Not for all the gold in the world would our Warrior Princess have been able to explain- not even to herself let alone to others- why was it that whenever she was in his presence, not only did her body refuse to obey her commands but her mind lost all contact with reality…It was as if some invisible sponge would magically wipe away everything the Bastard had done….the lying, the cheating, the manipulation….the lies again….All the pain, the inner turmoil, the frustration, everything seemed to fade away the moment his lips would brush against hers…

"Gods….." she only managed to whimper in between breaths as his hand pushed her shift upper still, and for a split second, it appeared as if the almost tragic events that had marked that early morning, had imperceptibly vanished like a puff of smoke. All of a sudden, there was no arrow, no wound, no nothing...only that electrifying zing of sensations travelling at the speed of a light from her neck -that he was now kissing- to the juncture of her legs…

She had missed him beyond words, that part of the story was pretty clear to her, and despite the fact that she would have never said it out loud, she longed so much to fell him filling her, stretching her that it ached- in the most delicious way possible…It was a rather familiar pain that made her quiver with need, a pain that only he was able to ease….

"Ahhh.." the sound escaped her lips when his fingers stroked her through the soaked, silken underwear she was wearing…As for the War God, he was blinded with passion…Except for the blood singing in his ears , the deafening pounding of his heart and the maddening idea of having her pulsing around his cock again after all this time, there was nothing else ….

That's probably why the startling sensation of the thick, warm liquid abundantly wetting his other hand pulled him almost brutally out of his peaceful oblivion and threw him in less than a blink into an entirely different state. His heart was still throbbing in his temples, but for a completely different reason.

"Wait , wait, wait! Shit!" he exclaimed, staring in disbelief at his now dark crimson hand…

" It's just blood…" she incoherently muttered while pulling him back into a mind blowing kiss that made him wish he had been as selfish as to ignore what he had just seen…..

With a gentle but firm gesture this time it was him the one to put that so much needed distance between them.

"It's not just blood. It's your blood...I really need to change that bandage, Princess. Come on, up you go…" he said without giving her the chance to protest, pulling her carefully to a sitting position and it was only then that she noticed that alarming quantity of blood trickling down her chest…..

XXX

" Hi there Sweetie Pie!"

The Love Goddess' voice made me jump.

"Dite! Hi! What are you doing...here?" I hardly got the time to voice out the question that an endless string of sentences began to roll off her tongue. She was unstoppable, and the energy just radiating from behind her every word was a hard thing to miss...She sure was happy about something….Well…at least someone on the face of the planet was….

"Me?! Nothing really... It was getting extra boring up on Olympus , you know? No hair appointments until later this afternoon, I've already got my nails done, did the shopping and stuff, hooked up a few cute couples…the usual..." she said, casting a furtive glance at her medium long neon pink nails….She obviously took a lot of pride in them.

"It was high time for a break though…" she started again, on an even more enthusiastic tone than before. " A girl also needs to relax from time to time right? Stress can definitely damage the skin! Not to mention it can like totally mess up your karma- and bad karma is like...Sweet Gaia, I don't even think about it…! "

I tried not to roll my eyes at her superficiality….At this point I couldn't care less about physical appearance and karma….All I could think about was Xena- Xena beheading some priestesses to be more precise and Ares fucking her in a pool of blood!...The room was suddenly spinning again….I really needed to sit down….

" So, anyway….I came to talk to Bro'…..Have you seen him today by any chance?"

" He left earlier this morning….He said he had some things to take care of…."I somehow managed to articulate, my voice barely audible though….I'm actually surprised she did understand what I was blabbering there, dear Papyrus- Gods know I wasn't really sure what it was that I actually said.

" Oh….ok….Sooooo…?" she anxiously inquired, obviously implying something that I just couldn't understand.

"So what?!"

"What to you mean what? Like watcha' doin' here chicka? Don't tell me you and Bro….."

I instantly reacted at her ludicrous assumption.

"What?! No! Definitely not! I'm here with Xena…." I defensively replied, completely taken aback by the fact that she had even considered the possibility.

"The Warrior Babe's here?! "

It finally hit me that she probably didn't have a clue about what had happened. How could she? Besides fashion, nails, hair appointments and sex she couldn't think about anything else.

"Yes. She was hurt during a battle and Ares brought her here." I answered, and I could immediately feel my brows drawing into a frown as a stab of something that I couldn't really describe stung me right in the heart.

"Wow! That's like totally rocking! How did that happen?"

Naturally, I gave her a perplexed stare...My friend almost hugging Hades in the morning was totally rocking?!

" She said she was attacked by …" I started to explain, still mystified by her attitude.

"Not that! " she cut in, rolling her eyes at my line. " Bro' bringing her here! Was she out of it or something?"

" What ? No...…." I bit, not really in the mood for an interrogatory.

I swear it dear Papyrus, some people just can't live minding their own business!

" ….She called him…..It's pretty surprising, huh?" I ended on a lower note.

" Surprising?! More like shocking! "

"That's what I think too! I mean, he's her worst enemy for crying out loud! Out of all the people in the world…"

"Her enemy?! Bro' ?! " she laughed, waving her hand at the thought. " That's a good one!"

I just don't get it…Why does everyone assume they know her better than I do?! I'm her best friend…Come to think about it, that's what I used to think…In all appearances, I should really start doubting my own judgement now...

"What do you mean ?!" I asked, eager to her her own version on the story….Lately, everyone seemed to have a version to their so called love-hate relationship…." They 're always fighting, always on the verge of killing each other…."

" Pfffff! Maybe in bed! Have you ever seen them fight?"

Did she say in bed?! Did I hear her correctly ?! No…that couldn't be…he was part of Xena's past at a certain point, yes- in a strange way that my brain still refuses to accept-….but he has nothing to do with her present….

" More times than I could count! He looked always more than determined to gut her like a fish if you ask me! " I simply answered, trying to bock the first part of her line.

"Oh please! Like Bro would put it, that was only foreplay! Trust me Gabby, he wouldn't even need to put too much effort in it! A snap of his fingers- at most- would be enough for him to break her neck. He's a God remember? I hate to break it to you, but, let's keep it real...no matter how skilled our Warrior Babe is, she's no match for him!"

" Yeah well allow me to disagree…Ares might be a God but Xena…."

"She's only mortal Gabby, and mortals are easy to break. But anyway, let's leave that aside for now, and do tell me, what's with the long face? Come on! Tell aunt Ditie what's wrong! "

I did my best not to burst into tears, dear Papyrus. Xena was everything to me…And it only took one blasted morning to feel that I had been travelling with a complete stranger all this time!

" I just don't get it…."

" Get what, Sweetie?" she asked, taking a seat by my side.

" It's nothing Dite. Forget it…."

"Now, now! Come on! I hate to see you so upset! It's depressing! What's bothering you?"

I hesitated a bit before voicing my question, but I ended up telling myself that it didn't really hurt to ask…She was probably as clueless about them as I was…

" This might sound stupid, but….do you know anything about Xena and Ares? I mean about them as a…..couple?" I stressed, praying to all muses to receive a negative reply. That could have certainly made me feel better.

" If I know anything about my favorite couple in the whole wide world? ! Honey, I'm the Goddess of Love, I know everything!" she exclaimed, apparently thrilled by the subject.

" Everything?" I asked in a low, shaky voice as all my fears seemed to be coming to life…

"E-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g!"

And here it came..the final blow...

" Then please enlighten me…. were they really together…? As in…together, together?!" I said, barely voicing out the last word, as if not saying it too loud would minimize its effects.

" Do I like pink?! " she said rolling her eyes. " Duh! Of course they were, Honey! And they sure made an awesome couple too! A match made in the Elysium ! "

" Made…So they're no longer together, right? …"

" Sadly….Though, knowing them the way I do, this separation won't last long….Bro would go totally ballistic…."

" He would?"

" Yeah….he's crazy about her…"

" He is crazy, I give you that. How did this happen Dite?! How did they…Why would Xena even…..This is beyond my understanding, really…." I inquired, trying hard not to sound desperate, and trying not to forget to breathe when the Love Goddess began to speak.

"Well, you know…to make a long story short, after Xe's baby brother died, she was like totally depressed, completely heartbroken , the poor thing! And you know how these things go…..Bro was at the right place at the right time, and first she cried on his shoulder, then she cried on his chest, then she cried on his …"

"I get it! I get it Dite, I do…! " I broke out, outraged by the picture that had automatically began projecting before my eyes. " No need to leave any permanent brain scars! So that good for nothing Bastard took advantage of the fact that she was hurt and broken!"

"Not really….I'd rather say he was the only one who never left her side when she needed him most, when there was no one else to support her…..It' s pure, traditional, old fashioned romance, really….I think I'm gonna cry….." she then added, and to my boundless surprise her eyes actually looked a bit puffy…

" You're saying it as if Ares were some kind of Prince Charming !"

" Well did you ever take a good look at that Hunk?! He kinda is! " she said, flashing a bright grin, forgetting all about the fact that she was right about to burst into tears just a few second earlier.

" That selfish, lying, manipulating Jerk is far from any similar archetype Dite, sorry…"

" You're only saying that because you don't really know him…"

" Oh I know him well enough! Better than I would have ever wanted to, thank you! Anyway, why did they break up if they had such a fairy tale relationship? Was it because of the child Xena had lost?"

"How do you know that?!" she asked, shock written all over her pretty face.

" So it is true…..They did have a child…" I concluded, and suddenly, I felt as if the roof of that accursed temple had fallen over my head…

"They did- a regrettable tragedy... I don't have the stomach to recall it right now though….It's not even the reason they broke up anyway…"

"It isn't ?"

"No….It was Xe….She lost it…I've always told Bro that no mortal should have the amount of power that he gave her…There was no way for her absorb all that dark energy without any consequences….The day he gave her the Dark Chakram, their entire universe turned upside down….She spun completely out of control…"

I instinctively covered my heart dear Papyrus….To much information for one day…

"It was Ares the one who gave her the…?"

"…the round killing thingy, yeah. And don't give me that look….I did tell him it was not a proper gift for a lady, but he wouldn't listen…I suggested a ring….He went for that strange looking junk instead…."

" I had no idea that she had it from him."

"Well, know you now….In his vision it was the ultimate proof of love for his perfect Princess….The Warrior Babe fell instantly in love with her new toy …And more than that, she fell in love with the immense power it brought her…"

"What power did it have? "

This was definitely interesting…I had no idea Dite knew so much about the subject…

" The power to rule over nations….in fear, in terror , in blood….It demanded blood and sacrifice since it drew its power from there. Before either of them realized, Xe's soul had gone as dark as night….Bro was in shock….he didn't know what to do, how to fix her….With every fight, he lost more and more of her each day….until she finally left him and fled in the far away lands of Chin where she made sure to smother even the last sparkle of light still flickering within her…."

"By the Gods! Everything happened because of him, Dite! Oh how I hate him!"

" Don't say that , Sweetie! Bro' loves her to the moon and back…They belong together…Maybe this is a chance for them to…."

"Don't even say it! His love is poison for Xena! He will only get his claws into her again over my dead body!" I shouted, turning my back at the Goddess, now angry even with her…How could she stand by and watch? Why didn't she do anything?!

XXX

The Love Goddess took a long, pensive look at the furious/ frustrated/ disappointed Bard. She was a dangerous cocktail of barely repressed emotions right now….

"Can't say I didn't try to stay out of it, Bro'. I did my best here…..Now let's do things my way….." she said to herself. The last thing she wanted was for someone to go all wild and ruin everything for her brother and his Princess, now that they were finally on the right track again.

With an elegant wave of her hand, the blonde Olympian made a fuchsia, diamond shaped bottle materialize in her tiny palm. A silent puff was enough for a rose scented glittering dust to be sprayed around the fuming Bard.

" Don't talk like that! Despite what you might think, Bro' is incredibly cool and funny and…" she began, a wide smile stretching on her face.

" Irresistible ….." the Bard automatically stated closing her eyes while saying it, all her senses suddenly invaded by the flowery aroma that had invaded the room -an utterly unusual expression on her face, definitely looking as if she were high….

" That too….." Aphrodite agreed, after a split second of instinctive hesitation ….

" I need to find him….We need to clarify a few things….So much have happened between us lately... " Gabrielle continued, her eyes holding a very special, familiar sparkle….

" You do that, Sweetie Pie….." it was all the Goddess got to say before the Bard stormed out the door. " Whaddya know? I guess this baby works after all…I'm a genius! " she exclaimed in excitement, without casting a second glance at the pretty crystal bottle on which she could have bet her godhood that Lifelong Friendship and not All Consuming Obsession was written….