Chapter 40

Xena just stared, unmoving, at the God that now stood before her. She could feel the sadness within her disappear and be replaced with a warmth at the sight of him. She was ecstatic to see him but she didn't want him to know that, of course. She tried to keep her emotions hidden while she simply stood there waiting to see what he was going to do, rather shocked that he was actually there in front of her. After all this time, he was finally back, but what was it that he wanted now she wondered. He had left her hanging all those months ago without so much as a word. She was not someone that he could just string along and expect no consequences in return. At that mere thought, she started to become angry with him, all that talk of how he wanted her as his warrior and when she was finally ready to do just that he didn't even bother to show up. He had been gone for months and now he felt like showing his face again, well, he had another thing coming and if he believed that things were as they were before then he was dead wrong. A lot had happened, things that couldn't be undone and if he had been there like he had promised then maybe those irreversible situations wouldn't have happened. Her eyes grew more colder as she glared at him, only to immediately notice that he seemed bothered about something as he was cautiously looking around the room for some unseen force.

The War God was carefully sensing the room and the nearby rooms for any sign of another God. He was still a little tense from Thor's threats against Xena and he wanted to make sure that the bastard was not just waiting for the right moment to do something to his Princess. Satisfied enough that the only Godly presence around was his own he moved his eyes to what had been kept out of his reach for so long. She looked absolutely breathtaking and he just let his eyes roam over her for a moment. He could see that she no longer had that sadness in her eyes and once he had arrived there he had seen the small spark of joy that had flashed behind those sapphire moons of hers before she quickly clamped down on it and now he saw the anger that was clearly building in them.

"What is it that you want?" Xena hissed out angrily to him.

"It's nice to see you too my dear." he bit back sarcastically. She was mad at him, great, exactly what he didn't want to happen. He knew that his absence was going to make her drift away from him but he was going to get that ground back.

"Don't call me that, I'm not your dear!" she exclaimed irritably, not liking that he just assumed that she was his. Who did he think he was anyway, he was beginning to be as bad as Apollo in just thinking that she belonged to him just because they shared the same space for the time being.

Ares laughed softly at her comment, he was unfazed by her words and he began to close in the distance between them. He could feel the surge of her aura from all the way across the room. Sweet Fates, how he had missed that feeling, the raw power that was just rolling off of her, energizing him, making him shiver a little from the feeling. She seemed warily of his movements as she watched him closely with those cold sapphire eyes and he didn't like that she was now uneasy around him. But all thoughts that she had completely lost all trust in him was erased from his mind the moment he picked up on the way her heart started to thud a little faster in her chest as he crept closer to her. He smiled to himself, she might have been trying to show with great effort that nothing was the same but like always, her mutinous body gave her away every time. Her eyes might have been saying that she didn't want him there but her body was telling a completely different story. The War God stared at her carefully, he was going to make her see that nothing had changed and that she still belonged to him.

"That's a lovely sword you have there." he said smoothly and arched an inquisitive eyebrow at her as the words left his mouth, "I wonder where you got it from."

Xena cocked her head to the side to look at her blade for a moment and then focused her attention back on the War God. She knew that he knew exactly where she had gotten it from. What was he trying to get at with bringing it up, did he want it back, was that it?

"If I recall correctly, I seem to have a similar one, just like that one, in one of my temples not too far from here. What are the odds of two people having the exact same sword?"

The Warrior Princess narrowed her eyes at him, so he did want it back. Fine, if he wanted it then he could take it, she didn't need anything from him anyway. Without uttering a single word to him she pulled the sword from its scabbard and then tossed it to the floor between them and turned her back to the War God and blatantly dismissed him. She had things that she needed to do and she didn't have any more time to waste with the likes of him. She had already given him too much of her time already and there was nothing that she wanted from him anymore.

Ares watched her actions intently and then he focused on the blade that she had so carelessly tossed away. He wasn't going to let her escape from him that easily, nothing had changed and he planned on claiming what was his. He found her stubbornness both charming and irritating at the same time. With a wave of his hand the sword vanished from the floor and reappeared in his hand.

"Now what is a warrior without a sword? Especially my Chosen warrior." he asked lightly as he continued to close in the gap between them.

"Why would I want to have the bogus claim of being your Chosen? I don't need or want anything from you."

He chuckled softly at her comment, biting lightly his lower lip. She belonged to him more then she knew. That fire growing inside of her, exhilarating his being as she boldly defied him, no amount of ambrosia could be as sweet as the feeling he was now getting from just being in her mere presence. He walked up behind her and gently slid the blade back into its sheath on her back and then lightly let his fingers run over her shoulder.

"Consider it a gift. It was made for you anyway." he whispered against her ear, letting his lips lightly brush against her lobe, "The fact that you were able to pick it out on your own just shows how much this sword was meant to be yours."

The War God inhaled deep the scent of her hair. It engulfed his senses and he found himself getting lost in her sweet aroma. By the Gods he hadn't realized how much he had actually missed that smell until it now filled him again. He buried his face softly into her silky raven tresses and breathed in her scent again, letting his senses get accustomed to her unique smell. He looked at the bare flesh of her shoulder and not being able to resist he trailed his fingers against her skin again, it was just as smooth as he remembered. His eyes sparkled with delight as he felt the very faint tremor that went through her as he began to draw small circles against her skin. It felt amazing to have her body trembling at his caress, to be able to have her this close again, to be able to touch her and he nuzzled his head against hers and breathed in her scent again…absolutely addictive.

With having the War God so close, Xena felt her nerves getting worked up from his nearness and then, he touched her- a soft caress that gently glided across her skin, sending shivers down her spine from the feeling of it. She tried to get a hold of her actions but it was a lost cause as her body just seemed to want to have his sweet caress last forever. Snapping herself out of her fog and wanting to draw back that much needed line between them, she abruptly turned around and roughly pushed him away from herself.

"I don't need your gifts!"

She reached up to pull the sword out again and to shove it back into his hands so he could just leave already, but before she even pulled it faintly out of its scabbard the War Gods hand had wrapped around her wrist, stilling her movements. Xena just looked up at him defiantly, why was he pushing this damn weapon on her? She didn't want it anymore and she could get a new one.

"My Chosen deserves to have a reliable sword." he simply stated as an answer to her unspoken question.

"I am not your Chosen." she contradicted while holding his unwavering gaze.

His auburn eyes, boring into hers though told her that he didn't believe a single word that she had just said.

Slowly, but without taking one step back, Ares had loosened his hold on her wrist and her arm fell back lightly to her side. He moved his hand to the side of her face and Xena moved her head back from it a little, not wanting him to complete his goal. He just smiled smugly at her and moved his hand to do something that he had been itching to do since he watched her fall asleep in his bed… he affectionately ran his fingers through her long raven tresses for a few moments. He held a strand of her hair in his hand and then twirled it around his fingers. Xena just darted her eyes back and forth between his never ending gaze and the lock of her hair he now held between his fingers. What was he doing, he seemed almost transfix as he wove her hair through his fingers. She was starting to think that he might have a few screws loose with the way he always seemed to like to touch her hair.

After a few more minutes of just staring at each other, of guessing which one was going to falter first, he casually dropped the strand and then tenderly ran the backs of his fingers down her cheek. Xena closed her eyes for a moment at the contact but soon snapped them back open to show the War God that he didn't affect her as much as he would like to think he did. With soft, unhurried movements he ran his fingers down her neck where he lightly traced her collar bone for an instant and then slowly worked his way down her chest, moving his fingertips in the most delicate caress and, as he felt her heart beat change, he could now enjoy the sight of her breasts that were now heaving a little more erratically with her breathing.

Xena's heart was hammering against her chest as the War God sensually ran his hand over her body. She kept her eyes locked with his as he teasingly moved his fingers closer to her breasts. A small smirk formed on his face when he felt her heart beating faster with his descent and she chastised herself for not having more control over her own treacherous body. He held her blue moons intently with his own and then he shifted his eyes to her chest for a moment and then back up to her face. His conceited smile widened a little more as he slowly moved his hand to the fabric of her clothes and then dipped his fingers in between her breasts below the material. He lightly caressed her skin there for a minute, intentionally allowing his fingers to graze over her breast, watching how her eyes dilated for a moment from the contact, and then he pulled out the pendant that she had tucked away there.

He held it in his hand for a second and then looked down at the beautifully crafted item and softly ran his thumb over it. The War God backed her up a little bit until her legs hit against the edge of the table. He leaned in close to her, bringing his face just a breath away from her own. He was so close to her now, the closest he had been in a very long time and her labored breaths hitting against his face were luring him dangerously close to losing all control. He glanced down to the pendant again and then slowly moved his eyes upward, lingering for a moment on her slightly parted lips and then back up to her eyes.

"My Chosen." he whispered out against her lips and then slipped the pendant back to where he had found it, this time prolonging his retraction as he gradually ran each and every finger across her breast as he slowly moved his hand upward. How he wanted nothing more than to feel her body pressed up against his with no restrictions.

Xena gasped slightly from the contact and could clearly see the building passion that was forming in the War God's eyes as he began to run his fingers back up her chest. Her body shuddered from the caress and she knew that they had got in a perilous place. The pure lust that was shining in Ares' eyes for her told her exactly where this was going to lead if she didn't put a stop to it. She placed her hands against his chest, adamant about putting some much needed space between their way too close bodies but she ended up not pushing him away as their eyes just held each other captive from any type of movement. With him standing so close to her she could smell his fragrance. His unique, so very familiar aroma ignited her senses and she shivered a little as she continued to breathe him in. She glanced down to his lips for an instant and then back up, realizing her mistake, to his hypnotizing warm chocolate eyes. What was she doing, she should be putting up as many walls as she could between them. He had gotten way to close the first time and she wasn't supposed to be letting him get that close again. He had left her, for months he had disappeared and... Her thoughts of trying to convince herself of how wrong this was were cut off as he lightly pressed his lips against hers.

All thoughts of the huge mistake she would be making left her and now her mind was consumed with the way his mouth moved against hers. He kissed her slowly, letting her drown in the sensation of his kiss as he got reacquainted with the taste of her sweet lips. She was thinking too much of the past and all she needed to focus on was their future together. Ares began to kiss her more sensually, making up for all the lost kisses that he had missed in his absence. The feel of their tongues melding together as they both explored each other again, relearning the confines of each other's mouths was indescribable and as the kiss became deeper, their passion for each other began to grow having them both slowly losing themselves in each other. He knew that he had her with the soft moan she released as she kissed him back and the way her hands had slightly fisted around the edges of his vest and pulled him faintly closer to her. It took all of his strength to break the hungry kiss and pull back from her slightly. He wanted nothing more than to have her and the sight of her red swollen lips from his kisses and her ragged breathing only made that need grow with an urgency.

In the mean time, Xena was dreadfully struggling to calm her nerves from that sensational kiss. She couldn't believe that a simple kiss could affect her so much and she slowly opened her eyes. Her blue moons connected with a feral brown filled with desire. That look staring back at her only heightened her own arousal and she wanted nothing more than to burn in his flame. Almost in slow motion, as if reading her mind, the God brought his hand up and let his fingers glide over her cheek and her eyes closed slightly from the soft caress and she turned her face into his hand and lightly let her lips sweep over his palm. He gently cupped her face and softly ran his thumb back and forth against her cheek and for the smallest instant, Xena leaned in to his warm touch. He took a hold of her hand and languidly entwined their hands together and brought his other hand up and he ran his fingers through her raven hair again and then leaned forward and placed a loving kiss against her forehead. He adoringly tucked her head beneath his chin and he smoothed back her hair for a little while…He had his Princess back and he wasn't going to let her slip away so easily this time.

The tender kiss seemed to have been her undoing as she stood there with her head delicately nestled against his chest, allowing him to hold her as his hand let go of hers and he gently wrapped his arm around her waist, securing her to him. She breathed him in and sighed out softly as her body relaxed into him more. His soft, soothing caresses as he stroked her hair, made her instinctively burrow her head a little more into the crook of his neck. The warm kisses he would place every now and then on the top of her head, caused her to automatically inch her arm hesitantly around his waist.

They stood like that for several moments, silently just enjoying the feel of the other's warmth, getting familiarized with each other's presence once more. His nearness, his touch, his kisses, it was overloading her senses and although she refused to admit it to herself, her body had missed his touch all that time, it had missed him tremendously and it entirely craved him. Her mind clouded with desire, she pulled back an inch and looked up at him with her decision made.

It was either going to leave her breathless... or with a pretty nasty scar.