Chapter 2
Athena popped into her brother's temple without an invitation and stormed over to the gloomy god of war sitting on his large throne. She stomped her boot on the ground and he lifted his eyes slowly, unimpressed by her ferocity.
"Ares, you tell your witch bitch to turn my warriors back!" she demanded.
He waved his hand and propped a leg over the throne's arm. "Does it look like she is here right now?" he looked around his temple. "Nope. Not here. Come back later Athena." He shooed away and she slashed his hand with her sword and he hissed. "Get out of my temple!"
She was about to strike him again and heard a minute voice beside her and whipped her head around, eyeing the small boy with dark hair and big brown eyes. "Oh I see. She left you in charge of the brat." She snidely remarked and snarled at the boy. "Run along," she said and Damian frowned up at her.
Ares rest his palm against his cheek and cleared his throat. "Damian, go away," he said to his son. The brunette boy scowled at the goddess and slowly retreated in silence.
"What an abomination that child is," she said with a dramatic eye roll. "You need to make your sorceress woman appear so she can turn my warriors back into humans! They're running amuck around Marathon."
"Do you think I wanted it to end this way?" he stood from his throne, towering over his sister. "I was supposed to win and she ruined it!"
"Ha!" Athena smiled. "You were supposed to win? In your dreams, brother." She jabbed her finger in his chest. "Listen, if you don't find Circe and convince her to turn my soldiers back I will find her myself and make your life a living nightmare. Got that?"
Gabrielle waited outside a merchant shop while Xena bargained for some boots for this mysterious woman to wear. She couldn't help but stare at her and watch her cling close to Xena's side, smiling gleefully and flipping her long gold locks behind her shoulder casually. Just who is she trying to impress?
She even saw Xena smile, nodding her head at the tall blonde as they exchanged words. Frowning, she tapped her fingers curled around the staff in her grasp. A lot of people liked Xena. A lot of people knew Xena and what she stood for. There were plenty of women and men who wanted to follow Xena and be just like her. Gabrielle had come to conclusion that this woman was just infatuated with Xena. Yes, that had to be it. It was the only reasonable explanation for this.
"Xena…" the bard called out her name, finally grabbing her attention. Xena thanked the merchant for the boots and handed them off to the new traveler. "Took you long enough."
The warrior emits an unsure smile and Argo held the boots in her arms, not able to keep her eyes off of Xena. Gabrielle noticed the overzealous blonde staring at Xena and sighed loudly. Argo turned her head and briefly grinned at her, not forgetting she was still present.
"Look Gabrielle, now we have matching boots!" Argo cheered and shoves the pair of shoes in the bard's face.
Gabrielle takes a generous step backward and grimaced up at Xena. "Does she really have to come with us?"
Xena gave a slow eye roll and Argo's lips curled into a frown. "Why are you being so snobby, Gabrielle? What did I ever do to you?" the tall blonde alleged.
The bard's mouth gapes. "Snobby?!"
"Alright!" Xena yelled. "We have a duty to fix whatever is going on in this village and I don't need you two fighting with each other."
Gabrielle grumbled and dug her staff deeper into the ground, glaring at the tall blonde who stuck very close to Xena. "I just don't see why she has to tag along. We don't even know your name."
Argo quirked her mouth sideways and looked down at her slender tanned human hands. She didn't know exactly how she ended up this way or how to fix it. She assumed that Xena would fix her. Xena could fix anything, she thought. She didn't want to come off stupid or silly by revealing herself too soon and she was just getting used to this body of hers.
Her eyes darted around the village, eyeing anything that looked familiar to come up with a name for herself. Gabrielle impatiently tapped her boot on the soil and Xena's caution was obvious. She spotted an inn called the Ambrosia Inn and smiled.
"Ambrosia," she says with a big smile.
The bard raised a brow. "Ambrosia? The food of the gods?" she question's the tall blonde. "Your name can't be Ambrosia!"
"Well, why not?" asked Argo confusedly. She didn't think it was such a bad name.
Xena rolled her eyes. "I've heard worse names. We should scout up ahead to see if we can find any clues to the disappearing men."
Argo nodded. "Great! I will lead the way!" she pushed Gabrielle out of the way and ran ahead of them to search for herself. Gabrielle stumbled into a tree and groaned, fixing her blouse and short skirt.
"Xena, I don't know what you see in her but she has it out for me!"
The warrior stifled a laugh and grabbed Gabrielle's hand then began walking in Argo's direction. "She's not so bad, Gabrielle. She's just a lost person. I would've thought you of all people would try to understand her."
Gabrielle lowered her gaze and thrust her staff over her shoulder. She peered upward at Argo and saw her looking at a tree and takes a handful of the leaves and stuffs them in her mouth.
"Uh…" she nudged Xena. "You wanted to bring her along."
Xena shook her head and ran over to Argo and yanked the leaves out of her mouth. "What do you think you're doing?"
Argo chewed the remnants of the leaves and stared at her master in confusion. "I was hungry. I saw this tree filled with leaves! They have little berries too." She picked the small red berries off the leaf stems. "They're not poisonous. I checked. Do you want some?" she held out a handful of berries.
Xena pushed the berries away. "No. We need to focus."
Joxer roamed in an open field after he nearly escaped death from a group of travelers on the east side of the river. Growing tired and thirsty he thought it was a good idea to stop for some water but he stumbled upon a camp of men who weren't too kind to strangers. Luckily, he was able to run off without having the courage to fight them off, he survived.
He had heard that Xena and Gabrielle were in this area of Greece and decided to look for them. He'd been separated from them for a couple of months and after what happened in Thebes, he knew he was not welcomed. He had a funny feeling that Xena didn't care for him but he knew that she'd do anything to save him anyhow.
He clumsily slipped over a cluster of rocks and slid down a grassy hill. He landed on his back and helmet draped over his face. Groaning, he sat up slowly and raised the helmet. His eyes widened at a cave and smiled.
Joxer, feeling brave and adventurous after he escaped the brutes over the hillside, wandered into the cave. He pulled out his sword and stubbed his boot on a rock and hissed then whacked himself in the forehead with his own sword.
Gathering himself together he breathed out heavily and loudly marched deeper into the cave. His armor clanked against his body and made more noise than he realized.
"Hello?!" he called out. He spotted a tray of fruit and eagerly waltzed over to the tray and began snacking on the assortment of berries and sliced apples.
A low growl was heard from within the cave and Joxer halted with a mouthful of berries. He spun around and a huge black panther sauntered out from the shadows. He swallowed half the berries and spat out the remainder.
"Oh…" he smiled nervously and backed away slowly. "Nice kitty!" he put up his hands and he tripped over a tree root and fell flat on his rear. The panther snarled and strode towards him. "You in charge of this cave? I –I was just passing through!" he explained and scooted backwards until he bumped into something.
He lifted his eyes and saw a beautiful woman with dark hair staring down at him. His eyes drifted up underneath the slit in her dress and she whacked his head with a long scepter.
"Ow!" he hissed and rubbed his head and then heard the panther growling, inching closer.
She grabbed him by the shoulder and lifted him up off the ground with ease. "What are you doing in here?" she asks and slams him against the wall.
"Oh, I –I was just…just passing by and saw this cave. I –I was searching for my girls. They're my pals. Xena and Gabrielle. Ever heard of em? I'm sure you have. Everyone knows Xena!" he scoffed.
Circe raised her eyebrow and scanned the scrawny man's piss poor armor and sweat dripping down his forehead. "You…are a friend of Xena's?" she questions skeptically.
Joxer smiled, "well, yeah! Don't you know me? I'm Joxer, the best warrior in Greece, traveling warrior alongside the warrior princess and traveling bard!" he says proudly.
She smirks. "Never heard of you." she let go of his collar and he tried to escape and she stabbed the end of her scepter into his sleeve, pinning him to the wall. "I'm sure you traveled a long way…" she says with a serpent-like grin.
He nodded. "You wouldn't believe it but I defeated a bunch of thugs down by the river. They weren't prepared for Joxer the –"
She slapped a hand over his mouth. "I'm sure it was very entertaining and invigorating to watch." She says dismissively, not the least bit interested in this oaf's fairytale stories. "Would you like to stay awhile? I have plenty of food and drink here."
He smiles nervously and was unsure of her intentions, although he was very thirsty and hungry after his long journey. "W-what about the cat?" he eyed the black panther's hungry golden eyes.
"Jafas? Oh he's just a dear friend of mine. He won't harm you. You're not afraid of him, are you? A big strong warrior like you…"
"I…I need to find Xena and Gabrielle. They're probably waiting for me." He tried to pull away and she forced her body against his and her hot breath grazed his cheek. He closed his eyes and took a big gulp, trying to ignore her.
"I'm good friends with Xena. I could help you find your friends…" she whispered in his ear, barely touching his skin with her soft lips.
"R-really?"
She pulled away and looked into his doe eyes. The witch's irises turned a bright crimson and she pinched his chin. "You will do everything I say," she tells him in a smooth voice.
His eyes glazed over, listening to her soothing tone. "I…will do everything you say."
"You will bring Xena to me," she says.
Xena walked around the entire field outside of the village and couldn't find anything that could lead to the disappearing men. Her mind was more focused on Gabrielle's complaints throughout their excursion together. She didn't like her behaving the way she did.
She came around to a huddle of trees and saw animal tracks. There were large paw prints of animals that were not indigenous to the area which she thought odd. She knelt down and touched the large imprint of the animal. It appeared to be a cat, possibly a lion or puma.
Gabrielle watched Argo from afar, walking around the trees, who was very close to Xena at all times. She hated to say it, but she was irritated that this woman was taking up Xena's time and space without giving any thought to her existence.
Argo knelt down, smiling at Xena and scooted close. The warrior raised an eyebrow and peered over at the brown eyed blonde and briefly smiled. "Wow, such big footprints," she acknowledged.
"Yes, they are…" Xena scooped the soil in her palm and crushed it in between her fingers.
"Those look like puma tracks. We could follow them?" suggested Argo.
Gabrielle scoffed and walked over then grabbed Argo's shoulder. "I think Xena knows what she's doing. We're not going to follow those tracks. Who knows what will be on the other side?"
Xena stood up and the bard gave her a hopeful smile. "These tracks are from a cat just like Ambrosia said. This area doesn't have large animals like lions, tigers and panthers. It's very strange."
"And we're not going to trace the tracks, right?" the petite blonde reiterated. "Right, Xena?"
"We should alert Klyde first to see if he's seen any large cats roaming the area. That still doesn't explain the missing men though."
Argo held up her hand, eager to drop her opinion. "Maybe the cats ate the men?"
"There are no cats here," said Gabrielle with a snide tone.
"She's right," Xena interjected. "They could have eaten the men, but that doesn't tie anything in as to why the men would leave in the middle of the night. We should head back to the village and tell Klyde what we found."
She left to head back to the village and now Gabrielle was alone with Argo. Gabrielle's penetrating glare did not go unnoticed by the tall lanky blonde. Argo always felt tense around Gabrielle whenever Xena wasn't around and she had an opportunity to voice her opinion, but she wasn't sure if this was the right time or not.
Despite living her life as a horse and tending to Xena's commands for several years, she enjoyed being a human. She was finally able to tell Xena everything that she always wanted to, but to tell the bard what she felt for her was going to be more than a challenge.
All three sat in the Ambrosia Inn inside the village after Xena explained to Klyde of their findings. Their search did nothing but bring them to a dead end. Klyde had never seen any giant cats roaming around before so now they were back to square one.
Xena focused on eating and staring off into space. She couldn't quite wrap her head around this strange occurrence in this town. Meanwhile, Gabrielle was tapping her spoon on the bowl, staring at Argo sitting opposite from her. She thought it odd that the name of the inn they were staying in was also the name of the mysterious tall blonde woman.
Argo had yet to touch the food which was comprised of meat. She frowned at the bowl and Gabrielle slammed the spoon into the bowl, alarming Argo.
"You're not hungry all of a sudden? You were very eager to eat random leaves off a tree earlier."
Argo smirked and pushed the plate of food away. "I don't eat meat."
Gabrielle nods slowly and stared at Xena who wasn't even listening. "So, what do you eat then? Fish?"
"I prefer apples."
"Apples. How nutritious…" she smiles forcefully and grabs Xena's arm. "She is weird!" she whispered.
The warrior turned to the bard in the middle of chewing. "What?"
Argo stood up abruptly, alarming her traveling companions. "I'm going to ask the innkeeper if he has any apples," she says excitedly and leaves the table. Xena thought nothing of it and sat back in the chair, wiping her fingers on a wet cloth.
Gabrielle grimaced, narrowing her eyes. "Xena, don't you think she's weird? She appeared out of nowhere and wanted to follow you."
"Why are you being so hard on her? She's a nice girl," the warrior smiled and elbowed her friend gently. "Nicer than you're being right now," she muttered.
"I'm trying to be nice but she keeps picking at me and giving me mean mugs."
"Maybe you should try and smile. You have a nice smile. Use it." Xena winked.
Gabrielle huffed and folded her arms then sank in her chair. Argo returned with a bowl of berries instead of apples. She sat down and looked over at Xena and pushed a goblet of port towards her. "I know you like this kind," she says.
Xena raised her eyebrow and stared at the wine then to the tall blonde. "Oh…thank you…"
Argo pointed at the innkeeper at the bar. "He says you need to 'pay' him. He sounded really mad about it."
Gabrielle slapped her forehead and then the coin pouch was dropped in her lap. She whipped her head around to Xena and her mouth gaped. "Go pay the man, Gabrielle."
"Why can't she do it? She's the one who bought the food and wine. She should pay him. We didn't even ask for port."
Xena frowned. "Just go do it, what's your problem?"
Gabrielle pushed her chair back and gripped the coin pouch tightly. Her eyes darted to Argo who sat opposite of Xena and she had a twinkle in her eyes. Rolling her eyes she stormed off to the bar to pay the supposedly angry innkeeper.
Argo smugly smiled and watched as the fuming bard passed by her. She leaned her elbows on the table, gazing at Xena. "I get the feeling Gabrielle doesn't like me very much."
Xena widened her eyes and licked her lips. Setting the goblet down, she peered over at Gabrielle arguing with the innkeeper and slamming her fist on the counter. She cringed and brushed the bangs out of her eyes.
"You know, it's odd. She's normally very welcoming towards strangers."
"I'm sure she'll warm up to me soon."
Xena raised her eyebrows and sipped the wine, feeling quite doubtful of that due to Gabrielle's behavior.
The three were offered a room to stay inside the inn and when they arrived to the room there was only one bed. Gabrielle looked at the bed and placed a hand on her hip. She was standing behind Argo and Xena who both towered over her. Without asking, Argo sat on the bed and crossed a leg over the other.
"Xena and I can sleep here. Gabrielle can sleep over there," she points to a mat on the floor with wool blankets. "You don't mind do you, Gabrielle?"
"Do I mind?!"
Xena gripped the bard's shoulder and solved the problem between the three of them. "I'll sleep on the floor. You can share the bed with Gabrielle." she walked off, not in the mood to argue at all. She began taking off her corset and placed her sword and chakram against the wall beside the floor mat.
Argo was somewhat disappointed that she couldn't share the bed with Xena and turned to Gabrielle who was equally as displeased as she was. She put on a smile and scooted to the far side of the bed and paddled the empty spot next to her.
"Come, Gabrielle, we can share the bed."
The bard folded her arms, unwilling to do just that. She glanced over at Xena who was ignoring the awkward situation and was already lying down, covering herself with the blankets.
"Are you going to stand there all night?" asked Argo.
Gabrielle sighed and sat on the bed as far away from Argo as possible and rolled over onto her side, curling her knees to her chest. Argo smiled and stared up at the ceiling, enjoying this moment with her two companions she'd traveled with for years now.
"We will be good friends one day, Gabrielle. You'll see."