Persistence
By Xie

"The softest things in the world overcome the hardest things in the world." - Lao Tzu

Gabrielle stopped brushing her hair, and frowned at the bushes near the edge of the clearing. “Xena?”

“Hmmm?” Xena was staring across the flat of her sword, one eye closed, looking for debris or imperfections. Nothing. She smiled, and slid it behind her back into its scabbard. “What, Gabrielle?”

“Xena, is there someone in those bushes?”

“No. It’s an animal.”

Xena sounded completely sure, and Gabrielle put it out of her mind and finished fastening her hair back. She slung her bag over Argo’s saddle, and then tied her staff on.

Xena pulled Gabrielle up behind on her on Argo. As they rode away from camp, Gabrielle glanced behind her, one hand resting on Xena’s shoulder. A brownish shape emerged from the bushes behind them, but just then Argo picked up her pace, and Gabrielle turned to the front again.

By the time she looked back, the animal was gone.

That night they made camp near a small stream. Gabrielle was cleaning their pan, and Xena was stretched out on their blanket, her head on her saddlebag, watching the fire with half-closed eyes.

Gabrielle put the pan away and stretched, then kicked off her shoes and lay down next to Xena. Xena put her arm around Gabrielle, and Gabrielle put her head on Xena’s shoulder.

“Xena?” Their fingers were playing together. “Do you think we’ll get to Nemea tomorrow?”

Xena shrugged. “Probably the next day. There’s no hurry. The people of Nemea and Phlious have been feuding for decades. They’ll keep doing it until we get there. We can take our time.”

Gabrielle smiled and nestled closer to Xena. “Good.”


_________________________________

When she woke up in the morning, Gabrielle couldn’t move her feet. She felt a moment of panic, then opened her eyes and looked down to see a large, reddish-brown animal curled up on them, sleeping.

At first she thought it was some kind of big cat, a strangely-coated tiger or lion, but when the sleek creature lifted her head, she saw it was a dog, with liquid brown eyes edged in black.

Gabrielle couldn’t break her eyes away from the dog’s gaze, even though she knew better than to stare at a strange predator. “Xe… Xe… Xena?”

Xena strode up to the bedroll, and stood looking down at Gabrielle and the dog. “I see you’ve met our new friend.”

Gabrielle cleared her throat. “New friend?”

“She appears to have adopted us. Or rather, you. She was there when I woke up. She seemed friendly so I figured you wouldn’t mind.”

“No. No, of course not.” Gabrielle blinked. “Where did she come from?”

Xena shrugged. “No idea. Now, let’s go. We have a long way to travel before night.”

The two women packed up their camp, and ate some dried fruit while they walked down the road, Argo ahead of them with their belongings slung over her saddle.

Gabrielle cast her eyes down the road behind them. “Xena, that dog is following us.”

Xena swallowed a mouthful of apricot. “I know.”

Gabrielle stopped and turned around. “Go home. Shoo. Your owners must be missing you.”

Xena looked down at Gabrielle. “Why do you think she has owners?”

“She’s so well-cared for. She’s not thin, or flea-bitten.”

Xena shook her head. “I don’t think so. She’s been following us for at least three days now. If she had a place to go, she’d have turned back long ago. And she’s not wearing a collar.”

Gabrielle frowned, but turned back to the road ahead.

At around noon, they stopped again, this time in a small village, almost too small to deserve the name.

“This place has decent food and wine, believe it or not.” Xena threw Argo’s reins loosely over a fence outside the small building. If you didn’t look closely, you might actually think she was tied up. “Stay here, Argo,” Xena murmured, touching her neck lightly.

The mare blinked and started nosing around the ground near the fence, and Xena and Gabrielle went inside the tavern.

They were sitting at a table waiting for their food, when a tall man wearing a sword came up to them. Xena didn’t look up from her wine.

“Excuse me, are you Xena?” The man stood waiting for her reply, his stance respectful. Gabrielle saw Xena relax very slightly.

His face was beardless, although he had a dark shadow along his jaw. His eyes seemed clear, but his sword hand was calloused and his sword arm hard with muscle.

Xena set her cup of wine down and gestured at the bench across from her. “I’m Xena. Why do you want to know?”

The stranger slid onto the bench, across from the two women. “My name is Hermogenes, and I was sent out by Kallistrate of Nemea to find you. She said you’d be traveling this way.”

Xena arched one brow. “Kallistrate sent you? You’re absolutely sure it was Kallistrate?”

He nodded. “She told me to find you before you got within a day of the town, and tell you there was very little time left now.”

Gabrielle saw Xena’s hand clench on her cup, but it relaxed so quickly she almost thought she’d imagined it. Almost.

“When did you leave Nemea?”

The stranger answered her. “Late last night. I barely stopped to sleep. She insisted I deliver the message to you before you got much further than this.” He glanced at Gabrielle, then back to Xena. “You made good time.”

Xena looked steadily at him, then nodded once. “Well, you’ve delivered your message. You can tell Kallistrate you saw me. Thanks.” Just then the tavern owner brought their food, and the man hesitated, then got up and went back to his table in the corner.

Gabrielle took a bite of the roast chicken. “What was that about?”

Xena shook her head. “Later.”

When they finished eating, they came outside and found the dog sitting near Argo’s front feet, watching the door.

Xena was lost in thought, but seemed to come to a decision. She climbed onto Argo’s back, and held her hand down to Gabrielle. She glanced at the dog, who was standing nearby, her head tilted, watching them.

“Well, girl, let’s see how fast you can run.”

Argo moved out at a good pace, and Gabrielle gritted her teeth and hung on.  “So, who’s Kallistrate of Nemea? And why does she say there’s little time left now, when you said there was no rush before?”

Xena glanced back over her shoulder. “Her real name is Mellaina, not Kallistrate. The name “Kallistrate” is a message. She’s warning me that the Phliousans have formed an army, much sooner than we anticipated.” She looked at the position of the sun. “The question is, why?”

It was well past dark when Xena finally pulled Argo up, and let Gabrielle dismount before she jumped lightly to the ground. The dog had kept up with them, and more than kept up; she trotted into camp right behind them with a large hare dead in her jaw.

Xena made a fire while Gabrielle skinned and cleaned the hare. When it was roasted, Xena fed chunks of it to the dog while she and Gabrielle ate the rest. Xena stared at the reddish animal, lying between her and Gabrielle, the firelight flickering on her coat.

“Well, girl, you earned your keep tonight. What’s your story, hmmm?”

The dog looked at her as if she understood, and after a long time staring at Xena, she finally gave one soft woof.

Gabrielle smiled. “She’s trying to tell you.”

Xena snorted and got up, and tossed the remnants of their meal into the fire. “We should get some rest, I want to be on our way the minute the sun shows its face.”

Gabrielle got into bed, and the dog curled on her feet. She was almost asleep when she felt Xena crawl in next to her, and pull the blanket over them both. Xena’s hand was on her hair, and she stirred just a little when Xena pulled her closer.

“Xena? We should name her. The dog, I mean.”

Xena shifted to face Gabrielle. “That’s a big step, naming an animal.”

Gabrielle gave a small yawn, and then sighed as she settled into Xena’s side. “I know. But we can’t keep calling her “the dog” or “girl.”

Xena smiled in the darkness. “I don’t know, ‘Girl’ seems to suit her.”

Gabrielle wrinkled her nose. “Do you think so?” She looked down at the dog, sleeping on her feet. “Do you like that name? Girl? Or would you like something more bold, and daring, and beautiful?”

The dog lifted her head and gave Gabrielle a long look, followed by a slow blink. Then she put her head back down her paws with a sigh, and closed her eyes.

Gabrielle smiled and tucked her head against Xena’s arm, and closed hers, too.


Xena woke her the next morning while it was still dark, although there was a faint glow in the eastern sky by the time they mounted Argo and took to the road. Girl trotted along silently at Argo’s side, her head down. After three hours’ hard riding, Xena pulled Argo to a halt, and they got down. Xena walked through a stand of trees, and Gabrielle and Girl followed. It was a ledge, overlooking one of the most beautiful valleys Gabrielle had ever seen.

Xena glanced at her, then back at the valley. “They used to call this land ‘Araethyrea,’ for its beauty.” She sighed. “It’s still beautiful, but the people who live here don’t seem to care. They’ve been at war for a generation.”

Gabrielle stared down at the peaceful-seeming valley. “What’s the war about?”

Xena shrugged. “What wars are always about. Pride and profit.”

There was a narrow path leading down from the ledge, and Girl went ahead of Gabrielle, while Xena led Argo behind them. They came out at the bottom, and were challenged by two armed men.

Gabrielle clutched her staff, and Girl growled low in her throat, her hackles rising to accentuate a little ridge of hair that grew backwards along her spine.

“Kallistrate sent for me.” Xena was calm. The men immediately dropped their weapons.

The younger of the two spoke first. “Are you Xena? She told us you’d be coming.”

They led Xena to a fortified house inside the town walls, and took Argo to the stables. They tried to take Girl, but she flattened her ears and pressed against Gabrielle’s legs, growling low in her throat.

“She’s staying with me,” Gabrielle informed them pleasantly. They eagerly agreed.

They entered the house, and were brought into a large room with a campaign table, spread with maps. A tall woman, with a long brown braid down her back, wearing leathers and armor, stood up when they came in.

“Xena.”

“Mellaina.”

The other woman jerked her head, and all the men stood up and filed out.

Gabrielle stood at Xena’s right, with Girl, watching everything, and saying nothing, her staff in her hand.

Mellaina came and stood in front of Xena. “Thank you for coming. The situation has deteriorated rapidly since my last message reached you.”

Xena nodded. “Your man found me at a tavern on the road. What happened? What’s made the Phliousans call out an army? What changed?”

Mellaina shook her head. “I always knew one day they’d get enough of an idea of where Demeter’s regalia was hidden, to try to come for it. A spy in my house, a renegade member of my family, I don’t know. I do know it has to be moved. And there’s no one who can move it, Xena, but you.”

Xena stared at Mellaina for a long time. “That’s dangerous. Dealing with the gods makes it even more dangerous. And I know you’re sworn to protect the regalia, but tell me, Mellaina – why do I care if the Phliousans get it? What difference does it make which family has it?”

The woman walked back to the table and sat heavily in her chair. “Xena, I know you came here because of our friendship, and not because you share my cause, or my family’s obligation. But Demeter has been worshipped in this valley since memory began, and she entrusted her regalia to us not as an honor, but because only our family was strong enough to keep it out of the hands of thieves and profiteers.”

She picked up a goblet from the table, took a sip, and set it down. “This war has gone on too long. The Phliousans are willing to do just about anything, including bankrupt themselves and decimate their population, if it means getting the regalia and bringing this conflict to an end, with them the victors.” She picked up the cup again, and this time drained it dry, before going on.

“Demeter’s regalia includes a sacred cup, magical, if you prefer.” Xena snorted, but Mellaina shook her head. “No, it’s true. If you look into it, you can see… things. Other places, sometimes even other times. In the wrong hands… it’s a terrible, terrible weapon. But there’s more.”

Xena watched Mellaina impassively.

“I don’t know why, but lately, in my dreams, I’ve seen, over and over, a green land, heavy with mist, and the regalia safe there. And in every dream, the hand that takes it from its hiding place here, is yours.”

Xena didn’t speak for a minute. “Britannia? Are you seeing Britannia?”

Mellaina nodded. “I think so. I don’t know. You’ve been there, I never have. I need you to look.”

Xena jerked her head up. “Look?”

“Into Demeter’s cup.”

Gabrielle’s eyes widened. Mellaina stood up, and beckoned them to follow her. Girl padded after the three women as they went down a dimly lit passageway, and then down a long flight of stone stairs. After several minutes, Gabrielle felt moisture in the air, and she shivered. They were deep under the house now, and probably well outside its walls.

Mellaina stopped, and stood for a moment in front of a blank stone wall. There was one guttering torch burning in a sconce, and in its uneven light, Gabrielle saw the woman make a motion with her hand, and say a few words she didn’t recognize. The wall shimmered, and vanished. Gabrielle gasped.

Xena was unmoved, and followed Mellaina inside without hesitating. Gabrielle went after them, Girl at her side. She couldn’t help shivering as she passed through the place where the wall used to be.

On a large oaken table in the center of the room stood a huge chest. Mellaina opened it and removed a goblet, engraved and ancient looking, from it. She set it on the table, filled it with water from a crystal bottle that stood on the table, and waved her hand over it once. Then she placed it in front of Xena.

Xena stared down into the depths of the goblet, her face carefully blank. After a few moments, she nodded. “Britannia. I know that hill.”

Mellaina took the goblet back, barely glancing into it. She carefully poured the water into a small trough running down the center of the floor, wiped the goblet with a white cloth, and put it back into the chest.

They went back up to the war room, and Gabrielle could have sworn it took only a few moments to return, far shorter than the time it had taken them to go down.

Xena turned to Mellaina when they were back upstairs. “Do you have a plan, or did you leave that up to me?”

Mellaina shrugged. “There’s an exit outside the walls of the town, underground, but I’m not perfectly sure that it hasn’t been discovered. That would be a death trap.”

Xena snorted. “No, thanks.” She frowned. “Is the casket part of the regalia?”

Mellaina shook her head. “No, it’s not.”

Xena’s face cleared. “Good.”

Mellaina looked troubled. “You can’t touch the regalia, though, Xena. Nor can your friend here. It’s death to touch it unprepared, you know that.”

Xena nodded. “We shouldn’t have to touch it. We just need it out of the casket and into smaller, separate bundles. Wrap it however you have to, put whatever magical things on it that will let us take it away, and I’ll bring it out of here and get it to Britannia.”

They slept that night in a soft bed in Mellaina’s house, the first time they had slept in a bed in so long Gabrielle couldn’t remember. The softness of the mattress was soothing, and she sighed as she let herself press a little harder against Xena than she normally did, rolled in close by the dipping of the mattress. The last thing she remembered as she fell asleep was Xena’s hand stroking her hair, and a soft sigh in the darkness.

The next day, Xena and Gabrielle carried the bulky packages into their room, and distributed them among their saddlebags. Gabrielle was kneeling on the floor trying to fasten the last one, when Mellaina came in.

She sat on the carved chair near the window, and contemplated Xena, who was standing next to the bed, calmly strapping on her armor.

“Now, the only question is, once the regalia is gone, how to stop the Phliousans from taking Nemea.”

Xena contemplated the question. “How big is your army?”

Mellaina shook her head. “Not big enough. We didn’t have time to bring loyalists in from the countryside. They’ve been planning this a long time.”

“Why stop them?” It was Gabrielle from where she knelt on the floor.

Xena and Mellaina were looking at her blankly. Gabrielle asked again. “Why stop them? With the regalia gone, does it matter? Let them sack the house, just don’t be here. Let them tear it apart. It’s just stones. Let them spend themselves on this place, while you’re somewhere else, ensuring the safety of your people and their fields and livestock. While Xena and I safeguard the regalia of your goddess.”

The two women stared at Gabrielle, and then Xena snorted a laugh. Mellaina shook her head. “Who are you?”

Gabrielle shrugged. “Just someone who doesn’t like to see lives lost to save a few stones piled on top of each other.”


Xena and Gabrielle stood on the hill, Girl at their feet, watching the house being swarmed by soldiers of Phlious. The walls were falling, and fires were starting in the outbuildings, but no people, no animals, were fleeing in terror.

Gabrielle smiled. “I’m glad it worked out.”

Xena nodded. “It’s always good when people don’t have to die needlessly.”

Gabrielle looked at her. “Now what? Do we go to Britannia?”

“We go to the port at Corinth. We might have to take it ourselves, but there’s someone there who would do a better job than we can. I have to see if I can find her.”

Xena led Argo back to the road, Gabrielle and Girl walking ahead. Just as they rounded a curve in the road, Xena narrowed her eyes at the same time Girl perked her ears up. Gabrielle tightened her grip on her staff.

Pouring out of the woods came a half-dozen warriors, all on foot, with swords drawn. Xena barely had time to slap Argo’s flank, and send her running into the woods on the other side, before three men attacked her. She pulled her sword and broke two of theirs, and sent the third man flying into a tree.

Gabrielle was fighting two men, and the sixth man was nowhere to be seen. Xena whipped around just as his mace came crashing down where her head had been a moment before, and brought her leg up and drove it into his chest. He gasped for air and fell to the ground, and she hit him hard across the jaw. His head dropped back as he lost consciousness.

Girl was standing in front of Gabrielle, and one of the men kicked at her head. The dog coolly avoided his blow, and sank her teeth into his leg.

“You bitch!” he yelled, and brought his sword up to cut her down. Gabrielle knocked his arm with her staff while she kicked the other man away, but the edge of his sword sliced across Girl’s front shoulder, and the dog yelped, and turned and ran into the woods after Argo, trailing blood behind her.

Gabrielle slammed her staff into the head of the man who’d cut Girl, while Xena took down the other man. She and Gabrielle ran after Argo and Girl.

They found the mare about a mile into the woods, but there was no sign of Girl.


Gabrielle was sitting at the fire trying not to cry. She’d walked all over the woods calling the dog, and Xena had tracked her carefully, but although they saw some traces of her – stray hairs, blood – there was no sign of her anywhere. They finally made camp, and Xena sat holding Gabrielle. Neither of them felt like eating.

Gabrielle stared at the flames. “It’s not right. She had no idea what the battle was about. She had no part in it. She was just trying to protect me.”

Xena sighed, and tightened her grip on Gabrielle’s shoulders. “It’s always that way when the innocent are caught up in battles. And when they get hurt.”

The tears Gabrielle had been holding back overflowed her eyes, and she rested her head on Xena’s shoulder and let the woman pull her closer. “Oh, Xena. I wish I knew she was all right.”

Xena pressed a kiss into Gabrielle’s soft hair. “I know.”

The two of them stared into the fire for a long time, before they finally went to bed.

The moon hadn’t come up yet, and the night was quiet in its darkness. Xena sat up, and shook Gabrielle’s shoulder. “Gabrielle. Listen.”

The girl sat up, sleep-dazed, then heard a rustling in the leaves. Her hand went for her staff, but Xena stopped her. “It’s Girl.”

They both jumped up, and ran to the edge of the clearing, where the injured dog, limping badly, came towards them. They could barely see her in the dying light of the fire.

Xena carried her over to the fire while Gabrielle built it up again, so they could see the extent of her injuries. Xena washed the wound with diluted wine, and probed it carefully. Girl shuddered when she carefully moved the shoulder joint, but didn’t so much as lift her lip. She just looked away.

Xena gave her some honey with herbs in it, and stroked her head. “That’s good, Girl. You’re going to be okay.” She wrapped it with a clean bandage, and carried the dog over to their bedroll, and settled her at the foot. Gabrielle sat down cross-legged next to her, petting her back and telling her what a good, brave, noble dog she was.

Xena put her supplies away and came back to the bed, and sat down behind Gabrielle. Girl was sound asleep. “The herbs will help her sleep, as well as dim the pain.”

Gabrielle smiled at her radiantly. “She came back.”

Xena let her hand rest on Gabrielle’s head. “She did. Now, we should get some sleep. We have a long way to go tomorrow, and before we start, I have to fix Argo’s saddle so she can carry Girl. She won’t be walking on that leg for a while.”

Gabrielle threw her arms around Xena and showered her face with kisses. “She’ll really be all right?”

Xena smiled. “Yes, Gabrielle. She really will.”

The two of them lay down, and Gabrielle stared at the fire as it died back down, the weight of Girl warm on her feet. After a while, her eyes drifted closed. She was almost asleep, but not quite, when she realized she was nestling into Xena, and her hand was burrowing under Xena’s arm, brushing the side of Xena’s breast. She heard Xena’s breath catch, and the woman gently shifted, rolling over until she was looking down at Gabrielle beneath her.

Gabrielle opened her eyes.

Xena stared at her, and leaned down and kissed her, not softly, the way she’d always kissed her before. She kissed her hard, and opened her mouth, and Gabrielle gave a little whimper and let her tongue brush against Xena’s, just for a second.

Xena pulled back and looked down at the girl lying under her. She smiled, but there was a ghost of sadness in it. She stroked Gabrielle’s hair softly.

“Is this what you want, Gabrielle?”

Gabrielle stared back at her, and nodded. She didn’t think she could speak.

Xena leaned down, letting her hair fall like a curtain around them, her lips brushing Gabrielle’s forehead softly. “Be sure, Gabrielle. Because there are things you can’t ever go back from.”

Gabrielle swallowed, and then licked her lips. She never took her eyes off Xena’s. “I’m sure.” She was whispering. “I’m sure, Xena.” Then she reached up her arms and locked them around Xena’s neck, and pulled her close, and kissed her.

Xena gave a moan and attacked Gabrielle’s mouth with hers, letting her hand move under Gabrielle’s shift and cup her breast. Her thumb gently brushed the girl’s nipple, and Gabrielle arched up and gasped. Xena’s mouth was trailing kisses all along her neck, and she tilted her head back and let Xena kiss her throat.

Xena pulled her up, and gently lifted her shift off over her head, and then pulled her own off. Gabrielle put her hands on Xena’s arms, and let her fingers trail down them, and then softly pressed her palms against the sides of Xena’s breasts. She buried her face in the softness between them, and moaned as Xena’s hands started stroking her back.

Gabrielle went up on her knees, holding onto Xena, and kissing her frantically. Xena tried to soothe her, tried to get her to lie down, but Gabrielle just kept kissing her, pressing her hands against Xena’s breasts, and straddling Xena’s bare thigh.

Xena pressed her leg up against Gabrielle’s crotch, and forced her back onto the bed, keeping their mouths locked together. She slid her hands up on either side of Gabrielle’s face, and then up into her hair. She finally broke the kiss.

Gabrielle moaned as Xena’s hands stroked down her shoulders and arms, and then across her breasts. Xena’s palms brushed her nipples, and then her mouth followed, tongue gently lapping at one, then the other. Her hand slipped between Gabrielle’s thighs, pressing them apart a little more, then brushing through the wetness and the heat.

Xena kept stroking her, and Gabrielle felt herself get dizzy, get wetter and softer and hotter, and pushed her nipple harder into Xena’s mouth. She didn’t realize she was almost keening, when her back arched up and she gave a broken cry, and shuddered over and over against Xena’s hand.

She finally dropped back against the blanket, almost sobbing. Xena pressed her face into the hollow between Gabrielle’s breasts, and kissed her, right over her pounding heart. She knelt over the girl, her hair falling again around them. Gabrielle felt sheltered, even while she was still shaking. Xena kissed her softly, and brought Gabrielle’s hand between her legs while she knelt over her, her heavy breasts brushing against Gabrielle beneath her.

Gabrielle let Xena guide her fingers between the other woman’s legs. Xena brushed Gabrielle’s fingers through her soft curls, wet and springy, and then Xena moved her fingers down and up, spreading her lips. The girl gave another cry and jerked up and kissed Xena fiercely when her fingers touched something smooth and firm in the center of all that heat and liquid, and Xena’s legs tightened briefly around Gabrielle’s arm.

Gabrielle kept letting Xena guide her fingers, and after a few minutes, she felt everything changing around her hand, getting softer and hotter, and the smooth spot under her finger got firmer, and then Xena moaned. She held Gabrielle’s hand against her, hard, while she clenched the back of Gabrielle’s neck with her free hand, and choked out her name.

Gabrielle woke up much later, alone. The moon was shining down on the camp, and she saw Xena sitting on a fallen log on the other side of the fire. She slipped her feet out from under Girl, and walked over and sat next to her.

Xena smiled softly at Gabrielle, and let the girl slip under her arm.

“Xena? Why did you get up?”

She sighed. “I couldn’t sleep.” She looked right at Gabrielle, and her eyes softened. “I didn’t want to wake you.”

Gabrielle smiled at her, and Xena couldn’t keep from smiling back. Gabrielle lifted her hand to Xena’s face, and lightly touched her cheek. “Are you all right, Xena?”

Xena gazed into her eyes. “I’m fine, Gabrielle. Are you?”

“I’ve never been so happy.” She was whispering. “I love you, Xena.”

Xena sighed and bent her forehead down and touched it to Gabrielle’s. “I love you, too Gabrielle. It’s just… this is a rough life.”

Gabrielle nodded. “I know. I’ve always known that. It’s what I want.”

Just then, Girl walked silently up to them, and rested her head on Gabrielle’s leg.

Xena smiled, and stroked the dog’s head. “I guess it’s just something I have to get used to. Sometimes when a girl wants to follow you, it’s better to just give in.”

Gabrielle smiled, leaned forward and kissed Xena softly. “It really is.”

Continued here....