Author's Note:Ok so I did switch the rating to M and I am going to be going graphic because...well damn it's Xena! The only way to do this is going graphic and especially with a girl from the 21st century around...curse words are going to be flying all over the place eventually. Especially with verbal fights! So be forewarned! Plus...naughtiness has to happen some time in this story. Because well...this is also a romance story! And of course...twists and turns that you might never see coming.
Xena was not prepared to wake up in a bed she did not know just as the sun rose making itself just visible in the frame of the window in the room she was currently in.
First came panic as her hand immediately moved to her stomach and relaxed as she felt a child's hand that lay on her stomach, then relaxed as she looked over and found the sleeping face of her son as he cuddled to her in sleep.
Xena felt a wave of love flow through her at the sight of Solan's blonde hair framing his beautiful face as he slept intimately half on her and against her.
Her eyes watered as she felt her heart give a slight restriction. A pain went through her and she without wanting to twitched, causing Solan to stir.
Bleary eyed still from sleep he looked at his mother and saw that she was awake.
It took a few seconds but Solan's eyes opened wide and sat up.
"Are you alright?" Solan asked immediately worried that his mother had slept throughout the whole night.
The things she had missed in the time he knew were going to make her angry.
Xena gave a small smirk to Solan, not wanting him to know that she was still distressed about whatever had caused her to feel such and incredible pain and was still feeling like something large had been taken from inside her.
It didn't feel insignificant either. It felt like...it...it felt like...
She couldn't even explain what it felt like.
She felt...hollow.
Like a void had been made in her soul - and she couldn't explain it for the life of her why she had never felt anything like it before.
Even as a shamanness she had never felt anything as powerful or painful before...
She shook her head and refocused on Solan who was looking at her with an increase of worry.
"I'm alright Solan. Me and the baby are fine." Xena said as she caressed Solan's hand that still lay on top of her stomach.
Solan smiled and looked down at his mother's hand that was caressing his own. "Eve. Elaine said her name is Eve."
Xena wanted to be angry at how Elaine was even ruining this moment with her son, but the name...it...it felt right.
"Uncle Joxer said he likes it too. He thinks she deserves her own song...so he started writing her a song." Solan said with a toothy smile to lead Xena to imagine just how funny Solan had thought about the song.
"I'm sure he does. Solan...where's Gabrielle?" Xena asked immediately. Immediately noticing that none of Gabrielle's things were in the room with them.
Solan's smile immediately dropped and Xena felt fear build inside her instantly.
"She umm...she said she would protect Uncle Joxer from Aun...um...Elaine. She didn't like...how I called her my ah...Aunt. I don't think she likes me very much." Solan looked away and was about to pull his hand away from his mother's when she grabbed his hand immediately.
"What are you talking about! Of course Gabrielle likes you!" Xena immediately consoled Solan.
Solan grimaced. "She yelled at me not to call...her...that...ever again. But...I...I like Elaine mom. She...she told me that you just werent' my mom but...Gabrielle was too. That I have two mom's now! And...where she comes from - that's kind of a normal thing now. That lots of kids have two moms! And...I never thought I would even get one!" Solan exclaimed as his bright blue eyes shown with unshed tears.
Xena felt a swell of gratitude towards Elaine again in less that a day. Honestly every time she felt like she was ready to snap that woman's neck - she did something that made Xena grateful for her. Which was annoying.
Elaine way annoying.
Which made her seem like she would be a perfect match for Joxer.
As the thought travelled through Xena's brain she felt a surge of pain go through her heart like an arrow had pierced her.
Xena's head immediately looked all over the room expecting to see either Cupid or Bliss...but saw and felt nothing that would indicate either were there.
Turning her head back to Solan she refocused herself as she saw just how upset he was at thinking Gabrielle didn't like him.
"Hey! Look. How about we go and find her and have a talk with her." Xena suggested while reaching up to cup Solan's face.
Solan gave a little nod.
"Yeah?" Xena asked with a smile on her face trying to coax one from him and thankfully succeeded.
Solan couldn't help but smile back at his mother.
Then remembering what Elaine had talked to him about, Solan leaned down and kissed his mother.
Xena felt her heart leap at the sign of affection and found herself sitting up and wrapping her baby boy in her arms and kissed his face anywhere she could as the relief from yesterday of getting him out of Tartarus and...alive! Her boy was alive!
The joy and fear and relief finally hitting her.
"It's ok mom. I'm not going anywhere!" Solan said making Xena let out a laugh.
"I'm sorry." Xena apologized and pulled back wiping at her eyes as some tears had fallen from her eyes.
Solan gave a lopsidded pursed lip grin and the image immediately reminded Xena of Joxer - which instantly shocked her and yet somehow immediately knew that just a few hours with Joxer had impacted Solan enough to pick up a mannerism from him.
"Aunt Elaine said you were going to be pretty emotional because of all of the...harmons in your system." Solan unknowingly misstated what Elaine had said.
Xena's brow furrowed for a second and quickly understood that Elaine was talking about her body's changes due to the baby.
"XENA!" The yell came with the crashing open of the door to her room causing Xena to immediately leap up - which was an instant mistake as she felt the little food she had consumed yesterday spike up into her throat.
"I'm going to KILL HER XENA!" Gabrielle's enraged face was not what Xena had wanted to see at all today! In fact she had silently prayed in her mind not to see it at all since all those years ago...and yet now it stood before her in kaleidoscope of hate and rage permeated her best friends face.
"Gabrielle! CALM DOWN!" Xena gritted her teeth trying not to throw up, which Gabrielle interpreted as Xena being angry at her.
"NO XENA! Do you have...ANY...idea the amount of times she put her hands on him? Half of OLYMPUS has come down to see her Xena! And they LIKE HER! ARTEMIS LIKES HER XENA! We need to stop her!" Gabrielle exclaimed angrily and hysterically as she came closer to Xena.
Xena could hold back no longer and immediately threw up just short of Gabrielle's shoes as she jumped away.
"Ehhhhhh..." Solan groaned in disgust and looked over at Gabrielle who had instantly calmed as she realized that Xena was...pregnant.
Xena was pregnant and was going through morning sickness.
Gabrielle shook her head. "I'm...I'm sorry I...I forgot you were sick."
"That's ok." Xena grumbled and before either could say anything else Hera appeared in the room and quickly with the waving of a hand cleaned the floor and Xena up.
Without a word she walked over to Xena and placed a hand on Xena's stomach and slowly emitted a warm glow from her hands.
"She's alright little one. Just nauseous and tired." Hera spoke softly which stunned Xena as she knew that Hera was speaking to her child.
Hera looked up and read Xena's mind and slowly with her other hand held it up into the air and there suddenly in the air a an image and it stopped Xena's breath.
It looked...it looked like...
"She's a mere inch at the moment. But as you can see...all is well. All her fingers, toes...she's completely healthy." Hera said as she turned to see Xena's eyes filled to the brim with tears with one already half spilled down her face.
"Is that...is that..." Gabrielle couldn't even get the question out as she stared in wonder at the image Hera had placed in mid air when suddenly there was movement.
"That's Eve?" Solan asked with wide eyes as he stared at the now moving baby.
Hera smiled and looked over at Solan. "You looked the same when you were only two moons old in your mother's womb."
Two months. She was two months along.
"Wow I really...Oh my God! You're doing an ultrasound?!" Elaine was suddenly there with Joxer and Aphrodite and immediately veered from what she had been about to say to run over to where Hera was displaying the image of a eight week old fetus who Elaine knew to be Eve.
"How are her cervical cells? How's Xena's blood pressure?" Elaine asked immediately and without permission grabbed Xena's arm and checked her pulse point and immediately looked over at Xena.
"Xena calm down. Spiking your blood pressure can harm the baby and you!" Elaine said immediately.
Xena immediately stopped herself from picturing hitting Elaine in the face and calmed as soon as she heard baby.
"Is that..." Joxer asked in wide eyed wonder as he saw the image moving and felt something in his heart flutter at the sight.
Aphrodite couldn't help but smile widely and stare at Joxer from the side as she felt the immediate love connection that Joxer felt towards Eve. She felt so very proud of him in that moment. He loved so wholeheartedly it brought her happiness to see a true love form without her intervention.
"Yes. And she seems to be doing just fine." Hera said with a small smile to the man whom in the course of a night she had grown quite fond of. She had grown quite attached to her Elaine in the small amount of time that she had known her. No mere mortal had ever affected her in such a way - but Elaine was anything but ordinary.
"What side?" Elaine asked Hera who motioned with her head and Elaine smiled as she reached over Hera's hand and smiled.
"Right fallopian tube." Elaine muttered and smiled up at Xena. "It means the baby is attached to the right side of your uterus."
Xena just placed her hand over Elaine's and Elaine moved her hand to approximately where the baby would be.
"That's where your daughter is. Protect your right side more while fighting but try to avoid it altogether Xena." Elaine said as she moved her hand away allowing Xena's hand to take her place.
"I'll know when she's in danger. If anything it's going to be hard to stop her from fighting then it will be to protect Eve from any harm." Hera looked at Xena with a look of scolding that immediately reminded Xena of her mother Cyrene.
"Yeah well I can pretty much tell her what's going to happen now. At least until we've changed things so much that I won't know what will happen. Which...I hope happens. Means I'll have changed enough to actually keep everyone alive!" Elaine said with a huge sigh.
"That bad?" Joxer asked with a bit of fear in his voice, as by now he understood Elaine's sighs and facial expressions enough to understand that it was indeed really bad.
Elaine grimaced and nodded her head.
"She's awake." Solan suddenly said as his eyes had never left the image of his baby sister.
Sure enough everyone looked on in wonder as suddenly eyes were seen which meant that eyelids had already been formed and indeed she was awake.
"Hey Joxer. Sing a song your mother use to sing to you to the baby! Let's see if she reacts!" Elaine said as she looked between Joxer and Xena and the image of the baby.
"Huh?" Joxer said with his classic confused look.
"She can hear us?" Xena asked in mild wonder.
"Of course she can." Hera said with a furrowed brow.
"Me?! You want me to sing?" Joxer asked, not at all shocked at this point that Elaine knew his mother use to sing to him when he was little.
"Come on! Just lean down...don't be too loud. It's echoes in there...so...you don't have to be loud."
"Umm...I don't know if I can." Joxer looked at Xena and then at Hera and then Elaine. He not once had looked at Gabrielle who had known all night that he was still avoiding her at any cost possible. Which did nothing to calm her down.
"Sure you can sweet pea. You have a great voice!" Aphrodite said from behind Joxer and quickly taken hold of the slightly startled man and led him over to Xena and pulled him down to kneel beside Xena.
"Don't slap him!" Elaine said suddenly in warning to Xena who looked at her with an edge of anger for even trying to threaten her.
"Come on sweetcheeks I know you can sing a lullaby!" Aphrodite said happy that this could trigger a surge of connection between Xena and Joxer. ANYTHING that could stop the stabbing sensation in her own heart now that the two were in each other's presence.
"Umm..." Joxer looked up from his kneeling position to look at Xena who finally looked over from Elaine and her expression instantly turned to one of confusion herself.
"She should still be resting. It wouldn't hurt." Hera informed Xena which made the warrior princess look up at Hera and then back down at Joxer.
Joxer felt a little relieved when Xena gave him a slight nod.
"Umm...ok...um..." Joxer looked at where Xena's hand was and slowly got closer.
And then everyone in the room fell silent as Joxer's low voice began to sing.
'I was never alive, 'Til the day I was blessed with you.'
Gabrielle and Xena both sucked in a breath at the first line and just how good a voice Joxer had.
'When I hold you late at night I know what I was put here to do.'
Xena felt a swell in her heart suddenly as she realized that Joxer was singing an intimate song his mother would sing to him and felt her heart skip a beat.
'I turn off the world and listen to you sigh, And I will sing my Angel's Lullaby.'
Joxer turned his head then to look at the image Hera was still showing of the baby.
'Know I'm forever near. The one you can always call. Right all you know to fear are the shadows on your wall.'
Joxer watched as the baby's fingers moved and the eyelids actually began to slowly move as if being soothed.
'I'm here close enough, To kiss the tears you cry, And I will sing my Angel's Lullaby.'
Xena's eyes traveled between the image of her daughter and Joxer who's deep low voice was causing her heart to ache in a way it never had before.
'So tell me how to stop the years from racing. Is there a secret someone knows? I'll never catch all the memories I'm chasing. I'll never be ready to let go.'
Gabrielle's heart was pounding incredibly fast as she listened to Joxer sing. Then watched almost in wonder as he turned his head back to Xena's frame and sing words that left tears in her eyes.
'And when the world seems cold, and you feel that all of your strength is gone, there may be one tiny voice, your reason to carry on.'
And then with a trembling hand Joxer rested his hand on top of Xena's where he knew Eve was.
'And when I'm not close enough to kiss the tears you cry, you will sing your Angel's Lullaby.'
Xena felt a swell of love pass through her as she looked at Joxer with tears once more filling her eyes. And she looked to see that her daughter's eyes had indeed closed. Fallen back asleep to Joxer's voice. A voice that just that morning she thought could annoy her faster than anything else in the world. Now causing a wave of pure love to fill her at the words he was singing to her unborn daughter.
'Let this be our Angel's Lullaby.'
There was complete silence in the room and Joxer suddenly felt extremely uncomfortable as the way Aphrodite was staring at him - apparently stunned. Slowly he moved his hand off of Xena's and didn't dare look up.
Hera slowly moved her own hands from Xena and stared at Joxer in complete bafflement. This...this was the son of a warlord? A complete wasted talent!
"Joxer! That was...incredible!" Elaine said with tears in her own eyes. Not being able to wait one second more Elaine kneeled down next to Joxer and gave her an very slow loving kiss.
And one would think that the huge surge of jealousy that Gabrielle would feel couldn't be rivaled. But Aphrodite's eyes didn't look to Gabrielle's.
Oh no.
They looked to Xena's.
Who's eyes flashed with a jealousy in them that Aphrodite knew would be there and felt her heart clench incredibly tightly as she felt the anger and jealousy towards Elaine that would have shocked anyone who knew Xena.
It roared inside of Xena in a way that Elaine would and could have never guessed.
The emotion was soo strong Hera looked at Xena with a tilted head and squinted eyes. If there was an emotion that Hera knew well...it was jealousy. And the feeling coming off of Xena in that moment made Hera fear that Elaine had managed to do what she thought no one but a God could do.
But the evidence was in front of her, and it was barely contained in Xena's eyes.
But of course it was Gabrielle that moved first and was about to lay her hands on Elaine that caused Aphrodite to finally materialize in front of Gabrielle and quickly materialize them away from the room.
Xena blinked and shook herself as she realized that Aphrodite had taken Gabrielle out of the room to stop her from trying to hurt Elaine. Something that she had been a second away from doing.
Quickly Xena reached for Solan's hand and moved around Joxer and Elaine, not wanting to look at the image for even one second more.
Solan wisely said nothing but stared back at his Uncle Joxer and felt a twinge of pain himself. Hera turned her head and even regarded Solan with a look of interest.
The boy's thoughts of if his father had ever done that shocking Hera as the jolt of pain and sadness from the boy was unexpected.
"I think we pissed off Gabrielle again." Elaine said slowly as she pulled away from Joxer.
Joxer just rolled his eyes, which caused Elaine to laugh and smile at Joxer.
"I could do that way before you got here." Joxer informed Elaine which made Elaine's smile fall slightly - because it was true.
"Well...she has to get use to me touching you. I'm not going anywhere and I refuse to be intimidated by an Amazon Queen when the 'God' she's supposed to be loyal to was handsy with you more than me! Seriously Hera, Artemis and you really need to talk." Elaine said cryptically and a look of concern to Hera who was confused by Elaine's encouragement.
Yesterday she had helped Elaine put up a mental block to stop anyone from reading her thoughts. Honestly the images alone her mind remembered made Hera relived when she couldn't see them herself.
The world in which Elaine lived seemed more horrid than the one this one would become.
Elaine looked over at Joxer who she had told last night that Artemis had a huge secret that made her the way she is, and Joxer being who he was had asked if he could help her.
But he had asked Artemis directly. Elaine had known something almost immediately upon meeting Artemis. Maybe because she knew the signs but...Elaine had instantly known Artemis was keeping a heavy secret she did not want any of the others to know.
Elaine had told Joxer and well...Joxer being Joxer...he had instantly asked Artemis if he could help her with anything. That he'd do anything to help out Gabrielle's patron God. Despite everything...Joxer was determined to make sure neither Gabrielle or Xena died and he could stop it.
Artemis had looked stunned and impressed almost immediately by Joxer and his thoughts.
Of course Artemis didn't really like men all that much but to Elaine's shock and Gabrielle's horror...she had taken a liking to Joxer and had unknowingly flirted with him.
But Joxer didn't know that it was flirting. It was the way Artemis flushed after having said something that tipped off almost anyone that heard and saw the two talking.
It had made Elaine smile and tease Artemis last night. Elaine felt absolutely no jealousy towards Artemis because she was after all...a goddess! And if it had been any man besides Joxer she would have been angry.
But Joxer didn't even believe her when she told him that Artemis was flirting with him.
His ears had gotten all red and he had moved around awkwardly and laughed oddly the way he did when he didn't know what to say.
But Elaine had warned Joxer not to flirt back, because Artemis didn't wasn't comfortable with any kind of male affection.
Joxer had swallowed and nodded his head. The warning about messing with a goddess more than clear after even Aphrodite said how she couldn't believe Artemis was looking at him.
Aphrodite always reminded him that he preferred to stay away from Gods and Goddesses because he tended to get hurt when they became involved in his life.
"What exactly do you think we need to talk about?" Hera finally asked reaching out a hand down to Joxer, making him realize he was kneeling before the Queen of the God's and she was offering him a hand to actually stand up.
Instantly he blushed and babbled making Elaine smirk and look half scared and half grateful.
Hera just smiled at the boy.
Yesterday when she had read his thoughts and realized why he had seemed so familiar it had taken a great deal of control not to just stare in wonder at him. His other two halves missing, but his soul still shined out to her like the first time she had seen it.
"She needs to be the one to tell you. I don't think it's right if I say something without her wanting me to." Elaine explained why she was reluctant to say anything.
Hera's small smile that had been gracing her face vanished.
She didn't like the sound of that one bit.
What the hell had that been.
Xena shook herself and tried to clear her head.
There was no reason...at all...that she should have felt anything like that! Especially not because of...Joxer!
It was the baby! The baby was making her all emotional and crazy and...
He was getting comfortable with Elaine kissing him. There hadn't even been a slight hesitation to Elaine's touch whatsoever.
Having his hand on top of hers had been one of the most intimate touches they had ever shared and even kissed him once.
But feeling his hand over hers knowing that it was to have a connection to her daughter insider her had stirred an emotion inside Xena she couldn't even name.
NO! NO! Absolutely not! There had been no emotion. None whatsoever!
She was just going a little crazy with everything that was happening!
"Mom are you alright?" Solan asked as his mother continued to drag him out of the building towards where Xena had sheltered Argo the previous morning.
"I DON'T CARE APHRODITE!" The yell came from within the barn and Xena was jolted from her own thoughts and both she and Solan ran the rest of the distance towards an enraged Gabrielle.
"WOAH! Ok...chill out blondie I'm not the one..." Aphrodite tried to calm Gabrielle but Gabrielle's eyes were staring daggers at her and were oddly filled with moisture.
"LIKE TARTARUS IT'S NOT! You...are the ONLY one at fault here! And you are going to FIX IT!" Gabrielle practically screamed at Aphrodite.
Xena could see Gabrielle trembling and from a distance knew that she was about to do something extremely stupid. Gabrielle couldn't seem to control herself in that moment.
"Look. Despite what you think...I am NOT doing this. I can't control true love!" Aphrodite said angrily at Gabrielle.
Xena and Gabrielle felt like Aphrodite had just slapped them both.
True love?!
True...
"I told you to stop or you'll push him to leave with her and I meant it toots! The connection between the three of you is almost severed and I'm trying to keep you from hacking the last bit away from the two of you!" Aphrodite turned and began to pace as she tried to explain the very complicated connection between the three of them that was always supposed to be! It was just supposed to be that way! Thousands of years...hundred of lives...and the three of them were always supposed to be!
And Elaine had changed that in the span of a day!
What was worse for Aphrodite was that Gabrielle seemed truly oblivious to just how close they were to spend lifetimes searching for that elusive something that no one could ever name but knew was missing.
Joxer would be permanently gone!
Both Xena and Gabrielle didn't know just how important Joxer was to them and just now even thought what it would mean if Joxer was taken from them. Because that's exactly what was happening.
Elaine was taking Joxer from the two.
And not for a lifetime.
Forever.
"What in Tartarus does that mean?!" Xena asked with emotions not able to strangle the anger in her own voice as she felt the pain from yesterday jolt through her for a second taking her breath from her.
Aphrodite whirled around and looked at Xena and Solan and then went back to pacing.
"It means the both of you are close to losing the family you had."
Aphrodite stopped pacing and turned and looked shocked at Solan.
Xena and Gabrielle doing the same.
"He's...a part of our family isn't he?" Solan asked with a hurt expression on his face.
Xena's heart gave at the words and knelt down. "Solan..."
"I know you don't like Elaine. I know you hate her! But she...she brought me to you...and...and she's helping to save Eve! She didn't need to do any of that. She could have just...left with Uncle Joxer and...both of you wouldn't have known anything. But she stayed!" Solan said passionately and then ran over to be in front of Gabrielle.
"She's staying to help us mom! She's helping us because she loves him and he still loves you both! I know you were angry last night but...he's hurting right now! He told me he doesn't know how he feels about anyone but...he told me he'd be there for me! No matter what! Even if it meant you sending him away." Solan was crying as he said the words as he remembered his 'serious' talk with the tall goofy man.
"Solan." Gabrielle's anger had dissolved the second Solan had referred to her as 'mom' and could see just how attached Solan had become to Joxer after just one night.
"I never had a family. Please don't push them away!" Solan asked and Gabrielle couldn't hold back from reaching over and taking him into her arms and crushing him against her as he let out a few tears and buried his head against her neck.
Gabrielle kissed his head and shared a look with Xena over his head.
Both of them finally understanding that they had to accept Elaine as one of them...or lose the family that they had created together.
Xena could still feel Joxer's hand rest on hers from earlier and wished she had just had the guts to just thank him for singing Eve to sleep.
For being there for her when she had needed him.
For...for becoming a part of her family.
For always coming back to them.
For being him.
Xena let out shuddering breath and steeled herself.
Elaine was going to be a part of her family whether she wanted to be or not...because Joxer was worth fighting for.
Aphrodite had just said that all three of them had a connection. That it was almost gone.
And Xena swore she would not be the one to break it.
She was going to do whatever it took to make it stronger.
Xena would do anything for her family.
Author's End Note: The lullaby in this is Angel's Lullaby by Richard Marx! If you've never heard it...YouTube it! It's absolutely beautiful! I know I don't have people reviewing this because...well...no one is into Xena in the year 2021...but I don't care! I'm carrying on with this story because I think it's different and Xena stories are most all the same. For those of you that can...please leave a review! It lets me know I'm not alone on this journey!