Discord appeared on the top of a nearby building in a flash of red light.
She wore one of her favorite leather outfits: tight and skimpy with lots of
pale flesh showing. The leather was accented with metal studs and a few
pieces of red sewn onto it. Her long straight black hair cascaded down her
back as she leaned forward to see the street below. Her long fingernails,
painted black, gripped the stone edge of the ledge she perched on. "Things
are really beginning to heat up! Xena really has it in for her little
friend. Poor little Gabrielle, having to go up against that big nasty Xena!
It's a sure recipe for disaster!"
A moment later Strife appeared next to her. The younger God held a cantaloupe in his hands. His face twisted up as he held the fruit to his chest. "Oooh! I love disasters! When's this one starting? I want to watch!"
"The best part is, it already did! They just need a slight push in the right direction. After all, we don't want Uncle Ares marrying that little peace loving bard, do we?" Discord glanced at Strife. Then her attention went back to the couple on the ground. Ares was watching the retreating form of Xena. Turning his back on his Warrior Princess, he spoke to that little annoying blonde. He smiled at her. Holding hands, they walked down the street and disappeared into the museum. "Think how terrible that would be!"
"But Uncle Ares looks happy." Strife commented. "Do you think I could find a girl to make me happy? Where'd that other one go?"
"Xena?" Discord threw back her head and laughed. "You got to be kidding! She'd smash you under her foot like a bug. Be serious, Strife. No self respecting woman would do the things you'd want them to do. Not even wild Xena!"
Strife tossed the melon from one hand to another. "So what are we going to do about that little blonde?"
"Leave that to me." Discord took the melon from Strife and held it out above the ground. Then she dropped it. They both leaned forward, eager to see it strike the hard ground. The melon burst on impact, sending fruit and seeds in all directions. Discord laughed evilly. "Oops! I guess the bard might have a fatal accident!"
Laughing, Discord left to make the arrangements.
**********
Gabrielle looked at the museum display without really seeing it. Her mind was on Xena's behavior. After killing the monster crab and saving their friends, Xena had walked right past her and Ares. When she had headed in their direction, Gabrielle had braced herself for another argument. But the argument never came. Instead, Xena had been smiling. Smiling!
Had Hercules fixed the problem already? It seemed unlikely. Once Xena made up her mind about something, it was almost impossible to change.
Or had Xena been smiling at Ares, flirting with him?
"But she hates him." Gabrielle whispered to herself, remembering how Xena had acted, her body movements. She knew the Warrior Princess didn't normally sway like that when she walked. But she had seen her do it before, always when she had been playing a part to trick someone. Xena could be a very good actor when she wanted to be!
"Did you say something?" Ares asked as he moved closer to her, his strong arm circling around her waist.
"Let's go look at another exhibit." Gabrielle smiled up at him. The clay vases and pots in the display in this room held little interest for her. They looked like any other pot found across Greece, decorated with the black silhouettes of athletes or images that represented the Gods. One had Zeus throwing a lightning bolt.
"They are rather boring, aren't they?" Ares guided her towards the doorway that led into the next room. There they saw paintings hanging on the wall. Gabrielle laughed when she read the little scroll next to one of them stating it was supposed to be Hercules. Ares started laughing, too, then. The painting looked nothing like his half brother at all! One eye was larger than the other and the mouth was twisted. "It seems half of these people can't paint! Even I could paint a more realistic image than that!"
"Really?" Gabrielle teased him, finally forgetting about her best friend's behavior. "Are you saying the God of War can paint? Why Ares, you amaze me! What other things can you do that no one knows about?"
"Well, I can sing." He admitted, glad they had the room for themselves. In fact, they seemed to be the only visitors inside the entire museum. The crab must have scared everyone else away. Either that or people were too busy getting free crab meat! "I can be a real cool swinging cat when I want to be. Just give me a stage and a megaphone on a long pole."
"I'd really like to hear you sing. I bet you have a beautiful voice." Gabrielle could imagine him up on a stage, singing. Grinning at the thought, she entered the next room and felt a cool breeze blowing on her face. She paused for a moment, thinking somehow they had stepped outside by accident. But then she saw the walls behind the trees and the smooth floor was still beneath her brown boots. The entire room was filled with trees of a type she had never seen before. They appeared to have white bark -- or had someone whitewashed them? She titled her head back, staring up into the branches overhead. Light filtered down to her from the green leaves high overhead. And the sky was blue. No, it was the ceiling painted blue. "This is the most incredible thing I ever seen! It looks like a forest. But why would anyone want to create a fake forest when a real one is so close by?"
"It's art." Ares moved down the path until he reached the center of the exhibit. The air was much cooler here, a breeze ruffling his hair. And he could have sworn he heard a bird singing! He shook his head. There couldn't be live birds inside the exhibit!
"It looks so real!" Gabrielle joined Ares in the center clearing. He took a step closer until their bodies were almost touching. Placing his hand under her chin, he raised her head until she found herself staring into his eyes. She noticed they were a deep brown. He held her gaze and she felt herself start to get hot, even though the air was cool. Then his other arm snaked around her waist and she was pulled against his hard body. His head dipped, closing the distance between them. Their lips touched and Gabrielle closed her eyes, surrendering to his kiss. Her heart beat like crazy, her pulse pounding in her ears. It was a good thing he had an arm around her waist, because she thought she might faint. Kissing a God, especially this God, was a very powerful thing!
They parted and she stared up into his eyes, a dreamy look on her face. She was really beginning to love War!
*****
Xena walked through the streets, scowling again. The crab thing had worked like a charm, but she needed to do more. And it was doubtful another monster would show up at the right moment. That meant she needed to tempt him, use his own weaknesses against him. And if Ares had a weakness, it was a pretty woman! She eyed a store across the street. It was some fashion store, the front window showing a bright red dress. It was just the thing to get Ares' attention, especially if it clung in all the right places. Sometimes a woman just had to give up her leather and breastplate to look like a woman. Cutting in front of an old man, Xena made a beeline for the store.
Inside, she held the dress up to herself. It seemed to be the right size, but she needed to try it on. The store's owner hovered a few feet away, biting his nails. She threw a smile his way. "Don't worry. I'm here to buy, not ransack the place. Do you have a fitting room?"
The man silently pointed, his arm shaking.
"Thanks. I'll go try this on." Xena headed towards the fitting room, shaking her head. Some people just never got used to seeing people carrying weapons! She had just squeezed herself into the dress when she noticed a red flash of light. Spinning on her heel, she came face to face with Discord. In an instant her sword was in her hand, the point pressed against the Goddess' pale throat.
"Please," Discord said as she shoved the blade down roughly. "I'm here to help you. Seems like you could use all the help you can get."
"Why would you want to help me?" Xena asked, suspicious.
"Because I don't want to see my dear brother marry that blonde!" The way Discord said it, you'd have sworn 'blonde' was a dirty word. "And I have some information you could use, but only if you put that thing away!"
"All right. I would like to know what's going on." Xena stuck her sword back into the scabbard. It wouldn't have done anything to Discord anyway. "Why does Ares have this sudden interest in Gabrielle?"
"Because Hera told him to date her!" Discord spitted out. Then her dark lips curved up into a scary smile. "He's only doing what his Mommy told him to!"
"Hera is involved in this?" The information surprised Xena. She suspected there was another God involved, but she had thought Aphrodite or Cupid. "Why does Hera want Ares to date Gabrielle?"
"Well, she and Zeus are back together, all lovey-dovey. It's sickening!" Discord opened the curtain to the fitting room and yanked a black dress off a nearby hanger. Holding it against herself, she made a humming sound. A frown appeared and she tossed the garment to the floor. "She wants Ares to have a social life, as if associating with me isn't good enough! She wants him to marry someone. A someone who isn't a floozy."
"So Ares doesn't really love Gabrielle." Xena stated as the realization hit. She glanced down at herself. Her body was incased in the hot little number that was the color of fresh blood. A long slit went from her ankle up to her thigh. The waist was narrow and the chest cut low.
"It looks nice on you. Ares will like it." Discord remarked. With a little wave, she popped out.
Picking her stuff up, Xena went to pay for the dress.
******
Gabrielle walked through several more exhibits at the museum without really seeing any of them. They had been kissing in most of the rooms. One of the rooms had held statues. That she was pretty sure of. She remembered it more clearly than the others due to the extremely scary statue of Medusa. It had looked almost real, with all those withering snakes on her head. But then Ares had pulled her close and she had forgotten all about it. Now as they were entering a new room, Gabrielle was determined to pay attention to the exhibits. She didn't want to give Ares the wrong idea about her. Why, she couldn't remember the last time she had done so much kissing in a single afternoon. Ares was a very good kisser!
The room was small with curved walls. Placed along the walls were low white stone benches. All the benches were empty except one. A woman in a tight red dress lay on the bench directly across from them. She was laying on one side, her head propped up on her arm. The dress, Gabrielle noticed, clung to her like a second skin. And the slit let one of her bare legs stick out. Her feet were barefoot. Her black hair pooled on the white stone like a black waterfall. A smile spread across her face when she saw them come into the little room, which was meant to be a place to rest one's feet.
Gabrielle heard herself gasp as she recognized those intense blue eyes.
The woman was Xena!
A moment later Strife appeared next to her. The younger God held a cantaloupe in his hands. His face twisted up as he held the fruit to his chest. "Oooh! I love disasters! When's this one starting? I want to watch!"
"The best part is, it already did! They just need a slight push in the right direction. After all, we don't want Uncle Ares marrying that little peace loving bard, do we?" Discord glanced at Strife. Then her attention went back to the couple on the ground. Ares was watching the retreating form of Xena. Turning his back on his Warrior Princess, he spoke to that little annoying blonde. He smiled at her. Holding hands, they walked down the street and disappeared into the museum. "Think how terrible that would be!"
"But Uncle Ares looks happy." Strife commented. "Do you think I could find a girl to make me happy? Where'd that other one go?"
"Xena?" Discord threw back her head and laughed. "You got to be kidding! She'd smash you under her foot like a bug. Be serious, Strife. No self respecting woman would do the things you'd want them to do. Not even wild Xena!"
Strife tossed the melon from one hand to another. "So what are we going to do about that little blonde?"
"Leave that to me." Discord took the melon from Strife and held it out above the ground. Then she dropped it. They both leaned forward, eager to see it strike the hard ground. The melon burst on impact, sending fruit and seeds in all directions. Discord laughed evilly. "Oops! I guess the bard might have a fatal accident!"
Laughing, Discord left to make the arrangements.
**********
Gabrielle looked at the museum display without really seeing it. Her mind was on Xena's behavior. After killing the monster crab and saving their friends, Xena had walked right past her and Ares. When she had headed in their direction, Gabrielle had braced herself for another argument. But the argument never came. Instead, Xena had been smiling. Smiling!
Had Hercules fixed the problem already? It seemed unlikely. Once Xena made up her mind about something, it was almost impossible to change.
Or had Xena been smiling at Ares, flirting with him?
"But she hates him." Gabrielle whispered to herself, remembering how Xena had acted, her body movements. She knew the Warrior Princess didn't normally sway like that when she walked. But she had seen her do it before, always when she had been playing a part to trick someone. Xena could be a very good actor when she wanted to be!
"Did you say something?" Ares asked as he moved closer to her, his strong arm circling around her waist.
"Let's go look at another exhibit." Gabrielle smiled up at him. The clay vases and pots in the display in this room held little interest for her. They looked like any other pot found across Greece, decorated with the black silhouettes of athletes or images that represented the Gods. One had Zeus throwing a lightning bolt.
"They are rather boring, aren't they?" Ares guided her towards the doorway that led into the next room. There they saw paintings hanging on the wall. Gabrielle laughed when she read the little scroll next to one of them stating it was supposed to be Hercules. Ares started laughing, too, then. The painting looked nothing like his half brother at all! One eye was larger than the other and the mouth was twisted. "It seems half of these people can't paint! Even I could paint a more realistic image than that!"
"Really?" Gabrielle teased him, finally forgetting about her best friend's behavior. "Are you saying the God of War can paint? Why Ares, you amaze me! What other things can you do that no one knows about?"
"Well, I can sing." He admitted, glad they had the room for themselves. In fact, they seemed to be the only visitors inside the entire museum. The crab must have scared everyone else away. Either that or people were too busy getting free crab meat! "I can be a real cool swinging cat when I want to be. Just give me a stage and a megaphone on a long pole."
"I'd really like to hear you sing. I bet you have a beautiful voice." Gabrielle could imagine him up on a stage, singing. Grinning at the thought, she entered the next room and felt a cool breeze blowing on her face. She paused for a moment, thinking somehow they had stepped outside by accident. But then she saw the walls behind the trees and the smooth floor was still beneath her brown boots. The entire room was filled with trees of a type she had never seen before. They appeared to have white bark -- or had someone whitewashed them? She titled her head back, staring up into the branches overhead. Light filtered down to her from the green leaves high overhead. And the sky was blue. No, it was the ceiling painted blue. "This is the most incredible thing I ever seen! It looks like a forest. But why would anyone want to create a fake forest when a real one is so close by?"
"It's art." Ares moved down the path until he reached the center of the exhibit. The air was much cooler here, a breeze ruffling his hair. And he could have sworn he heard a bird singing! He shook his head. There couldn't be live birds inside the exhibit!
"It looks so real!" Gabrielle joined Ares in the center clearing. He took a step closer until their bodies were almost touching. Placing his hand under her chin, he raised her head until she found herself staring into his eyes. She noticed they were a deep brown. He held her gaze and she felt herself start to get hot, even though the air was cool. Then his other arm snaked around her waist and she was pulled against his hard body. His head dipped, closing the distance between them. Their lips touched and Gabrielle closed her eyes, surrendering to his kiss. Her heart beat like crazy, her pulse pounding in her ears. It was a good thing he had an arm around her waist, because she thought she might faint. Kissing a God, especially this God, was a very powerful thing!
They parted and she stared up into his eyes, a dreamy look on her face. She was really beginning to love War!
*****
Xena walked through the streets, scowling again. The crab thing had worked like a charm, but she needed to do more. And it was doubtful another monster would show up at the right moment. That meant she needed to tempt him, use his own weaknesses against him. And if Ares had a weakness, it was a pretty woman! She eyed a store across the street. It was some fashion store, the front window showing a bright red dress. It was just the thing to get Ares' attention, especially if it clung in all the right places. Sometimes a woman just had to give up her leather and breastplate to look like a woman. Cutting in front of an old man, Xena made a beeline for the store.
Inside, she held the dress up to herself. It seemed to be the right size, but she needed to try it on. The store's owner hovered a few feet away, biting his nails. She threw a smile his way. "Don't worry. I'm here to buy, not ransack the place. Do you have a fitting room?"
The man silently pointed, his arm shaking.
"Thanks. I'll go try this on." Xena headed towards the fitting room, shaking her head. Some people just never got used to seeing people carrying weapons! She had just squeezed herself into the dress when she noticed a red flash of light. Spinning on her heel, she came face to face with Discord. In an instant her sword was in her hand, the point pressed against the Goddess' pale throat.
"Please," Discord said as she shoved the blade down roughly. "I'm here to help you. Seems like you could use all the help you can get."
"Why would you want to help me?" Xena asked, suspicious.
"Because I don't want to see my dear brother marry that blonde!" The way Discord said it, you'd have sworn 'blonde' was a dirty word. "And I have some information you could use, but only if you put that thing away!"
"All right. I would like to know what's going on." Xena stuck her sword back into the scabbard. It wouldn't have done anything to Discord anyway. "Why does Ares have this sudden interest in Gabrielle?"
"Because Hera told him to date her!" Discord spitted out. Then her dark lips curved up into a scary smile. "He's only doing what his Mommy told him to!"
"Hera is involved in this?" The information surprised Xena. She suspected there was another God involved, but she had thought Aphrodite or Cupid. "Why does Hera want Ares to date Gabrielle?"
"Well, she and Zeus are back together, all lovey-dovey. It's sickening!" Discord opened the curtain to the fitting room and yanked a black dress off a nearby hanger. Holding it against herself, she made a humming sound. A frown appeared and she tossed the garment to the floor. "She wants Ares to have a social life, as if associating with me isn't good enough! She wants him to marry someone. A someone who isn't a floozy."
"So Ares doesn't really love Gabrielle." Xena stated as the realization hit. She glanced down at herself. Her body was incased in the hot little number that was the color of fresh blood. A long slit went from her ankle up to her thigh. The waist was narrow and the chest cut low.
"It looks nice on you. Ares will like it." Discord remarked. With a little wave, she popped out.
Picking her stuff up, Xena went to pay for the dress.
******
Gabrielle walked through several more exhibits at the museum without really seeing any of them. They had been kissing in most of the rooms. One of the rooms had held statues. That she was pretty sure of. She remembered it more clearly than the others due to the extremely scary statue of Medusa. It had looked almost real, with all those withering snakes on her head. But then Ares had pulled her close and she had forgotten all about it. Now as they were entering a new room, Gabrielle was determined to pay attention to the exhibits. She didn't want to give Ares the wrong idea about her. Why, she couldn't remember the last time she had done so much kissing in a single afternoon. Ares was a very good kisser!
The room was small with curved walls. Placed along the walls were low white stone benches. All the benches were empty except one. A woman in a tight red dress lay on the bench directly across from them. She was laying on one side, her head propped up on her arm. The dress, Gabrielle noticed, clung to her like a second skin. And the slit let one of her bare legs stick out. Her feet were barefoot. Her black hair pooled on the white stone like a black waterfall. A smile spread across her face when she saw them come into the little room, which was meant to be a place to rest one's feet.
Gabrielle heard herself gasp as she recognized those intense blue eyes.
The woman was Xena!