“Why do they do that throughout the day?” Gabrielle asked.
After a moment, the dark haired woman glanced over her shoulder. “It is their morning prayers. According to customs, it is
expected that prayers take place at specific times throughout the day,” she answered as she turned and leaned her back
against the railing.
“And the words they are saying?” she asked as the men were on their knees, eyes closed, hands raised palms up as they
faced toward the northwest area of the ship. Although Gabrielle did not understand the custom, she noticed a pattern to their
actions.
“They are giving praise to Allah, to God,” the woman explained to the storyteller, her thick accent filled with the richness of
her mother tongue.
“And they always face in that direction?” the inquisitive Greek asked.
“It is written in the Qur’an that the righteous must face the holy mosque of Mekkah, the Ka’bah. So depending on where we
are on our travels, the men pray facing in the direction of the Ka’bah of Mekkah.” The captain smiled slightly as she watched
Nadrah and the men singing the morning prayers.
“And you don’t pray?” Gabrielle asked with an inquisitive arch of a brow.
“No,” the dark one stated as her gaze turned away. “I do not believe in Allah’s blessings.”
At her words, Gabrielle turned and looked sharply at her. She wondered what could have happened to bring such a bitter
response from the captain. At her silent question, the Moroccan seemed to look down at her, and then turned her eyes away
quickly.
“Allah… has not granted me any gifts,” was her only reply to Gabrielle’s silent thoughts.
“I think I understand,” the smaller woman sighed as she pulled the heavy cloak against her. “Sometimes it doesn’t feel like
there are any gods left… at least not any that care.” The storyteller fought down her own bitterness. The captain gazed
sharply down at her. The blonde could feel the unspoken questions. With a slight smile, she looked up at the taller woman.
“In my life time, I’ve gotten to know a lot of gods and goddesses, and one thing remains true for them,” her voice came out
light and easy despite the pain in her heart. Intrigued by her words, the dark haired woman maintained her eye contact.
Seeing the intensity of her blue eyes, Gabrielle turned away. “One thing I’ve learned is that the gods do not care about us
mortals.”
Hearing her words, the captain only nodded in agreement, and said, “No, it does not seem like our lives matter to them, if
they do exist.”
Gabrielle found herself examining the captain’s words. She silently wondered why the woman seemed so distant and, at
times, uncaring. After knowing Xena, seeing how she had changed, metamorphosed in front of her, the shorter woman
wondered if the captain could be a mirror image to Xena’s younger days. As this thought crossed her mind she heard the
familiar sounds of the men rising from their prayer blankets. Their voices low as they began to move toward their individual
duties. When she glanced over the deck, Gabrielle saw Nadrah standing in the corner talking with Xena. Before she
registered a change, the ghost warrior leaned down and surprised the child with some tickles to her side. With a loud squeal
of laughter, Nadrah turned and ran over the deck as giggles rose from the ship’s smallest crewmember.
Both women watched as the little girl ran in a haphazard fashion through the ship. Her little legs carried her over the deck
where the men were beginning their chores as Xena was chasing her. “I’m gonna get you!” The warrior teased as she
reached out and touched the girl’s hair.
“Noooo!” the child laughed as she ran around some crates, then quickly turned around and touched Xena squarely on the
hip. “Now you’re it!” Nadrah laughed when the tall warrior quickly stopped, then turned and ran back over the deck,
climbed the few steps up and circled around the bow to where Gabrielle and the captain stood.
“Perfect way to get the morning started!” Xena explained to her lover as the little girl circled them, screamed, and pounced
on the warrior. She then turned and ran down the deck again.
With a smile, Gabrielle looked up at the captain and shrugged her shoulders. She noticed the captain’s long-suffering sigh as
she watched the little girl bounding over the deck like a giant jackrabbit.
“I apologize for the child,” the captain offered as she shook her head.
“No, it’s all right. She’s really very sweet,” the blonde couldn’t help but laugh as she watched Xena making a clown face,
then reached out and tickled the little girl. Knowing that the captain could not see Xena, she tried to mask her laughter as she
gazed up at the taller woman.
“Children have such active imaginations,” was all Gabrielle could offer.
“Yes, that one is more active than most, I suspect,” the captain sighed as she shook her head.
In their time together, Gabrielle was aware of the captain’s interests. She noticed the looks from the woman. The closeness
was sometimes more than her senses could handle. Rather than lead the tall woman on, she would pull away, regroup and
make certain that she had, in no way, given the wrong impression. Despite this, the healer could not help but feel a need to
reach out and touch the warm softness of a living person.
At her thoughts, Gabrielle felt a stabbing pain of betrayal. She wasn’t certain why, she only knew that such feelings should
not be happening. Gabrielle felt, somewhere deep inside of her heart, that she must remain true to Xena. To feel her
soulmate’s touches at night, to be able to always talk with her, that should be enough, she tried to convince herself. Yet she
could find no way to escape the emotions that washed over her. The initial touches from her warrior princess always lead to
Gabrielle’s arousal. The final climax should be enough for her. Yet every time Xena touched her, once the small blonde had
come down from the high, she felt as if her heart was being torn from her very soul and she silently feared that eventually there
would be no heart left. For this, the Greek healer had no solutions.
It should have been no surprise to her or anyone else that she felt a tinge of happiness that someone was paying attention to
her, even if that someone was the only adult aside from Xena who could talk to her. However it did surprise the Amazon.
Despite this, she had accepted the captain’s offer for dinner. Not quite knowing what to expect from the tall, mysterious
woman, Gabrielle decide to leave all options open.
