AND STILL SHE FOLLOWS
by Cousin Liz
1997 Nov 16
eas01@fast.net


Disclaimers: The characters of Xena: Warrior Princess are owned by MCA Pictures and used here without permission. No copyright infringement was intended in the writing of this story.

There are displays of graphic sex between consenting adults, as well as a non-consensual sex scene. Violence... this story deals with the aftereffects of war. If this type of story offends you, or you are not old enough to read it, please stop reading now.

I hope you all enjoy.


Chapter 1

'After only a short time, I no longer noticed the stench of the dead or the dying. It has been what, four, maybe five days since I entered the battle? I'm really not sure. Now all I can smell is victory... and it smells so sweet. Funny how victory smells so much like death and dying.'

Xena had hoped that she would be able to put a stop to the warfare before it had a chance to begin. Her old friend King Evander had called on her for help, but she and Gabrielle arrived at the outskirts of his kingdom too late. Both sides in this civil land dispute were well entrenched and the battle had already been raging for nearly two days. King Than, with the help of the ruthless warlord Kragon, was determined to wrestle the land at the Northern border of King Evander's kingdom away from him. This narrow strip of land was the only viable passage through the mountains to the Aegean sea, and was a heavily traveled trade route.

King Evander's monarchy, which had had possession of this land for eight generations, always allowed free access through the pass. King Than saw the pass as a highly profitable money-making venture. His plans were to seize the land and charge exorbitant fees for the privilege of crossing rights. For this, the two kingdoms had gone to war. Kragon, smelling profit, had been willing to sacrifice his men for victory, and soon neither side were taking prisoners. Xena soon found herself doing whatever was necessary to win the battle, and the warrior's sword ran red with the blood of countless.

Xena reveled in the victory. The war was over, yet her body cried out for more. She had forgotten how alive she could feel when she was closest to death. And Xena was surrounded by it. Her nerve endings tingled as her blood pumped fiercely through her body. She was alive! But she knew she had Gabrielle to thank for her forgetfulness. For the last two years, and especially the past few months, the love that Gabrielle had shown her had awoken feelings of hope and a renewed sense of life she had thought were long lost. With Gabrielle at her side, Xena felt she just might actually have a chance at life. For now, she concentrated on the warmth she felt when thinking about her bard, and tried to quell the carnal thoughts that were threatening to surface.

The warrior pushed her dirt-matted mane of black hair from her eyes and surveyed the carnage. Kragon's army was good -- very good. But he never stood a chance against a warrior determined to protect innocent people *and* her bard. Wiping the blood and gore from her blade on one of the nameless bodies at her feet, Xena walked from the battlefield in search of Gabrielle.

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Gabrielle. She had managed to saddle Argo and lead her down to the edge of the battlefield near a small stream to wait for Xena. The bard wanted to be away from the carnage as quickly as possible. The last four days had been a nightmare. Blood was everywhere, and the bodies never seemed to stop streaming in. Each time the tent flap flew open with another body on a stretcher, Gabrielle found herself wanting to rush over and make sure it was not her warrior. She longed to see Xena, but dreaded the thought of it happening. Instead, she found herself swabbing and stitching the wounds of so many that soon they were just faceless souls and she was but one among them. Gabrielle felt nothing anymore. Despair, then grief, followed by anger, had all passed. She was an empty vessel in need of filling. Unfortunately, all that filled her was the blood. The blood of so many had covered her that she could not seem to rid herself of it. And the blood never stopped; her green top covered in crimson splotches that had soaked through to her flesh.

The bard knelt at the stream and plunged her arms into the cold, rushing water, scrubbing furiously to rid herself of the gore and stench that covered her. Disregarding her normally modest disposition, Gabrielle ripped off her green halter and continued to scrub the blood from her body. When she was done, she quickly donned the beige blouse that she had gratefully accepted from one of the village women who had helped with the wounded. It was a tight fit, but Gabrielle managed to button it close.

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Xena walked slowly through the battlefield, carefully picking her way over the dead bodies that had not been gathered up yet. The warrior had known that if a battle ensued, it would be particularly bloody and brutal. Kragon was as ruthless as they came. She had tried in vain to keep Gabrielle from coming, but as usual the bard was adamant. No amount of pleading worked. And this wasn't the first time. No matter what Gabrielle said, Xena would never forgive herself for taking Gabrielle through the Thesselian- Mitoan war zone. She had almost lost Gabrielle for good, and it was as she cradled the lifeless body of her best friend in her arms that the warrior first realized that she could not live without her love... Gabrielle. Afterwards, Xena was not sure which had frightened her more -- Gabrielle dying in her arms, or the fact that this young, naive girl from Poteidaia had gotten past her defenses and firmly entrenched herself in the warrior's heart. 'Not even dying could keep us separated. Somehow, she fought her way back -- to me. It was the greatest gift I have ever received. And still she follows.'

The sight of her warhorse Argo, patiently waiting at the edge of the battlefield by a small copse of trees, caught the warrior's eye. Xena scanned the area and could just make out a strawberry blonde head of hair peeking out from behind the tall overgrowth at the edge of the clearing. Gabrielle was apparently kneeling by Argo, intent on some task. Xena's heart leapt. The warrior had not seen her since this had all began, and bounded over to the pair. As she neared she pulled up abruptly, her heart beating wildly and her breath catching at the sight of her lover kneeling before her. Gabrielle was focused on repacking her traveling bag and had not noticed Xena's arrival.

Xena's mind strayed to thoughts of the women and children that remained at Than's kingdom as dark recollections tried to push their way to the forefront of her memory. More times than she dared to count, she had found herself alone in her tent with one of the women from such a village her army had just defeated. Standing tall and defiant in her warlord's black leather and long, flowing cape, the warrior reveled in the power she wielded before the small form knelt in submissiveness before the "Warrior Princess." And the battle lust that had raged in the warrior's heart would only be quenched as the young woman yielded to the warrior's seductive powers.

Xena shoved the dark thoughts that were threatening to spill out back into the recesses of her mind, where she fought to keep them hidden. But the sight of Gabrielle kneeling before her was too close to her nightmarish thoughts. Xena pictured herself closing the distance between them. She watched, mesmerized, as her left hand reached down, wrapping itself in the young woman's hair as her body lowered itself on to the startled girl. Her mouth quickly descended onto Gabrielle's as her left hand firmly held the bard's head in check. Xena's free hand began to roam over the bard's body, quickly finding its way under the girl's skirt and straight to its goal.

"Xena? Xena?! Are you OK?" Gabrielle stood from where she was checking her traveling bag and faced her friend.

"Huh?!"

"You looked distant. Are you hurt?!" A slight panic crept into the bard's voice as she warily eyed the blood that covered her warrior lover.

"No, no. I'm fine. I just..." Xena's mind tried unsuccessfully to push the lurid images from her mind that she just had of forcing herself on her best friend. 'What has gotten into me?!' The warrior analyzed her feelings and desires and came to a logical conclusion. Xena recognized the symptoms all too clearly. Battle lust. It had been a long time since she had felt it this strongly.

Gabrielle covered the distance between them so quickly that the warrior never had a chance. She flung herself at Xena, wrapping her arms around the stunned warrior and burying her face in Xena's chest without giving a second thought to the blood and dirt that covered her lover. "Gods, I've missed you," the bard whispered as she pulled Xena into an even tighter embrace. "I was so worried." Gabrielle felt the gnawing hunger in her gut become only partially satiated as the warrior enveloped her in strong, knowing arms..

Xena quietly held her for a long moment, before using the excuse of her appearance to slowly extricate herself from Gabrielle's firm hold. "There is a small village a couple of hours south of here," Xena began, trying to change the subject. "I want to be there before the approaching storm is upon us." If Gabrielle had thought Xena was talking about the weather, she would have only been half right. The warrior turned her back to Gabrielle and busied herself with checking the tall warhorse's saddle. With a grace that belied her body's true state, she mounted and started off. She did not offer her young lover a ride. The warrior could not trust herself to remain that close and not act on the feelings of lust that were quickly overtaking her. Gabrielle quickly gathered up her traveling bag and staff and followed on foot. The two lovers traveled in uneasy silence.

Xena had her share of skirmishes over the recent years with road bandits and the occasional lightweight warlord, but nothing had come close to the bloody war that had waged. She had almost come close with the Horde. But Gabrielle's humanity had successfully intervened before it was too late. 'But not before she had been confronted with a small glimpse of my dark half. I had been willing to do anything, sacrifice anything, to protect her. I don't know if she truly realized what I was willing to give up to keep her safe, but she got a small taste of what lurks just under the surface. And still she follows.'

Xena wondered what would have happened if Gabrielle hadn't been able to help bring an end to that war before it got out of hand. She cringed inwardly at the thought of her dark side possibly escaping again, although at one time it had served her well. Destroyer of Nations. Murderer of Men. Defiler of Women. It was a reputation she had proudly worn, although it was not built entirely on fact. There was no denying her sword was stained red with the blood of thousands, but she had never resorted to rape. Yes, she occasionally *helped* herself to one of the young women from a village her army plundered. And if asked later, the bits of information garnered from these girls through tears of shame, always spoke of a domineering warlord bitch taking what she wanted and leaving them battered and broken, never wanting to be touched again. But that was not the real story. They would never admit that once inside the privacy of the warrior's tent, she had simply seduced them, every last one of them. Xena knew how to use her body. She was capable of stripping them bare of the last vestiges of their dignity, reducing the young girls to begging and groveling on their hands and knees to be taken. In the end they had unashamedly offered themselves up fully to the Warrior Princess and were eagerly willing to perform acts that only a few candlemarks ago they had never dreamt of. These small, intimate conquests fueled the warrior's lust for power and she took all that was offered her... until that fateful day.

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Chapter 2

Dark memories from a time long ago began to creep from the recesses of the warrior's mind. She normally had the strength to keep them at bay, though they were not entirely forgotten. In the past two years, those acts had weighed heavily on her conscience. Xena had never been able to forgive herself and had spent many a sleepless night because of this. Now, the lingering sights and smells of the battle provoked recollections she wished she could banish. The flood gates opened and the ultimate defilement she had perpetrated on a young girl came rushing back to the forefront of her memory.

The warlord's newly formed army had entered a village looking for tribute. Xena had expected to collect and simply move on. Instead, they were met by resistive villagers who decided to take a stand and protect what little they had. It was a pity they hadn't decided to better protect their real treasures from the warlord and her army. The villagers were no real match, but they had caught Xena and her men off guard. The warrior soon found her leathers dripping in the blood of men unwilling to surrender. They fought valiantly to protect their homes and property but were eventually slaughtered, and the women and children rounded up.

Xena was about to offer the survivors one last chance to comply to her demands when one young woman, who appeared to be about seventeen winters old, spat in the warrior's face. "You will never take me as a slave," she announced vehemently. "I'd rather die first!" Xena swiped at the spittle trailing down her cheek and licked it sensuously off of her fingers. "We'll see about that." She motioned to two of her men who came over and bound and then dragged the young girl into the nearby tavern.

Sex with the few chosen warriors in her army that Xena had allowed herself to get close to had been getting boring lately. 'Yes,' she thought. 'This is exactly what I need.' The warrior didn't have a name for it, but she had been noticing a growing need for physical as well as sexual release after a hard-fought battle. She had even found herself drawn to picking up the services of whores at nearby inns to satisfy her cravings.

Xena had already decided on this young girl for a night of passion. Her appetite was voracious, and the way the young girl had defiantly made eye contact instead of bowing her head like the rest of the women had inflamed the warrior's being. Young village women were usually never this daring in public. It was only afterwards, when the warlord had folded back the petals of their delicate upbringing, exposing their tight bud of innocence and lapping up their sweet nectar, that their inhibitions would be thrown off. It was then that Xena enjoyed the fruits of her labor.

She had hoped to spend an evening hearing the young girl scream her name out in the throes of passion, but she quickly changed her mind. This girl had publicly humiliated her. The warrior coldly decided that there would be no seduction tonight. 'I will take what I want, *and* make a statement at the same time that will not go unnoticed by the rest of the villagers.'

The captured villagers were taken to the village's meeting hall next door to the tavern and secured while Xena loitered outside. She wanted to let the girl's imagination work in her favor for a while. She knew she was going to be in for a fun evening. This time she would live up to her reputation. She smiled to herself as she entered the tavern.

The warrior found the girl sitting with her hands bound to a support beam in the middle of the dining area, struggling to free herself. As she drew near, the girl abruptly kicked her left leg upwards catching Xena squarely in the crotch. The warrior was momentarily stunned, but quickly recuperated. With a feral grin spreading across her face, the warlord advanced on the young girl, her breast dagger drawn. The girl sat there silently seething, doing her best not to show fear.

"I see you like it rough," the warrior quipped. "Well, if that's the way you want it..." Xena reached down and sliced the girl's hands free from the beam. Grabbing her by her long blonde hair, she flung the girl halfway across the room to land hard against a large wooden dining table.

Xena advanced quickly on the crumpled form. Hauling her to her feet, the warrior brought the girl's face within inches of her own. "I had planned on conducting business from the comfort of a soft bed," the warrior growled as she motioned with her head to the stairs leading to the rooms upstairs. "But... you appear to prefer a different setting. That's fine by me," she hissed. The warrior swiped her arm across the dining table to her right, scattering the unfinished meals in a wide arc across the room. The warlord threw the girl face down on top of the table, the young girl's legs straddling one of the table legs. Xena moved to the opposite corner of the table and grabbing the young girl's forearms, pulled her towards herself until the girl's toes dangled two to three inches off of the floor. Using her whip the warrior bound the writhing girl's arms together before securing the whip to the table leg.

The warlord bent down and studied the young girl's face. The girl turned away, but not before Xena saw the look of fear that she tried so hard to hide. Brushing her lips against the girl's ear so there would be no mistaking the warrior's next comment, Xena seductively breathed three simple words into her ear. "You... are... mine." The warrior chuckled at the whimpered response her words invoked.

Xena slowly walked back around, lazily running a finger around the perimeter of the table. Once behind the girl, she waited patiently. Eventually, the young girl stopped trying to free herself, wary of the warlord's next move. Bending down behind the young girl, the warrior grabbed the hem of her long skirt and pushed it up to gather around her waist. Xena then hooked her fingers in the girl's britches and tugged them down to fall uselessly to the ground below. Moments later, the Warrior Princess, Defiler of Women, deposited her own britches inches from the young girl's face. The girl frantically renewed her efforts to free herself as the realization of the warlord's probable intentions flooded her mind.

The girl finally stilled her futile attempts to work her hands free and tried to look behind herself to see what the warlord was doing. Xena stood motionless in the hushed silence, just inches from the girl's backside. Her eyes were riveted on the plump ass cheeks before her as she allowed her own anticipation to slowly build, heightening her already inflamed senses. When she could stand it no longer, the warrior finally closed the distance between them. Placing her hands firmly on the creamy white mounds of flesh before her, Xena began to roughly knead the girl's cheeks while slowly spreading the trembling legs wide.

The warrior straddled the young girl's left leg, positioning herself over her left ass cheek. Gripping her firmly by the hips she brought the girl's body up to meet hers as she began thrusting herself fiercely against the girl's backside. Following each thrust the girl's body slapped back down onto the table, the corner driving itself painfully between the girl's splayed legs. Xena could feel the heat of her desire beginning to burn her to her core, and frantically increased her pace, her need for release overwhelming all other senses.

Animalistic grunts soon escaped from the warrior as she surged, feeling herself nearing climax. "No one, but NO one will *EVER* humiliate me in front of my men and get away unpunished," the warlord barked through quickening pants. Her short nails drew blood as she continued to slam her throbbing sex against the small form under her. Xena drove herself furiously, oblivious to the pleas that coursed past the girl's gritted teeth as her virginal backside reddened from the continued assault. Suddenly a white hot fury escaped from the warrior and Xena fell forward onto the young girl, crushing her under her armor. Clutching the sides of the table the warrior continued to ride the young girl unmercifully, biting her on her left shoulder as she felt her climax imminent. Suddenly she stiffened. Arching her back and clamping her thighs down hard on the girl, she exploded. Afterwards, the warrior continued to slide herself along the girl's slick wet thigh, pumping more juices from her convulsing sex.

Finally satiated she collapsed, sprawled on top of the girl. "Hmm, I don't know," Xena drawled into the girl's left ear. "It seems to me that you'll make a *fine* slave. What do you think?" the warrior asked, reaching under the girl and pinching her right nipple roughly through her blouse. The girl swallowed hard, but not before a whimpered cry escaped from her. Thinking she could get off again by bringing the girl over, Xena slid off and stood once again behind her. Grabbing her by the hips, the warrior lifted the young girl, spinning her around and dropping her on the table so she was lying face up. The girl winced as her stinging backside hit the rough, uneven planks of the table. Xena grabbed the young girl and pulled her towards her, positioning the girl's ass cheeks at the corner of the table; her legs dangling in the air over the sides.

Xena slid her hands up the girl's inner thighs, spreading her legs wide. She was about to lean into the girl to make contact with her own sex when she paused. Curiously, she fingered the girl's sex, gingerly probing the opening. She was shocked, yet deliriously elated, when her finger met with resistance as she began to enter the girl. 'A virgin!' her mind cried out. "My, my. Why didn't you tell me, my sweet, *innocent* thing?!" Xena leaned over until she was just inches from the girl's anguished face. "Allow me to leave you with something to always remember me by," she purred.

Unceremoniously, the warrior plunged two fingers deep into the young girl, tearing past the thin membrane that shielded her innocence. The girl cried out in horror and shock, and Xena merely laughed in her face. Standing back up, the warrior proudly displayed two bloody fingers before wiping them clean on the front of the girl's crumpled skirt and exiting the tavern. As usual, Xena was correct. The broken girl made a fine example to the rest. They easily got the tribute they desired before leaving to conquer new *lands*.

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Chapter 3

The image of the young girl slowly faded from Xena's memory, only to be replaced by a vision of Gabrielle as she looked when the warrior princess first met her in Poteidaia. The ex-warlord had just saved her and her village from the wrath of slavers. She was so young and innocent, so much like the girl the warrior had defiled. Before Xena had a chance to be on her way, Gabrielle had confronted her. 'And she wanted me, an ex-warlord, to take her away. She was so naive. If she had only known what I was capable of, she would have run screaming in the opposite direction. I even did my best to scare her away, threatening her lest she make me angry. And still she follows.'

A sudden clap of foreboding thunder brought the warrior out of her reverie. Xena glanced behind herself to find Gabrielle a few paces off, leaning heavily on her staff in her attempt to keep up. "The village is just a short way off," the warrior called back, as she turned back to the dusty road picking up her pace.

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A young stable boy rushed up as Xena dismounted Argo. He stopped abruptly at the sight of the bloody and dirty warrior. Too frightened to advance or even turn and run, he stood frozen in his tracks. Xena caught his eye and quietly held Argo's reins out to him. He slowly advanced, due more to the magnetic pull of the warrior's eyes than his own motor skills. Xena laid the reins in his shaking, outstretched hand and instructed him to take *good* care of her horse. The boy violently shook his head in the affirmative before leading Argo away.

Gabrielle, who had been waiting patiently during this exchange, turned and shuffled towards the inn, with Xena close behind. The inn was practically empty. The lunch crowd had already dispersed, and it was too early for the dinner crowd. Two sets of eyes greeted the pair as they entered. A young barmaid, probably the innkeeper's daughter, had been busily washing down tables when she looked up and gasped. She hurriedly turned and bent back to her task, afraid to make eye contact with the disturbing sight. The innkeeper left his seat at the end of the bar and quietly approached. He did his best to act like all of his customers came in looking like rejects from Tartarus.

Gabrielle, without a word, placed a few dinars on the bar. The innkeeper looked from the bard's face to Xena's and directed them to a room upstairs. The bard eyed the steep narrow staircase and with an audible sigh, started heading towards it. Xena hesitated. She looked from Gabrielle to the front door before returning her gaze to the disappearing form of the young girl. Shaking her head slowly back and forth, the warrior gingerly took the stairs two at a time to catch up.

Xena passed Gabrielle in the upstairs hallway and headed for their room. She opened the door, and as was her custom, paused at the threshold surveying the room. Satisfied, she entered. The room was nothing special. A bed in the far left corner, a small table to the left of the door, and a cold unlit fireplace off to the right. The window on the far wall allowed the only light that fell across the room, the bleak dark-grey light of the afternoon casting the room in long, unforgiving shadows.

Xena knew this was wrong. All wrong. She had to get out of there. The warrior had planned on saddling Argo and riding, just riding furiously until she was so exhausted that nothing mattered. She wasn't sure if it would help quell the intense feelings that were churning in her heart, but she would rather die than expose Gabrielle to her carnal desires. 'Or anybody else for that matter,' the warrior reminded herself. Xena's mind wandered to thoughts of the young barmaid downstairs. She was exactly the kind of girl the former warlord would have been interested in. Young... pretty... shy... And very likely a virgin. Instead of a sense of conquest, all the warrior felt was a deep regret about her past actions. The thought of being with another person no longer had any appeal. She wanted Gabrielle. 'And that cannot be.'

Xena flinched at the sound of the heavy wooden door closing and the locking bolt swinging securely into place. Her warrior senses immediately heightened as the primitive sense of being trapped momentarily overtook her. Her nostrils flared and she took in a sudden lungful of air before slowly exhaling and willing herself back under control. The warrior berated herself. It was normal for her body to be attuned to her surroundings, but during the aftermath of a particularly bloody battle, her senses sizzled at the slightest physical stimuli. This was evident as her skin suddenly prickled as a million tiny nerve endings announced Gabrielle's closeness to her back.

"Take me."

The words were uttered so softly that they almost floated undetected out the open window, to be torn and scattered upon the winds of the rising storm. But those two words did not escape the warrior's extraordinary hearing and their registration stilled her rapidly beating heart. She whirled around, taking a few unsteady steps backward. Xena knew full well the source of those two words, yet still she hoped to see somebody, anybody other than her young lover standing before her. She was not sure if she was more startled by the utterance from an up-to-now silent bard or the word's implications. The warrior's heart raged, their implications being more than she could bear. Xena tried vainly to quell the growing inferno of emotions that threatened to spill out, but there was no denying her need for release. 'Just... not here... not now... not with *her*,' she cried to herself. Her blood pounded in her veins, and a loud thrumming behind her eyes caused her vision to momentarily blur. The warrior gave her head a few harsh shakes and refocused on the silent form before her.

Xena clamped her mouth shut and swallowed the words she had been about to utter. There was no need in asking Gabrielle if she knew what she was asking of the warrior. Xena could tell simply by the young girl's body language. Gabrielle's arms were outstretched, welcoming her lover with an intense longing in her eyes that the warrior had never seen before.

Xena found herself only an arms length away from Gabrielle. The warrior silently battled her dark half. She had only planned on staying at the inn long enough to make sure that Gabrielle was safe, before making up some excuse to leave. Because for Gabrielle to be truly safe, the warrior knew that she needed to put as much distance between them as possible. Now she was torn. Up until now sex with her new lover had been wonderful, loving, carefree and restrained. Xena had always been afraid to let even a little bit of her dark side out to play. And with the discipline born of a warrior, she had been able to hold it in check. Until now. She longed for release, and Gabrielle was welcoming her to her bosom. Against Xena's better judgement it was an offer she did not want to refuse.

Xena's conscience told her to run, but her body betrayed her. Reaching out, she grasped Gabrielle's jaw between her thumb and forefinger. The bard clutched the warrior's forearm with both hands, looking up into Xena's eyes. The warrior appraisingly took in the full, soft, pouting lips, the long delicate neck, and could just imagine the creamy flesh that awaited her behind the blouse. Xena swallowed hard, already imagining the sweet taste of those lips, not unlike a reformed drunk would imagine the sweet burn of alcohol down their throat as they would lovingly run their fingers over a cold, sweating glass of spirits.

The warrior met the bard's eyes, and Gabrielle found herself unable to hold her gaze. She quickly dropped her eyes to her hands. Xena tilted the bard's face up, but still Gabrielle averted her eyes. "Look at me," she ordered, and the bard quickly complied. What Gabrielle saw reflected back to her in those two dark blue pools of liquid fire was a smoldering desire barely held in check. The bard gulped audibly and subconsciously tightened her grasp.

Never breaking eye contact, Xena tightened her hold on the bard's jaw and pulled her forward. Thrusting the young girl's face up to hers, she pulled the girl up onto her tip-toes and captured the lips she longed to taste. Xena slid her hand down the bard's neck, wrapping her fingers around the soft flesh of her throat. The warrior's tongue insisted on winning entrance to the young girl's mouth, and the moment Gabrielle's jaw surrendered, Xena thrust her large wet member fully into the girl, taking possession.

A low growl emanated from the depths of Xena's soul as she hungrily seized the girl's tongue, sucking it into her own mouth. Gabrielle moaned into the warrior's mouth as Xena slowly released her tongue, running her teeth along the length of it's shaft. Capturing the bard's lower lip between her own, she lightly nipped at the soft flesh. When Gabrielle yelped at the feeling of sharp teeth on her tender lip, Xena bit down again before releasing her hold. Gabrielle stumbled backwards, her legs no longer able to support her weight. Xena quickly closed the distance between them, effectively pinning the girl between her armor and the rented room's door. She braced both of her forearms against the door on either side of the bard's head and lowered her head to stare intently into two very large orbs of green.

The sensuous writhing of the young girl's body against hers was more than Xena could handle. "You want this, don't you?" the warrior whispered as her lips caressed the bard's right ear. "You want to feel my mouth on you, suckling your breasts, isn't that right? Hmm?" Xena snaked her tongue out and traced the folds of the bard's ear before sighing. Gabrielle could only moan softly in response. "Feel my mouth sliding over your skin, licking, tasting, consuming." Xena ran her right hand lightly down the front of the young girl's body, which twitched uncontrollably from the feather-light touch.

Pushing the front of the bard's skirt up around her waist, the warrior grasped the young girl by the hips and adeptly kneed her in the crotch. Xena luxuriated in the feel of the girl's soft cotton undergarment rubbing up her thigh as she pushed her lower leg against the door, forcing the bard to stand on tiptoe. They were now practically eye-to-eye. Xena stared into the glistening pale green eyes before her. "Give yourself to me," she stated simply, as her muscular thigh began its rhythmic assault on the young woman's already sopping wet sex.

Gabrielle's head flew up and her eyes riveted on the ceiling above. The long sinuous line of the bard's neck caught the warrior's eye, and Xena lowered her head, greedily sinking her teeth into the taut flesh before her. She sucked hungrily on the feast offered her as her entire body methodically kept up the same slow, torturous movements against the trembling flesh that her thigh had started. The bard felt herself torn in two directions. Her body wanted - - no -- craved to be taken by this powerful woman, but her naturally modest demeanor made her question her needs. Her fists found purchase on the armor on the warrior's shoulders, and she half-heartedly tried to push the larger woman away.

A fire began to burn in the warrior's eyes as she felt the small form before her begin to meekly resist her advances. It would have been so easy to give in completely to her dark thoughts. It had been so long since the warrior felt this kind of power. But Xena fought it with an intensity she did not think she had. The warrior stilled her rhythmic movements against the girl and brought her hands up to the bard's head, tilting the young girl's face down to meet her intense gaze. Xena watched as Gabrielle audibly gulped, a slight look of panic forming in her eyes. In a low voice that burred its way into the girl's head Xena insisted, "I want the truth. You can't lie to me. Do you want me to stop?"

The bard stood there for a long moment, debating whether to give the answer she thought she must, or the truth. Slowly, her hands slipped from the warrior's armor and her arms fell to her sides. Unable to break Xena's gaze, she looked the older woman directly in the eyes and whispered, "No." Xena knew she had the truth. A smile slowly spread across the warrior's face as she seized the bard's wrists, pinning them to the solid wooden door behind her.

The warrior's thigh soon returned to fervently thrusting itself into the young girl's sex, followed almost immediately by the rest of her body against the bard. Gabrielle squirmed seductively against the warrior's assault, her head lolling to the side as Xena slowly worked her way around the right side of her neck, capturing and tugging on the now exposed earlobe. The bard's quick, shallow pants tickled the warrior's ear, and Xena sadistically slowed the pace of her thrusting thigh on the girl's sensitized sex, deciding to stretch the delicious torture out for as long as possible. The warrior chuckled at the quiet cry of disappointment that soon followed.

Xena brought both of the girl's slender arms over her head and transferred ownership of the bard's left wrist to her left hand. The warrior continued to easily hold the bard's wrists as she brought her free hand down to the collar of the young girl's peasant blouse. She lightly fingered the rough beige material, eyeing the two full breasts that strained under the too-tight top. She was well aware of the two perfect jewels that were hidden just behind the cloth barrier, and the warrior's raw passion would not be denied.

Grabbing a handful of material, she unmercifully ripped the blouse from the front of the bard's body. Two luscious mounds of sweet flesh fell free from their constrictive confines, the small pink nipples already hardened and erect with desire. The warrior's free hand instinctively latched onto the bard's left breast, roughly kneading the soft mound of flesh in her large, callused hand. Xena's mouth started its own slow, torturous path down her right collarbone and across the now exposed flesh of the young girl's shoulder, biting and sucking along the way. The warrior savored the sweet taste of sweat as it emanated from the pores of the flesh under her lips. After what felt like an eternity, her mouth had worked its way to the soft skin above Gabrielle's right breast. Poised over the swollen erect nipple, her head stilled. She casually glanced up and in the waning light of the day saw the anxious longing that flickered over the bard's features. Xena let out a low chuckle as the girl squeezed her eyes shut, biting down a little nervously on her lower lip. Turning back to the breast in question the warrior quickly flicked her tongue once over the tip of the puckered flesh.

The bard attempted but failed to stifle a cry. Xena looked up from her meal to see the girl's eyes still tightly closed and her mouth clenched shut. The warrior reached up and ran her thumb over the bard's lips. Gabrielle's eyes flew open. Xena continued to massage her lips, slowly working her thumb between the young girl's lips and into her mouth. "I want to hear you. Hear what I do for you. Don't hold anything back." Xena returned to the bard's breast and once again flicked her tongue over the nipple. This time a small whimper escaped past the girl's lips as Xena's thumb played with the bard's tongue.

The warrior continued the small licks, first to one breast and then the other, graduating slowly to intimate kisses. The small whimpers that escaped Gabrielle's lips soon turned to full-fledged groans of desire. The warrior's blood began to boil at the intoxicating power this young girl wielded over her, driving her on. Her hand returned to one of the breasts, before she opened her mouth wide, consuming the other breast whole. She ground her face into the heaving bosom offered her, relishing the feel of the nipple on the back of her tongue. Slowly she pulled her mouth away, stopping to bite and twist the nipple between her teeth as the tip of her tongue flicked itself rapidly over the swollen hard nub. Gabrielle's cries of pleasure and need spurred the warrior on, and Xena repeated this exquisite assault on the young flesh again and again as her right hand continued to twist and pinch the other hard nipple.

With a slight touch of regret, Xena's hand left the bard's breast unattended. She slowly ran her hand down the side of Gabrielle's body, coming to rest on the young girl's hip. Lazily, she trailed the tips of two fingers up the inside of the bard's creamy white thigh, delighting in the muscles that twitched and jumped from her touch. With deliberate ease, she snaked those same two fingers between the top of her thigh and the girls hot, pulsing sex, and bit down hard on the nipple still in her possession as a whimpered groan escaped past the young girl's gritted teeth. Extracting her now dripping fingers, the warrior proceeded to smear the hot juices brusquely over the young girl's lips. Xena's mouth quickly descended onto the bard's glistening lips, and saliva and juices were joined in a sweet ambrosial mix that inflamed the warrior to new heights.

With her right thigh pinning the young girl steadfastly to the door, the warrior released her hold on one of the girl's wrists, catching it with her free hand and bringing both of the bard's hands down to her sides. Xena's mouth lowered to the front of the girl's throat where she sucked and nipped at the small hollow. Sliding their hands over the young girl's hips Xena repeatedly thrust the bard's body up and back down her rock hard thigh, marveling at the hot slick trail of fluid lathering her flesh. Short, ragged pants issued unbridled from the bard, and this time Xena answered her unspoken plea by quickening her pace.

"You know you want this," the warrior purred into the young girl's ear. "C'mon. You can do it. You're almost there." Xena continued to urge the young girl on. "Let yourself go. Give yourself over to me," she demanded. When Xena felt the bard's thigh muscles clench and lock on to her own thigh, she slowly slid the girl down its long length and held her firmly against the door. The warrior then began to grind her knee in a circular pattern into the bard's throbbing sex as the young girl's hips bucked violently with her imminent release. Gabrielle threw her head back as a torrent of screams were suddenly unleashed from her soul.

Finally, the bard's upper body fell back limp against the door, her arms dangling uselessly at her sides. Her chest heaved uncontrollably as she fought to push air down her burning lungs. Xena took the heaving bosoms as an open invitation and quickly engulfed the young girl's right breast in her mouth, sucking and biting with wild abandon. Her stamina knew no bounds as she continued her pursuit to take all that the bard was willing to give. The young girl's eyes flew open at this newest assault on her flesh, still reeling from the continued grinding of the warrior's right knee. She groaned and mumbled incoherently as Xena's right hand came up and rolled and pinched her other nipple, bringing both intense pleasure and pain to her now swollen and tender flesh.

Xena replaced her mouth with her left hand, slowly raising her head to come eye-to-eye with the bard. Foreheads touching and lips barely brushing each other she confided coyly, "I'm not done with you yet." A feral grin spread across her features as she noted the surprise that registered on the young girl's face. "I will enter you. You will feel me inside you everywhere, touching you, claiming you, possessing you. Nothing will be left. You will be mine." Xena's tongue uncoiled suddenly from its lair, rushing past the bard's startled lips and teeth and burrowed deep into her mouth.

The warrior's hands left the bard's breasts and worked their way behind the girl, reaching under her skirt and down her undergarment. She firmly grasped two full round cheeks, slipping her long strong fingers between them and probing the bard's intimate flesh. The startled young girl lurched forward and Xena used this momentum to pull the shaking form back up her thigh. The girl's legs latched on to the warrior's hips as Xena held the quivering mass tightly against her armor.

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Chapter 4

Still holding the bundle of raw nerves to her, Xena backed up to the edge of the bed. As she lowered herself to a sitting position, the warrior slid the young girl down, and Gabrielle came to rest straddling the warrior's thighs. While her lips, teeth and tongue continued to ply their trade on the bard's ravaged mouth, Xena scooted to the edge of the bed, perching the girl precariously on her knees. Extricating her hands from the young girl's tender backside, Xena firmly grasped the bard's thighs and slowly separated her own legs, causing the young girl's legs to splay open even farther.

Gabrielle's body began to slide down between the warrior's thighs and her hands came forward wrapping themselves around Xena's neck. The warrior caught her by the wrists and brought her arms down and behind the girl's body. "No," she stated flatly. Transferring both wrists to one hand she reached to her side and unhooked her whip. Uncoiling it, she allowed the handle to dangle to the floor. "Hold this," she commanded, as she curled the bard's hand around a length of the whip. She then proceeded to wrap the whip snugly around both wrists a few times before placing the other end in the girl's free hand. As long as Gabrielle continued to hold the whip, her hands remained bound, although they both knew all she had to do was uncurl her fingers to be free. But freedom was relative. Gabrielle was now forced to tense her leg muscles to keep from sinking between the warrior's thighs.

Xena's left hand entangled itself in the strawberry blonde hair behind the girl's head, bringing her mouth down once again on to the bard's tender lips. Reaching down between their legs and under the girl's skirt with her free hand, the warrior slid her index finger under the bard's undergarment and lightly across her swollen clitoris. Gabrielle's tense body jumped at this slight contact. "Mmm," Xena murmured into the bard's mouth. "Seems like you're ready... again." She brought her slick finger up and slipped it between their lips, sliding it first into the girl's mouth and then hers. "Taste what I do to you... so sweet." The warrior's tongue slid all around the inside of the bard's mouth, distributing bits of sweet nectar wherever it went.

Grasping a handful of hair with her left hand, Xena gently pulled the young girl's head away from hers. "I just need to take care of a little *problem* first," she drawled, as she reached between her breasts with her right hand and procured her breast dagger from its hiding place. Gabrielle's eyes widened as the light of the cold grey afternoon filtered in from the window and glinted off the steel. She watched, mesmerized, as Xena held the blade before their eyes, examining it closely. Gabrielle's attention was drawn to the window by a vicious crackle of lightening, followed a few heartbeats later by a booming roar of thunder. But her eyes quickly riveted back on the spectacle before her as the warrior brought the tip of her left index finger to meet the point of the blade. Two sets of eyes watched intently as a single drop of blood started to form.

"It looks like the storm is almost upon us," Xena stated absentmindedly, as she licked the fresh drop of blood from her finger. The warrior's left hand softly cupped the young girl's chin and sparkling blue eyes locked onto misty green. "Do you trust me?"

Gabrielle did not hesitate to answer, and stammering only a little, quickly replied, "With my life."

Xena brought the flat part of the blade down to rest on the bard's inner left thigh. The young girl's heart stilled and her breath caught in her throat as she felt the smooth steel tickling her soft down. "Stay very still," the warrior advised, as she began to slide the razor sharp blade up, easing it under Gabrielle's skirt. A small gasp escaped from the young girl as the tip of the blade momentarily came to rest at her apex before Xena slowly worked it under the bard's undergarment. The bard moved not a muscle as she felt the flat of the blade pressing on the folds of her womanhood. The warrior leaned forward and seductively ran her tongue over the young girl's lips while continuing to press the blade against her nether lips. Xena delighted in the feel of the bard's leg muscles tightening and quivering around her thighs as the young girl began to strain to lift herself off of Xena's lap and distance herself from the smooth flat object that both excited and scared her at the same time.

The warrior's tongue trailed a wet path from the bard's lips to her right ear. "Going someplace?" Xena breathed, tickling the young girl's wet ear with her hot breath and tongue. "I think not," she continued, as she got the bard's full attention by biting down on her earlobe while continuing to press the knife blade against her slippery lips. A whimper of fear escaped past the young girl's clenched teeth, and the warrior's grin widened. "I am going to make you mine, and I yours," Xena whispered, as she pulled back to look intently at the young girl. Gabrielle saw the sincerity in her warrior's eyes as Xena mouthed the word, "forever," before leaning in to claim the bard's mouth, and soul. Xena pushed the blade downwards, feeling the strain of the cotton undergarment being pulled to its limit. With a quick flick of her wrist, the warrior cleanly sliced through the offending cloth barrier that had been blocking the entrance to her prize.

She brought the dagger back up between them, examining it carefully. Not a drop of blood was found on the blade, but it did glisten with drops of something else. Xena carefully ran her tongue along the blade, lapping up the bard's sweet nectar. "Mmm, food of the gods," she muttered, "food of the gods." The warrior was brought back to reality when a long breath escaped the girl's lips and an involuntary shudder racked her body. The warrior smiled as she focused on the young girl's relieved face. "Problem solved," Xena quipped, as she cleanly flipped the dagger over the bard's shoulder and embedded it in the door. Placing both hands on the bard's knees, the warrior leaned forward, enticing the young girl's lips and teeth apart with her playful tongue. As her hands inched up the bard's inner thighs, her tongue lightly flicked in and out of the girl's mouth. "I have many skills," she murmured past the bard's quivering lips, "many skills."

Placing her left hand at the small of Gabrielle's back, Xena steadied the bard as she suddenly thrust her right hand upward, impaling the girl on two long fingers. Xena swallowed the young girl's surprised groan of pleasure as the warrior's fingers tunneled into the depths of Gabrielle's being. The force of her entrance into the bard caused Gabrielle to lift off of the warrior's lap and momentarily be suspended on Xena's hand. The bard quickly tightened her leg muscles around the warrior's rock hard thighs and held herself aloft as Xena slowly and deliciously slid her fingers out just to their tips.

Before the warrior had a chance to continue, Gabrielle dropped herself back down on to Xena's poised fingers, her need to feel the warrior possess her overriding her good sense. Blue eyes flashed and locked onto wary green. Xena's need for control almost caused her to take action, but she froze at the look of determination on the young girl's face. Gabrielle slowly lifted herself back off of the warrior's fingers and then plunged herself downwards again, a grunt escaping past her lips as the soft folds of her womanhood slid over Xena's digits burying them deep into herself.

The warrior decided she would allow herself to take a passive role -- for the moment. She kept her right hand still, allowing the bard to build up a rhythm of raising and dropping herself onto the warrior's fingers. Xena marveled at the creamy softness that was Gabrielle as the bard again and again enveloped the warrior's long digits, making love to her hand. Total passivity did not last long though as Xena's tongue quickly picked up the same rhythm of thrusts into the young girl's trembling mouth.

Gabrielle had built up quite a pace, but Xena could feel her beginning to falter as the bard's thigh muscles started to quiver. On the girl's next downward drop, Xena quickly burrowed her thumb into the bard's soft folds, unerringly finding her way to the girl's throbbing hard nub. The warrior's mouth covered the bard's as an anguished cry burst forth from her mouth. What little strength the young girl had suddenly dissipated, and her leg muscles turned to mush. She sank into the warrior's hand and Xena's thumb gladly continued its relentless attack.

As the warrior continued to excite the small hard nub, she took over where the bard left off and began sliding her fingers in and out of the girl's warm tight tunnel. Xena could tell it wouldn't take much more stimulation to bring the bard over, and paid careful attention to the young girl's body language. At the last possible moment, the warrior's fingers came to a dead standstill, buried inside the girl's convulsing sex. The bard cried out in protest, but Xena ignored the pleas.

The warrior chuckled quietly as the bard squirmed seductively on her lap. She knew what Gabrielle wanted, but wasn't ready to give it to her... yet. Xena ran her teeth along the girl's jawline, ending up at her left ear. Once there, she ran the tip of her tongue over the swirls of the bard's ear before slipping her teeth over the earlobe and quietly nipping at the flesh.

The warrior's throaty voice purred into the girl's ear. "We seem to have neglected your breasts. Do they not ache to be touched? Do they not want to feel my tongue swirling over them? Do your nipples not beg to have my lips consume them?" she cooed. Gabrielle didn't think it was possible, but she quickly forgot about the warrior's two fingers still buried deep within her, as Xena's erotic promises sent spasms of anticipation to every nerve ending in her now over-sensitized breasts.

The bard whimpered uncontrollably as Xena took her own sweet time trailing little nips and licks down her neck. As the warrior worked her way to the top of the bard's chest, Gabrielle threw her head back, placing her weight on Xena's left hand as she arched her breasts upward. The intense need that the warrior's words provoked were causing an ache that was beginning to border on painful. She arched her breasts further up, desperate for attention.

"Hmm, decisions, decisions." Xena had finally worked her way down, and happily paused before both breasts. "Which one?" The warrior waited patiently for an answer. Getting none, she repeated her question.

Gabrielle suddenly realized Xena was asking her a question and expecting her to make a decision. The bard could barely keep a coherent thought in her head and wondered frantically how she would decide. Luckily her flesh took over and her body quickly twisted, offering her left breast to the warrior.

Xena bent down, lavishing attention to the sweet flesh presented to her. Placing soft wet kisses to the outer region of the breast, she slowly worked her way inward. She then proceeded to lightly swirl her tongue over the areola, taking care to avoid the erect nipple. The bard could feel her skin nearly burning where the warrior's tongue made contact; her unspoken desires evident from the moans of pleasure passing her lips. Gabrielle thrust her breast closer to her lover's lips, fighting frantically for some form of release. Xena paused for only a moment before wrapping her lips firmly around the swollen hard nipple and sucking it into her mouth. Trapping it between her lips, she slowly tightened her hold. The bard's body trembled as the warrior's teeth grazed over the tip, before they too steadily bit down and claimed the tender flesh.

This shot a bolt of heat to the bard's loins, and her inner muscles suddenly convulsed, squeezing Xena's fingers. The warrior immediately picked up on this cue and abandoned the breast, thrusting her fingers deep inside the girl once again. This quick switch in tactics left Gabrielle dizzy. The bard's head shot up and she glared at a grinning warrior. She was about to speak but wasn't sure whether to voice her disappointment at her abandoned breast or thank the gods for the concentrated effort the warrior was giving her sex. Xena's thumb slid between the girl's lips, delving into her creamy center, finding the bard's voice box. The warrior pushed down hard on the small protrusion, moving her thumb in a tight circular pattern over the engorged nub. The question the bard was pondering suddenly became a mute point as she groaned and repeated over and over, "Oh... gods..., oh... gods..." Xena's grin widened into a full- fledge smile.

Gabrielle soon met the warrior's upward thrusts with downward plunges of her own as she tried desperately to quell the growing ache in her belly. It was a raw burning desire that up until now the young girl had never encountered. Her need to feel Xena touch her everywhere was overwhelming her senses, and she drove herself down again and again, trying to bury the warrior inside her.

Gabrielle's acute senses focused everywhere Xena was touching her. Her tender lower lip quivered as the warrior expertly sucked on it with her warm moist lips. The sensitized flesh of her sweat-soaked lower back tingled where the warrior's left hand rested. The young girl marveled at the play of rock-hard muscles under soft skin as she tightly wrapped her legs around the warrior's thighs. She was fervently aware of the way her inner muscles expanded and contracted around Xena's fingers and the warrior's thumb that knowingly swirled over her throbbing clitoris was driving her wild.

Each of these separate contacts were enough to assail the bard's senses, but taken as a whole they spiraled her spirit upwards. Gabrielle felt herself escalating higher and higher, while all the time feeling herself grounded by the warrior's touch. She was just at the peak, that barest of moments between the skyrocketing upward climb and the freefall. Just as she felt herself tipping over into that other dimension of gut-wrenching/soul-searing bliss, she felt the warrior's hand grasp her and pull her from the edge.

It took the girl a long few moments to realize that Xena had once again stilled her delving fingers deep within her. When this realization finally did take fruition, the bard honestly considered letting go of the whip and finishing the job herself. Two things stopped her. One was the strange secure feeling that had enveloped her after being bound by Xena. Yes, she would have to admit that in the last two years she had been tied up more times than she cared to remember. But this was somehow different. She knew that try as she might, Xena still felt it was her duty to protect her, keep her safe. She had argued this point with the warrior until she was blue in the face, never revealing that deep down inside she liked the security that this knowledge provided. And in this vulnerable-looking position that she now found herself in, that security she felt from her reticent warrior was only magnified. The other reason was the fact that the bard now had a stranglehold on the whip as the warrior's lips descended and made ravenous love to her right breast. Gabrielle quickly forgave Xena as she arched herself further into the warrior's mouth.

When Xena once again began pumping her fingers into the girl, Gabrielle weakly counted and then rechecked her math carefully. 'Yes!' she thought wearily. 'Thank the gods I've only got two breasts.' The bard was certain her body provided no other distractions for the warrior. No longer having the strength in her tired leg muscles to help, Gabrielle simply spread her legs as wide as possible and accepted the warrior's thrusting fingers into her. She closed her eyes tightly and concentrated all of her thoughts and senses on those two strong digits, feeling herself begin to spiral upward again.

The warrior held the squirming bard firmly on her lap, steadily increasing her fingers to a fevered pace, the girl's body trembling violently with her imminent release. "Mmm, you are so wet," Xena whispered into the bard's ear. "You have coated my hand with your sweetness." Abruptly the warrior once again stilled her fingers deep inside the young girl. The bard groaned in anguish and desperately clenched at Xena's fingers with her inner muscles, trying unsuccessfully to force them to finish their assault.

"Do you want this?" Xena asked, as she curled her fingertips upwards deep within the girl's being, raking them over a rather sensitive spot high on the bard's smooth inner walls. "You *need* this," she continued, as her hot breath and wet tongue tickled the creases of the bard's ear. "Will you die without it?" she asked sweetly, feeling the girl frantically nodding her head yes in response. Over the sobbing moans of protest by the bard, Xena slowly extricated her fingers.

"I told you that you would feel me inside you everywhere," she reminded the bard, as her index finger slid between the girl's cheeks and lightly stroked her sphincter. The shocked look on the bard's face soon disappeared as she looked deeply into the serious blue eyes boring into her. She knew the warrior *always* kept her promises. Gabrielle soon found herself squirming uncontrollably as she felt the warrior's long finger begin to massage her dark opening. "Hmm, I thought you'd like this," Xena whispered into her ear. "You are so firm... so *very* tight." Gabrielle could feel a smile splay across the warrior's face as Xena continued to nibble on her ear.

The warrior thrilled at the moans and gasps that her erotic touch produced and slowly stoked the young girl's passion, building it until the bard's body begged her to possess her. Xena obliged. The young girl cried out in alarm when she felt the tip of the warrior's index finger slowly begin to enter her virginal orifice, invading territory she never dreamt would be infiltrated. "Everywhere," Xena husked as she bit down on the bard's earlobe. "I promised you *everywhere*."

Gabrielle's head flew back and she attempted to gulp in lungfuls of air as she felt her body straining to accept this burgeoning invasion. "Just a little more," Xena assured her, as her first knuckle slowly slipped past the bard's sensitized ring of muscle and disappeared into the girl. The warrior continued to push her finger deeper into the young girl's nether region, fighting the bard's natural reflexes to expel the foreign object.

Gabrielle felt the older woman filling her completely, possessing her in a way she did not know was possible. She was more than a little shocked with how aroused she was becoming having her body taken in this new and strange way. The bard marveled at the warrior's knowledgeable touch, wondering what other surprises this magnificent woman had in store for her. She was brought out of her reverie by Xena's soft purring.

"Ooo, you are *so* very tight," the warrior muttered, as her second knuckle crossed the threshold and was enveloped by clenching muscles. "Just... a little... more," she grunted, as the last of her long digit embedded itself into the young girl. The warrior leisurely twirled her finger around, delighting in the moans of ecstasy that it elicited. Her thumb pushed past the girl's dripping blonde curls penetrating her quickly. "Mmm, I can feel myself inside of you," Xena grinned, as she teasingly began to take turns thrusting her fingers inside both of the bard's orifices, rubbing her fingers together over the thin membrane that separated them.

The warrior was unsure how much more the girl could endure and slid her left arm up the bard's back, pulling the writhing form to her. Her mouth descended on the bard's open mouth, swallowing her pants and cries. The warrior pushed her tongue past the young girl's lips, laying claim to everything inside. Gabrielle melted at the realization that the warrior had sealed her promise. She did indeed feel Xena in her *everywhere*. Gabrielle wrapped her legs under the warrior's thighs, trying unsuccessfully to clamp down on their violent shaking as her body reveled in the exquisite torture.

"You can do it," Xena encouraged her. "Just let yourself go. Give yourself over to me," she commanded. The warrior leaned back from whispering into the bard's ear and locked eyes with the young girl. The bard's glazed eyes struggled to focus through the sweat-plastered hair that fell wildly across her face. "You are mine," Xena mouthed, before her mouth descended onto the girl's quivering lips, taking all the bard had to offer. Gabrielle's groans were claimed by the warrior as the young girl's exhausted body strained to give her the release she so desperately hungered for. As her body began to buck wildly and ride the fingers that Xena had buried deep inside her, Gabrielle tore her mouth away from Xena, whipping her head from side to side in unrestrained ecstasy.

"Oh... gods... yes... please... ...XEEEEENNNNAAA!!!" Gabrielle's entire body stiffened and she abruptly exploded onto the warrior as Xena's name continued to resonate off the walls of the room. The warrior's right hand was drenched as Gabrielle freely surrendered her most precious gift. The intoxicating power the warrior successfully wielded finally quelled her prurient cravings. Xena's lips sought out Gabrielle's and she kissed her tenderly, reassuring her that everything was OK. Gabrielle's body continued to twitch and spasm for some time, and Xena quietly massaged the bard's convulsions while holding her lover tightly to her chest. After some time the older woman deftly extricated her fingers from the spent bard, and laid the palm of her hand against Gabrielle's sex, continuing the much needed connection.

As the magnitude of the last few days finally caught up with the warrior's body, Xena collapsed backwards on to the bed, her left arm covering her eyes. With the natural *high* she had been riding gone, all of the aches and pains received during battle were now making themselves known. She ignored them. All Xena could think about was what she just did, what Gabrielle had wanted her to do. The bard had told her on more than one occasion that she loved *all* of Xena, but the warrior felt vulnerable.

She felt powerless, betrayed by her own cravings. The battle lust had weakened her resolve, if only a little, and Gabrielle had been exposed to a small taste of a side of herself that Xena had hoped to always keep buried. She knew she should have dropped Gabrielle off at the entrance to the inn and fled. But she quickly talked herself into going inside and staying just long enough to see that Gabrielle successfully secured a room. Then she would leave, she had promised herself. Before she realized what she was doing, her feet were propelling her up the stairs to *their* room. 'We'll just make sure she's settled in and *then* leave,' her conscience promised her. And Xena believed.

'Would I really have been able to leave at that point?' She prayed the answer was yes. Knew at the time it *had* to be yes. But Gabrielle had changed all of that. 'Dear, sweet Gabrielle. How will I ever be able to explain my feelings to you? How do you explain battle lust to someone who has never waded through rivers of blood and felt the power as the dead and dying pile up around you.' Tears formed as the ice-blue of the warrior's eyes slowly began to melt.

Xena was brought back to the present when she felt a slight shift in Gabrielle's weight. She uncovered her eyes feeling a firm pressure on her chest. Startled, she found Gabrielle looming over her, the weight of the bard's body pressing the girl's left hand firmly into her chest armor. Then she noticed the look in Gabrielle's eyes. They were glazed over with a wild, smoldering desire.

Suddenly she felt something smooth and hard pressing into her sex and then felt it move slightly downward, to be teasingly poised over her opening. Xena looked down to see the tail end of her whip wrapped around Gabrielle's waist and followed it's path as it snaked down the length of the bard's right arm. Gabrielle's hand was holding the base of the whip handle, while the tip disappeared under the strips of the warrior's leather skirt.

Xena laid there motionless, transfixed on the sight of her young lover. The warrior inside of her wanted to jump up and put a stop to what was happening. It was not in her nature to submit to anybody. She had always felt it showed a sign of weakness. But Xena found herself unable and unwilling to do or say anything to stop the bard. She quickly realized that it would take greater strength to allow Gabrielle to take her. To take her fully to a place she had never ventured.

Xena felt the pressure of the whip handle slowly and steadily press into her, and watched mesmerized as Gabrielle lowered herself to capture her mouth, taking possession of her, body and soul. It was in those last fleeting moments, before all rational thought fled, that Xena realized, 'And still she follows.'

The End






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