Title: Let My Love Open the Door
Author: Jennifer Campbell
Rating: PG-13 for regular Xena violence
Characters: Joxer, Xena, Gabrielle, Perdicus, Persephone
Time period: Sometime after fifth season
Summary: Hades' death causes big problems in the
Underworld.
For other disclaimers and notes, please see chapter 1.
#
Xena had been at it for what seemed hours, poking her
dagger into the keyhole and jiggling it about. She bit her
lip in concentration, one ear pressed to the door, as she
tried to find the release. It was the obvious first tactic
-- picking the lock -- but now Gabrielle wished they would
have had the foresight to drag Autolycus up the mountain
with them. He could have opened the door in 30 seconds.
Assuming he was still alive, twenty-five years later.
Gabrielle had to entertain the possibility that he, too,
was trapped on the other side of the door.
Xena wrinkled her nose, like she did only when she got
especially frustrated, and threw her dagger into the dirt
at her feet. "This is impossible!"
"I know," Gabrielle soothed. Of course, nothing was
impossible, but Xena didn't need to hear that right now.
"No, you don't understand. This. Is. Impossible." She
emphasized each word. "There's no catch in that keyhole. No
release. I've been feeling for it for hours, and it's
simply not there."
"But," Gabrielle stammered, "that's impossible."
Xena smiled grimly. "Told you so."
Gabrielle scrambled to her feet and started pacing the
length of the cave. It did no good, but she felt the simple
urge to _move_. "That's so idiotic! Why put a keyhole there
if there's no key that can open it? Why play with us like
that?"
Xena didn't answer, but Gabrielle's hadn't expected a
response to her rant. Deep inside her, she knew Joxer
needed their help, as did all the others. They were waiting
for rescue. Yet the rescuers sat helpless, unable to solve
the riddle of one stupid door! She slammed her fist into
the solid wood. It jolted her arm all the way to the
shoulder, but it made her feel better, cleared her head.
With the pain, her rage dissipated, leaving only a gaping
emptiness inside her. Gabrielle slowly slid to the ground,
her back to the door. Right now, she couldn't bring herself
to look at it.
"Gabrielle, I think you have to start thinking about the
possibility that we're not going to get in." Xena spoke
quietly, as though hesitant to say the words.
"I don't accept that."
"You might have to."
Gabrielle pulled her knees to her chest. "We've never
given up on anything, Xena. No matter how hopeless it
looked. When Eve was rampaging across Greece, as Livia, you
refused to stop until you got your daughter back. And when
Caesar and Pompey brought their war to Greece, you tricked
them into destroying each other's armies, even though any
normal person would have just gotten out of their path."
"This is different." Xena leaned forward intently. "In
those situations, we had an enemy to fight, some action to
take. But here, there's nothing. I can't even figure out
what's going on." She waved her hand toward the door. "This
shouldn't be happening, but I don't know what to _do_ about
it."
"We'll figure it out." At Xena's skeptical look, Gabrielle
repeated with emphasis, "We _will_ find a solution. We're
not going to just walk away from this. You know we can't do
that."
A tiny smile pulled at the corner of Xena's mouth. "You're
right. We can't give up."
Gabrielle twisted to see the door behind her, set one palm
firmly against it. She said thoughtfully, "You know,
through all this, I've been forcing myself to remember all
the people we know down there. Maybe to remind myself of
how important it is for us to keep trying. My parents.
Cyrene. Perdicus. But in the end, I keep coming back to one
person. To ... to Joxer." Her sad eyes met Xena's. "It
makes me feel guilty, that I should put him above all the
others."
"It shouldn't. That's normal when you lose someone you --"
Xena stopped short, but Gabrielle could guess at what she
meant to say. "Someone I love."
"Yeah."
Gabrielle rested her cheek on her raised knees. "But I
loved the others, too. Perdicus. I loved him so much, Xena,
but I couldn't save him from a vengeful warrior." She
paused, thinking things through. "I guess I lost Joxer the
same way, but his absence still weighs more heavily on me
than Perdicus' ever did. I feel he should be here, with his
silly comments and goofy grin ..."
Xena reached out slowly and started smoothing her hair. It
reminded Gabrielle of her mother back in Potedia, lying on
her lap as a little girl. Safe, comforting. All those warm
sensations she had left behind years ago. She felt like
crying for the loss of her innocence. Joxer had never lost
his innocence, though, which was only part of what made him
so special.
"I miss him, too." Xena's voice cracked. "You and Joxer
and me -- we were a family."
A family. The words resonated to Gabrielle's soul, and she
knew them to be true. But that family didn't work with one
of them missing. _Dear Joxer_, she thought, _I never knew
how much you meant to me, to us, until you were gone._
With a deep breath, Gabrielle wiped at her damp eyes and
sat up straight. If they kept talking like this, she was
going to start bawling. She had to do something, to get her
mind off her fears and her memories.
"Mind if I take a look?" Gabrielle nodded toward the door.
"Be my guest."
Instead of picking up the dagger, as Xena had done
immediately, Gabrielle leaned over and peered into the
gaping keyhole. It must take a giant's key, she thought,
for she had no trouble seeing through to the other side.
She couldn't make out much, only vague objects and a
bright, golden light. A room, perhaps, but an empty one.
On a whim, she stuck her fingers in the opening. She could
reach about halfway back and still have a little wiggle
room. As she felt around a bit, she realized Xena was
right: It had no catches like in a normal lock. It looked
like a keyhole, but it seemed to be no more than a big hole
in the door.
She withdrew her fingers and peered through again, then
drew back in surprise. Movement! Something had crossed her
line of vision; she was sure of it. And was that sound
coming from over there? Faint, but it could be...
"What do you see?" Xena asked urgently.
"Shhhh."
Gabrielle waved her silent, then pressed her ear to the
keyhole. There it was again. So quiet, like a dove's coo,
but this time, she was certain of what she heard.
She gazed back at her companion in worry. "Xena, someone
is ... Someone over there is crying."
#
Author: Jennifer Campbell
Rating: PG-13 for regular Xena violence
Characters: Joxer, Xena, Gabrielle, Perdicus, Persephone
Time period: Sometime after fifth season
Summary: Hades' death causes big problems in the
Underworld.
For other disclaimers and notes, please see chapter 1.
#
Xena had been at it for what seemed hours, poking her
dagger into the keyhole and jiggling it about. She bit her
lip in concentration, one ear pressed to the door, as she
tried to find the release. It was the obvious first tactic
-- picking the lock -- but now Gabrielle wished they would
have had the foresight to drag Autolycus up the mountain
with them. He could have opened the door in 30 seconds.
Assuming he was still alive, twenty-five years later.
Gabrielle had to entertain the possibility that he, too,
was trapped on the other side of the door.
Xena wrinkled her nose, like she did only when she got
especially frustrated, and threw her dagger into the dirt
at her feet. "This is impossible!"
"I know," Gabrielle soothed. Of course, nothing was
impossible, but Xena didn't need to hear that right now.
"No, you don't understand. This. Is. Impossible." She
emphasized each word. "There's no catch in that keyhole. No
release. I've been feeling for it for hours, and it's
simply not there."
"But," Gabrielle stammered, "that's impossible."
Xena smiled grimly. "Told you so."
Gabrielle scrambled to her feet and started pacing the
length of the cave. It did no good, but she felt the simple
urge to _move_. "That's so idiotic! Why put a keyhole there
if there's no key that can open it? Why play with us like
that?"
Xena didn't answer, but Gabrielle's hadn't expected a
response to her rant. Deep inside her, she knew Joxer
needed their help, as did all the others. They were waiting
for rescue. Yet the rescuers sat helpless, unable to solve
the riddle of one stupid door! She slammed her fist into
the solid wood. It jolted her arm all the way to the
shoulder, but it made her feel better, cleared her head.
With the pain, her rage dissipated, leaving only a gaping
emptiness inside her. Gabrielle slowly slid to the ground,
her back to the door. Right now, she couldn't bring herself
to look at it.
"Gabrielle, I think you have to start thinking about the
possibility that we're not going to get in." Xena spoke
quietly, as though hesitant to say the words.
"I don't accept that."
"You might have to."
Gabrielle pulled her knees to her chest. "We've never
given up on anything, Xena. No matter how hopeless it
looked. When Eve was rampaging across Greece, as Livia, you
refused to stop until you got your daughter back. And when
Caesar and Pompey brought their war to Greece, you tricked
them into destroying each other's armies, even though any
normal person would have just gotten out of their path."
"This is different." Xena leaned forward intently. "In
those situations, we had an enemy to fight, some action to
take. But here, there's nothing. I can't even figure out
what's going on." She waved her hand toward the door. "This
shouldn't be happening, but I don't know what to _do_ about
it."
"We'll figure it out." At Xena's skeptical look, Gabrielle
repeated with emphasis, "We _will_ find a solution. We're
not going to just walk away from this. You know we can't do
that."
A tiny smile pulled at the corner of Xena's mouth. "You're
right. We can't give up."
Gabrielle twisted to see the door behind her, set one palm
firmly against it. She said thoughtfully, "You know,
through all this, I've been forcing myself to remember all
the people we know down there. Maybe to remind myself of
how important it is for us to keep trying. My parents.
Cyrene. Perdicus. But in the end, I keep coming back to one
person. To ... to Joxer." Her sad eyes met Xena's. "It
makes me feel guilty, that I should put him above all the
others."
"It shouldn't. That's normal when you lose someone you --"
Xena stopped short, but Gabrielle could guess at what she
meant to say. "Someone I love."
"Yeah."
Gabrielle rested her cheek on her raised knees. "But I
loved the others, too. Perdicus. I loved him so much, Xena,
but I couldn't save him from a vengeful warrior." She
paused, thinking things through. "I guess I lost Joxer the
same way, but his absence still weighs more heavily on me
than Perdicus' ever did. I feel he should be here, with his
silly comments and goofy grin ..."
Xena reached out slowly and started smoothing her hair. It
reminded Gabrielle of her mother back in Potedia, lying on
her lap as a little girl. Safe, comforting. All those warm
sensations she had left behind years ago. She felt like
crying for the loss of her innocence. Joxer had never lost
his innocence, though, which was only part of what made him
so special.
"I miss him, too." Xena's voice cracked. "You and Joxer
and me -- we were a family."
A family. The words resonated to Gabrielle's soul, and she
knew them to be true. But that family didn't work with one
of them missing. _Dear Joxer_, she thought, _I never knew
how much you meant to me, to us, until you were gone._
With a deep breath, Gabrielle wiped at her damp eyes and
sat up straight. If they kept talking like this, she was
going to start bawling. She had to do something, to get her
mind off her fears and her memories.
"Mind if I take a look?" Gabrielle nodded toward the door.
"Be my guest."
Instead of picking up the dagger, as Xena had done
immediately, Gabrielle leaned over and peered into the
gaping keyhole. It must take a giant's key, she thought,
for she had no trouble seeing through to the other side.
She couldn't make out much, only vague objects and a
bright, golden light. A room, perhaps, but an empty one.
On a whim, she stuck her fingers in the opening. She could
reach about halfway back and still have a little wiggle
room. As she felt around a bit, she realized Xena was
right: It had no catches like in a normal lock. It looked
like a keyhole, but it seemed to be no more than a big hole
in the door.
She withdrew her fingers and peered through again, then
drew back in surprise. Movement! Something had crossed her
line of vision; she was sure of it. And was that sound
coming from over there? Faint, but it could be...
"What do you see?" Xena asked urgently.
"Shhhh."
Gabrielle waved her silent, then pressed her ear to the
keyhole. There it was again. So quiet, like a dove's coo,
but this time, she was certain of what she heard.
She gazed back at her companion in worry. "Xena, someone
is ... Someone over there is crying."
#