Work Text:
Since the day Gabrielle chose to pursue the way of peace and throw her stick into a river, she’s been trying to find a new balance. She was so used to solve things Xena’s style that now it’s pretty hard to learn new ways to get what she wants without using violence. Eli has been a good teacher, though. He has taught her some tricks. Tricks that Xena finds amusing most of time.
Most of the time, yeah. But not today. Today she’s just annoying.
Xena’s been sitting on that rock for Gods know how long waiting for Gabrielle to fish their goddam meal with a net and not a single fish has eaten the bait yet. It would be much easier, if she just jumped into the water and took those fishes her way.
When Gabrielle throws the net into the lake one more time, Xena chuckles.
“You’ve gotten really good at that.” she comments.
Gabrielle turns around to face her.
“Well, I’ve practicing on rocks long enough.”, she explains, pretending not to catch the sarcastic note on Xena’s voice.
“You see, this way it won’t hurt the fish. They’re not going to suffer at all.”
They’re not gonna suffer, but I am going to die of hunger, Xena thinks to herself.
“Oh, they told you that?”, she replies instead, mocking the blondie.
Gabrielle smiles.
“Yeah, yeah, they did. Wanna see?”, she challenges her.
Xena nods and in that exact moment Gabrielle throws the net at her, trapping her like a fish.
She certainly did not expect this.
She rolls her eyes and frees herself from the fish net. No emotions detected. Not on her features anyway. But inside, she’s already plotting her little sweet revenge.
Gabrielle is going to regret this.
“You know, Gabrielle…” she starts. “There’s only one way that you can know…”
The net is now in her hands, ready to be thrown again, just not into the lake this time.
“…how fish really feel, and that’s to become one with them.”
At this point is basically clear what she’s up to and Gabrielle takes a step back.
She's not gonna do it, isn’t she?
“Xena…don’t do it. This outfit takes forever to dry”, she pleads, but it’s too late. No way to stop the storm coming.
“Oh , well, I’ve got time. Come on, fishy, fishy, fishy.”
Xena takes another steps forward. She has almost reached Gabrielle and it’s ready to throw the net and trap her when they hear a shout getting closer. They freeze on the spot and look around to see what’s happening. Seconds later, a young woman - apparently an amazon - lands between them. She stands in front of Gabrielle.
“What are you waiting for? Run! I’ll hold her off.”, she tells Gabrielle.
It takes them a few seconds to put the pieces together. She’s an amazon and she’s protecting Gabrielle. The questions now are: who is this woman and why is she so worried about Gabrielle’s safety?
She holds a dagger in her hand and she’s ready to use it against Xena, if only she dares to make a move towards the blonde. So, she does the only smart move possible. She raises her hands and says: “Oh, no. I surrender before Gabrielle.”
They exchange a quick look that hides a lot of unspoken words and the young amazon isn’t sure Xena is actually playing fair.
“Is this a trick, my queen?”, she asks Gabrielle.
My queen? Wait, something’s wrong.
“No, this is Xena. She’s my friend.” Gabrielle explains.
The amazon relaxes and puts the dagger away.
“Oh, Xena, wow. I thought you’d be taller.”, she smiles, but Xena doesn’t smile back.
Fifteen seconds and this woman has already threatened her life and called her short. Enough is enough.
“Who are you?”, she asks.
“My name is Amarice. I come from the village of your tribe, my queen.”
Again, here she is calling Gabrielle “my queen”, when the actual queen of the amazons should be…
“Wait, why do you keep calling me queen?”
Gabrielle is confused and so is Xena.
“I’m not queen unless - - unless Ephiny is…dead.”
The words escape her mouth with no control. It can’t be real, but deep in their hearts they already know it’s the truth. It’s just hard to accept it. She was fine the last time they saw her.
The wave of shock fades when Amarice explains what happened. Ephiny and some other amazon sisters have been captured and killed by the Romans. Xena’s mortal enemies.
Gabrielle turns to look into the brunette’s blue eyes.
“Xena, why would Caesar attack the Amazons? Why would he take prisoners?”
She can’t understand the reasoning behind the Romans’ scheme.
“It wasn’t Caesar. It was his enemy, Pompey.”, Xena states.
--
Amarice takes them to meet the other amazons. Gabrielle still can’t process the fact that Ephiny - their best friend - is gone, leaving a young son and her sisters behind.
They walk silently side by side, following Amarice steps. When they finally arrive, another amazon takes them inside the tend where they put Ephiny’s body. Gabrielle moves away the sheet to reveal their old friend's pale face. Xena sighs.
So, it’s real. Not that they didn’t believe Amarice, but seeing her with their own eyes makes it real once and for all.
Gabrielle fights against the urge to cry. She turns and leans on Xena’s arm. She needs something to hold on to. They stay like that until Gabrielle breaks the silence.
"I need to..to go somewhere else. I can't breathe."
Xena nods and places her hands on her shoulders to guide her out of that tend.
Amarice escorts them to the guests tend to let them process the situation in private.
They enter their tend and Gabrielle stops a few feet away from the only bed in there. She’s furious. And sad. She’s a mix of unresolved tension and confused feelings.
She turns to face Xena right behind her. She needs a distraction.
“What?” Xena asks, tenderness in her voice.
“Were you serious this morning?”
The warrior has no idea what she’s talking about. Gabrielle explains.
“When you said you’d surrender before me? Were you serious?”
There’s a light in her eyes that Xena can’t quite understand. What’s going on in that beautiful mind?
Gabrielle stares at her, waiting for an answer that is probably not coming. Maybe Xena was just kidding when she said that thing. She talked without thinking.
“So? Were you?” she tries again.
Xena clears her throat. She’s never felt embarrassed before, but for some reason now she feels naked in front of Gabrielle even though she’s still wearing her armour.
She really said that thing without thinking…about the consequences.
Would she surrender for Gabrielle?
That’s a rhetorical question because of course she would. She’d do anything for her. Even kneel. Even die if necessary.
“I was.” she finally admits. “I was serious. You know I have a soft spot for you.”
She smiles in an attempt to smooth the tension building between them.
Gabrielle bits her lower lip, a battle taking place in her head. And the tend suddenly feels warmer, like someone started a fire right in the middle of that small space. But there’s no fire. Just them and their desire to feel each other, growing each passing second.
It’s a crazy idea. What if they…?
It’s unthinkable.
They are not…
Are they?
Xena takes a step forward and places two fingers under Gabrielle’s chin. A shiver runs down Gabrielle’s spine. Xena’s eyes are fixed on her red lips. The blonde swallows heavily. Breathing is starting to be a rather unusual act. For a long moment they stay just like this, unable to make another move, afraid to ruin everything.
Then, Xena’s hand leaves Gabrielle’s face and slips down between their close bodies. Lower and lower until her fingertips meet the skin of her tights right under the yellow skirt.
They never did anything like this, and they’ve done a lot of things together. This one is a first, though. A first that feels like an habit somehow. Like they’ve already done this a hundred times before.
Xena’s hands begin exploring the blonde’s toned legs. Slowly, careful to move away in case Gabrielle changes her mind. But she doesn’t. Her heart beats faster. Her eyes close and her breathe gets shorter.
A low moan escapes her lips and that’s music to Xena’s ears.
When her left hand reaches the final destination, she finds liquid gold and realises why the amazons would kill for this woman. Gabrielle has no idea how much power she holds right now and Xena simply obeys to the rule of nature. Gabrielle is the queen and Xena, her most loyal warrior.
The brunette breaks the silence. Hands still placed on Gabrielle’s wet core.
“Question now is, will you let me have a taste of that amazon queen ambrosia, your Majesty?” Xena asks and Gabrielle’s stomach makes a flip.
Xena has many skills and she’s a very generous lover. Especially when Gabrielle is involved. She’s mastered the art of war over the years, but it only took one woman to make her fall to her knees.
Sweet surrender.
Gabrielle raises her chin. She’s the queen. People will do as she says, if that’s what she wants. That power is intoxicating. What if she can make Xena obey for once?
She looks down and see the brunette’s face only a few inches away from where she needs her. So close to the pleasure her lips are promising.
“Take it.” she commands. There’s no uncertainty in her voice. Anger and sadness are now a distant song played somewhere far, far away.
Xena’s grip on Gabrielle’s hips tightens. Her fingers dip in soft skin as she uses her mouth to raise the blonde’s skirt, revealing nothing underneath.
That’s savage.
Gabrielle moans when Xena’s lips finally dive into her welcoming waters.
She likes this.
Noted.
The warrior’s tongue goes up and down, slowly. Careful not to ruin everything by doing the wrong move. Gabrielle’s hands find her long dark hair and stay there, keeping Xena in her place while her head falls back in pleasure. Her eyes close and the feeling growing in her lower belly tells her everything she needs to know. She’s open to anything Xena has to offer. One of the brunette’s hand leaves Gabrielle’s hip and moves up to unite with her tongue. She’s so wet that she could just sink in with at least two of them, but chooses not to. She wants to savour her. She wants to easy her mind as long as possible.
When Xena’s index finger enters her, Gabrielle cries out in pure ecstasy.
The warrior stops for a second to look into her eyes.
“You deserve this.” she says and Gabrielle knows she’s not talking about the sex. She’s referring to her role as the amazon queen. She nods, but a wave of sadness’s rushes through her system and Xena feels it. Doesn’t know how, but she can actually feel what Gabrielle feels. It’s their bond, maybe. Some sort of magical connection between them.
She uses her free hand to raise Gabrielle’s leg and put it on her shoulder for more access. The blonde lets her and Xena’s tongue finds her core again. After an infinite amount of time that any of them could begin to count, Xena’s mouth leaves Gabrielle’s body while her thumb starts drawing small circles around the bundle of nerves right above her entrance.
This time, Gabrielle’s moan is louder and for a second she’s worried someone might hear them, but quickly pushes away the thought because the only thing she can focus on is chasing the feeling of Xena’s fingers inside and outside of her body. The movement gets quicker and quicker. Xena’s eyes are now fixed on hers even though she can barely keep them open at this point.
“You’re wonderful, Gabrielle. Give me everything you got.” Xena pleads.
There’s something in her voice that is different from the Xena she knows. It’s submissive. It’s sexy. It’s an invitation for the oblivion. And Gabrielle accepts.
She moves her hips in sync with Xena’s hand. Climax approaching. She’s basically riding her fingers and that’s the most passionate love making Xena has ever done in her life.
It takes one final compliment for Gabrielle to fall over the edge.
“You’re beautiful, my queen.” Xena whispers.
Gabrielle comes with Xena’s name on her lips like a silent prayer, her leg finding the ground again.
It takes her a moment to regain some control over her breathing. Xena - still on her knees - takes her by the hips to keep her closer and places sweet kisses on her exposed belly.
It’s a blissful moment of peace.
When reality knocks on their door again, Gabrielle is still in Xena’s arms. A tear falling down her cheek.
Amarice is right outside their tend calling for the queen.
“And now what?” Gabrielle asks, looking at her.
Xena helps her adjust her skirt and says: “Now we go to war. The Romans must pay for their crimes.”
This isn’t exactly what Gabrielle thought when she chose to follow the non-violence way, but Xena is a tornado and there’s no way to stop her, Gabrielle knows it best now.