Kindred Souls--Xena's Scroll (Part 1)

My own words were truly spoken. The place WAS loaded with babysitters, and when word spread I was looking for someone to watch Eve for a few hours, a general clamor went up. Almost all of the young Amazons seemed to want the job.

I had more on my hands than I had bargained for. I had Amazons volunteering night and day took watch my baby for a while, and I had an extremely curious bard constantly questioning where I was going that I would need a babysitter. And when I finally told her I was up to nothing dangerous or illegal, she volunteered to watch Eve. I told her she had too many other matters on her hands to worry about chasing around a very active infant.

She accepted that for the time being, then seemed to consider it when I asked her if she had any suggestions who to pick for the landmark achievement of babysitting. Hedia had just left us. She was the eighth Amazon in the past two hours to volunteer her services.

Gabrielle was now watching my situation, amused. She shrugged. "How about drawing a name out of a basket?" she asked.

I pulled a face. "That would be far too easy," I admitted. "Surely there's some Amazon you have worked with that you would think would be perfect for the job?"

She thought for a moment, and said, "Yeah…there might be. Could I have a little time?"

I rolled my eyes as candidate number nine showed up at the door to our yurt.. It was Barlatida, and she had already been there once today. "Take all the time you need, Gabrielle," I managed, forcing a smile to my face.


We had been in the Amazon village for nearly a full moon now. The first week had been the most eventful, and was now a vaguely unpleasant memory. Gabrielle and I had let outside forces nearly make us take some time apart from each other. Looking back at it, I blamed most of it on me. I think some of it could be accounted to the daily stress of taking care of Eve, but that was really an excuse. I was irritable more often than not, and was bored out of my brain in the village.

I had been asked to join various Amazon tribes on numerous occasions, but had always declined the offer. There were a number of reasons why, but one of the biggest was the simple fact that I would quickly become claustrophobic in this close-knit lifestyle. I realize that many women who join the Amazons are orphans or had come from abusive relationships with men. I understood the togetherness of the Amazons appealing to them very much. It simply wasn't the kind of life for me.

This tribe was particularly smothering to me, because this group was so young. What they lacked in temperance and experience, they more than made up for in impatience and curiosity. They would appear at all hours of the day and night, asking me about fighting techniques or bothering Gabrielle with some paltry argument. The group was a bunch of innocents, and thought nothing of just walking into our yurt unannounced. I was never a stickler for modesty, but after the third night of one of the Amazons getting an eyeful of my naked ass, I built a lock for the door. That solved the problem of nocturnal visits, but we still had trouble finding a moment's privacy during the daytime.

Gabrielle could comprehend to a certain extent what I was feeling. She knew I was craving solitude. But she was also feeling very much at home with the small tribe. I always suspected Gabrielle would make a fine teacher, and she was able to use those skills here at the village.

And that's where the dilemma had lain. Gabrielle wanted to stay for a while, and I wanted to get away. It pained my heart to say this, but at one point, I was so desperate to get away from the noise that I was willing to take Eve and leave Gabrielle behind for a short time. I don't know why I was so surly at that point, and I really didn't mean it, but our stubbornness was evenly matched, and like a couple of kids, neither of us would acknowledge that I should or shouldn't go. But at the same time, neither of us would admit she was wrong either.

Needless to say, we worked out the situation. I was the one who caved first, and that was after reading a couple of Gabrielle's scrolls to Eve and later, even more to myself. I had never taken the time before, and immediately realized I was missing out on one of the most beautiful experiences in the world. Gabrielle's words perfectly illustrated our adventures, and at the same time, I was struck by a common element in each of the scrolls. In the span of a single afternoon, any anger or resentment I had been feeling melted away, like a sugar cube in a rainstorm. And the feelings were replaced with sweetness and complacency and the willingness to live anywhere, as long as it was with my love.


Later, she asked me what had made me change my mind. I had told her I read some of her scrolls, and after she had gotten over the surprise of that, she wondered aloud what was something in them.

We had snuck off into the forest, and had eluded any of the searching parties of the Amazons. I had told the young warriors it would be an exercise in tracking, but had made sure that Gabrielle and I had left no trail to follow. It was simply an excuse to get away with her. Eve had fallen asleep strapped to my back, and now, was lying contentedly between us, still sleeping, as we sat at the base of two trees, hidden deep in the woods.

"It was the scrolls," I replied, "the words you had written in them and more importantly, the emotion you wrote them with. I was expecting a action-packed blow-by-blow account of our adventures, you know, the way you tell a story when someone asks you about our travels."

Gabrielle wrinkled her brow in confusion. "But that's what my scrolls are," she replied.

"But in your written word, there's so much more," I told her. "I don't know how to explain the way they made me feel…But I wasn't reading scrolls about the many exploits of Xena: Warrior Princess."

Gabrielle grinned at me. "Really? Maybe you were reading the wrong scrolls," she quipped.

I shook my head at her, rolling my eyes, but she knew I was just kidding her with my irritation this time. "I was reading scrolls about Xena and Gabrielle, soul mates, best friends, and partners for eternity. It made me wonder how I could ever be foolish enough to even consider taking off and leaving you."

Her huge green eyes glowed at me. "That is one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard you say," she beamed. "The fact that you got that from our scrolls is wonderful."

"You put it in there, didn't you?" I asked, vaguely wondering if she had just insulted my intelligence in some small way.

The wide grin changed into the sweetest smile. "I put in the way I feel," she answered, her hand coming up to touch my cheek. "And that's the way I want things to stay."

I suddenly realized what she was saying, and the guilt I had been feeling weighed heavier on me. I felt childishly selfish. "Gabrielle, I'm sorry…" I began. "If you want to stay-"

Before I could complete the thought, she had bent carefully over Eve, and grasped my shoulders, pulling me into her kiss. Her mouth molded itself perfectly to mine for a long time. Even with the gap between us over Eve's slumbering form, I could sense her arousal rising to rival my own.

When our mouths had separated, she pulled back her head a little, not letting go of my shoulders. "Don't ever apologize for the way you are, My Love," she said softly. "You are wild and free, yet no matter wherever we go, I always feel like I'm at home."

I grinned at her. "That's just the kind of thing I'm talking about," I told her. "You write of us being together forever, no matter what the circumstances. Our hearts are intertwined. It's so beautiful."

Her mouth was slowly moving back toward mine. "You're so beautiful," I heard her whisper before we both fell silent once again.


That had been two weeks ago. We had ended up spending the night where we were, wrapping Eve snugly in my leathers, once Gabrielle had skillfully divested me of them. The night air was cold, but somehow, the heat of passion kept us from ever really feeling it. We were far too heated from the other's touch.


Since that night, we reached a compromise. I agreed to spend a full moon here at the Amazon village, and Gabrielle could use that time training Cyane to take her place. She would also use the time to study the tribe's laws, preparing proposals for changes to the outdated ones. She and Cyane and some of the more studious Amazons poured over each scroll, one by one, and were making great progress, despite the frequent interruptions.

As for my part, I promised to spend at least two hours a day training the warriors in fighting and hunting. Gabrielle had left strict orders that the only time the Amazons were to approach me for advice was during those training times. I realize that may make me sound bitchy, but this group of young Amazons had more questions than Gabrielle did on Solstice Eve. The two hour training seemed to work out well though, and I could see a lot of progress being made.

I spent the rest of my time in a variety of activities. I spent a lot of time with Eve which was something I would always treasure, especially in light of events that would soon start happening. Evie was nearly eight months old, and everyday, would develop new skills. Her latest big development had been climbing, and it was quite a job to make sure she didn't endanger herself. I also made it a point everyday to talk to her about Solan; I wanted her to grow up knowing she had a fine older brother.


The two hour agreement continued to work out well for me, but Gabrielle wasn't so lucky. The tribe, accepting Gabrielle wouldn't always be there to impart her wisdom, was constantly consulting her with questions, seeking advice on problems that ranged from stupidly trivial to surprisingly important. It seemed Gabrielle couldn't even sit down to a meal without being approached by this one or that one. Sometimes, they would form a queue waiting for her.

I didn't interfere for a number of reasons. First of all, we wouldn't be here much longer, and now, our time left had dwindled down to three more days. Then there was the fact that the tribe really did need the guidance of an experienced leader. Every night, Gabrielle would tell me about some of the matters they sought her out for, and sometimes, she even asked my advice on handling situations. And lastly, Gabrielle seemed to be enjoying herself, honored that they looked to her with such respect. I was constantly reminded how much she had changed since the time I first met her. Her enthusiasm and love for life hadn't waned an inch, yet at the same time, she now had a maturity and wisdom to make her even more unique and qualified.

Our lovemaking during this whole time period took on its own preciousness as we sought each other out in the darkness. In their naiveté, the Amazons had provided us with a yurt with two beds, but rather than push them together, we simply snuggled closer together in one or the other. Sleeping that closely together invariable meant we'd awaken with a conveniently placed body part near a questing hand or mouth, and we spent many a night exploring that body part until the owner demanded something more.

Now we were able to laugh over our first impassioned night here, but at the time, there was nothing funny about it. Eve was used to our nocturnal activities, and slept right through the commotion, but after I brought Gabrielle to a particularly vocal climax, the yurt was rushed by a number of concerned and curious young women. Gabrielle, whose ears had turned bright red from mortification buried her head in my neck, while I tried to calmly explain there was nothing amiss, but after that night, we both restrained ourselves during our lovemaking, not bringing on anymore interference. There was something to be said about masking the noise of a strong climax by muffling your mouth in the nearest fold of your partner's body, but at the same time, I sensed a need growing in us both, a need for a time we could be together with nothing to bar us from letting all emotions run free.


Hence, the real reason for my finding a babysitter, but I wasn't going to let Gabrielle know that yet. Eve was too young to have to be shielded from our lovemaking, and as stated before, usually slept through our more strenuous sessions, but there was always the need to keep an eye on her, and for once, I didn't want her to distract us either. We had both earned the time to relax, and grow tense…in each other's arms.


The sky was overcast on that particularly afternoon, but I wasn't going to let a rainstorm dampen my heightened spirits. Gabrielle had come to me with the suggestion of Cassia being chosen for babysitting rights, and I agreed to that. Cassia was an extremely shy little redhead, and was the quietest of all the tribe's members. She had never even spoken with me, and Gabrielle had confided that she herself had found it difficult to get Cassia to speak with her.

I asked Gabrielle to approach Cassia with the request to watch Eve, and Gabrielle returned an hour later, telling me the girl was thrilled with the choice. There was something else there though, and I asked Gabrielle what it was. Finally, she told me that Cassia seemed to be suffering from a crush…on me.

That wasn't really unusual, I can modestly say, but Gabrielle assured me this was much more than a casual infatuation. The young girl was far too tentative too even approach me, but Gabrielle told me I needed to be very careful around her, in order to not hurt or scare her. I promised I would, but couldn't resist asking, "You don't think she'll use the time with Eve to pry information from her, do you? I don't want her asking what my favorite position is or what it takes to get me to come extra hard…"

Gabrielle laughed, and cut me off with a kiss. She's been doing that a lot lately, and it was an efficient way to get me to shut up, but when her lips released mine, I couldn't resist continuing, "Or how many fingers I prefer…" she cut me off again, for a much longer time, and by the time we were done, I had forgotten all about the teasing.


But that was yesterday, and today, I was all serious as I asked Gabrielle to take Eve to Cassia. I told her I was going out to meet with some representatives from another tribe, and would be bringing them back to meet with her. I didn't want Eve to serve as a distraction as this tribe was not an easy one to get along with.

It was a boldface lie, but I knew Gabrielle would forgive me when it was all said and done. I had let a few key Amazons know a hint of what I was really planning, and with their gossip system fully in place, it wasn't long before every Amazon grinned with the secret. I didn't want them to be alarmed when I made my move.


The sky was the only negative factor on that day. I fervently hoped the rain would hold off, but if it didn't, it wouldn't matter. I had ridden away from the village, and spent a few minutes letting Argo open up and run free. The constant friction against my aroused center didn't make the situation any easier. But that would soon be relieved.

"Are you ready, Girl?" I asked her, as I stopped her long enough to give her a pat and regain control over my raging hormones. Eve was almost completely weaned now, but my excitement level at this moment was still enough to feel sticky from my leaky breasts. The moisture was only rivaled by my wetness down lower, but it was the kind of discomfort I lived for.

Argo stamped at the ground, letting me know she was indeed very ready, and taking one more breath, I called out "Yah," and urged her to take off. As we neared the village, I gathered the reins in my left hand as I readied myself.

We burst out into the clearing at the edge of the village, and Cyane had done as I had bid, drawing Gabrielle out to stand near the fire pit at the center. I gave my loudest battle cry, and Gabrielle whirled to face me, even as Cyane was stepping back. I could see Gabrielle's look of confusion and concern as I leaned way over in the saddle, but she didn't have time to react as I was suddenly upon her, reaching down to snag her around the waist and smoothly hauling her up into the space in front of me as Argo continued her mad pace. Behind us, I could hear a cheer go up from the Amazons, and I had to grin at Gabrielle's bemused expression. I pulled back on the reins, and Argo slowed immediately.

"Xena, what's going on?" she asked then, but I just leaned forward and hissed in her ear…

"You're being kidnapped by a ruthless warlord. Now sit still and don't ask any questions."

Xena's Scroll (Conclusion)
Gabrielle's Scroll
The Xena and Gabrielle XXX Scrolls
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