Sweet Surrender: Transgressions II
Xena lay on the black sand beach absorbing the warm kiss of the afternoon sun. It was nice to just relax. Honestly, she did too little of that. Taking a deep breath, Xena took a moment to indulge in the peacefulness around her. The salt breeze, the lull of the sea's ancient rhythm crashing onto the sand, and the gentle song of seabirds soothed her soul. For the first time, in a long time, she realized that she felt full. Ares had crafted a hearty fare of roasted chicken with carrots for her noon meal. The food had been complimented by an Etruscan white wine from the collection he'd stocked on the island. Ares had told her that he had plans for later that evening and he didn't want her tired or hungry. But it wasn't only Xena's stomach that felt sated. Every ounce of her being felt alive and satisfied. She knew that it was because she had finally accepted her heart's desires. Sure, she longed for more than the arrangement that she and Ares currently had, but somehow her dreams and her future no longer seemed like two diverging paths in the woods. Maybe one day she could have her apple and eat it too.
Ares had excused himself after lunch to look after a few military campaigns he had going on. Xena hadn't asked for any details and he hadn't offered any. Still, she wondered about their little game of latrones. Had he been soliciting her advice with the toy soldiers so that he could use it in a real field of battle? If so, she had to tell him that that was not acceptable. She was not one of his commanders, anymore. And, they were not going back down that road! Maybe she needed to remind him of that. And maybe, she was just being paranoid. After all, he'd said that the army was working against the Romans. The Romans now swore fealty to him. Perhaps. he was just trying to visualize ways in which a potential enemy could possibly defeat his ruthless Romans. It left a bad taste in her mouth when she considered just how friendly he'd gotten with those cockroaches. Xena rolled over onto her belly, turning her bare bottom to the heavens and decided not to think about Ares' military machinations. She didn't want to be in a sour mood with him. Especially when he'd already promised her an evening of bliss.
The sound of boots sinking into the sand roused her from her slumber. Had she fallen asleep? Instinctively, she reached for her weapon at her hip. Opening her eyes, she recognized the black leather boots at once and relaxed. Fully awake, she noticed that the bright afternoon had given way to the muted light of dusk. How long had she slept?
"By the gods, Xena. How long have you been out here?" Ares moved toward her.
"Not sure, guess I fell asleep," she started to roll onto her back.
"You don't want to do that. Hold still," he ordered as he walked toward an expanse of vegetation that grew near the beach. When he returned, he was holding a long frond of aloe in his hand. "You've burned yourself."
"Oh?" Xena twisted her neck to look at her rear. From what she could see, he was right. Her bum was fairly red, as were the backs of her legs and her lower back. Mercifully her shoulders had been covered by her long hair.
.
"It's not too bad, and this should draw out the sun pretty quickly," Ares squeezed the clear juice from the succulent, into his palm. When he had a nice fat dollop, he began to massage it into her skin. The gelatinous balm felt like Valhalla ice on her searing skin and she jumped. "You okay?" Ares asked.
"Yeah, just colder than I expected."
"I know. Here. I'm gonna do your bottom now." He milked some more of the healing fluid and started rubbing her hot cheeks. "You know, I ought to spank you."
"I didn't mean to fall asleep. And why would you spank me for napping anyway, You told me to try and relax."
"Not for napping. For letting Apollo caress your body. I don't like it when other gods touch what's mine."
"Apollo's not my type, but the sun did feel good on my skin. I should have been more careful, though."
"Yes, you should have. It's going to make tonight's festivities a little more difficult than I had hoped." Ares split open the aloe finger and scraped out the last of the sap and pulp and began applying it to the backs of Xena's long legs.
"I hope I haven't ruined everything."
"No, we'll take some more of this aloe up to the house with us. We will keep applying it. You should be feeling better by midnight. Of course, you could just let me heal you. It's not like this is a battle wound."
"I'll be fine. It's not really that bad and I feel better already. Aloe works wonders."
"Yes, it does," he agreed then offered a hand to help her up.
Ares shook out her beach blanket and then folded it up neatly. Xena looked at him in wonder. He never ceased to surprise her. "So, how did you know about the aloe?"
"I was mortal too, once. If you recall?"
"Oh, I recall," she chuckled. "You got sunburned?"
"Brutally, working on that ridiculous farm of yours." He rolled his eyes, took her hand, and they walked up the stone stairs that led to the sprawling mansion. "But you know, even with sunburns, bug bites, sore muscles, hangovers, and diarrhea, the worst part about being mortal was missing you."
Xena didn't say anything. She didn't know what to say. He'd given up his godhood to save her and she'd done her best to make sure he was settled and safe. But after that, she just pretty much went her own way.
When she didn't say anything, he added, "I didn't see you for over a year. It felt almost as bad as when I thought you were dead. The only difference was that I knew you were out there somewhere. It made the loneliness bearable."
Xena gave his hand that was in hers a gentle squeeze. "Would you believe me if I told you I had amnesia for a whole year?"
"Really?"
"It's a long story, you can read Gabrielle's scroll about the ordeal for the details but she was in a coma and I had no recollection of who I was."
"And I wasn't there to help you." Ares looked down shamefully and Xena saw his jaw twitch.
"You had already helped me beyond belief. I wouldn't even have been alive if it hadn't been for you." Ares stopped abruptly and pulled her to him, careful not to touch any burned places, and crushed his lips to hers. "I can't lose you again. I won't. Twenty-five years of torture will be nothing compared to eternity. Don't do this to me, Xena."
"Ares," Xena breathed heavily as she kissed him back. She ran her fingers wildly through his hair. The metal rivets on his vest felt like ice pressed against her breasts. Xena longed to throw off the leather and drag him to the white and gold bedroom and fuck him senseless but she knew that would only give him another temporary fix and what they both needed was to keep their eyes on the horizon. So, she broke the kiss and looked into his eyes. "Ares, no demands. Remember? Status quo. We are going to take things one step at a time."
"I know, sometimes I just panic and I always fear that you're going to come to your senses and tell me to get lost again." He answered honestly. Xena saw the knot in his throat as he worked to control his overwhelming emotions.
"Ares, I am here because I have come to my senses, not the other way around." Xena twined their hands together again and led them over the last step up into the manse's courtyard. "Look, I'm going to be honest with you. Last week, I was contemplating leaving Greece, getting as far away from you as possible. I even considered returning to India or Chin. All of these feelings, sometimes they are too much for me."
"What?" He was thunderstruck. He'd been zapped a few times by his dad and the fear that Xena would leave him again was the only thing that hurt worse than those electric bolts had.
"I was running. Running from this. But I am not anymore. There are things we need to work out, yes. But, I want to face them with you. All I am asking is that you let me do this at my pace."
Ares nodded. He'd give her the time that she needed. There was a time he never thought they would ever be standing together like this again. Part of him felt greedy for asking for more, but another part of him knew that time wasn't the same luxury for her as it was him. But he refrained from mentioning it. "I wanna show you something."
"Another surprise?" Xena smiled.
Ares put aside the blanket he'd been carrying then led her down another stone staircase, this one lay off the northern side of the central courtyard and curved as it curled around the side of the castle. At the bottom of the stairs stood a metal gate with sword shaped handles. Ares extended his hand indicating that she should open the gate. Xena pushed hard, the door was heavier than she had expected.
A flat expanse about fifty square meters stretched about before them. Braziers and torches were evenly spaced around the perimeter. Ares flicked two fingers and they fired to life. On the far end of the field, were targets spaced at varying distances. There were elevated bars, even and uneven. There were pylons, tall and short, unevenly spaced. There were walls and rope nets for climbing. It was a training ground that would be the envy of Chiron's students. "Do you like it? If you ever were to stay her full-time, I just want you to know that you'd have a place to keep yourself sharp."
"This might keep me fit, but there is nothing like an enemy to really keep you sharp."
"Well then, let's see what you're made of," Ares unsheathed his sword.
Xena tucked and rolled. He had her at a complete disadvantage. His was fully dressed and armed. She was nude and had no sword or chakram. Back on her feet, she took another survey of the grounds. Everything was fixed as far as she could see, there was nothing to break off to use as a weapon. There was a small building that she guessed housed arms of some sort but Ares stood between her and the building.
Ares saw the direction of her stare. He knew she'd figure out that the arm's building was stocked. Would she make a dash for it or try to flip over him? Ares could see the moment the decision was made in her eyes. Then she was moving. Swift as hummingbird. She was coming straight toward him. Acrobatics it was. Ares knew she would vault over him just before she reached him. He was watching her feet, waiting for them to plant before the vault. The plant would be his signal to turn and catch her from behind when she landed out of the flip.
Xena knew he would expect her to vault when she charged headlong at him. She kept her pace as even as she could until the last second, the moment he would be expecting her to plant her feet but instead of vaulting over him, She surged toward him with an extra burst of speed and ran up his torso and kicked him in the face. When she flipped and landed on the ground she quickly spun into a roundhouse kick, knocking his blade from his grip.
Ares recovered from the face kick only to find himself staring at the point of his own blade. "Oh you're good," He grinned. "I thought you'd go for the armory."
"And why would I do that when there was a perfectly good sword right here?" She poked him in the chest and was surprised that the tip of the blade drew blood. "Shit, Ares, are you okay?"
Ares had jumped back the instant he felt him push the metal against his flesh. "I'm fine, this is not your standard blade, Xena."
"I wasn't thinking." Xena handed him back his sword and moved into him. She ran her thumb along the little cut. His immortal blood was thick and dark. Xena turned her hand and looked at it in the light of the setting sun. "I could've killed you, you should've told me." A tear rolled down her face and she choked on a sob.
Ares tossed his sword aside and brought her into his arms. "Shhhh, it's okay. I'm alright. Just a tiny cut." Ares ran his hand soothingly along her hair.
Xena felt his hands on her, they were comforting. Losing him was not an option. He'd been in her life as long as she could remember. Even before she knew him as an individual, she knew him as her father's god. As a child she'd prayed to him for her father's safe return. If there had ever been a permanence in her life, Ares had been it. More so than even her mother who had banished her from Amphipolis for a time. Xena knew that this must be how he felt on a daily basis, like the threat of losing her loomed around every turn in the road. She was sorry he had to live with that fear and even though it was selfish, she was glad that she didn't. The need to be with him, to feel him inside her overtook every other emotion.
Ares continued to soothe her, holding her steadfast in his arms while cooing into her hair. But then her mouth was on him. Kissing at the sight of the wound. Lapping at his flesh, her saliva a cleansing balm. Ares knew he should stop her. But part of him wanted her to take her fill. If she drank enough of his blood, she'd ingest enough nectar to turn her, to make her a goddess. But Xena would never forgive him if he allowed her to do it. Ares tore her mouth away from the cut. He looked down at her, her eyes glowed bluer than ever. She'd had a hit of nectar, for sure. Her blood painted lips trembled with need. Ares' body came alive. He lifted her up and Xena wrapped her legs around him. Ares backed her up against one of the training walls. The smooth planks were hard against Xena's back and she was surprised she didn't feel pain from the sunburn. But all she felt was pleasure, pure pleasure as Ares unsheathed himself from his pants and sank into her. "Don't leave me," she whispered.
"Never," Ares panted against her collarbone trying to hold her against the wall as she met his cock thrust for thrust. She was strong. Stronger than she'd ever been. The nectar burned through her blood like fire. Ares watched golden sweat pour out of her skin as they fucked. Towards the end she bucked so hard, she cracked one of the boards in the wall behind her. When she came, she wailed so hard that it scared a flock of rooks from their roosts. When he finished, he kissed her jaw tenderly. Xena collapsed onto him, the nectar had run its course. She was crashing off the high. Ares transported them to the playroom and laid her down gently down in the bed. He noticed, that like the cut on his chest, her sunburn had completely healed.