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This page was last updated: August 26, 1998
(c)August 1998
URL: willow5.htmlThe following is a bit of alternative fiction based on certain characters from the Xenaverse It is not meant to infringe on anyone else's rights. If you don't agree or disapprove, please go read something else.
This story is part of an Altaverse based on Bite Me and the Fonder Heart. It can be found, along with other such stories, at The Realms of the Xenaverse, under Blood and Roses. Xena is Ares' Daughter and Gabrielle is Bacchus' Daughter
Characters from Buffy: Vampire Slayer have also been borrowed for the purposes of this story. All of this is written with the utmost affection and the no desire for renumeration (except for possible emails). The same above disclaimer is in effect. There are certain changes that have been made to accomadate this particular Xenaverse. Buffy's Vampires are really part of the Kin, renamed for purposes of this story
Xex Alert: Yes, there definitely will be, between two consenting immortal women even. Maybe even more
Violence Alert: Yes, probably, given that this is a story involving slayage and Xena.
Willow latched eagerly onto the explanation. "Right..." Her eyes darted from the intense blue of her aunt's partner to her best friend's. Buffy's eyes pleaded with her not to say anything further, but Willow knew that Gabrielle and her mysterious dark lover could make things better. There was something about Xena that made the teenager feel safe... and a little something else that Willow couldn't quite put her finger on. And she wasn't so sure she wanted to.
"So...." Xena smiled briefly at the small red-head. "Just tell me where
this Angel is and I'll see if I can clip his wings."
Buffy and Willow had gone to the kitchen for snacks. Honestly, Gabrielle thought, What is it with this generation and snack foods? She knew that her warrior, her lover, would have a hearty laugh should she voice the impulse that asked this question so she remained silent on it. She was glad, however, for the respite from the teenagers' intense glances that it gave her. "I don't think it's gonna be that easy, Xena."
The dark woman smiled softly. "It never is, Gabrielle."
The honey-haired blond crossed the room and wrapped herself in the warrior's loving embrace. Soaking in Xena's spicy coriander scent, she allowed herself the luxury of running her hands down her lover's long frame. "Xena... I'm not sure..." Here she faltered. Xena had only been conscious of her... immortal existence... for a few months. And that time had been hard for both the bard and the emerging warrior. It had taken Xena over a century to battle back from the Tartarus that her final battle with Callisto had sentenced her to, and another thirty years to find her way back to Gabrielle. Once that had happened, however, nothing could stop the warrior from reclaiming her immortal soul.
It had been painful, sometimes, for the Ancient Bard to watch her lover struggle with this immortality. To see the strength that she had so taken for granted from her partner in centuries past come roaring back. Xena had at first been plagued by nightmares, unreasonable anger, and violence that would have horrified anyone but Gabrielle... and then finally, as the memories returned, an inordinate sense of guilt over her deeds of two thousand years ago had almost crushed the dark woman. She'd had enough difficulty reconciling herself to the things she had done in this life, much less those done by a consciousness she couldn't remember. However, with Gabrielle's loving support, she had made her peace with the legacy that was hers.
Ares' daughter.
Daughter of the Blood's Fire.
It claimed her... almost as much as the bard's love did. And now she could live with knowledge, the strength, the responsibility. And at those times when it threatened to overwhelm her soul, there was always Gabrielle.
Now the Ancient Bard glanced worriedly at her lover. "This relationship between the slayer and this.. Angel... It complicates things. I wasn't expecting it."
Xena focused on the rich emerald of her lover's eyes. "Don't tell me that you..."
"I never knew a slayer could love a...." Her tongue almost refused to say the word.... "Kindred."
The dark warrior tightened her hold on the slender woman in her arms. "I loved you."
The bard stiffened in the embrace. "That's different."
Now it was the warrior who refused to back down. For the two years that they had been reunited she had been content to let Gabrielle lead her, to dictate the course of their life together. Now, however, things might just have to change. "No, it isn't." As the bard tried to twist her way free from Xena's long arms, the warrior held her tight. "Gabrielle... think... Bacchus never knew you had the capacity for love... especially where it concerned one of his uncle's Children. You held true... despite the Blood. Just as I did." Xena gently kissed the top of her lover's golden hair. "Ares never thought I could love anything but his Blood. Seeing it on my sword. But I loved you more," she whispered tightly into her lover's ear. "Why can't Buffy love this Angel that much? If it's true... if he loves her a fraction as much, they could change the world." Blue now met green unhesitatingly. "Just like we did."
"This is kinda weird, huh?" Willow asked softly, watching her best friend fling open the refrigerator door. The poor appliance wasn't prepared for a slayer's onslaught and smacked up against the kitchen wall with a sharp report.
Buffy grabbed the door in one hand and thrust her head into the coolness within with a suppressed sigh of relief. The Warrior and the Bard had her senses tingling on a kind of slayer overload, the likes of which she hadn't ever before experienced. She knew they weren't the enemy... but they nibbled at her, making her hands twitch, her eyes ache, and her muscles yearn for action. The dark one... the warrior... had seemed almost sympathetic to her plight, watching her listen to the bard. When Xena had crouched in front of her, she had almost wished that the warrior had made a move. Doing something... anything... even getting tossed across the room again would be a welcome respite from this... this... this... "What?" she asked her friend.
Willow didn't seem disconcerted by her friend's confusion. She knew that Buffy was gifted with things she didn't understand, but what Buffy hadn't seemed to realize, was that she-- little quiet, unassuming Willow-- understood a thing or two herself.
Recently Giles had been making some noises about Willow's insights... about her abilities beyond that of a really, really smart teenager. It made Willow think that maybe she had future as a Watcher.
More specifically, as Buffy's Watcher.
Willow had always known she was smart. It was just a fact of life. But whereas before, her intelligence had made her seem... freakish... now it made her a person to be relied upon. Cordelia was a total wash and Xander was iffy at best. He was motivated usually only when Buffy was in really bad trouble. That kind of lack of foresight could get a slayer killed. Willow knew that. Buffy and Giles needed her in a way that no one had ever needed her before. Giles was completely clueless when it came to technology... and Willow was able to access information about Demons and.. Kindred... she hated that particular bit of information that her aunt's visit had brought her... that Giles just couldn't get to with his ancient texts. Buffy, of course, relied upon Giles and Willow completely. Her only concern was where the Demon Spawn were... Giles and Willow just provided her with information about the best way to dispatch them.
Looking at the sleek, blond figure of her friend now, Willow saw the slayer in a completely different light. The last hour had taught her something that she had never before contemplated.
Xena and Gabrielle were unmistakably a team.
What would it take for Buffy to see her the same way?
Blood and Roses Realm | Fan Fiction Site | Home Page
This page was last updated: August 26, 1998
(c)August 1998
URL: willow5.html