By TZ
Copyright March 29, 2022
Legal Disclaimers:
Characters and backstory from Xena: Warrior Princess are the property of Renaissance/MCA/Studios USA. Mentions of anything Wonder Woman-ish is property of DC and whoever else. No copyright infringement is intended.
This is an original work of alternative fan fiction. No profit will be gained from its production. It was written for entertainment purposes only. This piece of fiction is copyright of the author.
Content Disclaimers:
If you are not of legal age to read the following or it is illegal where you live, then please exit this page.
Romantic love between consenting adult women, implied sexual love between consenting adults. Um, never mind. This went beyond implied.
Author's Notes:
An admission of some humor, as I was rereading previous stories in this series, I realized that I ended up changing details when writing from story to story. Mea Culpa. When I noticed this, I did change some back. At first, Beast was a mare, but to mate with Argo, she became a he. She took a walk on the wild side. I kept that one, but Larin was born with Xena's hair. In one story, though, she became a blonde. I did change that back. An earlier story made magical instant venison stew. I did start rereading the new drafts many times to avoid errors like that. Realizing that I never wrote a The Way of the Queen. I did this small bridge of a story at the end. I meant to link Destiny and Alliances. I hope this added a bit to the series.
Continued from The Way of Destiny.
The Way of the Queen
Gabrielle watched the children of the last Festival of Life, as they played among their group. Her daughter Larin was the oldest of the Festival's daughters. Her younger daughter, Eponin, was getting her late morning feeding.
She saw Yoshean, the Caretaker that was advanced after Triva's passing, twirling a stick between her fingers. She was talking to Larin about how important it was, to be an Amazon. The Queen's grip on her staff tightened.
She remembered when Ephiny started teaching her about the caste that she received from Princess Terreis. During her early teaching, Ephiny had told the new Princess that Amazons were taught weapons from the day were born. She then had thought that the Amazon had been messing with her head.
She knew that then, the other Amazon had a grudge against her. Ephiny's perspective changed over time. The Amazon that she learned to trust most, aside from her wife and Guardian, was her Regent.
Since those days, she had dealt with the death of Xena, killed someone by her own hand and survived the demon that helped kill her wife's son through her own demon-child.
Gabrielle recognized the irony that she loved that demon's other daughter. Standing with her head suddenly resting against her staff, the bard realized that she was a character in a Greek play. She loved that demon child too much.
As Gabrielle thought of Wolf, that woman startled her when she set down the oldest children of the tribe's brood. The Queen and her Guardian saw the twins struggle to get to their feet. Once they did, they began toddling quickly to the box of toys. The moms focused on the small wooden swords that Wolf's daughters chose.
Wolf interferred when Peran took Zasha's and began swinging them both. "Peran, play nice." She gave the other sword back to Zasha. When Aresha laid a hand upon the guard's arm, she leaned close and told Wolf that she would take care of the twins. Wolf nodded then went back to Gabrielle.
Bumping the queen, Wolf smiled. "Which one is yours?"
Playing along, Gabrielle pointed at Larin. "She is. She is going to be the next Amazon Queen."
Wolf raised her brows with mock surprise. "Queen? Does that you are the current?"
"If you look at my staff, you know that I am."
Successfully fighting her laughter, Wolf put her chin on Gabrielle's shoulder. "Amazing. I always wanted Aphrodite to deliver to me an Amazon Queen."
Their strength collapsed and they both broke into loud guffaws of laughter.
As an Amazon Queen, Gabrielle was the warrior that she always wanted to be. That was in title only, she thought. While sitting at her desk, she gazed over to her staff. She remembered times on the road with Xena. Her skills were often tested.
She was the challenged Amazon Princess. But now, as the actual Queen, she hardly saw anything. The last time that she saw battle, Phelisya almost killed her. Wolf was going to be an effective battle barrier, shielding her from possible harm.
She had never asked for protection, though.
However, she saw the scraps of papyrus pinned to the war map in front of her. Her own notes screamed danger. She thought of agreements and treaties that the Nation was tied to. They had protection pacts with villages to the north, aside from Terlava, which was slowly getting back on its feet.
She saw the note to check the availability for labor to go east to help Menara.
With the Athenian army declaring war and battling all over Greece, the hair on her neck was raised many times. She returned her attention to the maps on her desk. She saw the notes that she made about the techniques, the weapons and the results. Most so far were naval battles on the perimeter of the Peloponnese. Naplion had seen more of it at this point. The Athenian navy was just too strong. Not being ocean-bound, the forest tribe of Amazonia had little to provide any defense against the warships.
Conscription had increased, driven by that success and an incessant desire to wage war everywhere.
Needing a break, Gabrielle got up and went outside. Seeing only a few Amazons in the square, she started walking to the sparring grounds. Finding her wife and Guardian sparring, she leaned against a tree to watch.
It was beautiful to witness. She could almost see Wolf's muscular arms shuddering as she defended against Xena's hard blows. The immortal ducked and rolled, but the Consort jumped to avoid the twin blades swinging flat at her legs. Xena's dark laugh rode the wind to the queen.
Wolf responded by jumping at the warrior princess. With legs hardened by her fighting techniques, the guard wrapped them around Xena and began to squeeze her. The taller warrior forced her hands between their bodies until Wolf released her.
The shorter woman walked away with her swords braced up against the backs of her arms. She sheathed her swords before raising a water skin over her head. She conceded the day to Xena.
When the guard raised her head, Gabrielle could imagine her nostrils flickering. With a finger's brush above her lip, Wolf walked over to Xena and bowed, saying, "Your wife needs you now." She walked away from Xena to go watch the Amazons spar with spears.
Gabrielle looked up as Xena approached. Close enough, she understood what Wolf had meant. "Did you want to join us?"
The queen waved off the suggestion. "I didn't bring my staff."
Xena wiped her face before kissing Gabrielle. "What brought you out here?"
The queen raised her hands with a shrug. "I needed some fresh air away from my council room." She chuckled. "Staring at war maps will not make it all end."
The warrior wrapped an arm around her wife. "Knowing you, you'll find something positive to make it better."
"Maybe I just need a change of scenery." Gabrielle raised her arms to start stretching. She smiled her gratitude when Xena secured her arms and lifted her. "Let's go see our girls."
Among the saplings behind the temple, the Royal couple watched Larin fight to pull back her crossbow. They saw Theli pointing up into the small trees while talking to Eponin about where to hide before battle.
As she watched the children, Gabrielle could not imagine them being surrounded by an ugly war. She wanted to celebrate their youth in beautiful peace. A memory from her first days of leadership had her energy spiking. She quickly kissed Xena, saying, "I think that I remember a possibility." With that, she went to the scroll hut.
In the dim hut, she lit a candle and began looking for an old tale told by the Delphi Oracle. After making a cluttered mess, she thanked Artemis. Next to the candle, she began reading about an island not far, but different than Greece. With a matriarchal society, the entire Nation could possibly thrive there. Rolling that scroll for later further reading, she set it aside and began cleaning her dishevelment.
Back in her council office, she read the found scroll. Over a century ago, the Delphi Oracle saw the Amazon Nation away from man's threat. It saw an island like the life-giving parts of women giving them a birth of power. Gabrielle stood and began pacing as she thought. She suddenly stopped in front of the map table. Looking at her hand, it framed a delta-shaped island away from Athens. Taking note of its name, she returned to the scroll hut to find some information on Lesbos.
That night, after putting the girls in their crib, Gabrielle read the scrolls of information. Xena's blade sharpening was always soothing. "I'm thinking of calling a council meeting."
"You found something good," Xena asked as she set her sword and stone next to the bed.
Gabrielle was sitting under a collection of scrolls. She switched from one to another and read short passages. "Xena, have you ever been to Lesbos?"
The warrior princess chuckled. "Why do you ask?"
With a wave of her hand, she explained, "These scrolls have a variety of descriptions. Historically and politically."
"Depends on who wrote them, when and their biases." The Consort carefully leaned over the scrolls and kissed her wife. "To answer your question, yes, I did. It was a very brief meeting to threaten the leader of Plomari."
"Threaten?"
Xena shrugged. "It was probably hormonal."
Gabrielle knew that Xena could see the demand for more information. Her emerald eyes narrowed as she lowered her head to intensely stare at the warrior.
The Consort could not resist those eyes. "Borias and I were coming back from the Cossacks. When our ship developed a leak, I demanded that it be fixed."
Gabrielle pursed her lips. "So you went to the leader instead of a boatsmith?"
"I tried to, but they were busy ignoring me. I knew the town leader could force them."
She could understand the slow rise of Gabrielle's brow. The queen shifted under her scrolls and cupped her wife's face. "You were pregnant then, weren't you?"
Xena nodded and pushed the scrolls aside to lay her head on Gabrielle's shoulder. "Yes, but I wanted the boat fixed so that we could get back to Corinth."
The bard demonstrated an understanding with a brow kiss. "Beyond the rude merchants, did you learn anything else?" Gabrielle began rolling the scrolls so she could clear the bed.
"Not really," Xena answered. "You know what I was focused on in those days."
The queen laid down next to the consort. She pulled Xena onto her chest. "I've heard the stories."
Xena lightly kissed the swell of a breast. "You changed me."
Raising the warrior's face, Gabrielle began kissing her wife. She pulled up and softly caressed her cheek, saying, "You changed me, too."
Outside, Wolf stood quietly with her head against the hut. When M'Eru came to change the guard, Wolf went back to her own hut. Seeing that her daughters were already asleep, she thanked Theli with a light kiss. "Go sleep with your girlfriend." She softly patted the caregiver's back, gently pushing her out. The Guardian slept with thoughts of the royal couple.
When the guard woke the next morning, she sat while rubbing the evidence of the evening’s tears from her eyes. After rinsing her face, she went the twin's crib to see the girls already up. She got them ready for the morning. Twins cradled in her arms, they left their hut. Back outside, Wolf looked up at the sun to see the time. After last night, she figured that the Queen was going to call a meeting after breakfast. She kissed the twins before handing Peran to Aresha.
The four of them entered the dining hall before the Queen's family. With their trays filled, they sat to eat. The guard talked to her children while tapping her sausage on her plate and watching the entering Amazons. When Gabrielle and Xena came in with the princesses, she began to eat.
She told the twins to enjoy their day and completely drank a cup of mango juice. With her breakfast finished, she stood to give Zasha to Theli. She crossed to wait by the door to hear the Queen's announcement. She did not always enjoy her oracle dreams.
Gabrielle and Xena talked softly with their daughters and the Regent. "Ephiny, I was talking with Xena last night about the war and how it might affect us."
The Regent nodded as she slipped a spoon of honeyed porridge between her lips. "How do you think it might?"
The Queen raised Larin's hand to kiss it. "I do not know. Greedy and desperate, the Athenians battle partly with uncertainty as one of their weapons."
Ephiny nodded before another mouthful. "As terrifying as it might seem, we might have to wait. Sparta is not a kitten in a cage."
Gabrielle, based on the older Amazon's experience, allayed her fear. "So we should just let time play out?"
"We aren't weak, Gabrielle." The Regent placed a hand on her thigh. "If you have thoughts now, just hold them. You can play them out later if needed."
As the older Amazons were sparring, Solari watched with a sword in her hand. She tried to focus on the couple in front of her, but seeing the Queen battling Wolf, sparring staff against one sword, was exciting. She was sure that the guard was holding back, but she was getting hit.
Even more exciting then, was Xena approaching and taking them both on. With her chakram in her left hand, she sparred against Gabrielle. On her right, she faced Wolf. Their swords were loud as they defended and attacked. The Queen stepped back for just a moment to watch. Then quickly traded places. Wolf's weapon was more effective against a stationary chakram and with the many years of practice between them, she gave a decent battle.
Wolf switched them again, surprising Xena with a hard strike against her bracer. She regretted that she stood to grin at her former commander. She at least heard the weapon a second before it hit her back armor. She raised two fingers to concede to the other warrior.
Unphased, the Queen continued her fight.
Wolf watched with admiration. Both of the women were beautiful. Gabrielle put a hand up to stop the sparring. She turned and demanded that Wolf leave the field. The Queen raised her staff and explained to Xena, "I can't spar with her looking at us with those eyes undressing us."
Xena chuckled as she jumped higher than Gabrielle's offensive move. "Oh, just admit it, Gabrielle, it turns you on when she watches you spar. I swear that I can smell it now."
When Xena began rapidly sucking on her lip, Gabrielle faked high then dropped into a split to strike her opponent's shin armor. She immediately rolled and rose into a crouch.
"I am impressed, Gabrielle. You turned away from the desire to disagree."
The Queen raised a finger and smiled. Her brows suddenly raised with her response. "I don't disagree that sparring Amazons turns me on. I love watching it."
Xena blocked an attempted hit to her shoulder. "All of it?"
Gabrielle twirled her staff. "Oh, warrior. If you can smell me now, you'd know that I love it."
Xena could no longer fight her wife verbally like this. Her soft, deep voice was enough to call a re-match. "I can and I love you for every second of it."
Wolf had been standing next to Solari, listening to their verbal play. She excused herself to take care of her weapons.
Knowing that everyone was either working or sparring, the guard quietly went into her hut. The heat was too much and she was already planning to remove her clothes. With her sweaty garb removed, she simply just laid down on the bed. Without a thought, she retrieved her leather phallus from under her pillow.
She began simple and easy, but with an utterance of Gabrielle's name, she was beyond teasing and she went slow and deep. She imagined the Queen sparring with her. Her strength was deceiving and her speed was an envy. Her voice, saying what she did.
The knowledge that she loved watching all of the sparring made Wolf sweat even more. The Queen had been so turned on watching her Consort and Guardian mock battling. Gods, it was so hard to walk away from that scent of arousal. Wolf had wanted to touch her skin and run her tongue across the Queen's lips, but Xena was watching.
The thought of Xena seeing her fantasizing about her wife should have turned her off. Imagining the Warrior Princess crawling towards her, stopping still on her hands and knees above her on the bed, pushed her even faster.
When she climaxed, she shouted the warrior's name then whispered Gabrielle's into her pillow.
Xena silently backed away from her friend's hut. She left to find her wife to join her in a good bath.
Seeing Gabrielle walking into the square, Xena changed her mind. Catching the Queen's hand, the warrior pulled her into their hut. Gabrielle was not expecting the onslaught of kisses, but went with it. She wasn't lying earlier about the sparring. Her wife knew that turned her on.
Placing her lips next to the Queen's ear, she asked, "Did that sparring turn you on?"
Reaching down between the warrior's legs, she pushed her breaches to the side and began teasing her. "You know it did."
"Me or Wolf?" Xena threaded her fingers through Gabrielle's hair.
The Queen reached to the side to lick that hand. "Both of you together."
"Just sparring?" Xena began rubbing against her wife's fingers.
Rewarding the desire, the Queen penetrated her wife. She wanted a taste, though. "And loving."
She dropped to her knees and pulled Xena's breaches down. To get what she wanted, Gabrielle raised her tongue between Xena's nether lips. She did not stop until Xena backed up onto the bed. The Queen succeeded at spreading her Consort's legs. She continued licking with a finger entering her. Xena reached down to pull it out then clasped three fingers to continue the fingering.
Remembering what might have had their guard crying out her name with passion began to start the muscles between her legs clinching. When she heard her wife whisper, "I want to see both of you fucking each other." The muscles tightened.
"Join us?" Xena chewed at her lower lip.
Just rubbing on the edge of the mattress was enough. "Oh, Hades, Yes!"
Gabrielle raised her head and kissed Xena's thigh. "I need to wash up. It's probably close to dinner."
Xena stood and removed her clothes. She felt the moisture that still lingered between her thighs. Taking a taste, she knew the sweat that her wife had gotten excited with. She quickly wiped all of the area between her legs. She caught the queens fingers before they touched sensitive flesh. She smiled when another wet rag was wiped across her back.
"Xena?" Gabrielle wiped the rag in circles.
Not sure about her current curiosity, the warrior answered. "Yes, Gabrielle?"
"You know I love you, right?" She moved the rag to wipe under her wife's breasts.
"Of course. Given what we've been through and having you next to me, I know that we love each other." Xena turned to look at her wife.
"What we said earlier, did that change it?" Gabrielle drew her bottom lip through her teeth.
"Not sure about you, but it didn't change it for me. I definitely still love you." The warrior bent her head to kiss Gabrielle's lips.
Gabrielle kissed Xena again then lowered her head to press against her sternum. With a bravery never known, the Queen lifted her face so that she could see Xena's reaction. "And I definitely love you, but I love both of you."
Xena cupped her wife's chin and gently kissed her. "I know. However, you are the Queen of my life."
As the bell rang, they quickly dressed and went to get their daughters.
Knowing that the royal couple had been busy earlier, Wolf did not expect to see them so soon. Their family looked so happy. She hugged her twins. She laughed when she got their sloppy wet kisses.
Gabrielle chuckled. "They sure do love their mom."
Wolf nodded as she got a few more. "A lot."
Xena remember the chakram throw earlier. "How's your back?"
The target shrugged. "My armor did what it was made to do." She stopped then turned to face them. Offering an armclasp to each, she complimented them. "That was some good sparring."
Gabrielle impulsively hugged Wolf. "Do you want to do it again?"
The guard laughed aloud. "I once told Xena that I'd try anything once," tilting her head, she looked at the couple, "but some things are too fun to not do it again."
Xena grinned at the Guardian. "That's a yes, Gabrielle."
Gabrielle caressed Zasha's cheek. "I heard Theli mention that the twins are walking good now."
Giving both of her daughters kisses, Wolf nodded. "Too good. They already climb in and out everything."
Xena never had experience raising small children. "When do you plan on training them?"
"When they listen as good as Beast."
The queen became curious. "How did you train him to be so good?"
Wiggling her brows, Wolf grinned. "I talked soft, petted softer and he got a lot of treats for good behavior."
The bard blushed in response. She moved quickly away when her wife reached out to tickle her.
The Consort chuckled with a promise. "We'll talk about your training later."
The group entered the dining hall with a couple of blushes. Kepra turned to look at Roesta after the elbow she got. Brushing her away, she asked Laera to repeat herself.
With some help with their daughters, the three women collected their dinners and found their seats. The Royal couple began to alternately feeding themselves and their children.
Wolf held up a finger at Peran. She gave her a kiss then held a piece of ham between her teeth. Lowering her head, she offered it to her daughter. The next time, she offered her a biscuit with her fingers. For not biting her mom, she got another kiss. "You are a very good girl."
Peran became animated like usual, but instead of laughter, her first word got a kiss. "What do you want?" Wolf did not have to wait.
Peran became impatient. "Ham!"
Her mom finger fed her another piece. Again, not only did the child get her ham, but also another kiss. "You are a super good girl."
"Can I get a piece?"
Wolf blinked at the queen. She looked at Xena. "If you need a hand, your Consort is right there. She'll give you hand, a mouth and most likely a kiss."
Peran threw her arms around. "Ham!"
The child's mother hand-fed her another piece with another kiss. Across the table, Zasha piped in with her own."Ham!"
Wolf nodded at Aresha. "You are a super good girl, too, Zasha.
Gabrielle pouted and lowered her head. "I want some, too." The guard only shook her head. "You are not 2."
"Am I a super good girl, too?"
"Not sure. Ask that lady on the other side."
Xena shook her head the adults' antics. "She was good earlier."
Wolf nodded and continued. "But was she a super duper good girl?"
Flashing her teeth, Xena replied. "Good enough to get what she wants."
Searching the pieces left on her plate, she collected the largest and waited for the queen to open her mouth.
Not only did she, but she laid out her tongue, too. Wolf caught her upper lip between her teeth. Taking a deep breath, she pressed the ham onto her queen’s tongue. The guard could tell that she wanted the rest. She pulled her head low and kissed her crown. "You are a super duper good girl."
Wolf scratched the back of her head. "Please let this end now."
That night after the kids were put to bed, the Queen sat in the bed and read a scroll of Amazon poetry, listening to the stone on sword music. "Did I embarrass you earlier?"
"Not really, but Wolf was." She set down her stone to push her hair off her wife's face. "I think maybe she gets uncomfortable around you."
"Why? I don't mean to tease her bad."
Xena heard her whispers earlier. "Gabrielle, she loves you, too. She's just not confident with me, hearing or seeing when the both of you play."
The queen looked at her wife. "Has it changed from what it was before?"
Xena laid her sword on the floor and pulled Gabrielle into her arms. "Before it was love, but a friend kind. Now, it's a heart breaking serious love."
"I want to go talk to her." The queen softly kissed her biggest love.
"If she talks, just let her and listen." Xena for once let the questions of life roll the dice for the mortals.
Gabrielle nodded before promising that she'd be back.
When there was no answer to her soft knock, she entered Wolf's hut. She was astounded by what she saw. Within the glow of a candle, saw Wolf making love to Aresha. She apologized and left quickly.
A few seconds later, the guard caught up with her "I'm sorry, too. Taking matters into your own hands does not always solve the problem."
The Queen took a deep breath as she admired Wolf's nude body in the full moon light. "And I am sorry if I embarrassed you earlier."
"It's all good. Thank you. Now I'm going back to Aresha." She pointed at her hut before waving goodbye.
Gabrielle returned to her hut and shared the news of seeing Wolf being intimate with someone else. "You said she loved me. I thought she did, too." Gabrielle overthought all previous situations. "I should have seen them being so close with the twins. Why wouldn't Wolf give it to her?"
Xena frowned at Gabrielle's pain. Hers was not the broken heart she was talking about earlier. "I do not know what she is dealing with, but some people, when they can't get what they want, they accept what is freely given to them." She kissed her wife gently. "I will love you twice as much to make that up for you."
The Queen kissed her Consort deeply. "I love you, Xena." She curled up against Xena, who held her securely as she quietly wept about her guard.
The warrior thought of Wolf as she looked at the ceiling. She knew Gabrielle's pain. For her, she would find a way to make it better.
Continued in The Way of Alliances
Please leave feed-back. Email ztami@hotmail.com