“She is so different from Xena,” the storyteller mused as she nestled into the comfort of her lover’s arms and “yet, in so many
ways, they are similar,” were the last thoughts she had before drifting off into a peaceful slumber.
Later, once Nadrah bustled into the room, waking the two lovers up, Gabrielle had only enough time to kiss the girl’s head,
before Nadrah was running from the room. Dressed in the sturdier clothes from the ship, the child was in a hurry to join in the
festivities outside. The girl’s mood was contagious and Zara was quickly dressed and following in Nadrah’s footsteps.
“Don’t be long,” the tall captain called before closing the door behind her. With a smile, Gabrielle shook her head in
amusement.
Like two children waiting for a summer solstice party, both Nadrah and Zara managed to dress faster than Gabrielle. Now
alone in the room, she turned her attention to the mirror. With damp hair neatly combed, she reached for some of the
perfumed vials on the counter and helped herself to the ointments and creams. As she gazed at her reflection, she noted the
slight shadows under her eyes. The sleepless nights after Xena’s death had taken their toll and now the healer was left with
covering up the evidence of her grief.
“Xena, why did I ever listen to you?” She thought silently as she lightly applied ointment under her eyes. “Because, Gabrielle,
that’s what you always do. Xena comes up with an idea and takes off with it without even talking to you about it and then
look what happens,” she groused as she gazed at the reflection of her eyes.
The blonde was taken back by what she saw. Although she looked much younger than her age, thanks to a long sleep in an
ice cave and a time in deep sleep within Bruinhilda’s ring of flames, she could not help but notice the slight lines etched in her
face that had not been there before Higuchi. Remembering the pain of losing her soulmate, Gabrielle shook her head as she
set the vial of lotion down.
“Face it, Gabrielle, it’s because you love her, that’s why you followed her to the edge of the world,” she told her reflection in
the mirror. “And it’s why you would have followed her even if you had known her plan.”
Angered by her own words, Gabrielle shook her head negatively as she closed her eyes. With head lowered, she reflected
on the Moroccan’s whispered confession of love. The simple declaration sent the healer’s mind to wandering. “Would I
follow you too?” Her mind asked the question even as her thoughts threatened to spin out of control.
“The question, Gabrielle, is, would the captain have asked me to follow her or would she have seen me as an equal partner
and confided her troubles to me?” She wondered as she felt her emotions rage out of control. “And, Zara, just because there
is an aspect of your personality that I wish Xena had, does that mean that I love you?” she thought.
With a shake of her head, she rose quickly from the chair and paced the length of the room with head bent in thought. It was
true that she was beginning to feel love for Zara, yet she was unable to clearly understand if it was genuine love, or the love of
a close friend. “Is it even possible to be in love with two people at once?” She wondered as she moved to the patio.
The garden below the patio was quickly filling with people. Many were moving down past the tall hedges toward the open
field, while others were milling around the garden, each group lost in their own conversations. Like a beacon, Gabrielle’s
green eyes spotted the back of the tall woman. Like Nadrah, the seafarer seemed excited to join in the day’s events. With a
shake of her head, the blonde smiled as she watched the tall form disappear from sight as a vivid memory came to mind of
another strong woman who had intrigued her as much as Xena.
Gabrielle would never have called it love, so much as a puppy crush. Yet, she did have to admit to Xena that there was
something about Najara that captivated her. At first, the healer would only admit to admiring what Najara was trying to
accomplish. But as she thought over those days, she realized that if she had stayed with Najara long enough... if she had
never learned of the way that the blonde warrior convinced her followers and treated those who refused, a love might have
blossomed.
“And then what would have happened? Would it have worked? Could I have continued to travel with both Xena and
Najara and still be able to love them both or would I have been forced to choose?” She wondered as she turned away from
the patio.
As she thought of all of her past loves, she remembered the numerous times that friction existed between her and Xena. It
was not just with Najara, but there were other people, men and women alike, who seemed to bring tension into their
relationship. “But then again, Gabrielle, you weren’t exactly charming to be around either whenever someone started to eye
Xena,” she chided herself as she made one last adjustment to her clothing in the mirror, then turned to leave the room.
With quick, light steps, she moved through the estate. The now familiar corridors and stairways proved an easy jaunt for her
as she made her way past the other guests. As her feet moved instinctively, she began to remember all the numerous times
that she felt jealous whenever Xena’s affections were toward someone else. The first time she had felt the bitter pain was
when Xena left her for Chin. Throughout all of their time together and all of their moments of shared love, she had never
thought that her warrior would have abandoned her so easily to go on a suicide mission. She gave a slight grimace as she
realized the similarities between that time and Higuchi.
“Each time, Xena left me for a woman from her past. True, neither one was living, but she left to fulfill some imagined debt
that she owed and each time I was left alone,” her rampant thoughts took another turn even as she was leaving the estate and
entering into the garden.
“So where does that leave you, Gabrielle?” She silently wondered, then sardonically answered her own question, “it leaves ya
with a big mess on your hands, dammit.”
This, above everything else, was the paramount thought in her mind. She knew that she could no longer play it down or deny
it. There was a love in her for Zara and it was not a simple puppy crush, as it had been for Najara. No, it was a full blown, I
need you, gotta have you, love, one that seemed to consume her entire existence and fill her mind with thoughts of lust and
love. Whereas a part of her knew that this sometimes happened, that the surviving person of a relationship could find love so
quickly, she had never thought that she would be one of them.
“But then again, Gabrielle, you haven’t stopped loving Xena,” she mused as she walked across the thick grass. “There isn’t a
night that goes by when I’m not talking to you, Xena. Nor is there a day when I don’t feel incomplete without you. Yes, I
can share love with Zara and even enjoy it, but I miss you terribly,” the blonde sighed as she absently reached up to wipe
away an errant tear from her eyes.
The storyteller found no answers to her wandering emotions. Rather than try to discover the solution to her problem, she
chose to push it away, at least for the time being. Hopefully, as the days progressed, these troubling thoughts would sort
themselves out. Until then, she remained cautious in an attempt to not cause the Moroccan any undue sadness. “For the
gods only know, Zara, you have past sadness enough on your plate without me making it worse,” Gabrielle thought glumly.
She sighed deeply and with this in mind, she smiled at the nearest guests as she made her way onto the archery field.
~~~~~~
The contestants began to gather on the open field that had been set up for the day’s archery competition. After signing her
name to the entry list, Zara moved to the line of bows where Jamil and Nivedita stood close, their voices low as they each
tested the various weapons.
In the short time that she had gotten to known Jamil, the captain recognized the Arabian man’s body language. With slight
words, he spoke softly to the Indian woman, who coyly smiled as she lowered her gaze, only glancing at Jamil occasionally.
When the Moroccan approached, they both gave the tall woman a welcoming smile.
“So you are also entering the competition?” Jamil asked as he returned his attention to choosing a bow.
“Are you going to win the necklace for Gabrielle?” Nivedita asked as Zara glanced at a bow, then held it in her hand, before
testing the bows string.
“Of course Zara will not win the necklace because I’m winning it for you!” Jamil smiled at the brown woman, the back of his
hand lightly touching her cheek.
“Ha! That is what you say, but I say that I will win it for myself!” Nivedita offered back with a smug smile.
“Zara, is Gabrielle entering it as well?” Jamil’s attention was suddenly caught by the sight of the blonde in question standing at
the entrance table.
The captain glanced over her shoulder and noticed the storyteller bending over at the waist as she signed her name with a
flourish upon the parchment list of entrants. With a pleased smile, the Moroccan allowed her eyes to gaze with frank hunger
at the Amazon even as her mind wandered to thoughts of their lovemaking.
Zara took a moment to appraise the Greek woman’s clothing. Unlike the nicer outfits that were purchased in the city, the
healer chose to wear her own clothes. With a pleased smile, the tall woman watched as Gabrielle turned and began to walk
toward her, the red outfit only enhancing her beauty. The seafarer found it hard to not gaze with lust upon the smaller woman’
s figure. The Amazon’s ample bosoms that begged for the taller woman’s touch were concealed behind the reddish leather
bra and her hips moved so sweetly and seductively under the matching skirt with each step she took. At the site of her Greek
lover, the tall Moroccan inhaled deeply.
“Calm down, my friend, you would think that you have never had her!” Jamil chuckled by her side as he slapped her arm in
camaraderie.
