Chapter 12
That 'night' somehow seemed different to Joxer. The
dreamscape seemed brighter, more vibrant than before. But he didn't have long to contemplate it before she arrived. Joxer was stunned.
The long blond hair. The green top. The brown skirt.
She looked just as she had the first time he'd seen
her, as she had when he'd fallen in love with her.
Not only that, but she seemed positively radiant.
The hardness of her face had softened, the crowsfeet
and worry lines had melted away. She looked like the
cherubic girl he had first known, ready to take on the
world. Untroubled by what would come later in life.
Joxer was too surprised to say anything. Which suited
Gabby just fine, for at that moment she didn't want to
talk. She wanted to feel. Feel his hand caressing
her hair. Feel his warmth next to her. Feel his
comforting embrace. There would be time for talking
later. The rest of her life in fact...
***
Xena awakened to find Gabrielle sprawled on the ground
with a bottle close at hand. It didn't take her long
at all to figure out what had happened. And she
blamed herself for allowing it to occur.
All the signs had been there, but she just hadn't been
willing to believe that Gabrielle was that desperate.
She believed it now, for all the good it did her.
It was then, while she was thinking of what to do,
that Xena looked at Gabrielle in horror and saw the
dark blue line that had slowly begun to crawl from her
brain to her heart.
***
"You did what?!?" Joxer asked, coming bolt upright and
facing Gabrielle.
"I put myself in a coma!" she gleefully responded, not
noticing the stark terror in Joxer's voice.
"What'd you go and do that for?" Joxer wanted to know.
Had he thought about it of course, it would have been
simple enough to figure out. But right then he
couldn't think about anything.
"So I can be with you, silly!" Gabrielle laughed as
she playfully swatted him.
"Are you nuts?" Joxer practically yelled. "You can't
just throw your life away! People need you! Xena needs
you--"
"You need me," Gabrielle interrupted. "Xena will be
fine. And we'll meet up again in another life. Or in
Heaven. Or wherever we go. We're soul mates, so
we'll always be together. But here, now, this life,
I want to spend with you."
Joxer had longed to hear those words, but not like
this. Not at the expense of Gabrielle's reality. He
wanted to be with her more than anything, but at the
same time he couldn't have her live her life in some
dream world. He couldn't. He wouldn't.
And he was about to say as much when Gabrielle, crying
out, grabbed at her chest and pitched forward. Joxer
immediately shot out and caught her. What was going
on?
"What's wrong? What's happening?" Joxer asked
anxiously.
"I... don't... know..." Gabrielle gasped out between
breaths.
***
In that moment, the full implications of what had
happened hit Xena. Gabrielle had some skill at making
medicines granted, but she was no healer.
She was dying.
The wrong proportions, by even the smallest amount,
were deadly in the concoction of this brew. The
'sleep of the undead' was a difficult potion to make,
even for those who knew what they were doing. All it
took was one mistake for it to be fatal. Gabrielle
had made that mistake.
And now she would die for it, because there was no
antidote. None at all.
But that didn't stop Xena from doing everything she
could possibly think of to try. In what time she had
left.
Gabrielle must have taken it early in the night, for
the poison had already traveled over halfway down from
the brain to the heart.
But even as she broke out the medicine kit, she knew
that there was nothing she could do. And she cried
out to the heavens in anguish.
That 'night' somehow seemed different to Joxer. The
dreamscape seemed brighter, more vibrant than before. But he didn't have long to contemplate it before she arrived. Joxer was stunned.
The long blond hair. The green top. The brown skirt.
She looked just as she had the first time he'd seen
her, as she had when he'd fallen in love with her.
Not only that, but she seemed positively radiant.
The hardness of her face had softened, the crowsfeet
and worry lines had melted away. She looked like the
cherubic girl he had first known, ready to take on the
world. Untroubled by what would come later in life.
Joxer was too surprised to say anything. Which suited
Gabby just fine, for at that moment she didn't want to
talk. She wanted to feel. Feel his hand caressing
her hair. Feel his warmth next to her. Feel his
comforting embrace. There would be time for talking
later. The rest of her life in fact...
***
Xena awakened to find Gabrielle sprawled on the ground
with a bottle close at hand. It didn't take her long
at all to figure out what had happened. And she
blamed herself for allowing it to occur.
All the signs had been there, but she just hadn't been
willing to believe that Gabrielle was that desperate.
She believed it now, for all the good it did her.
It was then, while she was thinking of what to do,
that Xena looked at Gabrielle in horror and saw the
dark blue line that had slowly begun to crawl from her
brain to her heart.
***
"You did what?!?" Joxer asked, coming bolt upright and
facing Gabrielle.
"I put myself in a coma!" she gleefully responded, not
noticing the stark terror in Joxer's voice.
"What'd you go and do that for?" Joxer wanted to know.
Had he thought about it of course, it would have been
simple enough to figure out. But right then he
couldn't think about anything.
"So I can be with you, silly!" Gabrielle laughed as
she playfully swatted him.
"Are you nuts?" Joxer practically yelled. "You can't
just throw your life away! People need you! Xena needs
you--"
"You need me," Gabrielle interrupted. "Xena will be
fine. And we'll meet up again in another life. Or in
Heaven. Or wherever we go. We're soul mates, so
we'll always be together. But here, now, this life,
I want to spend with you."
Joxer had longed to hear those words, but not like
this. Not at the expense of Gabrielle's reality. He
wanted to be with her more than anything, but at the
same time he couldn't have her live her life in some
dream world. He couldn't. He wouldn't.
And he was about to say as much when Gabrielle, crying
out, grabbed at her chest and pitched forward. Joxer
immediately shot out and caught her. What was going
on?
"What's wrong? What's happening?" Joxer asked
anxiously.
"I... don't... know..." Gabrielle gasped out between
breaths.
***
In that moment, the full implications of what had
happened hit Xena. Gabrielle had some skill at making
medicines granted, but she was no healer.
She was dying.
The wrong proportions, by even the smallest amount,
were deadly in the concoction of this brew. The
'sleep of the undead' was a difficult potion to make,
even for those who knew what they were doing. All it
took was one mistake for it to be fatal. Gabrielle
had made that mistake.
And now she would die for it, because there was no
antidote. None at all.
But that didn't stop Xena from doing everything she
could possibly think of to try. In what time she had
left.
Gabrielle must have taken it early in the night, for
the poison had already traveled over halfway down from
the brain to the heart.
But even as she broke out the medicine kit, she knew
that there was nothing she could do. And she cried
out to the heavens in anguish.