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Xena: Warrior Princess, Gabrielle, Argo and all other characters who have appeared in the syndicated series Xena: Warrior Princess, together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of MCA/Universal and Renaissance Pictures. No copyright infringement was intended in the writing of this fan fiction. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author. This story cannot be sold or used for profit in any way. Copies of this story may be made for private use only and must include all disclaimers and copyright notices.
NOTE: All works remain the © copyright of the original author. These may not be republished without the author's consent.
I was ready to leave, after
all we'd been through,
it seemed we were finished,
no more one, but two.
I took Eve and
started to pack our stuff up,
I gotta get outa here, I
cursed, in a huff.
"Now Gabrielle wants to
play Amazon Queen;
domesticity sucks," I
thought, feeling real mean.
My soulmate and I on the
outs was just dumb,
but I've been known to be
that way till kingdom come.
Now I'd forced
the issue, we'd said our goodbyes,
I was packed up
and ready to leave at sunrise.
Then this little
blond Amazon twitty girl chirped,
"I'll be
your new sidekick now!" Geeze what a twerp!
She'd taken and
put her stuff in Argo's bags,
moved
Gabrielle's scrolls out; tossed them like rags.
"Just some
stuff we don't need on the trail with you,
We're gonna have
such a good time just we two."
I stifled my impulse her
fair neck to throttle,
but I felt the hot blood in
my face start to mottle.
"Now listen," I
said just as calm as I could,
"I don't need a new
sidekick, is that understood?
Now go back to your sisters
and count yourself lucky. "
But as she left I thought
of one other so plucky,
who despite all I'd said or
attempted to do,
had been with me everywhere
'fore she was through.
Dear Gabrielle
followed me hither and yon,
over the
pathways and fields we'd gone.
Living and
loving, foul evil we spurned,
till my path of
disaster her cruel death earned.
On the cross we
both died from an evil man's plan,
went to Heaven
and Hell and then came back again.
But now it was
over, between us was finished,
it would seem
that our love of each other diminished.
I had my new baby, sweet
Eve, God's great gift,
and now I would leave my
soulmate; a new rift.
Ah, well, I thought glumly,
she doesn't need me,
to muck up things here where
her Amazon's see.
I took my bard's scrolls to
the hut with dear Eve,
intending to while away time
till we leave.
I never had read them
before, as a joke,
on my Gabrielle dear, I'd
used them to fun poke.
I really had
meant to read them someday,
but the time
caught me up, what more can I say?
Now I said,
"Hey, there, Eve, wanna hear a tale?"
I laughed,
"Aunt Gabrielle can make Socrates pale."
Then I opened
one up marked "Callisto", that's cool,
and read the
first lines and then quick felt a fool.
My dear bard's
words pummeled my heart to the ground,
Her love shone
in line, and her tales were profound.
I read the first one with my
wonder fast growing,
and each one after that kept
my interest still going.
It was late when I finished
the very last scroll,
Eve was asleep; I was shook
to my soul.
"By the gods," I
whispered, heart stopped in my chest,
"Than you bigger fools
can't be found,” I confessed.
The tales I had read spoke
of love and devotion,
Adventures, quiet times and
great seas in motion.
I thought,
"I was there, but where was all that?"
And tears came
to my eyes as I held Eve and sat.
My dear
Gabrielle saw with soft wondering eyes,
the seasons and
changes and dangers and lies.
Of life and of
death and political woes,
of Heaven and
Hell and even her foes.
And still she
simply gives everyone chances,
to be all that
they can, and spares them her lances.
And me most of all,
throughout our whole life,
of fighting and loving and
rifts and of strife.
Now it was I who was going
to leave,
and she let even me, just
‘cause of my peeve.
"Xena, you FOOL,"
I thought, roaring within,
"She wants you beside
her, through thick and through thin,
but she's willing to let you
go if that’s your mind,
and will never say anything
she feels unkind."
I gently packed
up all her scrolls as Eve slept,
I made my
decision and within my heart leapt.
And then humbly
I went to the side of my bard,
"I... read
your scrolls," I said, swallowing hard.
It hurt me to
see the surprise on her face,
the joke I had
so long played out lost its grace.
"And...
w-what did you think?" She was fighting for calm,
she had hoped I
would read them but gave up long gone.
I then did the absolute best
that I could,
to speak with sincerity,
gentle and good.
"I liked them," I
said. "Wish I'd read them before,
you have a great talent with
words; they just soar."
She dimpled, nose crinkled,
and "Thank you," she said,
but I saw how her eyes shone
by emotion led.
"I've decided to
stay," abruptly I spoke,
and absurdly was pleased by
her joy and her hope.
"Whatever
you want to do's just fine by me,
I'll stand right
beside you," I said joyously.
She smiles like
the sun and she understands all,
but I can see
something else on her mind casts a pall.
"Gabrielle,"
I say questioning, "What is it now?
Come on, I can
read you quite well. What's the
row?"
"Um,
there's trouble with Joxer," she hesitates then,
"He's been
sentenced to have me kill him again..."
"Don't worry about that
now," I shrug it off calm,
"But, Xena," she
starts then I raise a palm.
"You won't have to kill
him," and she says "Oh, no?"
"I'll just kill him for
you," I say. "So let's go."
And she trusts me like
normal for I have a plan sound,
and later we three and Eve
bed down unbound.
"So, Xena," Gab
speaks as live Joxer snores on,
and we look at the stars
from our outside campground.
Our bedrolls are
in use and Eve dozes so sweet,
that I don't
even smell the old Mighty One's feet.
"Do you
ever think we two will settle right down?
Live in a house
or a city or town?"
"I
dunno," I say as I stifle a yawn,
"but one
thing I know that's as sure as the dawn."
"And that
is?" she says with the stars in her eye,
as she takes my
hand and I smile and sigh.
"You and I'll be
together come Hell or high water...
and we will raise Eve as our
very own daughter."
She smiles even wider when
words I thus speak,
and my heart strings tug and
I feel very meek.
"I'll be glad to do
it," she grins. "You and Eve,
are my family now and I
never will leave."
And that's fine by me as we
lay there together,
Gabrielle and Xena and Eve... we're forever.