COLD STREAMS OF BLOOD WHICH FLOW AS THE WHIP STRIKES

She was watching me, why was she watching me? I confess this is the first time I've ever had an audience during sex I've always been very private about it. I'm not angry, more perplexed by Gabrielle's behaviour it's not something I'm used to. I know we have the same sexuality in that we like both genders but her behaviour is very new to me. I swore for a moment that she was enjoying the show, but then I saw that look fade from her eyes, she almost looked annoyed but I'm not sure as to what made her angry, was is the fact that I was being pleasured and she wasn't or was she remembering her lost love? In truth I have no idea but I want to ask her but I know I have to handle this carefully. To be honest her watching me didn't bother me, which is strange because if it had been anyone else I'd have been furious maybe it was because it felt to me that she didn't mean to do it, it just happened.

If Gabrielle has odd tastes then that's okay I'm not going to judge her I know full well that there are people out there who like different things in the bedroom. I can only hope now that I can find her, Thaleia said that she hasn't been in her room since this morning apparently she got up very early which is very unusual for Gabrielle as she likes to sleep in far longer than I do. This morning though she left very early at sun up and she hasn't gone back to her room at all, I'm not sure where she is but I have a hunch. Xena moved her hand to her stomach as she carried on walking through the royal gardens she just hoped that the remedy Phantasos had given her had worked and that a child had taken hold in her womb. Calicos had not stayed after last night as soon as his job was complete he had returned to his trainer who was in the palace and they'd both been paid then they'd left as was normal routine. She turned the corner she was now in the shaded area of the garden where Gabrielle lover had been buried under the huge apple tree. She turned catching sight of the younger woman who was standing over his grave in deep thought, there was a very dark look in her eyes and she could sense a certain amount of anger even from this distance.

She had her arms folded and was looking at his crave where she laid a large batch of beautiful white flowers which she'd no doubt picked from the wilder areas of the garden. It was a very passionate statement as the younger woman must have searched all morning for these flowers as they were so widely scattered around the gardens and quite difficult to find. She looked up speaking softy. "Ah there you are Gabrielle you know I've been looking for you." Gabrielle turned looking at her lover's grave as she spoke in a cold tone unable to keep the bitterness out of her voice. "I'm sorry I've been preoccupied." Xena looked up at the sunlit sky as she came to stand behind the younger woman who still looked tense. "I wanted to speak to you about last night." Gabrielle took in a sharp breath. "Look I know I shouldn't have been in your room watching you with your lover I didn't know you had a partner. Plus it was none of my business and I had no place being there." Xena eased up her hand. "He's not my lover, he's only a sexual partner he performs a service, we aren't together as a couple."

Gabrielle looked down at her lover's grave for a long moment. "What you do and who you do it with is not my business." Xena looked up slightly she gently put her hand on the other woman's shoulder feeling her tense slightly at the touch clearly she was very unused to emotional contact of this type. "Look all I wanted to say was that I'm not angry with you, I was just surprised to see you there watching me." She paused before speaking. "I also don't like to judge, if that kind of thing turns you on it's all right with me, I know you're like me I mean you like both genders as I do but I'm sure you knew that already." Gabrielle narrowed her gaze. "I'd heard a rumour about that, but I don't pay much attention to rumours, I prefer to know the truth not exaggeration." Xena looked at her for a long moment. "What I'm trying to say is that I can understand why you might want to watch." Gabrielle took in a deep breath eyeing the other woman's hand unsure as to whether or not she should move it. "You misunderstand what I was doing was nothing more than a bad habit, one I should have kicked a long time ago."

Xena slowly leaned forward. "I don't think there's anything wrong with that habit personally." She slowly met her surprised gaze. "I could think of things much worse when it comes to the bedroom believe me." Gabrielle lowered her gaze to the floor feeling out of her element once again she was so unused to this kind of attention. "Look I should go." Xena looked up sharply. "No don't go stay with me I'd like the company of my friend." She paused before speaking as they both stepped away from the grave. "I've been meaning to ask you what happened after you left The Crescent Hinds room, I assume he let your punishment slide and you weren't flogged." Gabrielle slowly eased her hand in to her pocket feeling for her pipe only to stop as she realized there was no where to light it as the fire torches hadn't been lit in this area.

She looked up slightly feeling the other woman gently let go off her shoulder. "No he didn't let my punishment slide." She paused easing up her hand to. "I still received the full punishment for my so called failure which was to receive twenty lashes." Xena looked at her feeling the shock hit home. "They still flogged you even though you'd been in your predecessor's presence?" Gabrielle nodded as she looked up. "Yes they did, its funny I thought transforming for the first time was agony, but believe me nothing compares to the pain of the werewolf cat of nine tails whip. I was already in pain from when they'd beaten me so it just made the pain even more unbearable to go through." She looked down at the floor painfully before speaking again. "As long as I live I don't want to go through that kind of pain again, werewolves never do things by half they really know how to make their own kind suffer when they break the rules." She closed her eyes for a moment hearing the sound of the cat of nine tail whip ends as they cracked in the distance.

8

Gabrielle breathed in as her hands were tied to the pillar, which overlooked the warrior's tunnels, she couldn't see though her right eye it was bruised closed and she had, bruises all over her body which hadn't healed up fully as they'd been made at the end of the night before she took back her human form. She was wearing shirt and trousers and a high pair of boots she felt terrible and it was about to get a lot worse she'd seen many floggings during her time in this place. The Imperial Council believed that flogging was the only way to make a point to anyone who failed on their missions or broke the rules because it took so much longer for wounds from the cat of nine tails to heal. It could take days in fact as the whips long ends had knife like points which could tear through flesh and muscle and even shatter bone. A human being would die with this kind of punishment but a werewolf could just about survive it in human form, though they'd be bed ridden until they healed fully.

She'd seen even the biggest and strongest werewolves pass out after twenty lashes and she knew that for her this was going to be excruciating. So much for her first important mission it had just ended in disaster, but ironically she could see now why Iris had wanted to escape, werewolves were brutal even to there own kind. There was a vicious pecking order among the rising warriors and some would happily make others suffer so they could climb the ladder. All these warriors wanted was to have their audience with the Imperial Council so they could say their piece or have control of how things were run in some manner. This had been going on for years or so she'd read and some scribes had, had concerns that it had been tearing the werewolf society apart over the last century.

She narrowed her gaze, though she'd never met the Imperial Council but she agreed with the scribes the werewolf nation was falling apart. She could see it everywhere, warriors fighting warriors a forced class status for half breeds like her self because of Imperial Councils desperate need to keep the blood line pure as well as the killing of human born children which was no doubt adding to the already mounting animosity. She had no idea why the Crescent Hind had told her to leave last night but frankly she didn't care as far as she was concerned he was as corrupt as the Imperial Council. He lavished himself in decadence while others suffered and he did nothing to help the people, he just let the Imperial Council do what ever they wanted regardless of whether or not it was right or wrong. Her thoughts were cut off as the back of her shirt was torn open with a knife, then the two sides were forced over her shoulders exposing her back. She watched as Bastiaan eased the whip free smirking at her, she hated that full blood bastard.

He wasn't even in her unit but he clearly loved to make people suffer and he was completely power driven. She watched as a woman walked up to her holding a long round piece of wood which was covered in metal, she took in a deep breath before speaking. "You'll want this." Gabrielle eyed her in disgust ignoring the others who were watching the spectral. "I don't want that." The woman put a hand on her shoulder lowering her voice. "I'm serious I've been through this, it helps." Gabrielle looked at her sharply feeling the metal piece as it was put in to her mouth and she bit down on it. She watched as the female warrior stepped back as Alexandras spoke. "For failing to complete your mission Gabrielle and allowing another werewolf to escape you will receive twenty lashes, you will take this punishment as you were made leader in this tracking mission and you failed! After you receive your punishment you'll return to work with your captain Damokles and his unit once more until your ready and can complete an important mission with out failing." Gabrielle breathed in bracing herself she hadn't failed on her mission she was the only one to do the right thing.

She felt her teeth clamp down painfully on the metal piece as the tails slashed across her back causing the excruciating pain to hit her hard she felt the cold blood as it started to run down her skin from the deep wounds. The whip came again striking even harder she could feel her teeth clamping tighter on the metal piece as she tried to take the pain. The whip struck her again and again and all she wanted to do was scream, by Ouroboros she wanted it this end, she could feel tears running down her face. She looked down watching as blood dripped down hitting the floor between her boots. "The pain its all in your mind, go to another happier place." Gabrielle looked up hearing her goddess's voice she breathed in closing her good eye she was right it was just in her mind she could survive this, she breathed in trying to invasion the first morning's sun as it fell up on Potidaea in the spring time lighting the wheat fields turning them to gold as the whip hit her again.

8

Gabrielle looked up slightly as she walked over to the wall opposite leaning against it. "I wasn't strong I passed out after eleven lashes and I don't really remember much after it ended, it was just a blur of blood and pain as I lapsed in and out of consciousness." She looked up slowly as Xena came to stand over here the concern in her eyes. "I woke up fully two days later and I still felt rotten." She shook her head. "Damokles took care of me until I was well, but I never remembered much just burry images and being given food and water. When I was fully healed I returned to his unit, but I won't lie I just kept quite and got on with my job which was hunting down human warriors who posed a threat to werewolf society and I was happy doing it, because it always felt right to me."

She looked up slowly. "I only ever felt honourable when I fought other warriors." Xena moved so she was standing a little closer to the younger woman she knew she was inside her personal space and that it was wrong but somehow it just felt like the right thing to do. "I'm sorry you had to go through that flogging, I've never liked flogging even though it's common punishment." She put a hand through her hair. "I considered that punishment for Iona after what happened with you but I felt it wouldn't help matters as it does nothing for moral." Gabrielle breathed in deeply she knew the other woman was in her personal space, which made her feel a little uneasy but somehow she just thought it was better to go with it and let Xena get close. Maybe that was how she liked to be with her close friends. "No I agree it doesn't do anything for moral it's a punishment which brings about fear."

She put a hand on her shoulder turning it slightly. "If you've ever been through it you never forget it and you fear it ever happening to you again." Xena took in a deep breath. "This is why I believe that not all punishments should be pain related when it comes to warriors. Someone once asked me is it better to be loved and respected or feared and respected?" Gabrielle felt her eyes dart. "I'm not a great leader but to answer that question I believe people should love and respect you as a leader or they won't rally to your cause." Xena eased up her hand taking Gabrielle's ignoring her surprise at her sudden action. "Clearly in that way you and I feel the same way." Gabrielle felt her eyes dart nervously right now she'd give anything to light her pipe. She had no idea why the other woman was touching her hand, or even why she'd want to. She looked at the floor trying to ignore her uncertainty as she spoke. "Yes clearly we do." Xena eyed the other woman who looked slightly nervous. "You shouldn't think less of yourself as a leader I'm sure you are a great leader."

Gabrielle breathed in sharply feeling completely out of her element as Xena kept hold of her hand. "I don't think less of myself I'm just honest with myself." She moved her hand gently easing it out of Xena's grip. "I'm not a great Horn Hind I wasn't able to charge things in a way that mattered despite my trying." She looked up feeling her dark mood come back all at once as she looked at her lovers crave. "I wasn't even able to stop the Imperial Council from murdering the one I loved." She walked away seeing the sadness in the other woman's face. "Good leaders are able to stop injustices like these and they can do everything in their power to stop them." She turned eyeing the grave again. "Yet here I am laying flowers on his grave and I'm still missing him." Xena watched as she lowered her head walking away she moved forward speaking softly. "You place too much blame on yourself Gabrielle his murder was not your fault, assassins are paid to do the dirty work of higher powers and they feel no remorse, they just kill the target you know that as well as I do."

Gabrielle stopped turning to meet her gaze. "No I can't change it but I'd rather that they tried to kill me and not murder the person I love!" She folded her arms trying to control her anger. "I'm Horn Hind I should be the one people try to kill." Xena took a slow step forward. "Killing a leader is hard Gabrielle I know enough people have tried to kill me." She paused for a long moment before speaking. "I think they killed Damokles because you loved him and because they knew if they did take him from you it would break your spirit." Gabrielle narrowed her gaze. "Well then they succeeded, because I missed him so much when he was gone. I even see him in my dreams still and it reminds me that I wasn't here to save him."

Xena lowered her gaze to the floor. "I know how you feel Gabrielle the Greek gods are always silent. I wished so much that my husband had loved me, but in the end I was just his tool to have power over Greece and in the end he tried to have me murdered. He even sent one of his gladiators to do the job because he was too much of a coward to face me in battle." She adjusted one of her silver plated shoulder guards. "I ended up killing both the gladiator and him on the same night and since that day I've asked myself what if things had been different? I even asked myself if it was my own fault or if I did something wrong which made him change towards me, I wondered if maybe it was because I hadn't been a good wife or if it was because we didn't have children."

She took in a deep painful breath. "I can still picture his face when I threw him off the balcony to his death, all I saw in it was resentment and smugness staring back at me it was as if he was smiling knowing that he'd won because he knew that when I killed him I'd loose my rule over Rome the moment he died and I'd have to flee the land. She turned slowly to meet Gabrielle's gaze. "I envy you so much, your lover, loved you deeply right up till his death, which is more than I can say for mine." Gabrielle felt a sad smile form as she eyed the other woman. "Don't envy me I lost the love of my life and I doubt I'll ever experience a love like that ever again in my life time, the only people who would want to sleep with me now would only care about power, they'd have no honour."

She raised her hand slightly as she walked slowly away from the taller woman. "I'm sure though that when the time is right the man who visited you last night will sit opposite you on the throne." Xena watched as she walked away, how ironic, Gabrielle was clearly in the same boat as her when it came to people who lacked honour. As the only people who'd ever slept with her after her husband's death had been dishonourable people who just wanted power. She breathed in deeply watching as the Gabrielle lit her pipe on one of the torches before vanishing from sight. Calicos was an honourable man that much was true but she knew that he didn't want to be the Emperor of Greece, he had told her that he'd never cared for the idea. On top of that she didn't love him and he didn't love her and there was no chemistry between them, they just slept together there was nothing more to it than that.

End of part 46

Silvermoonlight

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