Chapter 3

When Xena arrived back at the past lives clinic, Gabrielle/Mattie was pacing back and forth and in the middle of a heated phone conversation. "I don't care what it takes, I want it done as soon as possible," she looked to Xena and held up a finger to indicate that she would talk to her as soon as she finished the call.

Xena eyed her friend closely. Something about her posture was different. Her spine was more relaxed, her movements were less calculated. She had a more authentic air about her. In short, she looked more like Gabrielle. In fact, it was difficult to find Mattie in her at all.

"Does he need to be there?" Gabrielle waited for the response on the other end of the line. "Okay then, Thursday, at nine in the morning. See you then. Can't wait."

Gabrielle dramatically stabbed the phone's off button and then glared at Xena. "Xena, I am married to Joxer."

"Well, technically it's Harry… wait a minute, Gabrielle?" Xena eyes watered as the truth of the situation really hit home.

"Yes," Gabrielle smiled, tossed the phone onto the couch and ran into Xena's arms.

"But how?" Xena asked as her companion placed a kiss on her mouth.

"Aphrodite," Gabrielle answered.

"But I was with her less than an hour ago," Xena protested.

"Yeah, well whatever you said to her, she was just here ten minutes ago. She did a little wavy thing with her fingers and poof, I had what I can only call complete assimilation, an awakening, really."

"I didn't really say anything to her. She did most of the talking." Xena was thankful that Aphrodite had brought her friend back but it peeved her that the gods still took liberties with mortals' lives. Would they never learn?

"Let me look at you, Xena. I mean really look at you. Oh my god, what have I done?" Gabrielle asked in devastation and placed a hand over her heart and steadied herself against the desk.

"What? What is it?"

"What did I do in a past life to be reincarnated as Mattie? I mean she ran a scam that profited off of innocent people. Hurting people."

"Yeah, but you were you enough to turn it around when it mattered, Gabrielle. I mean some of those people have really tapped into their old lives. You are bringing them a sense of closure they might never have otherwise."

"Still, I managed to get involved with Ares and if you, Harry, I mean you, you know what I mean, If you hadn't been the Xena vigilante, who knows what might have happened. Wait! Ares, he was here last night, right?"

Xena nodded but didn't want to get drawn into this conversation. She was still trying to sort out the feelings that he'd stirred in her. And just what did Gabrielle mean by involved? If she and Marco were intimate with one another, Mattie never mentioned it to Harry. Surely, she meant entangled.

"What was he up to?" The blonde asked.

"Doesn't matter, he's gone now. And, what's more, I don't think he'll be back," Xena desperately hoped the disappointment she felt in the pit of her stomach was not coming to the surface.

"Hmph," Gabrielle protested, "Oh, he'll be back, he's not going to let you go that easily."

"Jealous much?"

"Maybe, but it's more than that. With today's weaponry, you and Ares together could be catastrophic." Gabrielle shivered

The comment hurt Xena in a way she hadn't expected. After all that they'd been through, did Gabrielle not have enough faith in her to know that Xena had put her murderous ways behind her? But there was also a prideful part of Xena that knew that Gabrielle was right. Her and Ares teamed up in the age of assault rifles and ballistic missiles could get catastrophic fast. But Xena had to give Ares a little credit too. He had seemed different. More mellow. Less concerned with world domination. "Yeah, maybe, but last night… never mind. So, what was with the phone call?" Xena changed the subject.

"Divorce attorney."

"You're gonna break Joxer's heart," Xena warned.

"So. What? I'm supposed to stay married to him so I don't hurt his feelings?" Gabrielle huffed.

"No, just be gentle, that's all."

"Were you gentle with Ares last night? Never mind, I don't want to know."

"What are you suggesting? I woke up with you, didn't I? Besides you can't compare Joxer to Ares." Xena walked across the room and plopped down on the sofa.

"Why? They both have feelings." Gabrielle went to the desk and jotted down her appointment time on a Post it note. She tore the top note from the brick with a flourish and with a pushpin stuck it onto a bulletin board. She turned back to Xena who looked miffed about the "feelings" comment. "Oh, I forgot, it's easier for you to pretend he doesn't have them isn't it? Makes it easier for you to settle for me, right?"

"Gabrielle, don't do this, not now." Xena rubbed her forehead in frustration. The conversation had gone off the rails fast. "Can't we just be happy we're here in each other's company?"

"You're right, I'm sorry." Gabrielle joined Xena on the couch and took her hand. "Maybe I am just still peeved that he managed to deceive me to try to win you back."

It was the second time that she'd brought up Mattie's time with Marco and each time her voice had the edge of a woman scorned. Xena's little green monster started poking out of its hidey hole. But she still couldn't bring herself to ask the question of whether or not Mattie and Marco had been intimate. She didn't know if she could handle it if Gabrielle confirmed her fears. "That was Mattie, Gabrielle."

"Doesn't matter, he still knew what strings to pull."

Strings. Right, could there ever be "no strings" between them like he was offering? No, she was deluding herself to even consider it. But damn she wanted to believe it. She wanted to believe in him. But she had made that mistake before.

"It's what he does, Gabrielle."

"Yeah, but this isn't what I do," she gestured to their surroundings at the clinic. "I am a true testament to past life experiences but this isn't me. Mattie, maybe, but not me. I'm a writer, a bard."

Xena arched an eyebrow, curious, "so, does this mean you're closing the clinic?"

"Eventually, yes. I will, of course, need to allow my clients time to find someone else to see."

Seeing the joy on Xena's face, she continued, "You were never going to be happy sitting behind that desk all day were you?"

Xena answered honestly, "No. But still, that doesn't answer the question as to what I am going to do."

"Do what you do best."

"And that is?" Xena leered at Gabrielle lasciviously.

"I'm trying to be serious here. You, you know what you do. You catch the bad guy."

"Yeah, running around Los Angeles with a chakram and a broadsword is bound to attract some attention if I remember correctly, the Xena vigilante."

"Okay, so become a cop."

"By the gods, have you lost your mind? I am not joining the police force, Gabrielle."

"Oh right, then you might have to play by somebody's rules besides your own, I forgot about that stipulation. And, you might have to actually let someone in on your plan before you implement it."

"If you don't watch it, I'm gonna ask Aphrodite to bring Mattie back, she was much nicer."

"You wouldn't," Gabrielle yelped.

"Try me," Xena deadpanned.

Their banter was interrupted by the jingle of the bell as the door opened. A young man dressed in a sequined jumpsuit walked into the clinic. When his eyes landed on Xena, he smiled and said, "Hey pretty mama."

'Oh boy,' Xena thought to herself but just nodded at the man.

Gabrielle stood up and took his hand, "Elvis, let's go on back shall we?"

Xena rolled her eyes as Gabrielle and the King left the room.

AXAXAXAXAXAXAXAXAX

Aphrodite found Ares blowing up tanks. "Ah, yeah, that's the ticket," he cheered but Aphrodite noted that it wasn't with his usual enthusiasm.

"Uh hum, goddess in the room," as if he didn't already know she was there.

"Yeah, Yeah, whaddaya want?" He didn't take his eyes off of the flat screen tv in front of him. Sometimes you just had to blow shit up and this was definitely one of those times. And since he was doing it without the risk of actual human lives, he thought it was definite improvement on his part.

"I did you a favor, I thought it would cheer you up but I see Tank Wars is doing that" Aphrodite said and waited for him to quit playing the infernal video game.

"What kind of favor?" Ares knew he would regret asking but she wasn't going to leave until he did.

"I brought the bard back, the way you did Xena," she answered as proud as a peacock.

Ares dropped the controller, his tank ran off into a ditch and the enemy quickly overtook him. "You did what?" His tone was low and murderous as he rose from the couch and walked toward the goddess.

"Gabrielle…"

"Yeah, I got that but you wanna tell me exactly how in Zeus's name that is a FAVOR," he raised his voice. Ares felt his last chance with Xena slowly slipping down the proverbial drain. He could almost see it swirling in front of him. With Gabrielle back, Ares knew there was no way Xena would give him the time of day.

"You reeeealllly don't get the love thing, do you?" Aphrodite drew out her words in pity of him.

"What?"

"Look, I know you want her back. But let's face it Bro. You want her to make that choice don't you? If she came back to you with Gabrielle as Mattie, you'd always wonder if she loved Gabrielle more than you. And you'd always wonder if it would have been different if Gabrielle had been, well, Gabrielle."

"Gee, thanks, Sis, but I think I could have lived with it. Now, get out," he ordered but now there was no anger behind his voice, only resignation. It had been worth a shot, he mused as he held his hand out and conjured up an image of her. It was an old image, one that had gotten him through many lonely nights. Xena bathing in a still lake, the full moon was high in the sky and she was alone. He had wanted that night to go down to her. Gabrielle had gone to some Amazon thing and Eve had headed east. But he'd figured she was still miffed about the Varia thing. But she'd been so beautiful in that moment, dripping the water down on her flawless skin as she bathed. She'd sung a ballad about a love that could never be as she'd lathered the soap through her hair. Ares had known she was singing for him. He'd wondered if she knew he'd been watching in the moment.. He still wanted to believe that she knew he was watching, wanted to believe that she hadn't just been singing for him but to him. But Ares knew the truth. Xena would never let him see that side of her again.

He needed to ride, needed to feel the wind move through him. It could heal him. Extinguish the flame for her that burned in his soul. It had to. Ares descended the staircase two steps at a time. Reginald eyed Ares in disapproval as the god tossed outerwear from the hall closet onto the floor, looking for his leather jacket.

"The other side of the closet, and I would have gladly gotten it for you, Sir," Reginald sighed as he stared picking up hats and jackets.

Ares found his black jacket and walked past the butler without a word. He slammed the door harder than he needed to, crossed the driveway, and mounted his bike. Ares punched his starter. The V-Twin engine roared to life bouncing off the side of the mansion. Ares looked up to a window on the northern end of the house. Hestia looked down at him in disapprovement. He knew she'd been upset about Xena but it didn't matter now. They could all rest safely knowing that Xena would spend another life with Gabrielle. Her words from two thousand years ago echoed in his heart, "the one person in the world I would never choose." Ares gunned the throttle and ripped down the driveway at full speed.

AXAXAXAXAXAX

The next day, Gabrielle had two appointments and as with "Elvis" she spent her time with her clients explaining that she was no longer going to practice. She didn't want to try to put anyone under hypnosis. She wasn't sure how much control she would have as herself, that had been Mattie's schtick.

Xena's malaise was starting to worry her. Her friend had moped around all morning long, and was still in her pjs when Gabrielle had taken her lunch break. "So what's cooking?" Gabrielle asked as she came into the kitchen where Xena was reading a newspaper and eating Froot Loops.

"These are really good," Xena said as she motioned to the little circles floating in a bowl of melon colored milk. "You should try 'em."

"That's okay. I was thinking something a bit more nutritious. Like a salad maybe." Gabrielle started pulling out the necessary items for an actual lunch.

"Suit yourself, but it says right here that they are part of a balanced diet," Xena said matter of factly.

Gabrielle ignored that ridiculous comment. "You know, I was thinking that maybe you could become a personal trainer. Celebrities pay big bucks for people to whip their butts into shape."

"Uh huh," Xena commented but wasn't really listening. Something in the paper had caught her attention.

"Can you add salad dressing to that grocery list beside you?" Gabrielle asked.

Xena slammed her open palms down on the table, "That's it."

Gabrielle physically jumped at the loud bang that accompanied the slam. "That's what?" She was almost afraid to ask.

Xena looked at Gabrielle with new vision and purpose in her eyes and said, "I am going to be a bounty hunter."

"Bounty hunter?"

"You said it yourself, Gabrielle. I get the bad guy, that's what I do."

Gabrielle stood there with her mouth open for a minute. Nope, nothing to say because it made absolute sense. And no sense at all. Not for the first time in the last two days, Gabrielle wished the gods would learn to mind their own business. What had Aphrodite gotten her into? Xena: Warrior Bounty Hunter!