I will be adding locations in the next few chapters. We're about to dive into heavy war territory lol.

Chapter 37

Four Months Later

Immediately upon returning to Scythia everything crashed down all at once. Fortunately, half of the family was living under one roof, or at least for the most part. Navaz chose to remain in Balaam while Anastasia moved to Scythia to be with Cera.

Xena admitted that she enjoyed seeing a mellower Arielle for the first time ever but she was a little put off by Arielle's obsession over dethroning the young Shah. As much as she loved strategy talk she was tired of going to meetings every single morning and watching Arielle mark the map and circle possible areas to invade if the Persians were to counterattack.

Relaxed in a chair, Xena listened to her granddaughter spout off in a fit of raging excitement. Crushing the Persians was a priority but with Shah Jamasp sitting on this throne until he waited for the right moment to attack was ridiculously boring.

"Do you think we could stop for today?" she asked.

Arielle stabbed a dagger on the map. "Am I cramming too much information into your head, grandma?"

She waved her hand dismissively, "I get burnt out. We've been having meetings every day for the last two months, Arielle. Shah Jamasp isn't going to make a move anytime soon but I applaud you for being prepared."

"I was thinking we could train my army together. I want to be ready. I know you've been absent from the field and I'd really like your help since you're the best."

Xena raised her eyebrow at the compliment. "I don't know if I should be scared of your new attitude or in love with it."

"I'm in a good mood! Although that will fade once Bayan shows up tomorrow," she grunted.

"I'm surprised you gave him the Pontic region to rule over," Xena noticed the disturbance all over Arielle's face. "He's only here for Aurora's birthday. Can you behave yourself?"

Arielle sighed. "I'll behave. He's here for Aurora only. No fighting."

"Good. Let's keep it that way." Xena stood and eyed the pins all over the map. "How are you doing with Xerxes?"

Arielle shied away with blushed cheeks. "He's so nice to me. Maybe a little too nice," she said suspiciously. "I'm worried about him going to Persia with Tegin Irkin. I hope his brothers don't find him."

"He's a smart man. I think he'll be fine." Xena hooked arms with her. "I like this side of you, Arielle. It's very…refreshing."

"I'm trying my best but I have my moments."

"Don't we all," Xena muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

Arielle peered over at her grandmother with an inquiring lopsided grin. "Are my parents actually going to get married again? It obviously didn't work the first time!"

Xena let out a heavy sigh. "It's what your mother wants, Arielle. Can't you be happy for them? I haven't seen your mother this happy in a long, long time."

"I am happy for them! I'm just…it's just a little strange."

"It'll be just like it was before. They've always worked together. The divorce never affected their relationship. I suppose bringing you into the world served a purpose after all."

Arielle gasped. "Wow! Thanks a lot! You can be really mean sometimes, you know that?"

Gabrielle slid her hand gracefully along the staff which Anastasia held. She positioned the staff on Ana's shoulders and balanced it with a tap of her finger. Coming close to her trainee she leaned her body against Ana's and placed a hand on top of hers.

A hand came around Ana's waist and pressed against her flat abdomen. Ana inhaled and held her breath as her eyes danced around beneath the blindfold. With one knee bent to support almost the entirety of her weight and the other straight and stretched outward, she was in the correct stance.

"Breathe, Anastasia," the governor instructed.

She felt her trainee's stomach deflate against her palm and smiled. She skipped around to the front of Anastasia and looked at the still stance she was positioned in.

"Good, you're doing great so far, Ana. Now, slowly twirl the staff around with your hands. Let your body guide you."

Anastasia smirked and slowly twirled the staff about slowly and took a step forward. She abruptly halted and sensed Gabrielle near her and took a step to the side to evade her teacher. Twirling the staff above her head she spun around herself and swung the weapon in a semi circle and stopped it an inch away from Gabrielle's cheek.

Gabrielle's eyes widened at the closeness of the staff that was so close to whacking her cheek. She put a hand over her throbbing chest and nervously smiled.

"That was impressive. You've learned a lot in the last couple of months."

Ana ripped the cloth off her eyes and lowered the staff. "I can see better now, Gabrielle. Maybe not as well as I had hoped but I can still see everyone up close!"

"The point of these exercises is for you to get in touch with your other senses."

The khatun nodded and wiped the sweat off her brow. She peered over at Cera sitting on a blanket underneath a canopy and waved her hand. Cera smiled and waved back with her arm high in the air. The only thing she could see was an outline of her daughter's arm but it was more than she could see a few months ago.

"I doubt Navaz and my mother will let me back into the field," she said in disappointment. "But I guess it's nice to be prepared."

Gabrielle understood her pain and longing to be normal again. This was probably as normal as Ana could be and she had to make sure that Ana was prepared to deal with it for the rest of her life.

"It's time to focus on you, Anastasia. You've ignored your wants and desires for a long time. You said that your loss of sight has never bothered you but I know it does. You've never learned how to deal with it and now you are. Take what life gives you and run with it."

"Thanks for the motivational speech, Gabrielle," she mocked, "but I've already heard this from my mother ten times over this last month."

Gabrielle raised her palms in defense. "I tried."

Cera tapped her fingers on her knees and waited patiently for her mother and Gabrielle to finish the training lesson. She'd been sitting outside for over an hour and while she enjoyed watching the two she was restless.

A pair of hands came over her eyes and she grabbed the wrists of Mirac. She smiled when he came to sit beside her and kiss her hand. Mirac reclined on the spread of pillows and toyed with his wife's long hair.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

Cera gave a big grin in response and he nodded whilst keeping his eye on her. A young maid walked by and set down a tray of pastries filled with savory cheese and strawberries. Cera sighed and looked at the pile of pastries stacked up. She picked up the tray and tried to hand it back to the maid.

"Khagana Arielle told me to take this to you, princess," the maid kindly refused the tray. She gave a short curtsy and then hurried away.

Mirac sat up and snagged one of the pastries. He couldn't help but laugh at his wife's scowling face. "What's up with you?"

Cera gestured to the tray. "My sister is trying to make me fat!" she slapped her palm against her knee.

He finished off the pastry and licked the berry juice off his fingers and smiled at her frustration. He tried to offer her a pastry and she turned her nose up at it. More for me, he thought.

"It wouldn't hurt you to gain some more weight." He pinched her bony elbow.

Cera snapped her head around and tapered her eyes. She was already being watched constantly by not only every single woman in this palace but also physicians came to see her once in the morning and once in the evening. She understood why everyone was so cautious around her but not having an ounce of privacy in her room was frustrating at times.

"For the baby of course," Mirac quickly added.

As he finished his second pastry he grabbed another then he saw Arielle and Xena making their way over. He threw the pastry down and nudged Cera's arm.

"Incoming," he whispered.

Cera turned and gasped at her sister coming this way. She tried to get up and cursed her slow mobility. It was too late anyway so she sat back down and huffed in frustration. There was no escaping now.

"Baby sister!" Arielle greeted cheerfully. "How are you doing today? Did you enjoy the pastries I had sent over?" she eyed the tray. "It looks like you didn't even eat any! You should eat the pastries, Cera. You're still so thin."

Cera looked down at the swell of her belly and then gazed up at her sister with a raised eyebrow. She thought she was anything but thin right now.

Xena rolled her eyes. "Arielle, leave the poor girl alone. You've been pestering her nonstop."

"I just want to make sure that she is fit to deliver a healthy baby." Arielle knelt down and cupped her sister's cheeks. "Grandma said she will sew your dress for you. I have a room full of fabric you can choose from!"

Xena's eyes bugged out. "I said no such thing!" she protested. "Arielle, I already have your mother's dress to work on. I don't need another thing added to my plate."

"But grandma, this is important. It's for Cera! Aren't you finished with mother's dress already? You've been working on that for months."

Mirac raised his hand in the middle of the brewing argument. "My sisters are coming in a couple of weeks. I'm sure Yana wouldn't mind making the dress."

Relief crossed Xena's eyes and she silently thanked him for intervening. "See, Yana can sew the dress. Problem solved."

Gabrielle twirled the staff and switched hands off and on. She thrust the staff forward and quietly hissed as she imagined an enemy standing in front of her. She jumped into a stance with bent knees and held out the staff with both hands.

Whilst she made whooshing and grunting noises as she kept swinging the staff in vertical and horizontal directions. She spun around with a jump and paused at her wife sitting up in bed with incredibly messy hair. She hid the staff behind her back poorly and showed her pearly whites.

"Xena, good morning," she said sheepishly.

"Morning." Xena scratched her head and pointed to the staff. "What're you doing?"

"Just practicing for my next session with Ana." she leaned the staff against the bed post. "She's improved a lot. You should give a lesson sometime. I'm sure she'd love that."

Gabrielle hopped onto the bed with an eager face. Her fingers trickled across the sheets and gave a mischievous look to her wife who seemed less than enthused.

Xena pulled her fingers through her hair and glanced down at the silver strands in between her fingers. She yelped at the hand on her thigh and grabbed her wife's wandering hand.

"As much…as I'd like to train Ana, you're doing a great job by yourself." she rolled out of bed.

Gabrielle plopped onto the bed and groaned. So close. She was so close!

"You got Csaba and Farah's gift for Aurora, right?" Xena stood in front of the mirror, combing her hair.

"Aurora's going to love her gift."

Xena smiled at her wife's reflection. "I know Csaba really wanted to be here. I got his letter about moving the army towards Persia. I haven't told Arielle yet. I think I'll wait until the Bayan storm blows over."

Gabrielle rolled over onto her back and grabbed her wife's black and gold headdress. She spun it around on her finger and then was poked on her forehead.

"Ow!" she looked up at Xena looming over her. "How goes the meetings with Arielle anyway? You've been stressed. I can see it all over your face."

Xena huffed and playfully nudged Gabrielle's head. "I can't believe I'm going to say this but she's actually driving me nuts. She's so focused on the Persians invading. I wish she had this drive a few years ago."

"I guess Xerxes is good for her," Gabrielle shrugged a shoulder. "So strange that she is courting a Persian and yet also fighting against his family. Ironic, huh?"

"Get dressed, governor." she threw a towel on Gabrielle's face. "We have a party to attend."

Gathered in the large formal sitting room, Aurora was far too eager to sit and wait for all the formalities of parties. As soon as the gifts were passed onto her she began opening each one of them. She held a box in her hand and looked up at her mother. She held the box to her ear.

"Can I open it?" she asked, barely able to contain her excitement.

Arielle sighed and nodded. "Go ahead. You've already opened every other gift. I hope you like it."

Anastasia smoothed her hand over her granddaughter's head then walked over to her sulking daughter. She wedged herself in between her mother and Arielle and discreetly nudged Arielle's arm to grab her attention.

"Where's Bayan? I thought he was coming," she whispered.

Arielle leaned into her mother. "He's coming. Kuba told me he just arrived."

Xena overheard their little conversation and joined in uninvited. "No fighting," she pressed. "That goes for you too, Ana. I know you don't like him."

"Neither do you, mother!"

Aurora stared at her gift with puzzlement. She picked up the items in the box which was a single feather, pieces of leather and a chisel.

"Mom, what is this stuff?" the princess asked.

Arielle smiled and knelt down to grasp her daughter's hands. "You'll need these for when you make your first bow. Xerxes promised to teach you how to make a bow. Remember?"

"Wow! When's he coming back from Persia? Do you know how to make one? How long does it take?" the girl paused and gasped loudly then threw the items back into the box. "Daddy!"

She leapt from the floor and immediately ran to Bayan. She jumped up and he grabbed her by her small waist and embraced her tightly. She hung her arms around his neck and he held her close. Bayan looked at all of the women in the room. It was clear that he was very unwelcome here from all the glares he received.

"I missed you!" she squealed.

"Happy birthday, princess," he kissed Aurora's head and let her down on the floor. "I got this for you."

Aurora took the box from his hands and ripped the top off. She pulled out a necklace and thanked her father by giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks!" she grabbed his hand. "Come sit with me! Teyze Cera is gonna play the kamancheh."

Bayan passed by all the women standing in a single row and he eyed Arielle who refused to look his way. When Aurora sat down on the floor he was met with another glare from Cera. He chose to give a warm smile to the princess.

"Cera, I see you're having a baby," he said casually. "Congratulations."

She arched an eyebrow and grabbed the instrument then leaned the neck against her shoulder. She glided the bow across the strings and began playing only to ignore his presence and focus on Aurora.

Babylonia, Persia

Sneaking around Persia wasn't the easiest of tasks to accomplish. Tegin Irkin and Xerxes were left alone as they walked around the streets of lower Persia. Even though Estakhr was where Shah Jamasp and the remaining Sassan family lived, they still proceeded with extreme caution.

If anyone heard them or saw them they knew they'd be imprisoned immediately. Xerxes and Tegin came to the Babylonia region and to keep their identities hidden they disguised themselves in dark cloaks and scarves to shield their faces.

Most of the journey throughout his homeland consisted of lurking in the shadows. They'd barely gotten anything accomplished. Xerxes waited outside a tavern that was located in the outskirts of Babylon until Tegin scoped out the interior of the tavern.

A light tap on his shoulder was the signal to enter. He walked in and took the hood off. The place was filled with men of all ages drinking alcohol and smoking opium in the corners of the large room. If the Shah found out about this they'd all be imprisoned or possibly executed.

Xerxes weaved through the tables of drunken men and Tegin pulled him back.

"There he is." He pointed to a middle aged man dressed in fine leather clothing, and a long cape. He donned a short haircut and trimmed beard to accentuate his angular features and long tapered nose.

Xerxes marched forward and stopped in front of the man he was looking for. The group huddled around the assailant looked up at him with their glazed eyes.

"Siyawush," he announced. "May I sit?"

Siyawush instantly recognized the young prince and set down the wooden cup. The men who accompanied him were quick to draw weapons. He waved his hand and told his men to disperse. Xerxes sat down on the stool while Tegin stood at a fair distance to keep watch.

"Shehzade, it's been awhile," he said with a charming smile. "Word is that you're banned from Persia. You're very brave to show your face here."

Xerxes saw right through his act. "Does my aunt know you come here?"

"My relationship with Esther is none of your business, Shehzade."

"She is your wife and I don't think my father would like to hear that you come to drink wine and dance with whores while his sister is at home," Xerxes reminded him.

Siyawush leaned back in the chair and rubbed his beard. "Why have you come here?"

"My father's been imprisoned and I need your help to get him out of Anosbord. My aunt has a lot of connections through you. You are an officer after all."

Siyawush chuckled. "Breaking your father out of Anosbord won't be easy. What are your plans after that? Your brother is a tyrant. He's executed most of the council already. He's got all of the Houses on his side except for the Karens. I hear they're a bit bitter after Sukhra was murdered."

"Pamira is married to a Hun prince now. The Karens are on our side. They will help you."

"Oh, you're allies with the Huns, Shehzade?" he snickered. "I'm not surprised. Your father made an alliance with them. Listen, Shehzade I'd love to see your father back on the throne but your brother is gathering an army to fight the Byzantines."

Xerxes nodded, already privy to the plan since he had close ties with Arielle and her family. He knew it wasn't going to be easy to convince his aunt's husband to break his father out of a heavily guarded prison.

"I can arrange for the White Huns to help get my father out of Anosbord. They've made a temporary deal with the Byzantine Emperor to overthrow my brother. Tell me what you need and I'll see it done."

Siyawush pursed his mouth and looked at his nephew. He leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table and eyed Tegin Irkin from afar. He gave the pasha a quick smile and looked into the prince's determined eyes.

"Alright, Shehzade, I'll help but this is going to be difficult."

The party continued for the next few hours. Bayan sat with his daughter and enjoyed listening to her stories about her new life as an Avar Princess in Scythia. It was the first time in many months since he'd seen her and while he was being watched like a hawk by all the women he tried to enjoy this time with his daughter.

Being the only male in the room aside from Mirac, he felt a little awkward as he knew he wouldn't be engaging in conversation with any of the women here. Mirac knew of him and it was clear that he didn't want to talk either and instead stuck close by to Cera.

Listening to his daughter talk about Shehzade Xerxes was irritating to say the least. He didn't really care for the Persian but knew that any opinion about another father-like figure around his daughter would be shunned and unheard.

Bayan excused himself from his daughter and walked over to Arielle who stood talking to her mother. He cleared his throat and Anastasia turned to him with a wicked glare.

"Can I talk to you?" he asked Arielle.

She gripped her mother's arm. "You can go, mother. We'll finish our conversation later."

Anastasia left the two alone and waltzed over to her mother and Gabrielle who were both seated by Cera. She kept her eye on Bayan until she took a seat by her youngest daughter. Now she really wished her sight hadn't improved so she wouldn't have to see Bayan's face.

"Thank you for inviting me to Aurora's birthday," he said kindly and Arielle gave a slow head nod. "I was surprised when I received your letter. Ernak told me that he put in a good word for me to have a share of the empire but I didn't think you'd give me the entire Pontic Steppe."

Arielle lowered her gaze to the almond sherbet she held in her hand. Talking to Bayan now was almost like talking to a stranger. She realized that she married a complete stranger and now they'd been divorced for over a year but their marriage ended long before that and she didn't know it until recently. His affair with Sarnai was just the icing on the cake.

"You're a good soldier, Bayan. You always have been," she admitted. "We will be working together from now on. I trust you already moved some of your tribe to the region."

He nodded. "I did but I left most of them in Harran and some families are relocating to Pannonia."

Arielle shied away and peered at their daughter who was enjoying her new gifts and talking to Ku-Ilm. She wore a crooked grin and then realization hit her. Now that Bayan was going to be living close by there was no escape from seeing his face from time to time.

"How is your son?" she asked.

He blinked and was surprised that she even bothered to ask. "He's doing well. He's with Sarnai in the palace." There was a long pause between them. "Arielle, I wanted to ask if it's alright if Aurora could come visit me in the Pontic Steppe since it's close to Scythia."

"Her home is here now. She belongs with me," she said protectively.

Bayan let out a short note laugh. "She's still my daughter, Arielle. Hate me all you want but you have no right to keep me from her. I divorced you, not our daughter."

"I know that!" she barked and drew attention to them. "Just give me some time to think it over, alright?"

"I'll take that as a yes." He nudged her chin with a knuckle. "I'd love for Aurora to meet her brother and don't worry I didn't tell her."

She thought of what Gabrielle said to her about including Aurora in Bayan's life with Sarnai and their son. She was Aurora's mother and she had final say as of now but surprisingly, her daughter wasn't too upset about the divorce and she seemed to like Sarnai. She came to realize that she shouldn't hold anything against the Mongol woman but it was hard not to since she had a child with a married man. But now she wasn't married at all and there wasn't anything she could do to fix the damage that had been done.

She put some space between them. "Don't touch me again."

Anastasia stood on a stool for her weekly fitting. She held her arms out while her mother kept pulling and tugging on the fabric. She was grateful that she hadn't been accosted by a needle yet but if she didn't stand still then her mother just might stick her on purpose.

Gabrielle sat on the floor, writing correspondence letters to Navaz to keep him informed of the situation in Persia and Csaba marching towards Persian borders with Eksama. She heard mother and daughter bickering and the morning had just begun. Fortunately, she never tired hearing their banter.

"I gave Csaba's letter to Arielle first thing this morning," Gabrielle said.

Xena mumbled with a pair of needles in her mouth. She took one of the pins and pinched the fabric around her daughter's waist. She pinned the fabric and took a step back to look at her work and rubbed her chin.

"Something's not right," she deduced.

"Mom, it looks fine. You've never spent this long sewing a dress. Why are you taking your time?" Ana looked down at the bell sleeves and held her breath as she was afraid to make any sudden moves in the pinned gown.

"Don't tell your daughter this but I'm avoiding her," Xena whispered. "Plus, I've never made a wedding dress for you and you've been married twice!"

Gabrielle gathered up her work and neatly stacked it into an organized pile –a pile of mess, she thought. Her eyes glanced upward at Anastasia and smiled.

"You do look very beautiful, Ana. Navaz made a good choice with the fabric. He really knows what looks good on you."

The khatun blushed. "Thanks, Gabrielle." she swung her arms around only to be smacked by her mother. "I miss Csaba. I'd love to have all of my children with me."

"Is that why you keep postponing the wedding?"

"I…I would just really love it if Csaba were here. It's not like Navaz is going anywhere! He doesn't mind waiting. He's waited for six years so he can wait another month or…two."

Xena arched her eyebrow. "Anastasia, you can't keep putting this off. I'll be finished with your dress soon. Navaz is a very patient man but he's not that patient."

"I guess you have a point." She tried to show a smile. "I just miss my son."

Arielle bolted into the fitting room with a sense of urgency. She blew the hair away from her eyes and smiled at her mother standing in the wedding dress that her grandmother had been slaving over for months now.

"Wow mother, you look great!" she ran to her mother and circled around, admiring the gown. "Dad's going to love that dress on you. I mean…well he loves you in anything or nothing at all. Um…" she looked at the disturbed faces around her. "You all know what I mean."

Xena nodded. "What do you need, Arielle?"

"Okay, well I got the letter that Csaba wrote. Obviously because Gabrielle sent it to my room. But I also got a letter from father too!" she pulled out the scroll. "Xerxes said he got his aunt to help his father break out of Anosbord. Father said that we should house Shah Kavad in Balaam and then we'll go ahead with the war to push Jamasp out."

Gabrielle shared a look of concern with her wife. "Um, wouldn't it just be easier to put Kavad back on the throne without a war?"

"No! We need to have this war with Jamasp!" she crumpled the letter in her hand. "We will weaken the Persian army with Justinian's men, Csaba's and mine. Jamasp won't stand a chance!"

"You really want to go to war," confirmed Gabrielle.

"I just want order restored in the Persian Empire. Once Kavad is back on the throne then I will negotiate with him and convince him to give me a share of his empire. I have to go tell Kuba to prepare the army. I guess I'll need to tell Bayan too," she grumbled. "Grandma, you'll help right?"

She trailed out of the room with a determined grin and ran down the hallway.

Anastasia stood speechless and plopped down onto a chair. She wrapped an arm over her unsettled stomach and suddenly felt the air trapped in her body, unable to breathe. Taking in short spurts of air she hiccuped and heaved several times over.

Xena knelt down and grabbed hold of her daughter's hand. "Anastasia, breathe. Relax." She rubbed her arm gently to soothe her. "You're scaring me."

"I will go get the physician," said Gabrielle.

The Caucasus

In between the two seas that separated the Huns and Persians, Csaba set up camp with Eksama. While everyone waited in their tents to rest for the upcoming evening, Csaba sent out men to scout the area to make sure Persians weren't spying on them. He was very familiar with Sassanian ways of spying on Hun camps.

He walked over to his aunt who sat by a fire outside her tent. He sat down opposite her and warmed his hands. The last four months living with Eksama wasn't as horrible as he expected it to be. She wasn't a very warm person but she was easy to talk to when she necessary.

"I've sent a letter to my sister. She knows we're close by," he said.

Eksama eyed him and rubbed her palms together. "Have you heard from your mother?"

"Yes, she's marrying Navaz," he looked at her puzzled doe eyes. "And her sight improved like you promised." He knew that's the answer she was looking for. "My baby sister is also pregnant again. I'd like to be there when she has the baby. I haven't seen her in a long time."

"Is this…the sister that looks like me?" she asked shyly with reddened cheeks.

Csaba smirked and sent a nod her way.

"I'd like to meet her someday," she said.

That took him by surprise. "A…alright," his voice wavered. "Maybe I could surprise her. You could come with me."

Eksama smiled.

A soldier galloped into camp with his scouts. "Your highness, the Caucasus Mountains stretch across this area. There is no way the Persians could've marched through the mountains."

Csaba sighed and looked at the snowy mountain peaks. "The Persians know this area very well. They must have ways of getting through the mountains."

"I could search the outer rims of the mountains," Eksama offered. "I'm good at sneaking around," she joked.

He chuckled. "No doubt there. Okay, Eksama I'll give you three days to scout. Come back with something good."

Outside of the bedroom Xena anxiously chewed on the cuticles that were withering away on her fingers. She peered through the crack in the door at her daughter being tended to by several maids and the physician hovering over her like a baby bird. She felt a hand on her arm and jumped.

She turned to her wife. "Gabrielle," she put on a smile.

"How is she?"

Xena wagged her hand and brushed her wet fingernails on her blouse. "She's better now. I think she's spreading herself way too thin. I'm very worried about her."

"Me too." She wrapped an arm around Xena. "Did she tell you what caused a panic reaction like that?"

Xena shook her head. "I don't really want to ask."

"Xena, this is too much for her," she said quietly so the maids couldn't eavesdrop. "I know that she's the queen mother of the empire but she could barely breathe a half hour ago. Maybe we should let Arielle take over all of Ana's duties for awhile. You're also the khanum. You can take over too."

"Yeah, you're right," Xena folded her arms and shared a distanced stare with her daughter. She put on a smile and Anastasia motioned for her to come into the bedroom.

Anastasia sat up in bed and nervously toyed with her hair. She dismissed the servants that insisted on watching over her. Overcome with embarrassment she tried to shield her face from her mother who sat on the edge of the bed beside her.

"Sorry. I don't know what happened," she admitted coyly. "I didn't mean to scare both of you."

Gabrielle wrapped her arm around the bed post. "Well, you already did. What were you thinking about that caused you to panic like that?"

Ana twisted her hair around her wrist and shrugged a shoulder. "I don't know. When Arielle said she wanted to go to war with the Persians…" she trailed off. "I don't want Arielle to do that. I don't want her to go to war with anyone!"

Xena sighed and knew that was probably the reason why her daughter reacted the way that she did. She too, didn't want Arielle to go into the field but it wasn't her choice anymore. She couldn't keep Arielle from doing anything anymore just like she couldn't prevent Anastasia from going to war with Persia many times in the past.

"Anastasia, tatli kiz, you can't stop Arielle from doing what she wants. I know how she can be and lately she's been a bit obsessive –"

"A bit?" Gabrielle interjected.

"Okay, a lot. She's been very obsessive about the upcoming war with the Persians but she has a huge army! And Justinian's men are with Csaba."

"I don't want any of my children to go to war!" Ana lashed out. "At least I won't have Cera anywhere near the field. I don't want her involved in war in the future either."

Gabrielle bit her bottom lip and eyed her wife. She climbed onto the bed and sat beside the very distraught khatun and took her hand.

"Cera is involved, Ana," she regretfully told her. "She's been helping with the planning with Arielle and drew out several maps of Persia with Xerxes' help."

"Why wasn't I told this?" Anastasia grimaced at her mother. "Is there anything else that I don't know? What is the point of being khatun if I'm kept out everything my daughter does? I deserve to know!"

Xena gripped her angry daughter's hand firmly. "She didn't want to bother you. I think you should focus on yourself for awhile like Gabrielle said. Have your wedding with Navaz that you've been putting off. Spend time with Cera and let Arielle do her job as empress."

"I'm just supposed to sit here and do nothing but be a wife and mother?"

"Right!" Xena smiled. "Now you're getting it."

Gabrielle leaned her head on the khatun's shoulder. "We'll be with Arielle the entire time. We won't let anything happen to her."

Arielle sat beside her sister with an eager smile. Curiosity overcame her and she reached over casually and nudged her sister's belly, trying to rouse her niece or nephew.

Cera frowned and slapped her sister's hand.

Arielle's eyebrow raised and her hand roved across her sister's belly. "Is the baby sleeping or what?" she asked.

Cera groaned, clearly not amused but she couldn't help but smile at her sister's over enthusiastic attitude. She'd never seen her sister so happy before and honestly, it was a little bit frightening.

Arielle drummed her fingers on the baby which only irritated her little sister even further. She leaned over close to her sister's stomach. "Hello?" she said loudly. "Neredesin?"

Cera pursed her mouth. "You're obviously scaring the baby."

"Shut up, Cera." She felt small flutters and grinned. "See, I didn't scare the baby," she spat. "Did we wake you up, your highness?" She teased, talking to the baby. "Wow. You're clearly having a great time in there."

The princess nudged her sister's arm and their eyes met. "Why don't you go bother someone else?"

"But I'm spending time with my niece or nephew!" Arielle's eyes lit up. "Look at this!"

"I can see…" Cera pointed to her eye. "Stop poking me."

They argued back and forth much like they used to when they were children. Everyone around them snickered at the sisters' banter.

Defiantly, Arielle responded, "make me."

While giggling she kept getting pinched by her little sister. She shielded her face from the slaps to her shoulders and arms. Coiling in on herself she peeked through her fingers and saw her grandmother standing in the large archway at the other end of the room.

"Okay, okay, I surrender," she finally let up and kissed Cera's hand. "Gotta go receive a lecture from grandma. I can see it in her eyes," she whispered and Cera let out a muffled snicker. "I'll be coming by your room later tonight with the midwife. Don't even think of trying to avoid me, Cera!"

She ran to the other side of the room and her grandmother pulled her aside in a quiet space. She kept waving at her sister and then turned to the menacing stare in front of her. Suddenly, she felt a wave of uneasiness settle in the pit of her stomach.

"Arielle, I need to speak to you about your mother," she said softly.

"Mother? Is she alright?"

Xena's eyebrow twitched. "She's fine. She's in her room but she had a little…breakdown earlier."

"A breakdown? Was she crying? Did she faint again? Grandma, tell me!"

"Shut up, girl! I'm trying to tell you!" Xena slapped the empress' arm. "She doesn't want you to go to war. She's worried that something will happen to you but Gabrielle made a promise," she cursed her wife inwardly, "that we're going to watch over you on the battlefield."

Arielle crossed her arms. "You mean babysit me. Grandma, I am an empress now. I don't need you and Gabrielle to watch over me like a little girl."

"I don't want to, believe me." Xena shook her head and raised her brows. "But I'm only doing this for your mother and her sanity."

"Well, I don't want mother to have another breakdown I guess," Arielle was forced into submission. "But just to be clear, you're not babysitting me. You're just working with me on the field. Got it?"

Xena leaned down close to her granddaughter's face. Much to her chagrin, she gave into Arielle's wishes.

"Whatever you say, khagana."

The Caucasus

Csaba gave her three days but she only needed two. Eksama rode back into camp with the Byzantine soldiers that came with her to scout. She regrouped with Csaba inside his tent and his quiet time writing a letter. was put on hold. She stood in the center of the tent and Csaba briefly eyed her, unaware of how long she'd been waiting for his undivided attention.

"Eksama." he set the parchment aside. "You're back early. Did you find anything useful?"

"Am I interrupting something? Should I come back later?"

"No, I was just writing a letter to my sister but maybe I should hold off on that if you've got news for me," he hinted, eager to hear her report.

She nervously grinned. "Could you send the guards out?" she asked politely but firmly.

Csaba didn't like the sound of that. He rarely spoke in private with other officials even if they were family. He did as requested and sent the Hun soldiers out of the tent. Once the space was cleared he stood and walked around to lean his backside against the desk.

"You've got my full attention, Eksama."

She took in a large inhale. "I don't trust the Byzantines," she said plainly. "I did find a Persian camp located in the east, wedged in between the mountains. I suspect that the Persians know that we are here."

He figured as much and nodded. "What does that have to do with your distrust of the Byzantines? I know we are enemies and Elemund is allies with Justinian but you don't have a very good track record yourself."

Though she'd been living amongst her family for months now, she was under constant surveillance like the true criminal she was. She knew that she was here because Csaba wanted to keep his watchful eye on her. She also knew that nobody in her new found family trusted her completely and that put her at a disadvantage. Somehow, she needed to earn their trust and loyalty but from where she stood, that just wasn't feasible.

"What is going to happen with the Byzantines after this war?" she asked.

"We'll go back to being enemies just like we were before. We've made temporary alliances in the past with the Visigoths and Romans. This is no different."

She pressed her fingertips together and puckered her lips. "Csaba, I know you don't trust me and you have very good reasons not to but I really don't think working with the Byzantines is a good idea. I've never fought against the Persians before but you have. We don't need Justinian's fucking men to fight this war."

"If you don't give me a good reason to not trust the Byzantines then there is nothing I can do," Csaba said and folded his arms, glaring at his aunt. "Do you have something to say?"

"I…sent someone to spy on Elemund." She hated to say that and knew she was already breaking her good streak with Csaba.

He groaned. "And you didn't say anything. How were you able to do that with the guards following you in Pannonia?"

"As I said, I'm good at sneaking around," she winked. "The point is; my spy said that Elemund is going around to other tribes in the north and forming a huge army to rival us –you."

Csaba gave a lopsided smile. "Us, Eksama. You are one of us. Why didn't you tell me this earlier?"

"I wanted to make sure."

He wagged his finger then sat down at his desk and pulled the parchment across the tabletop to begin writing his letter again. Eksama continued to stand in the tent amidst the awkward silence between them. She was expecting him to give her a stern lecture and she deserved it. She snuck around behind everybody's back and concocted a clandestine plan to spy on the man whom she once called her son.

"What are you doing?" she asked curiously.

"Writing Arielle. I'm telling her that you sent a spy."

She worriedly went over the various scenarios in her head. Was she going to be kicked out of the clan? Imprisoned? Beaten?

"Do you know the names of these tribes?" he lifted his eyes with a warm smile.

Gabrielle sat on the bed and massaged her wife's shoulders. She tried to be gentle as she was accused of having very rough sailor hands but it was difficult to be gentle when her wife's shoulders were beyond tight. She dug her fingers into one of the knots and Xena grunted.

"Gabrielle!" she hissed and reached over her head.

Gabrielle ducked down to evade the hand coming straight for her head. "I'm sorry! I don't know why you bothered to ask me to do this when all you do is complain that I'm hurting you. You're such a baby."

Xena gasped. "I am not and I never asked you! You volunteered."

"I won't make that same mistake again," she muttered. "You should really see a professional. Maybe you could curse them out instead of me."

"Alright, you've made your point. I will keep my mouth shut from now on," Xena said and winced at the aching pain in her shoulder.

As she kept massaging through the knots her eyes darted to the large doors and noticed the heavy latch was pulled over the handles. She rolled her thumbs along her wife's skin and hummed quietly.

"Xena, why is our door bolted shut?"

Distorting her face in obvious discomfort, Xena eyed the doors and smiled. "I don't want any interruptions."

"I see." Gabrielle dragged her thumb across the knot and heard a pop. "Oh…"

Xena's eyes widened and her shoulders tensed. "What was that sound?" she asked and looked over her shoulder.

"Nothing…" she spun her wife's head around to face forward. "Are you relaxed yet?" she nervously kept massaging but gentler this time.

"Not really."

Had enough of the torture she released Gabrielle from her duties and spun around on the bed. She grabbed the blonde's hand and smiled.

"Thank you." she pulled the robe over her bare shoulders and tightened the sash around her waist. "There is one thing I don't like about living in Scythia."

"Aside from Arielle pestering you about war? Never thought I'd hear you tire from discussions of war," Gabrielle chortled.

Xena walked to her vanity and picked up a bottle of sherbet. "You have a point. I surprise myself." She held up the bottle. "Wine is illegal here. Who came up with that stupid law and why hasn't Arielle changed it?"

"There's probably a black market in the city that sells it." Gabrielle casually said and picked at the loose fabric at the hem of her silk robe. She raised her chin and saw a wild look about her wife's blue eyes.

"Xena…" she began warily, "I don't like that face."

"Gabrielle, you are a genius. What would I do without you?"

"Oh god." She slapped her forehead. "Forget I said anything!"

Xena stripped herself of her robe and Gabrielle's eyes widened at the pair of bare legs only a few feet from her. Her cheeks were warm to the touch as she watched Xena slip on a pair of black pants, leaving her topless. She put a hand to her chest and exhaled slowly.

"Just what do you think you're…you're doing?" she asked in a shaky voice that she tried to conceal.

Xena threw a black blouse over her head and tied the laces around her cleavage. Then, she threw a pair of pants at her wife's miffed face and laughed lightly.

"We're going into the city."

Gabrielle ripped the pants off her head. "Excuse me? It's the middle of the night!"

"All the more reason to scope the city to find wine." Xena grinned mischievously and quickly laced her boots. "Or you could stay here all by yourself. This was your idea. Your call…"

"Nice, Xena, real nice," the blonde mocked. "You're doing this all for a bottle of wine?"

"I am in desperate need of a distraction." Xena stood from the chair and smiled grandly. "Are you coming or what?"

To slink around in the middle of the night during the quietest time in the city wasn't Gabrielle's idea of fun. She liked to have adventures every now and then but it was always a bit worrisome whenever her wife got on one of her kicks to venture out. Gabrielle was just settling into the night until she just had to open her mouth.

They stalked the dark streets and wandered around quite a bit until they found a large lit tavern. There were a lot of people inside and music playing from within the tavern as well. Dressed in dark cloaks with hoods they approached the tavern.

They were accosted by a tall man blocking the doorway. Xena smirked and grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the wall outside then kneed him in the groin. She grabbed Gabrielle's hand and hurried inside.

Xena flipped the hood off and wandered around the crowded tavern. The place was mostly filled with men. Some had their fill of wine for the evening. Yes, she thought, there is definitely wine here. But where?

Gabrielle stuck close to her wife and crinkled her face in disgust as women were sitting on men's laps, entertaining them with more than just their lips and sweet wine language.

"This place is filled with whores and drunkards," Xena whispered.

"Can we leave now?"

"Not yet, Gabrielle." she rounded the corner and smiled. "We'll stay for awhile, get some wine and then go back to the palace."

Gabrielle groaned. "I'm regretting ever coming with you."

"Oh, stop."

They sat down across from a group of men who looked like they didn't belong. Three of the men were blonde from head to toe and the fourth had red wiry long hair. Xena rested her elbows on her knees and studied the men from afar. The redhead eyed her and smirked then went back to conversing with his group.

She flashed a smile and waved her hand to let him know that she was close by. She was ignored and then a young man brought her and Gabrielle two cups of wine to the table. She pulled out a couple of coins and set them on the table.

Gabrielle took a sip of the wine and released a satisfied sigh. "Okay, I did miss wine too but did we really have to do this?"

"Coming with me wasn't such a bad idea, was it?"

While they enjoyed the wine, Xena looked around the room and smiled briefly at a few men who passed by their table. She heard Arielle's name from the blondes sitting across from her and suddenly her ears zeroed in on the conversation.

"Who wants to request a meeting with the empress?" one of the blondes asked. "I hear she speaks with everyone."

"She gives charity to the church which is surprising for a pagan," the redhead cackled. "Huns will soon take over every stretch of land especially if the Avar Empire is lead by a Hun."

Xena tapered her eyes as she eavesdropped on the men's table talk. In the front of tavern there suddenly were loud bursts of screams from women. She and Gabrielle stood up and left the secluded area and everyone in the tavern scattered.

Avar soldiers stormed in with weapons and threw out the men. They smashed all of the bottles on the ground and threw cups at the walls. The scantily dressed women ran to the back of the tavern and hid behind the bar to escape the brutish Avars.

Gabrielle slipped away with her wife and attempted to leave without going unnoticed. Two soldiers accosted them and forced them against the wall.

"Get your hands off of me!" Xena growled and she tried to resist.

Her body was pressed against the wall with an elbow pressing into her back.

After the raid was over the soldiers waited in the square with several of the men tied by their wrists with bags over their heads. Xena and Gabrielle were knelt down side by side. Xena itched for the sword strapped to her hip and squirmed, twisting her sore wrists.

A moment later all of the cloths were ripped off everyone's heads and Gabrielle blinked at the torch lights and then saw the royal guard standing in a row.

Arielle rolled her eyes. "What the fuck."

She pushed a soldier forward and they instantly untied Xena's wrists and Gabrielle's shortly after. Xena stood up to gather herself and then shoved the Avar soldier aside and walked up to her granddaughter with disheveled hair and wild eyes.

"You arrested my grandmother?" she turned to the undercover raiders.

"Arielle, we need to talk," Xena said with urgency.

"Yes, we certainly do." Arielle crossed her arms. "What are you doing at a whore house in the middle of the night? I was dragged out of bed for this."

"That isn't important. There are men that were talking about you. I don't think they're from Scythia."

Arielle groaned. "We're going back to the palace."

Kuba raised his hand. "Um, khagana, what do you want to do with the others?" he gestured to the tied up drunken men.

She turned around and sighed. "Just release them. I don't have time to deal with this right now."

Gabrielle clapped her hands and jabbed her wife's ribs. "This was a very eventful night. You got your wine. We got arrested and then we're rescued by your granddaughter. Oh, I can't wait to hear what Anastasia has to say about this in the morning!"