left to go on an escapade that she didn't approve of.
Today was the day that Ana was supposed to arrive and Xena waited outside eagerly with a big smile on her face. She received word that Ana was crossing the border a few days ago and calculated the exact moment of the arrival. Anastasia rode into the encampment with Navaz by her side, waving at Xena from afar.
Xena's stomach fluttered and she couldn't contain her excitement any longer. She helped her daughter off the horse and embraced her tightly and kissed both cheeks. She refused to let go until Anastasia struggled to breathe.
"Mother," she protested. "I'd like to breathe!"
After a couple more seconds, Xena finally pulled away and cupped her daughter's cheeks, kissing them again and then pecked her forehead. She held her daughter's hand and took a step back, examining her daughter's frame mostly to see if she was taking care of herself.
"You look wonderful. It's been too long."
Anastasia nodded. "I know. I'm sorry. I lost track of time and I should've come to visit you." her cheek was grazed by her mother's palm.
"Well, you're here now. How is Cera?"
Anastasia sighed. "Cera has been very overbearing when it comes to Emese. She wants to put her in a glass bottle forever. She's so afraid of something happening to her. I've been encouraging her to allow Emese to have more engagement with Yeter's sons but…"
Xena didn't like the sound of that but she knew why Cera was so overly cautious. After the birth, Cera didn't want anyone to touch her daughter for awhile. She guessed that type of overprotective behavior didn't wither away. It could definitely hurt Emese in the future when she wants to branch out and gain independence.
"She's a new mother and she's still adjusting. Just give her time."
Arielle saw her parents and darted across the field. She immediately ran to her father with arms stretched outward. She soared in the air and collided into Navaz and wrapped her legs around his waist and arms around his neck. Navaz almost toppled over from the blow. He didn't expect such a warm welcome from her.
Anastasia grimaced. "It's like she didn't even see me."
Xena stifled a laugh. "Arielle…"
The khagana jumped off her father after she kissed both his hands then went to greet her mother. She gave Anastasia a quick hug and a kiss to both her cheeks. Smiling from ear to ear, she looked over her parents' heads to see if there were more guests accompanying them.
"Did you bring Emese and Mahfiruze? Soran? Cera?" she asked, itching to see her nieces and siblings.
"It's nice to see you too," Ana said and her daughter gave an eye roll. "They're in Balaam."
Arielle's smile disappeared. "You left them all alone?"
"They're not alone, Arielle," she chuckled. "I asked Ursula and Ebnedzar to watch over them while your father and I are away."
"Yeter better not be over there too."
Ana rolled her eyes. "She's not. When are you going to stop this hostility you have towards Yeter?" she asked and Arielle snubbed her nose.
Despite her warm welcome she had her mind set on giving Csaba a piece of her mind. When she received Farah's letter she was more than angry. She never expected her son to react that way in her life. She thought she raised her son better than that and was completely at a loss for words when she read that her son treated his wife the way that he did.
"Where is Csaba?" she asked, her eyes darkening.
Xena clenched her jaw, seeing the fire within her daughter. "He had to leave for a mission. He won't be back for several months," she rubbed her daughter's arm.
"Farah was really sad to see him go," commented Arielle. "I know she's pregnant and all but damn, I've never seen her so hormonal before! She cries at every little thing!" she said, smiling at her slight jest.
"When he comes back I'm going to have words with him." Ana grabbed the horse's reins and walked across the field towards her daughter's Adame to settle in.
The corner of Arielle's lip quirked up. "What did Csaba do to piss everyone off?" she asked, confused.
Farah dressed to meet Anastasia and she wasn't really looking forward to seeing anyone. Everyone was having dinner at Arielle's home and she wanted nothing more than to stay in bed but she couldn't. She stood in front of the mirror and put on her earrings.
She stood there for a long time, staring at the bags underneath her eyes and sunken cheeks. Tears brimmed in her eyes and she forced herself not to cry for the millionth time today. Aladar walked in and she saw his reflection behind her. She smiled and turned around, smoothing out her black gown.
"Mom, are you ready to go?" he touched her long sleeve and picked a piece of lint off the fabric. He looked up at her red eyes. "Were you crying?"
Farah inhaled. "No, I wasn't. Are your brothers waiting downstairs?"
He nodded and then placed his small hand on her flat stomach. "Is the baby making you sick again?" he curiously asked.
She broke out into a smile, trying not to laugh. She combed her fingers through his hair. "The baby has been on its best behavior today."
"Good," he grabbed his mother's hand, escorting her out. "You didn't eat the soup earlier. Are you sure you're not sick?"
Farah raised an eyebrow. "Are you logging my food intake?"
"Father said we have to take care of you," he wagged his finger. "He told us to make sure you eat."
"How considerate of him…" she frowned as her longing for her husband quickly died.
As much as Xena wanted to catch up and converse with her daughter, she was overrun by the children. When they sat down for dinner that evening Anastasia was bombarded by small talkative mouths. She engaged in conversation with all the familiar faces and also met some new faces. Kubrat's sons were well behaved and did not speak out of turn. That couldn't be said for Aurora who talked over her cousins the entire dinner, clinging to Anastasia the whole time.
In the quieter part of the circle, Gabrielle watched as the children kept questioning Anastasia, not allowing her to get a word in. She picked at the last bit of her food, too amused by the horde of the children to eat.
"Someone was missed," she whispered.
Xena's lip twitched into a smile. "They're going to keep her busy for awhile," she wiped her mouth and threw the cloth napkin on her empty plate. "Ana was not thrilled when I told her I'm leaving soon."
"I'm not very happy about it either," she sighed and stabbed the meat with her fork. "Don't let your overprotective nature of Arielle cloud your judgment."
"I won't. I have no idea how this is going to play out."
"Arielle's plans can be a little…unconventional but she's been doing well so far. She has a lot on her plate for someone her age."
Xena eyed the one person in the circle who wasn't speaking to anybody and that was Farah. She always knew Farah to be a very privileged woman and normally she was more chipper and commonly had a sharp tongue. Lately, Farah was a walking dark cloud and hardly said anything aside from when others asked her questions.
Everyone seemed to have forgotten that Farah lost her sister a year ago as well as her entire nation. She had no parents or other family ties back in Banat. She was, in a sense, alone despite all the family members around who were a constant in her life. And now that Csaba was gone for awhile, she probably felt extremely isolated.
Xena grabbed her wife's knee. "What are you going to be doing while I'm away?"
A strange question, Gabrielle thought. "I'll be going over plans with Eksama and Ernak to fight the Lombards in the south."
"Make sure Anastasia pays attention to Farah. I don't want her to dive deeper into depression."
Gabrielle was touched by her spouse's concern and smiled. "Sure, I'll tell Ana. It's so kind of you to be concerned about Farah."
"She's my grandson's wife. Of course I'm concerned. I do care about Farah's well being. She is a part of my family," she sincerely said, placing a hand on her chest.
After dinner everyone lingered in the sitting room, talking together. Arielle could hardly get a word in with her mother since all the children had her mother occupied for hours now. That meant she was forced to talk to Drusilla some more and that in itself was awkward.
Navaz secluded himself from the circle of women and children. He decided to corner his daughter's soon to be husband and question him, curious as to what Kubrat's true intentions were. At first he was shocked to see Kubrat. He was a little older than Navaz expected. From what he was told briefly, Kubrat was only a few years older than Csaba and already had two children and a wife.
When he heard that Kubrat was already married he was very skeptical of how his daughter was handling being married to a man who had a first wife. Given Arielle's status it didn't seem to matter as she wouldn't be called 'the second wife' but she definitely wouldn't have the same status as Drusilla did.
"You will be marrying my daughter and I expect you to treat her very well," he advised.
Kubrat turned to the White Hun and frowned. "I haven't mistreated your daughter at all. She hardly talks to me. I would like to get to know her better especially since she is going to be my wife."
"This is a political marriage so my daughter told me," Navaz took a drink of the wine and looked out the balcony. "You aren't obligated to do anything except to show your allegiance to us."
"I've already proven that I am loyal to your people," Kubrat eyed him, bringing his lips to a firm line. "I told your daughter that I think we should marry in the spring. That should give us enough time to get to know each other some more."
Navaz was curious as to why this man was so eager to show interest in Arielle. So far he didn't receive any bad vibes from Kubrat but he was always suspicious and worrisome of any male that entered Arielle's life. After Bayan he no longer trusted anyone and he barely allowed Xerxes to court her. He only permitted the courtship for the sake of his wife and daughter's happiness. That didn't end well and he didn't want this marriage to fall apart either.
He was no stranger to arranged marriages as he once had one with Anastasia. That marriage was rocky from the start but over time they were able to develop a very good relationship and since they were married again, it was different. They were more comfortable around each other despite the minor arguments they had from time to time.
"If you hurt her in any way I will bury you."
Kubrat's mouth turned upward into a sly crooked smile. "Not if one of these women buries me first, your highness," he said lightly. "I treat my wife very well. You can ask Drusilla for yourself."
"I'll take your word for it. I assume that you will want my daughter to give you children."
Kubrat was a bit annoyed by the interrogation but he responded calmly, "when she is ready. I will not pressure her. Children can be a burden if you aren't prepared for them, wouldn't you say so?" he flashed a smile.
Navaz sipped the wine with a furrowed brow. "I never thought of my children as burdens. I love them both."
"I love my sons too but I am saying that having a child is more of a burden to the woman than it is for the man," Kubrat implied. "Especially since your daughter is the leader of the empire. A lot is expected of her and to have a child would put a lot of unwanted pressure on her."
Navaz shifted his weight, eyeing the chieftain. This conversation wasn't going the way he wanted. He now felt uncomfortable by Kubrat's reasonable answers and calm head.
"You do not have to worry about me forcing myself on her, your highness." He winked and clasped a hand on Navaz's shoulder. "It has been nice talking with you."
A little more than a week later Xena led the army into the Dulo tribe by the Black Sea. Arielle took half of the men under her wing and took them to the east side of the tribe far from the citizens. Xena eyed the amount of Byzantine soldiers on the coast near the ships.
She didn't know if this plan was going to work and she certainly didn't want anything to happen to Arielle. She tried to be reasonable and fair but agreeing with Arielle was beyond impossible sometimes. She waited on the west bank hiding from the Byzantines, watching Arielle from afar.
They couldn't correspond with each other and that worried Xena. Even if she gave a signal Arielle wouldn't be able to hear her to see her at this distance. The Byzantines had no clue that there was about to be a huge ambush of over one hundred Hun soldiers. They had complete faith in Chieftain Kubrat's loyalty.
Arielle waited on horseback until she was ready to strike. Being by the sea brought back memories of her first raid. She remembered how horrified the innocent bystanders were when her people galloped on the beach, slaughtering people left and right. At the time she was equally as horrified and nearly vomited at the sight of the dismembered bodies that lie on the beach.
She was forced to watch the entire invasion. This wasn't far from where they invaded. She remembered when her grandmother lined up every single Kidarite on the sand and then ordered their executions. Now that Arielle sat on her horse, watching the Byzantines, ready to repeat history, she no longer had that same dreadful feeling that she did all those years ago.
Being the skilled bower that she was, she instructed the archers on the front line. She dipped her arrow in the oil and ignited the arrowhead. She titled her taut bow into the air and the other archers followed.
"Kovmak!" she shouted.
A wave of arrows rained on the Byzantines by the coast. It took a few moments to realize what was happening and several men scattered to gather their weapons. They took their horses and rode around the area to find the source of the arrows.
Arielle frowned and reloaded her bow. "Tekrar!"
The second wave of arrows pierced through over fifty men and Arielle strapped her bow to her back and hunkered down on the saddle. She wrapped the scarf over the lower half of her face and raised her hand to her army behind.
She waited until the Byzantines were settled on attacking and then kicked the hind leg of her horse and galloped down the hill and onto the coast with the army following behind. Archers stayed on the east hill, continuing to open fire.
On the west bank, Xena watched, horrified, as Arielle rode into the thick of the chaos. She could barely make out what was going on from where she stood. She rested a hand on her fizzling stomach and took in a deep breath.
Focus, she told herself. She whistled at the soldiers and waved her hand. "Set fire to those ships!"
A group of thirty men rode along the coastline towards the ships. The Byzantines were too distracted from Arielle's raid to notice that their ships were about to be blown up in a matter of minutes.
Xena grimaced, keeping her eye on Arielle the entire time. There was a circle of soldiers surrounding her so she wouldn't be attacked from any angle. Xena was mildly irritated watching how Arielle wielded a sword in combat. She was sloppy and left herself open several times to be sliced in two.
"Barricade the entire area!" she shouted to the next group of soldiers.
She promised Gabrielle that she wasn't ever going to go into the field again but it was difficult to watch Arielle struggle to fight off ten men by herself. She was able bodied but she knew if she went down there, she might get injured and from her last injury, she realized that another injury like that would definitely kill her.
Loud horns echoed from behind and Xena whipped her head around. She wasn't expecting anyone to arrive and thankfully from the sound of horns, they were allies and not enemies. She cinched her eyebrows together when Kubrat came riding towards her with a small entourage.
Kubrat skid to a halt and met with her on the front line. By the look on her face he could tell she was not pleased to see him.
"What the hell are you doing here?" she spat. "You had orders to stay behind! You are not getting off to a good start by disobeying your wife's commands."
Kubrat snickered. "I came on the orders of King Navaz."
She rolled her eyes. "Damn you, Navaz," she mumbled.
For a change of scenery, Ernak walked with Gabrielle outside to conduct their meeting that were normally held within his home. They spent over half an hour walking and talking about the plans to push back the Lombards in the south. Once they were able to get rid of Alduin and Rodelinda then their lives would be a little easier but until then they were on high alert.
"Did you send scouts to the south?" she asked.
Ernak nodded. "Eksama is in charge of that. A part of me hopes that this war is postponed until spring. I don't like to fight in the winter and I have a feeling it's going to be a rough one this year."
She scribbled in her journal, slowing her pace as she walked. "This war is putting a huge dent in the treasury. Arielle spent almost half by going to the Dulo tribe and sending Csaba off. Not to mention Bayan is still rebuilding Scythia and Arielle wants a church and another Adame built in Kazakhstan," she exhaled, shaking her head.
"That is not what I want to hear," he grunted and scratched his beard. "Did you talk to Farah? Maybe she can balance the budget."
"I'll go see her later. She's spending time with Ana right now."
That brought a smile to Ernak's lips. "Ah, Anastasia, I did miss her. Although," he stroked his beard, "she is acting more and more like Xena the older she gets. I don't know if I can live with her if she keeps that up," he cackled.
She slammed her journal shut. "You say that like it's a bad thing."
Ernak raised hands with open palms, implying that what he meant was the truth and nothing but.
"I'm going to write a letter to Bayan to send more funds and I'll also ask Farah what the best plan is to balance our budget for the war. We can't keep spending large amounts like this."
"Arielle isn't very good with money it seems."
Gabrielle couldn't agree more. "I'm not going to be the one to tell her that."
On the floor during some of her off time, Farah often looked over her sons' work to make sure their math was correct and advised them on how to complete complex problems. She sat on the floor, checking over their work and marked up the parchment several times, shaking her head.
The twin princes waited patiently until she was finished. They didn't want to spend any more long hours on math today but considering that their mother was correcting their work, they both knew they were going to be stuck inside all day, studying.
Farah groaned and flipped to the next page. "Wrong," she scratched through one equation. "Wrong, wrong, wrong!"
She lifted her eyes to her sons who gawked at her fearfully. She waved the parchment in their faces.
"What is this?" she asked. "It's like you two aren't even trying. I know you can do this and yet you bring me this."
Aman swallowed, "it's really hard!"
"We went over these theories last week. You two haven't studied at all. It's obvious you've been playing around too much with the other boys," she tossed the parchment at them and the boys flinched. "Go to your rooms and rework all of those equations."
"What?!" they exclaimed.
Farah narrowed her eyes and pointed to the door. They grumbled and got off the floor, bickering under their breaths. On their way out they bumped into their elder brother, Edemen. He smiled at them and then stood in front of his mother and handed her his journal.
She quickly sipped some water and snatched the journal from his hand and flipped through it. She dipped the quill in the inkpad and immediately began correcting his Latin. She circled a few words and then looked up at her son.
"You might as well take a seat. This is going to take awhile."
Edemen sighed and plopped down, resting his chin on his palm. He eyed the way she was correcting his work and nervously picked at the tassels on his sleeves. He hated it when he brought his work to her because she was quite tyrannical when it came to his studies.
After awhile, Gabrielle walked into the room and looked over at Farah writing on the floor while Edemen was rocking back and forth. She quietly walked across the room and smiled at the prince. She didn't want to disturb Farah and sat down on the floor until she was finished.
Farah huffed and closed the journal with a smile and handed it back to her son. "Very nice but you have a few spelling mistakes. Make sure you're more careful with the vocabulary."
He nodded. "I will. Can I go outside with Bezmer? He's going to spar with me."
"I'd prefer that you rewrite all of that today, Edemen."
He sighed. "But mother, I've been working on this for three hours. I need a break."
Farah looked over at Gabrielle who looked like she wanted to discuss something important. She tapped her fingers together and smiled at her son, allowing him to leave and go spar with Kubrat's eldest son. Edemen raced out of the room before she could say anything else to him.
Gabrielle brushed her hair behind her ears. "I see you're keeping busy."
"Csaba normally checks Edemen's work but since he's not here…" she trailed off. "Is there something you want to talk about?"
She pulled out her journal and pushed it towards Farah. "Yes. Our treasury is dwindling down to nothing. I need your advice on what we should do."
Farah flipped through the journal and her eyes widened at the large numbers printed on the pages. She licked her fingertips and turned the page. At the rate that Arielle was splurging the empire's funds they weren't going to be able to make until spring. Arielle seemed to forget that they needed funds not only for war, supplies, weapons, soldiers but also crops and other necessities for the tribes.
"My goodness," she whispered. "I didn't approve any of this. What is the point of me being treasurer if she doesn't consult me first before she spends our money?"
Gabrielle scratched her head. She felt a bit guilty that she hadn't come to Farah first but now seeing how badly the empire's debt was, she realized she should've been more careful and told Arielle to confirm with Farah first.
"What do you think we should do? I was going to ask Bayan to send more money."
Farah felt a headache coming on and closed the journal. "No, we're not going to do that. We're going to need a loan."
"A loan? Who are we supposed to ask for that?"
"We're going to have to ask Shah Kavad."
The circle around Arielle dwindled from ten men to five and she pushed her way through the sea of Byzantines coming to attack her. Her sword impaled through a soldier's chest and she ran him into the next soldier on standby. She let out a loud cry and forced her blade into the second body.
Blood spattered on her cheek and she ripped the scarf off her face, snarling at the dying Byzantine. Her left side was open for an attack and she was focused on the others to notice a man running towards her. In less than a second she felt a stab in her side and she took a sharp painful inhale.
One of her men drove the attacker away and his blade ripped out of her body. She pressed her hand to her bleeding wound. On her blind side another person came up from behind and grabbed hold of her arm to pull her away. She yanked her body forward and her elbow snapped.
Her eyes widened and let out an ear piercing scream. Finally, her men came to her aid as she was in the center of the field, crying out in agony, tears rolling down her cheeks. She collapsed to her knees, bleeding out of her side.
Xena thought her eyes deceived her when she saw Arielle topple over. Over the chaos of the raid she heard Arielle's screeching screams from afar. She wasn't going to sit aside and wait until the area cleared. She was going to ride down there and didn't care about any little voices in her head telling her otherwise.
She steered her horse to ride down the west bank and then Kubrat galloped passed her with a group of men. She held onto her headdress before it went flying off her head. Sitting on her horse she witnessed Kubrat ride into the field, pushing soldiers out of the way to get to Arielle.
With her mouth agape and not able to bat an eye, Kubrat rode back with Arielle cradled in his arm on the saddle. Xena sat on her horse, gawking at the blood pouring out onto Arielle's armor and pants.
"Do we have a tent set up?" he asked.
Xena blinked rapidly, meeting his serious dark eyes. "Y-yes," she pointed behind her.
He didn't have time to hesitate and set Arielle down in the large tent. She moaned softly and tried to shift her body. He grabbed her arm firmly and flipped her over onto her back.
"Don't move," he said.
He whipped the dagger out from his belt and cut through her leather vest and then ripped her blouse open. Xena walked in just as he was leaning over her granddaughter's half naked body. She pushed the other soldiers out who stayed behind. She walked over and knelt down, staring at the large stab wound.
Kubrat frowned at her. "You shouldn't be here."
"Don't tell me what to do," she barked.
He ignored her and pressed a cloth against the wound to clot the flow of blood. He briefly pulled the cloth away and began cleaning the wound as quickly as possible until the blood starting flowing again. He applied pressure and turned to Xena who was sitting there, horrified.
He looked over at Arielle's arm and nudged Xena. "Do you know how to put bones back into place?"
Xena gave him an incredulous gaze. "Of course I know how to do that."
"Good then put yourself to use and put her arm back into place," he ordered her. "Do it!"
She didn't have time to argue and crawled to the other side of Arielle and looked at her broken arm. She'd been injured several times and was pretty sure she had broken almost every single limb in her body but seeing a broken bone was always unsettling.
Arielle was fading and blind to the pain. Xena winced, knowing this was going to send a charge through Arielle's body. She grabbed the broken arm and snapped it back into place with a swift jolt. Arielle arched her back, screaming loudly.
Kubrat held her down with a hand pushing down on her chest. Every move that she made caused her wound to open.
"Easy!" he growled. "Relax. Stay still."
Xena looked around for something to make a splint for Arielle's arm. While she looked around the tent she broke a staff in half and tore a piece of her veil off her headdress. She strapped the poorly makeshift splint to Arielle's arm.
She watched how calm Kubrat was being about the situation. He kept cleaning the wound and adequate amounts of pressure in between cleaning. For someone who didn't love Arielle he sure was very concerned for her health.
"Thank you," Xena said in a shaky voice.
Kubrat lifted his eyes, casting a lopsided smile. "She'll be fine. Aren't you glad that I'm here?"
She wiped her teary eyes and frowned. "You better keep your eyes on that wound only."
He chuckled, very aware that she spoke of Arielle's breasts bound in a brassiere. It was the first time he'd seen Arielle without a top on and he couldn't help but look at her toned flat stomach covered in tattoos. She also had several underneath her breasts and along her arms as well. He noticed a scar on the other side of her stomach.
"What is that from?" he pointed to the scar.
Memories of Xerxes rushed back and that was a moment she wished she could erase. At the time she thought Arielle was going to die and it was Xerxes who nursed her back to health. She grazed the scar with her fingers and cast a solemn smile.
"She was injured in Persia. I didn't think she was going to make it."
He lowered his eyes and checked on the wound. It was beginning to clot now which was a good sign. Soon he was going to have to cauterize the wound and then sew it before they were to head back to Pannonia. They couldn't stay here long and he had an obligation to protect his tribe too.
"Arielle was supposed to marry Shehzade Xerxes Sassan," she brushed Arielle's hair from her bloodied cheek. "He died a year ago."
Kubrat sighed. "And she was married to Bayan when she was a teenager. Drusilla told me."
Xena brought her lips to a firm line. She reached for a cloth and cleaned Arielle's cheek.
"She doesn't have much luck with men," he said lightly with a small smile which Xena shared. "I now understand why her father was so stern with me."
"Arielle is Navaz's little girl," she laughed lightly. "He spoils her."
Kubrat set the cloth aside and checked on the clotting. Good enough, he thought. He took his knife and snatched a lit candle and held the blade over the flame to sterilize it.
"Khanum, I want to tell you something."
"Alright…"
"I will treat your granddaughter very well. I know she is nervous about the wedding and marriage in general," he said with a soft sigh. "We don't know each other but I hope we will have a mutual relationship in the future. You do not have to worry about her safety with me."
Xena rubbed her lips together and sat, unsure of what to say. She had a hard time trusting men in general especially men in her family's life that tried to get close to her family members. Xerxes was the only man she liked aside from Ellac and Navaz. She thought that maybe Kubrat was just telling her what she wanted to hear but he sounded sincere.
"You'll have to earn my trust, Kubrat. Words are just words."
"I understand."
He placed a hand over Arielle's chest and caught Xena's harsh gaze. His hand slid down to Arielle's abdomen, far away from her breasts. He blew on the blazing hot knife and took in a deep breath.
"You better hold her down. This is going to shock her awake," he strongly advised.
A week later they returned to Pannonia victorious of getting rid of the Byzantines in the Dulo tribe. Arielle was asleep most of the way back and occasionally woke up, moaning and crying out in agonizing pain. She was brought to her bedroom on a stretcher and had her wound treated and sewn by Kubrat before they left on their journey.
Anastasia and Navaz both stayed by their daughter's side waiting for her to heal for a few days. Arielle was barely conscious enough to make light conversation with her parents. She briefly saw Aurora but was too weak to greet her properly.
In order to keep Aurora's mind off of her ailing mother, she was put in Drusilla's hands and kept occupied by her soon to be stepbrothers, Bezmer and Kotrag.
Xena sat in the large bath while Gabrielle sat behind her outside the bath. She leaned her head back as the water was poured on her hair. She opened her eyes and met Gabrielle's jade eyes, smiling softly.
"I'm really proud of you for keeping your head in the game," said Gabrielle.
She massaged the oil into her wife's long hair from the ends and worked her way up to the scalp.
Xena felt her limbs fall limp as her scalp was massaged. She lowered her body into the hot water and rested her head on the ledge of the bath. She hadn't been this relaxed in a long time and felt like she was going to fall asleep.
"Kubrat did all the work. He saved her…not me."
Gabrielle hummed quietly. "That's what Ana said. I guess he scored some points with Navaz."
"Hmm."
"Don't fall asleep on me now," Gabrielle jested. "I know you're very relaxed right now but we need to talk," she whispered.
Xena's eyes shot open and she grimaced. "I don't like where this is going."
"I was doing some checking on the finances and…Arielle is draining our treasury. We're in a lot of debt," she could tell Xena was about to erupt and massaged her shoulders. "I spoke to Farah and she said we should get a loan from Shah Kavad."
"She said what?!"
"Think about it, think about it!" she squeezed Xena's shoulders. "We have a lot of tribes to feed and we still need more supplies for the army."
Xena growled and slapped the hands off her shoulders and spun around, sinking in the water. She was never good at organizing the finances in the empire and that was often left to Kreka and Attila in the past. Farah was very good at her job and Xena never thought she was frugal considering she hoarded her funds but she always knew how much she spent concerning soldiers, food and supplies.
"How much are we in the hole?"
Gabrielle hesitated to answer and shied away from her wife's penetrating eyes.
"How much?"
"Ah…a lot," she spoke cryptically. "Farah said we won't make it till spring if Arielle keeps this up."
Xena ran her hands over her wet hair and let out an audible groan. "I ought to break Arielle's other arm." She closed her eyes and took in deep calming breaths. "From now on every single thing that Arielle wants to spend money on will need to be approved by Farah."
"And…what about the loan from the Persians?"
"I don't know if that is a good idea but if that's our only option then we should probably…do it," she dug her fingers into her face.
Gabrielle stilted a laugh. "That's a very attractive face," she said sarcastically.
"You see this?" she held her silvery raven locks. "This is all Arielle's fault."
"All of it?"
"Oh, don't worry, you're sprinkled in here somewhere," Xena picked at the ends of her hair.
More than two weeks went by and Arielle was finally able to get out of bed without anyone's help. She was a bit irritated that her arm was going to be in a splint for a few more months which meant she had to rely on her family for help. She spoke to Gabrielle and was a bit shocked to hear that she wouldn't be making the decisions when it came to spending money in the empire any longer.
Sore and in slight discomfort, Arielle painfully strolled down the hall, cursing under her breath. She held the side of her torso and hissed. Rounding a corner she smiled at her family waiting to have dinner with her. Anastasia didn't want her to walk all the way downstairs to eat with everyone but Arielle insisted. She was dying of boredom staying in bed all day.
Aurora got up off the floor and ran over to her mother. "Are you better now?"
"Mhm," Arielle's legs felt like stilts and she forced a smile for her daughter's sake.
Kubrat immediately came to help her sit on the floor. He grabbed her hand and lowered her down to the pillow. Arielle looked up at him, smiling softly. Ever since they came back to Pannonia she hadn't spoken to him much but she did thank him for coming to her rescue as embarrassing as it was.
"Now Arielle, about this spending problem of yours," Xena started the conversation on a rough note.
Arielle sent her a mean glare. "I get it. I'm no longer in charge of the funds. Farah said I can't make a decision without her."
"So, you know that Farah's going to ask for a loan from Shah Kavad…"
Arielle widened her eyes and looked at all the faces staring back at her. She gripped the spoon in her hand and then she was reminded that her daughter and several other children were sitting right next to her. She gently set the spoon down in the bowl.
"No, I did not know that."
"I've already written the letter but I need your permission to send it," said Gabrielle.
Arielle rubbed her forehead and replied, "fine. Go ahead and send it. Great, now I'm going to be indebted to the fucking Sassanians."
"We wouldn't be in this predicament if you had been more careful," Xena chimed in.
At that last comment, Arielle attempted to get up and leave. She didn't want to sit and eat with her family if she felt she was going to be attacked on all sides. When she tried to leave, Kubrat set a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"We don't have to talk about this anymore," he whispered, "we can just eat altogether."
Arielle gazed at him questionably and she decided to stay, soothed by his calming words instantly. She smiled, nodding her head. Her family stared at her and then began to fill their plates with food in silence.
She on the other hand, burdened by her broken arm, had quite a difficult task getting food onto her plate. She tried to grab one of the bowls of rice and Kubrat grabbed it for her and spooned it onto her plate. Her cheeks reddened and she thanked him barely above a whisper.
"Well since you're injured," Ana began casually, eating bits of bread, "and I'm here, I can stand in your place," she added with a big smile.
Arielle held the spoon close to her open mouth and paused. She didn't think of her mother as incapable of managing the empire but at the same time she didn't want her mother in charge either. Her right to spend the treasury funds had already been taken away and she didn't want anyone else making decisions without her consent. It was bad enough that Farah had taken all of her privileges away regarding the funds.
"Aha…" she lowered the spoon from her mouth. "That won't be necessary, mother. We have plenty of other queens here; Farah, Eksama, grandma…"
Anastasia smiled warmly, "but I am next in line if something happens to you and would you look at that, I can just happen to be here just at the right time."
"But don't you need to go back to Balaam?" she hinted, eyeing her father.
"I'm going to stay here until your brother comes back."
The spoon of rice scraped against Arielle's teeth and she smiled at her mother. "Fantastic…"
Xena had worked with her daughter several times in the past and they didn't always agree but at least Anastasia was more reasonable than Arielle. They sat together in Ernak's Adame for an annual meeting and Xena thought this meeting was going to go very smoothly and she was so wrong.
Anastasia wanted to go in the field with Eksama. She wanted to be completely in charge, calling all of the shots. A part of Xena wondered if Ana just wanted to boss around Eksama for her own amusement. She couldn't stand to listen to her daughter any more.
"No," she blurted out, interrupting Anastasia.
"No, what? I want to go with Eksama. I will be nice, I promise. I won't kill her." she clasped her hands together with a hope look in her eyes.
Xena twirled the beads of her headdress in between her fingers.
"No."
Ana growled and slammed her fist down. "But mom!"
"But mom," she mocked. "Don't 'but mom' me, Anastasia. I said no and that's final."
Ernak snickered, watching the two argue. "Wow, I feel like I've stepped back into time thirty years."
"Shut up, Ernak!" Ana barked.
"Yes ma'am," he saluted and sunk down in the chair, hiding his face from the angry women.
"Listen Anastasia, I love you very much. You are my daughter and I care about you," Xena laced her fingers together on the table. "You know I would do anything for you like you'd do anything for Arielle, Csaba and Cera but I am telling you no and you need to listen to me."
"Mother, I've been an adult for a long time now. I'm in charge while Arielle is recovering and I want to go with Eksama to the south border."
Xena groaned and slapped her hands on her face.
"And what could you possibly offer going down there? You still can't see as well as you used to."
Ana folded her arms. "I just want to help."
"You are helping!" Xena reached across the table and grabbed Ana's hand. "I need you here. Ernak and Eksama will have no problem by themselves."
"That's right!" Ernak cheered amidst the tension. "Don't sweat it my sweet Ana, you'll have plenty to do here. Me and my sister will handle the Lombards."
"This conversation is over," Xena stood from her seat. "Shah Kavad will send an ambassador to talk to us about the loan. It will most likely be Tegin Irkin. You will be in charge of negotiating with him. Farah and Gabrielle will be present."
Anastasia tried not to display any disappointment. She really wanted to be on the field as she felt she'd serve better purpose there than sitting behind a desk. Her mother kissed the side of her head and she twisted her face into an ugly snarl.
"Don't make that face. I am counting on you to be the fine negotiator that you are."
To break the tension between everyone Xena resorted to using her sword as a means to cope with her frustration. She had limited sparring partners to work with and she didn't want to bother Gabrielle. But she also didn't want to hear Gabrielle complain of being hurt later. That never ended well for either of them.
Gabrielle sat outside in the field behind the Adame and watched Xena swinging the sword. She had just finished her meeting with Farah which was cut short because Farah couldn't sit still for longer than a few minutes before her stomach rebelled against her.
When Xena used to be a teacher in the school they had a few years ago, she taught them what weapons came from where and who made them. She always wanted to train the children but everyone prevented her from doing that until today.
Kurt, Edemen and Bezmer were among the eldest of all the children and they were set on training. Kurt, nearing sixteen and a spitting image of Ernak, was already very skilled wielding a sword.
Due to Farah's overprotective nature, Edemen couldn't train as much as his cousin. Bezmer on the other hand didn't know anybody here and he was just getting to know his new family. So far, he got along very well with Edemen due to their closeness in age.
Xena presented her sword, holding it with both hands and the boys stood, watching intently.
"I know this might sound silly to you boys but you need to become one with your sword," she said and Edemen cracked a smile. "Something funny?"
He cleared his throat. "No…no."
"Uh huh," she flashed a short smile. "I know you're used to working with one type of sword but let's say you're in the middle of a fight and your sword gets taken from you –"
"Isn't that the number one rule? Don't lose your sword?" Kurt asked.
"Well, yes, but anything can happen. Anyway," she twirled the sword around with ease, "you might have to use a weapon you're not familiar with. You should always be prepared in case that happens."
Gabrielle lifted her eyes every so often listening to Xena teaching the young teenage boys. She smiled, writing and then heard someone approach from behind. She turned and stood to greet Kubrat. She quickly closed her journal and set it on the stairs.
The Khan arched a thick brow. "What is happening out here?"
"Xena is teaching them the importance of their sword and how to use it in combat."
He furrowed his eyebrows, watching the exchange, specifically eyeing his son and how horrible he was at holding a weapon of any kind. Xena saw that immediately and focused most of her attention on Bezmer while the other two boys practiced on their own.
"Does she do this often?" he asked.
Gabrielle let out a heavy sigh. "Not so much anymore. She enjoys teaching the children," she said and there was stilted silence between them. "Ah, so how is Arielle?"
"Drusilla is with her."
He folded his hands behind his back, annoyed by Xena's method of teaching concerning his eldest son. He took a deep inhale through his nostrils and turned to the petite governor with a terse smile.
"I have come to learn many things about this family in the short time I've been in Pannonia."
"Oh?"
"Yes," he smoothed his fingers through his beard. "The women are very stubborn."
She couldn't deny that. She had lived with them for several years and each woman had a special way about them.
While Anastasia could be stubborn sometimes she was the most level headed of them all but she had her moments when she lost clarity in the past. Arielle was a breed all on her own and she never liked to follow rules from the moment she could talk.
Cera was the kindest of them all yet she was very skilled with a brush and quill. By the looks of her, nobody would ever suspect that Cera was also highly skilled in hand to hand combat. Farah, the most gorgeous, often called by her nickname, 'beauty queen', also had brains. She was incredibly smart and not enough people gave her credit for it.
And then there was Xena.
Gabrielle suspected that Kubrat would never come to understand Xena or Arielle. She sometimes didn't understand Xena even after all the years they spent together. She was continuously surprised by her spouse and that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
"They can be stubborn," she said with a light laugh. "But you'll get used to it."
"Am I supposed to just act submissive towards the khagana?" he asked. "I can already tell that she and I will not see eye to eye on everything."
Gabrielle shifted her weight on her heels uncomfortably.
"Arielle is a lot more reasonable than she used to be."
He shot her a look of disbelief.
"She likes to take the hard road," she implied, "but she's learned a lot. Arielle will compromise with you if you come to a disagreement."
Somehow, Kubrat refused to believe that. From what he'd seen, Arielle was a very difficult woman to talk to. She constantly spoke back to her family members and she liked to be the sole person in charge. He knew that he came into his marriage alliance with a hard heart considering his wife was the one who suggested it.
"There is one more thing that I haven't mentioned regarding the marriage alliance."
Gabrielle crinkled her eyebrows. "And what's that?"
"In order for our marriage to be recognized, she will need to convert to the church," he said and saw the governor's face drain of all color. "I can't marry a pagan woman. If she doesn't convert then this alliance will be broken."
He took a brief bow and then sauntered back into the Adame. Gabrielle stood flabbergasted and had the urge to slap Kubrat. None of this was mentioned prior when she and Xena met with him months ago.
Xena left the boys to train on their own for awhile and walked over with a big grin on her face. She clasped her hand on Gabrielle's shoulder causing a flinch.
"Something wrong?" she asked.
Gabrielle swallowed and rubbed her throat. "No…nothing's wrong."
"Don't lie to me, Gabrielle. I saw you talking with Kubrat. Did he say anything to upset you?"
"No, he was…just telling me about Arielle's recovery."
Xena lifted a skeptical eyebrow. "And…how is she?"
Gabrielle stared off into the distance and then felt a gentle nudge to her arm.
"Oh, um," she looked into Xena's piercing eyes. "She's feeling better. Drusilla is watching over her," she said with an uneasy smile.
"Alright then," Xena replied with a small head nod. "I'll go check on her later. Do you think you could get my scimitar? It's in the bedroom. You know which one I'm talking about, right? The one with the gold etching on the blade?"
Gabrielle felt her mouth dry. "Yes, I remember."
Xena smiled and gave her spouse's shoulder a firm squeeze and then walked back to continue her lesson with the princes. Gabrielle began making her way back to the Adame with a black pit forming in the center of her core.