As they walked through the long corridor-supposedly- leading to the throne room, they were gradually surrounded by the alluring, oriental sounds of an incredibly enticing melody, laughter and chatter along with the clinking of glasses, completing the rest of the background.
" Looks like we've caught them at a bad time…" Xena uttered when, a luxurious, vividly colored room, full of scantily clad women and men appeared into view.
" Quite the opposite I'd say…..A party is just what you need to unwind after today's bloodbath…." he contradicted, tightening the grip around her waist as a half drunk- but utterly sexy, muscular hunk- tried to snatch her away from him. A murderous enough stare to scare even Achilles himself was enough though to convince him that it was better to move along and fast.
Without paying too much attention to the incident- the place was packed with barely standing men and women anyway- Xena's gaze wandered restlessly through the room, as if looking for someone in particular. This time, she didn't really seem to care much about the overly sophisticated décor- as if the spacious walled garden like room, abundant in palm trees and a stunning array of golden statues depicting various deities riding eagles and weird looking horses didn't manage to make an impression.
"So? What do you think?" Ares finally asked- grabbing two cups of crimson wine from one of the servants walking around completely naked- holding a silver trey on which only the finest of drinks could be found- and handing one to his Chosen.
" Hmmm?" she absently replied, her mind obviously elsewhere.
" About the place...?" he pointed out, arching an eyebrow at the realization that something was unmistakably troubling her.
" It's not precisely the ideal location for a relaxing dinner, but it should do…." she muttered, grabbing a few figs from a richly adorned buffet table.
" We can always leave , if you don't like it, Sweetheart..." he made sure to let her know, gently caressing her check with the back of his hand, searching her eyes for a clear sign of discontent. " There are a million places where I could take you to…" he continued, but before she parted her lips to answer, she was suddenly taken aback by the unearthly beauty of a slender redhead woman, who had playfully covered the War God's eyes with her creamy, snowy white hands.
" Amytis…!" the God exclaimed, cracking a smile that gradually lit up his entire face, making the Warrior Princess instantly frown at his reaction. " Long time no see…" his voice trailed off, delicately pushing her hands aside, and turning around to greet her.
" Too long, I'd say….." she answered, her forest green moons beaming with joy, but Xena couldn't help noticing - apart from the obvious happiness- the barely restrained lust gleaming on their crystal surface of her irides as his own gaze ran up and down her luscious body for a fraction of a second.
The next thing the Warrior Princess knew, the woman's arms were possessively snaked around the God's neck and her tongue was slipping shamelessly between his parted lips, calming his mouth in what soon turned into such a fiery, uninhibited kiss, that most of the heads in the room turned in their direction to watch them.
….It was a sight to see indeed…..Too bad though that the majority of people failed to notice the fact that the real, worth watching spectacle, was not the one offered by Ares and Amytis , but rather the one that was exceptionally unfolding on Xena's face. The dark haired Warrior's every nerve was stretched taut at the unexpected sight she had before her; even the last of her blood cells boiling with a jealousy that she had never suspected she had within her.
Truth be told, up to that point, she had never ever craved so much ripping somebody apart limb by limb as she did that very minute…..The sight of that gorgeous woman hungrily kissing Ares- her Ares- had woken a consuming fury inside her, one that she could now sense wildly kicking inside her balled up fists, threatening to unleash itself in its most destructive form possible.
A few tormenting- seemingly endless-seconds later, the War God pushed the Queen gently away from him, and, fully ignoring his frustrated heart – that was now slamming maddeningly against his ribcage- he made an effort to compose himself and gave her an apologetic glance before he cleared his throat to speak...
" Amytis….I'd like you to meet my Chosen, Xena….." he huskily articulated, finally letting go of her shoulders, and taking a step back so that he was now by his Princess' side again, and, without looking at her, he just took her tense hand in his and brought it to his lips, planting a light kiss on her knuckles.
" Oh…! " the Queen immediately replied, her eyes widening with fake surprise. " I had no idea you were...accompanied tonight. I 'm sorry, I meant no offense…" she politely apologized, but her snake like eyes told an entirely different story.
Hearing her words, the Warrior just smiled back, returning an equally false smile that appeared to remain plastered on her face longer than necessary.
" To what do we owe this….unexpected pleasure?" she courteously asked, trying not to stare too much at the ravishing dark haired woman her lover had brought along, in her turn taking a goblet of wine from one of the slaves. She emptied it just as fast, much to Xena's undisguised amusement.
" We had a pretty…busy week. " Ares explained, finally casting a furtive glance at his Chosen, who looked as if she were seconds away from hitting him in the head with something. " …and well….your gardens are the perfect place to relax…..Plus, I also wanted to introduce my Princess to some very dear friends. I haven't seen Nabucco around though…" he ended, pulling Xena a bit closer, taking a mental note at just how rigid her body had become. She was obviously pissed off - not that he could actually blame her for it though, she had every reason in the world to be.
The Queen couldn't help a half smirk at his gesture. In response, she took another step back, subtly distancing herself from the couple under the pretext of searching for some grapes on the table…..Xena furrowed a contemptuous brow of course at the incredibly sexy silhouette bending slightly over the table to reach for the fruit she wanted.
" You know the King…" she replied meanwhile, in a rather melodious voice that held neither anguish, nor resentment . " …..Probably fucking some hot slave girl somewhere. He should be back shortly though, he's been gone for quite some time…"
Another shock for the Warrior Princess...Was she for real?!
"Doesn't it bother you?!" she involuntarily broke out on the most scandalized tone she was capable of, just to bite her lips hard the instant the words left her mouth.
" What? That he's screwing any living and breathing thing at the palace? He's the King Darling, he can do whatever he likes. "
" And you're the Queen…." Ares mentioned, taking a long sip of wine, and the Warrior Princess could have sworn that the notes in his voice had become suddenly deeper and darker….She knew that tone….she knew it very well, and the fact that he was using it with another woman only made the flames now cremating her on the inside grow even more intense...Their interaction was driving her insane. She literally had to clench her teeth in anger at her response.
" Yes , I am…." the redhead answered, chuckling softly and seductively licking her lips before she placed a sweet date this time in her mouth, trying to appear as innocent as possible.
While Xena rolled her eyes at the gesture, finding it utterly cheap and theatrical, Ares though seemed to have a slightly different opinion on the matter, his wanton, burning gaze following the Queen around with a rather vivid interest.
" Have you shown Xena the gardens, Ares?" she inquired, and much to the Warrior Princess' dismay, she discovered that this creature was indeed picture perfect. Everything , from her physical appearance to the way in which she had uttered the God's name was flawless….And her enthralling, metallic voice was just….unbearably hot….
" Partly…..Maybe we'll get the chance to enjoy them again later tonight. " he replied, and for some reason, Xena couldn't really tell if he was speaking about them together or about him and the accursed Queen.
" The Alley of the Roses is absolutely breathtaking under the moonlight. You just have to see it…" she casually said, her gaze now locking with Xena's. " And the pavilion on the lake…..pure magic…Unforgettable things can happen there if the mood is right….." she added, her slightly ironic smile along with the faint glint in her eyes cleverly letting the Warrior Princess know that she and Ares had shared some very intimates moments there….
A new pang of jealousy took over the Chosen of War as she heard the God taking in a deep breath as if trying to control some barely suppressed urge, and as as a servant came over to inform Amytis about something, he appeared even more focused on her body than ever…..And that's when it hit her…. the Bastard was actually using this woman to make her jealous…..This had been his brilliant plan all along...