The sound of oakwood popping in the fireplace roused Xena. She watched through half-open eyes as Aleta added another log to the fire. Xena wondered just how long the girl would tag along with them. Gabrielle grew more fond of the teen every day. Xena had to admit that it was refreshing to have the girl's youthful enthusiasm around. Since the news of Ander's death, the girl had relaxed and the tormented child that Xena had found leaning over her sister's corpse had transformed into a happy, talkative young woman. Aleta shred Gabrielle's sense of adventure and hung on the bard's every word.
"Where's Gabrielle?" Xena asked, her voice still raspy with sleep.
"She went to clean up in the river. She was hoping you would catch some fish for breakfast. I threw some extra wood on the fire, just in case."
"Sure, I'll see what I can rustle up. How's the supply of olive oil? Do we have any lemon peel left?"
"We should probably restock the oil in Chalcis. Yeah, she has some lemon peel in her spice pouch. Xena, how long will we be staying in Chalcis?"
"Not sure, probably not more than a day or two, why?"
"It's just that I've never really been anywhere. My sister and I always dreamed of travelling, you know, leaving Kamena and seeing the world. I love all of Gabrielle's stories. I can't even begin to imagine all the places you've been."
"Yeah, we get around, that's for sure," Xena stretched as she sat up on her bedroll.
"So, what is your favorite place?"
Images of her and Ares' private island palace rushed through Xena's mind. The black sand beaches. The beautiful courtyard with the fountain and the frieze. The sultry, humid grotto with the stone lined hot tub. The playroom with it's heavy furniture and plush bed. Xena shook her head to dislodge the visions. "Crete's nice but there's a lot to be said about the British Isles, they're so green. If you're into snow, then it's hard to beat the Norse lands. Chin's so expansive, there's really something for everyone. But for me, I probably prefer my home valley to anywhere else. It's always Amphipolis that pulls at my soul."
"What about Egypt? I bet that was something to see!"
Xene had been to Egypt at least a dozen times in her life but for some reason the only memories of the land of the pharaoh that came to mind were images of a moonless desert night and a sky ablaze with falling stars. "Egypt's nice if you don't mind sand in your crack."
"Did you see the pyramids?" Aleta was undaunted by Xena's wry comment.
"Yes, I've seen the pyramids."
"Wow. You've even been to Mount Olympus, haven't you?"
"Yep," Xena answered and started putting her boots on. It was too early in the morning for a world tour.
"What's that like? Are there gods all over the place? Are they like us?"
"Yeah, there were a lot of gods there, they are more like us than not."
"I used to pray to Aphrodite to make me a beautiful woman when I grow up. And, Gabrielle tells me you know her personally."
"Yes, she's a friend of ours. You stick around a little longer and who knows, you might get to meet her."
"Really!" Aleta drank from Gabrielle's wine skin and passed it to Xena. The warrior took a swig then gave the leather bag back to the girl. Talking with Aleta this morning felt like flashing back thirty years. Xena remembered when her bard was this curious and talkative. "Do you pray to the gods, Xena?"
"No, not in a very long time?"
"Why not?"
"I find that I have better results depending on myself than waiting for a god to take care of my problems."
"I don't always pray because I have a problem. Sometimes I just give thanks for stuff, you know. Like, the gods sending you and Gabrielle my way. I mean after what happened to Rina, what would I have done without you. And Ares, I mean him taking care of Ander that way. I feel like I owe him a dedication of some sort."
"Aleta, he murdered Ander."
"Yeah, but Ander murdered Rina and probably raped her before he did it."
Xena knew that he'd raped Rina but she couldn't recall telling the girl that her sister had been violated.
"Trust me, Xena, he deserved whatever Ares did to him, probably more."
"He was mean to you girls, huh?" Xena didn't want to pry but she could feel the hatred rolling off of the girl. Aleta needed to talk about it.
"When he started seeing our mother, he was always trying to put his hands on us. Mom found him with Rina when she was my age now, I was just twelve, then. I think that's why Mom sent us to Democles. She figured if men were going to use our bodies we might as well get paid for it."
"Well, you don't have to do any of that, now."
"Then it's okay for me to stay with you guys for a while."
"As long as you like." Xena said and finished putting her second boot on. "I'm gonna find Gabrielle and see if I can catch us some breakfast."
"Okay," the girl replied. Xena got about ten feet from camp when the girl called out, "Hey, Xena."
Xena turned, "Yeah?"
"Next time you see Ares, will you thank him for me?"
Xena nodded then turned and walked away. Xena had no idea when she'd next see Ares. She didn't want to think about him. But, as she walked toward the river, memories of his hands on her the night before set her tingling. Damn him!
Xena found Gabrielle bent over the river swearing up a storm. The bard was beating a garment between two rocks.
"Everything okay?" Xena asked, playfully amused by Gabrielle's frustration.
"No, everything is not okay! I got my period. I've bled all over my favorite undies and it doesn't look like I can get this stain out. Plus, we are running low on padding."
"Well, we can buy you new underwear and extra wool in Chalcis."
"Still sucks." Gabrielle held up the ruined panties.
"Are you gonna be all bitchy?"
"Oh, Miss I've Bitched All Week, what are you going to say about anybody being moody?"
"Excuse me?"
"Xena, you've been almost unbearable. I am so glad you saw him last night."
"I didn't see him last night, at least not like you are thinking." It was only a half-lie. They hadn't really had sex. He'd just rubbed her off. That hardly counted. Right?
"Really, cause when you came back to camp, you seemed a little less stressed."
"Whatever, he and I are still on the outs. And I didn't fuck him."
"Okay, like you said, whatever. I'm not trying to argue. I'm hungry, I'm fat, and I'm miserable."
"You are not fat, bloated a little, maybe, but not fat."
"Thanks, can you just fetch me a wool pad and a clean pair of panties."
"Be right back."
Xena jogged back to camp. Maybe Gabrielle was right. She was feeling better this morning. Was it the orgasm or just seeing him that had made her feel better? Was it his lips on her neck or his hands on her body? The line of questioning was fruitless. She knew it was everything.
Xena rifled through Gabrielle's pack. She found a fresh pair of underwear but no wool strips for protection. "Oh no," Xena muttered and grabbed her own saddlebags. "Oh no, oh no, oh no,"
Xena shook her head when she found a surplus of pads in her own bags.
"What? What is it? Everything alright?" Aleta ran to Xena's side.
"No, oh no. No, no, no, no," Xena ranted. She was late for her period. She'd been so caught up in everything that was going on between her and Ares that she hadn't even considered her cycle. But she'd started before Gabrielle last month, by at least ten days! That meant she was late and by over a week. Xena tried to calm her breathing. It was no big deal, she reassured herself, she'd been late before. It was nothing, it couldn't be.
"Xena, Xena," Aleta placed a comforting hand on the warrior's arm.
"I'm fine, thanks." Xena pulled a pad from her pack and headed back to the river, to Gabrielle.
"What took you so long?" Gabrielle sighed, exasperated but then she took in Xena's panicked stare. "You okay?"
"Um, yeah, uh, you didn't have any, um, um pads."
"Xena, you okay?"
"Yeah, I gave you one of mine." Xena sat down on the riverbank, speechless.
Gabrielle watched as Xena counted something on her fingers like a little girl learning her numbers. Xena laughed and shook her head. She cupped her breasts and ran her hand over her belly.
"Xena, you sure you're okay?"
"I didn't get my period, Gabrielle. I didn't get it."
"Xena, you don't think?"
"I don't know. I am too old, right? Tell me I'm too old, I'm finally going through the change, that's all, right?"
"Um, I don't know. I doubt it. You have been nauseated a lot lately, and kinda moody."
"No, no, it can't be. I can't be having his baby."
"Have you been drinking the tea regularly?"
"No, not regularly."
"And, besides, he's a god, do contraceptives even work with demi-god babies?"
"Sure, why wouldn't they?"
"I don't know, Xena. My experience with gods is limited!" Dahak hung in the air but neither of them dared voice their thoughts.
"I can't be pregnant. Can't be. You have no idea. It's what he wants."
Gabrielle finished dressing and sat beside Xena on the riverbank. "And you don't want it?"
"I'm not sure."
"You just know that you don't want to give him what he wants, is that it?"
"Can you really see me and Ares co-parenting?"
"Strangely enough, yes. Look, isn't love all that matters? You'll love the baby. He'll love the baby."
"No, you look, maybe we are just jumping to conclusions. No more baby talk. I'll start bleeding in a day or two. I have to!" Xena jumped up.
"Xena what are you doing?"
"I'm going fishing!"
"Fishing?"
"Yes, Gabrielle, fishing. Hopefully, you haven't scared them all away with all that rock banging you were doing."
"I was cleaning my underwear!"
"Well, you didn't have to scare the fish off doing it."
"Sorry, I had to clean my panties. Some of us actually get our periods!" The bard smiled inwardly at her barb as she headed back to camp.
"I'll get mine, you just wait. I'll get mine and it will be the greatest period ever! The blood will flow like the Nile in summer!" Xena yelled after the bard's retreating back.
