Disclaimer: The characters of Xena and Gabrielle and others resembling those from the
TV show, belong to Studio USA and Renaissance Pictures. No infringement on their rights is
intended. All other characters are of my own creation and belong to me.
Subtext Disclaimer: This story contains graphic scenes of a loving relationship between
two consenting adults, who happen to be of the same sex. If this offends you, or you are
under 18 years of age, or you reside in an area where this type of material is illegal,
read no more. There is plenty of general fanfic out there for you. Go find it.
Shock Factor: 0, unless you think your parents never had sex to get you here. Plan D #30.
Please send any comments to asdease1@gte.net
Enjoy, I hope.
ALMOST THERE
Written by FlyBigD
Joseph Morgan stood out on the deck of his daughters house humming to himself as he
kept a close eye on his one and only dish, which was grilled salmon marinated in his
secret special sauce that had to be applied at the exact time, or else the fish would be
completely and utterly ruined forever. Testing the tenderness with his finger, he promptly
stuck it in his mouth when it started to sizzle along with the salmon. "Grace!
Its time for the sauce!" Yelling over his shoulder, Dad could almost taste the
salmon as the aroma filled his lungs and made his mouth water.
Opening one of the French doors, Xena stepped out onto the deck and handed her father his
bottle of secret special sauce. "Here."
Taking the bottle in his hand, Joseph shook it to stir up the spices inside, then held it
up for inspection. "Grace, why is my secret special sauce brown?" Confused, he
looked from the muddied liquid to his daughter.
"Faith tasted it and thought it needed something." Smiling once, the warrior
went back to a completely blank expression.
This information made Dad frown and he looked at the bottle again. "What did she
think it needed?" Finding the idea incomprehensible, because his secret special sauce
was perfection personified, in his opinion.
"Chocolate syrup." Speaking in a dead pan voice, Xena smiled weakly. "Be
thankful, Daddy. Ive got half a bottle of ketchup with grape jelly in it."
Patting his shoulder, she turned and left him with his new and improved secret special
sauce.
Never one to be out done, the mighty Joseph Morgan put down his fish flipper and opened
the bottle. Taking a quick whiff, he remembered the time his wife had put creme de menthe
in his sauce when she was pregnant with Brian and shrugged when the chocolate odor mixed
with the hint of his secret spices. "They say variety is the spice of life."
Shrugging again, he poured the sauce over the salmon steaks and brushed it out as if
salmon was supposed to be brown and sticky.
"Did Dad like the sauce?" Gabrielle asked when she heard the door close and
looked up from the onions she was chopping to catch a glimpse of her wife before she
disappeared. "Grace?"
"Loved it." The warrior shouted as she walked into the dining room, where her
mother was setting the table. "Mom. What wine goes with chocolate covered
salmon?"
Maggie looked up in astonishment. "Oh, dont tell me. She didnt."
"She did." Nodding sadly, Xena sighed. "Red or white?"
Grabbing the closest chair to her, Mom pulled it out and sat down. "Its either
white wine, or a glass of milk and a bottle of antacids." Rubbing her forehead, she
looked up at her daughter. "Did he put it on the salmon?"
"Youre married to him. What do you think?" Shrugging helplessly, the
warrior turned around and heard a groan as she bent down to begin the search for a bottle
of white wine in the bottom of the china cabinet.
"My poor Grace." Mom said softly and shook her head. "I guess I
shouldve warned you."
"Dont worry about it." Pulling out a lone bottle of white wine, Xena
closed the cabinet and stood up. "Its not like this all the time and Ive
learned to smell everything before I eat it."
"And lying helps." Maggie whispered and gave her daughter a knowing smile.
"Oh, yea." Widening her eyes as the oh came out, she smiled back. "And a
years supply of pickles every week."
Mom covered her mouth to muffle her laughter.
Chuckling, Xena turned around to go find a cork screw and found an unamused blonde
standing behind her with her hands on her hips. "Have I ever told you just how
attractive that apron is on you?"
"I want you where I can see you." Gabrielle snapped and shot one hand off her
hip to point in the direction of the kitchen. "Move."
"Sorry, Mom. Gotta go." Flashing a winning smile over her shoulder, the warrior
hot footed it out of the dining room and barely avoided getting whacked on the arm when
she passed the bard.
Closing her eyes, Mom shook her head and bit her lip to keep from getting into trouble
herself.
"Its not my fault I have cravings, so do you mind not spreading just what they
are all over town?" The bard growled under her breath when they were out of ear shot.
"Its just Mom and she understands. Shes been pregnant three times and
from what Dad says, you aint got nothing on her." Whispering, Xena put the
bottle of wine on the counter.
Rolling her eyes, Gabrielle turned her head to look at the warrior sideways.
"Really?"
Flicking her eyebrows, the warrior sidled up to the bard and checked to make sure the
coast was clear. "Dad says, she used to put guava paste in her meatloaf when she was
pregnant with me."
"Thats disgusting." Sticking out her tongue, she shivered at the thought.
"See." Waggling a finger in her wifes face, Xena nodded. "I told
you."
"Youll tell me if I get that bad, wont you?" Gabrielle asked and
looked up at Xena pitifully.
"I promise. You just stick to your pickles and chocolate syrup and well be
fine." Giving pouty lips a kiss to seal the deal, the warrior wrapped her arms around
her wife and pulled her in. "Hmmmm. Been dipping into the grape ketchup again?"
"Trust me. It aint got nothing on you." Bringing her greatest craving down
for another taste, the bard ate it up with a passion.
Done with setting the table, Maggie ventured a peek into the kitchen to see if the coast
was clear and was not completely surprised to find the couple making out, instead of
getting dinner ready. Rolling her eyes to fake being surprised, just in case they came up
for air, she backed up quietly and tip toed her way out onto the deck.
"Almost done." Joseph announced happily and expected to see a plate waiting to
take his masterpieces inside. "Has this become a self serve without me knowing about
it?"
"You could put it that way." Shaking her head, Mom sighed. "The girls are
making out in the kitchen."
"Well tell them to stop. The salmon is ready." Waving his wife off, Dad noticed
that she wasnt going anywhere and put down his fish flipper again. "What?"
"Think about it Joseph. Which would you rather be doing? Eating chocolate covered
fish for dinner, or reminding me of the last time we made out in the kitchen?"
Serving up a sultry smile for her husband, Mom flicked her eyebrows. "Dump the fish
and lets get out of here before they notice were gone."
"Ooooo. I love it when you get sneaky." Dad smiled and picked up his flipper to
flip four salmon stakes into the yard. Turning off the grill, he shut off the gas and had
his apron untied before his wife got the door opened. "Ill meet you around
front, so I can have the get away car running."
"Youre on." Opening the door slowly, she almost got caught when her butt
got grabbed and had to stifle a yelp. "Ill get you for that."
Chuckling down the stairs, Joseph took off before she had a chance to changer her mind.
Sneaking past the kitchen, Mom scribbled out a note explaining where they were going and
left it on the sofa table. Then she silently picked up her purse and made it out the front
door without a word from the girls. Making it across the porch in three strides of her
long legs, she was down the steps and inside the car before she even looked back.
"Idle it out. We dont want to spook them."
"You sure you wouldnt rather make out in the back seat?" Glancing over his
shoulder, Dad eyed the seat with anticipation.
"Joseph, were in a Toyota. My purse barely fits in the back seat." Turning
his head back around for him, Maggie pointed out the front windshield. "Drive."
"Fasten your seat belt honey, its gonna be a quick trip."
Click.
**********
Flat on her back, buck naked, panting like shed just run a four minute mile and
sweating like shed just run a marathon, Gabrielle opened her eyes as three fingers
slipped out from between her legs. "Xena, weve got to stop doing this. Im
too fat for sex."
"I like you this way." Xena mumbled as she kissed her way up the bards big
belly. "Theres more of you to love."
"But I never get to do anything anymore." Lifting her head, she frowned at her
wife. "I just lay here like a beached whale and scream my head off, while you do
everything." Laying her head back down, because she was too exhausted to keep it up,
she did manage to shake it. "Thats not fair to you."
Sensing a serious mood coming on, the warrior slid up the bed so she could smile down at
her wife. "Gabrielle, Im not complaining and you wont be pregnant
forever."
"Still. Itd be nice to be able to love you back, Xena." Poking out her
bottom lip, she sighed and brought her hand up to stroke a tan cheek. "I miss that. I
miss being able to hold you close to me."
Xena laced her fingers with the one against her cheek and brought it around to her lips,
placing a soft kiss on the back of the bards hand. Staring down into sad green eyes,
she sighed. "I know you do, Gabrielle and I miss it too, but itll be over
pretty soon. Weve only got three more months and then were gonna get the
greatest gift in the whole world placed in our arms to hold together, and you can count
ten little toes while I count ten little fingers to make sure theyre all there. And
then were gonna hand the baby off to Mom and Dad, and go find a closet somewhere to
do the wild thang. You know how those hospital gowns turn me on."
The bard chuckled and shook her head.
"Whaaaaat?" The warrior asked with a smile and tucked their hands under her
chin. "You dont like my story?"
Brushing her finger over Xenas chin, Gabrielle smiled up at a pair of twinkling baby
blues that were full of mischief and lit up her world. "Gods, you make me so
happy."
"I do?" Lifting her eyebrows, Xena snuggled closer. "Really?"
"Yes, really." She said quietly and saw her wifes eyes brighten even more.
"And I think Im going to have a very hard time sharing you."
"Oooo. I know that shade of green." Dropping her voice an octave, the warrior
saw the bards eye getting darker. "What are you thinking, Gabrielle?" She
said suspiciously.
Blonde eyebrows did a little dance and the bard slipped her hand from under the
warriors chin to sneak it under her arm, and down a nice long tan back.
Her suspicion gone, Xena knew exactly where her wife was heading with her hand and shook
her head. "I thought you said you were too fat for sex?"
"Im trying to be spontaneous and creative." She growled when she realized
her arm was to short to get her hand between Xenas legs from where she was.
"You wanna work with me here?" Sticking her tongue out the side of her mouth and
glaring at the same time, Gabrielle inched her finger tips across the warriors butt.
"I was working with you and you said it wasnt fair." Refusing to play
along, the warrior let the bard struggle to get where she was going, though it was a
little rough on her tender behind.
"Xena! If you dont get your hand in my crotch in five seconds, Im going
to knock you into next week!" Straining and frustrated, she tried to pinch the butt
she only had her finger tips on and lost that grip completely.
"You mean if I dont get my crotch in your hand in five seconds,
youre gonna knock me into next week." The warrior corrected with a grin.
"With that attitude, youre not giving me very much incentive."
Giving up on the butt with a gritted teeth growl, Gabrielle took a handful of sheet in
that particular hand and used the leverage to roll over with amazing speed, and was up on
all fours, hovering over the warrior princess before she knew shed been pinned.
"Ha! Now Ive gotcha." Chuckling evilly, she looked down at the warrior
with a feral smile.
"Yeow. What the hell have they been putting in your prenatal vitamins?" Xena
yelped from the same position the bard had been in a few seconds earlier, which she found
not entirely to her disliking.
Breaking out of the evil pouncing bard mode for a second, she ducked her head and looked
down at her stomach, which was pressing into her wifes. "Am I squashing
you?"
The warrior took a couple of breaths to make sure she could and shrugged. "No,
Im good. How about you?"
"Hmmm?" Lifting her head, Gabrielle swayed around some to check her mobility.
"Put your knee up."
Trying to do just that, she shook her head. "Cant. Youve got my legs
squished together."
"Oh. Wait a second." Concentrating on a part of her body shed hadnt
seen for awhile, the bard felt around with her legs and moved until she had only one of
Xenas legs between hers. "Okay."
Obliging, the warrior bent her leg until her thigh came in contact with her wifes
center. "Hows that?"
Gabrielle made a face and tested the arrangement by wiggling her butt and doing some
pre-sex sliding. "A little higher . . . oh, thats good. Right there." With
a happy smile, she did another test and nodded. "Im good."
"Can you reach?" Xena asked and raised her head, looked down what little part of
her body she could see.
Seeing the warrior lift her head, she ducked hers to find out what she was supposed
to be reaching for. "Reach what?"
"My crotch." She said a little puzzled at her wifes lapse of memory.
"OH! Sorry." The bard winced apologetically. "Hold on. Let me check."
Laying her head back, the warrior watched the face above her go through another set of
contortions while she waited to feel something. "You cant reach, can you?"
"Hold on!" Gabrielle grumbled and closed her eyes as she tried to find a way
around her stomach without having to put her full weight down on it. "Move you leg to
the side a little."
"Which one?" She asked and wiggled the bent one.
"Yea. Move it out." Nodding, she still had her eyes closed as she scooted out
with the thigh between her legs. "Hold it. I think I got it."
"Thats it!" Almost coming off the bed when her wife finally found her
crotch and slipped two fingers inside without warning, Xena had to consciously hold still,
or risk tipping the bard over and ruin the last five minutes of carefully constructed
spontaneous creativity.
Feeling the warrior tense up, Gabrielle became concerned and pulled out. "Did I hurt
you?"
"No. No." Shaking her head, the warrior took a deep breath to relax a smidgen.
"A little warning wouldve been nice, but you didnt hurt me."
Relaxing some more, she smiled. "I guess its been awhile."
The bard smiled back and eased her fingers between her wifes folds. "Wanna see
if Ive lost my touch?"
"How long you think you can stay up there like that?" Xena asked back and closed
her eyes.
"Ooooo. Have I awakened your little monster?" Finding the nub, Gabrielle began
to massage it and watched Xenas face change expressions.
"Oh yea." She said breathlessly.
As the bard continued to refresh her fingers memories to the low moans of her wife,
she also began to glide her center over the warriors thigh in a slow rhythmic
grinding motion. "This is good."
"This is very good." The warrior agreed as she started to pick up the
bards tempo by rolling her hips, not lifting them much, but just enough to be an
active participant.
Getting the unspoken signal, when Xena started rolling her hips, Gabrielle shifted her
shoulders and slid two fingers inside the warriors core very gently, then eased them
back out again in time with the pace shed set. Hearing a guttural groan, she looked
down at the smile on her wifes face and chuckled. "Oh, yea. Its all
coming back to me now."
"You were always a quick study." Working a smirk in with her smile, Xena opened
her eyes and stuck out her tongue, licking her lips invitingly. "Wanna try these on
for size, teach?"
Making an attempt at claiming the full moist lips, the bard backed off when she figured
out that doing so would require rolling forward and end the warming trend between her
legs. "Damn."
Feeling the problem more than seeing it, because as soon as Gabrielle rolled forward
shed felt something pop in her lower back, the warrior showed a wisp of creativity
herself by bringing the mountain to Mohammed. Raising up on her elbows, she kept going up
until her arms were fully extended and her body curved around the bards stomach.
Only a breath away from a pair of waiting goodies, Xena got them delivered with just the
tiniest hint of grape ketchup and a double helping of intensity.
Like throwing gasoline on a camp fire when their lips met, the slow building heat in her
core became an instantaneous bonfire, with flames licking their way up Gabrielles
body, while her tongue danced inside the kiss. Her breathing became ragged, coming in
harsh gasps and her hips ceased their easy grind to become quick sharp jerks as her hand
pushed her fingers deep in hard thrusts.
Fighting the urge to arch her back and break away, Xena held her position, and the kiss as
her body shook with the bucking of her hips. Struggling for every breath, her nostrils
flared in and out with the heightening tempo being pounded into her core, and finally got
to fill her lungs with much needed oxygen as the edge came crashing towards her. Squeezing
her eyes shut, she arched into her wife and laid her head back. "Gods!"
A grimace on her face, the bard groaned, not in ecstasy, but in agony as pain shot up from
one of her legs. "Xena! I cant . . . "
"Yes, you can. Yes, you can. Almost there!" Digging her fingers into the
mattress, she bounced cries of pleasure off the walls. "Yes, Gabrielle. Yes!"
"No, no, no." Gabrielle shook her head as the cramp in her calf overrode the
need for satisfaction and all motion came to a screeching halt. "Leg, Xena!"
Left hanging with the climax in sight, Xena pushed her thigh harder into the bard,
thinking that was what was going to get her going again.
"Not your leg. Mine! Mine!" Lurching forward, she drove the top of her head into
the warriors shoulder and growled in anguish. "Owowowowowow!"
"What?" Being driven downward, the warrior opened her eyes in confusion and was
suddenly bearing the weight of both of them combined. "Gabrielle, whats
wrong?"
"Cramp! Ive got a cramp!" She shouted as she fell down to her elbows.
"Gods! Xena!"
"Lay down. Ill get it." Xena shouted back and wrapped her arms around
Gabrielles shoulders, so she could ease her down on her side. As the bard withered
beside her, she scooted to the end of the bed and gave each leg a quick glance.
"Which one?"
Pointing frantically, the bard slapped the leg in question, then started to curl into a
ball. "Xena, it hurts!"
"I got it. Breathe, Gabrielle. Take deep breaths." Once she knew which leg to go
for, the warrior went into action and grabbed her wifes leg, wrapping her hands
around the calf, so she could drive her thumbs into the tight muscle.
"OWWWWAAAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!" In worse pain than she was before, Gabrielle
tried to jerk her leg away from the warrior. "Stopstopstopstopstop!"
"Gabrielle, its the only way. Be still!" Trying to keep control, Xena
jumped to the other side of the bed to steer wrestle the wild appendage, continue the
massage and ignore the vicious pummeling her back, shoulders and head were taking.
Passing along her misery by trying to beat Xena off her leg, the bard went through stages
of sheer pain, intense agony and wanting to half orphan her unborn child, and related all
this information to her wife, by groaning, shouting, and calling her wife every name in a
sailors handbook before she finally collapsed in a heaving mass when the cramp
subsided. "Ow."
Battered, bruised and thankful it was over, the warrior breathed a heavy sigh of relief
and slowly made her way back onto the bed to lay wasted behind Gabrielles back.
"You know, I think we shouldve read the fine print on this little bundle of joy
T sent us before we signed for it."
Gabrielle found no humor in the situation and decided to list all the reasons she felt she
deserved a really good pity party. "Im fat. I cant make love without
cramping. I have to pee every ten minutes. I stick grape jelly in ketchup. I cant
see my feet to tie my shoes. I buy my clothes from a guy named Omar. Im going to
have to put blocks on the soles of my shoes so I can reach the pedals in my truck because
Im fat . . ."
Xena rolled her eyes, then rolled onto her side and grabbed the covers. Pulling the
blanket up to cover both their bodies, she felt around for a pillow and tucked it under
her head. Lifting Gabrielles head, she placed it on the pillow as well, then scooted
closer, forming her long body to fit the one in front of her and wrapped her arm around
the bards middle. All of this was done with the apparent ignorance of her wife and
she began kissing the soft skin of Gabrielles neck to get her attention.
"Youre beautiful and I love you. You are the most wonderful woman in the world
and if I have to go without making love to you for another thousand years, the only thing
Ill need to keep me happy is to see your beautiful smile. You are my life, my love
and my world, Gabrielle."
Miffed at being interrupted, the bard turned her head to send a sideways glare back at the
warrior. "I havent gotten to where they tie ropes to me and fly me over the
Super Bowl yet."
"Oh, sorry. Go on." Seeing the error of her ways, she smiled and lowered her
head to snuggle into blonde jasmine scented hair. Pulling the bard a little closer, the
warrior fell asleep somewhere between the sixth Im fat and my
boobs hurt.
When she felt Xenas arm relax around her, Gabrielle realized shed lost her
audience and didnt see any real point in continuing, so she pulled the covers up a
little more, and went to sleep disgruntled, but well vented.
**********
A coolness tingled over tan skin and Xena opened her eyes with her hand halfway through a
search for her heater. "Gabrielle?" Lifting up, she looked around with blurred
vision, then squinted when her baby blues met the too bright light streaming in from the
bathroom. One sense taken out of commission, another one perked up and her ears quickly
identified the sound of trickling. Bard located , the warrior laid back down, covering her
eyes with a hand. "Gabrielle, youre not drinking enough water. Thats why
you cramped up."
"I have been drinking water, Xena." Gabrielle corrected with some irritation.
"Thats why Im peeing."
"Gods, I hope this baby isnt this much trouble after it gets here."
Mumbling to herself, the warrior heard the trickle trickle off and sighed.
Grumbling to herself, the bard finished up her business and waddled out of the bathroom to
the sound of swirling gurgling water. Flipping off the light as she passed, her feet
shuffled across the floor, following a well worn path back to the bed. Raising one knee to
the edge of the mattress, she turned her body and fell backwards to claim her side in a
tried and true method that was much simpler, yet a lot bouncier than the laborious
crawling one. Lying flat on her back, but without all the heavy breathing and sweating
from before, Gabrielle stared up a nothing and huffed. "Im hungry. Did the note
say what they did with the fish?"
"No. The warrior managed to get out in between bounces and once it stopped she went
on to make an observation. "And if its been sitting outside all this time, it
went bad hours ago."
"Do we have any leftovers?" She asked over the sound of her tummy monster waking
up.
"No." Xena said quietly and left out the part about not having any since before
the end of the first trimester. "Wadda ya want? Ill go get it."
Placing a hand on her stomach, Gabrielle rubbed it as someone would a crystal ball trying
to call forth some unforetold fate, or in this case, identify a craving. "Whats
open?"
Though she was willing to drag her butt out of bed to fulfill her wifes every eating
whim, the warrior felt no such desire to roll over and look at the clock. "What time
is it?"
Huffing again, the bard brought both arms up so she could put her watch close to her face
and push the button to light up the display. "3:07 am."
Slowly, a list of late night establishments was given a mental run through and scratched
off accordingly, because all but two closed at two oclock. Both of the remaining
choices were open 24 hours a day, while one was well equipped to handle all
Gabrielles cravings, the other was equipped with a Slurpee machine, and Twinkies.
"Our kitchen and the convenience store."
"Steak and eggs, medium well, over easy, hash browns, wheat toast with lots of butter
and chocolate milk." Gabrielle said without hesitation, or consideration of how the
order was going to be filled.
Somewhat surprised by the normalcy of the order, Xena nonetheless made a quick
determination that the likelihood of the convenience store clerks willingness to run
home and cook up the order for her wife would most certainly fall into the realm of
nonexistent. She also determined that Gabrielles willingness to fill her own order
was probably a step behind the clerk and this meant the responsibility fell directly into
her not completely incapable hands. So, with the order still fresh in her mind and her
mission set, the warrior mustered the energy to crawl out of bed, and don her battle gear,
which looked remarkably like a robe. Then she shuffled off to acquire the necessary
weaponry to wage war in enemy territory, also known as locating the pots and pans in the
kitchen.
Finding her way in the dark, the warrior made it to the battle zone without a scratch, or
a stubbed toe and turned on the lights to begin the assault, while her mind got an
excellent wake up call from the cold ceramic tile beneath her bare feet as she walked
through the kitchen on the way to the garage. The garage light went on as well and the
chilly sensation from her feet was joined by frostbite in her fingers when she started
rummaging through the freezer in search of a steak. "Ice cream. Ice cream. Popcicles.
Ice cream . . ." Setting the items she wasnt looking for aside, she called them
off just in case her brain got frozen while it was inside the freezer. ". . . Pork
chops. Mixed veggies. Mixed veggies. Pizza. Pizza. Boneless chicken breast. Chicken.
Chicken. More Chicken. Bacon. Waffles. Popcicles. Pop Tarts?" Scraping the frost of a
box off frosted strawberry Pop Tarts, she stared at it for a moment, then shook her head
and tossed it aside to continue the search. After a few more minutes of looking, she hit
pay dirt, or the beef section and only had to dig through several layers of assorted beef
products before she finally emerged triumphantly with a rock hard piece of meat in her
frozen grasp. "Steak."
Leaving the freezer and the garage behind, Xena traipsed back into the kitchen to deposit
the steak in one side of the sink with a loud kachunk and turned the faucet to the other
side, turning on the hot water tap. While she waited for the water to get warm to the
touch, she began turning the order into an organized plan of attack so all the items would
be prepared and cooked in the proper sequence, thereby eliminating the possibility of
anything ending up getting done too soon, and getting cold. Once the water started to make
her fingers tingle, she left it running and retrieved a bowl large enough to hold the
steak, placing it under the flow until it was full. Then the steak went in the bowl upside
down for thawing, the water got turned off and the warrior went to work putting her well
formed plan of attack into action, and started wondering if hashed was the same thing as
mashed when it came to potatoes.
After Xena left, Gabrielle moved into the warm spot shed left behind and curled up
under the covers on her side to happily drift in and out of sleep with the warriors
scent to give her comfort in lieu of the warrior herself. As she lay there, the one ear
that wasnt pressed into Xenas pillow twitched with the noises floating through
the darkness and slowly broke through her shifting consciousness to stir up the notion
that her wife hadnt gone out to fill the order, as was the usual case. This
realization led to another, which led to another and another, and by the time the bard sat
up in bed with eyes wide open, shed put the pieces of the puzzle together, coming up
with a fearful vision of Xena in the kitchen alone. Or rather, Xena in her kitchen
alone with her pots, her pans, and her appliances. "Gods. What
was I thinking?" She whispered in unabashed amazement at her lapse of memory stemming
from the last time the warrior had been alone in the kitchen for a long period of time
with cooking on her mind and they ended up having to tile the kitchen floor because the
rented industrial sander had eaten down to the concrete foundation before itd been
able to remove the spaghetti stains from the hardwood floor.
With the memory of that event now fresh in her mind, the bard lunged for the edge of the
bed, her robe and some remote hope that she wasnt to late to keep history from
repeating itself, her tummy monster be damned. Shrugging on the thick terry robe as she
raced to the stairs, she went down the steps in such a hurry that she nearly ended up in
the dining room before she started the turn around the couch. Arms flying to maintain her
precarious balance, she grabbed the corner of the wall to slow the forward momentum and
spun around. Retracing her missed steps, she pushed off the wall, went around the corner,
skided her way to the brightly lit opening that marked her final destination and wished
she hadnt worn socks to bed.
Humming to herself, Xena looked up from what she was doing at the first sound of heavy
footfalls and had her eyebrow arched by the time all the scurrying noises started, and was
at the opening to the kitchen with a worried expression on her face when a short blonde
pregnant woman came sliding by her doing a fair imitation of Tom Cruise in Risky Business,
which wouldve been a good imitation if she hadnt continued past the opening to
slam into the wall. "Gabrielle, what are you doing?" The warrior asked, no
longer worried about her wifes physical condition, because she seemed spry enough,
but was questioning her mental condition at this point.
Eyes still wide open, Gabrielle did a visual check of the kitchen while she played off her
actions with a nervous chuckle and rolled her shoulder to see if shed dislocated it
on impact. "I came down to see if you wanted some help."
"Really?" Xena asked, knowing better than to believe the falsehood set before
her because her wifes fearful gaze was aimed behind her, instead of on her and she
brought the egg turner up to tap her chin in contemplation. "You sure youre not
down here to make sure I wasnt burning down your beloved kitchen, oh ye of little
faith, Faith?"
Caught dead to rights, the bard smiled weakly and sighed. "It smells good." She
said softly and honestly, because it really did.
"Hmmmm?" Narrowing her eyes, the warrior had to admit the bard appeared to be
telling the truth, because her toes werent wiggling inside her socks, which was a
sure sign of lying. So, rather than send her back upstairs as shed originally
intended, she returned the smile with more conviction. "Thanks. Wanna get a plate?
Its almost ready."
Thinking forgiveness was a wonderful thing, she nodded happily. "Okay."
Xena allowed her wife to pass into the conquered battle zone and went back to the eggs,
which were on the verge of becoming over medium and flipped them quickly to prevent a
disaster. "Toast should be popping up in a second."
Gabrielle got her plate and caught the toast as it sprang out of the slots, then worked
beside her wife to finish up the cooking, and began looking around in confusion when
everything was on her plate but the steak. "Xena, wheres the steak?"
Smiling secretively, the warrior took the plate from Gabrielle and held up the other hand
to issue a silent stay command, then left the kitchen to go outside.
Staying not being her strong suit, the bard tilted her head as she followed Xena outside,
then her head popped up when her nose caught a whiff of a heavenly aroma. "You
grilled it!"
"Yep." Lifting the lid on the grill, Xena stepped aside so the bard could get a
good look at her masterpiece. "Steak with sauteed onions, peppers and mushrooms for
your dining pleasure." She said with pride and a few rolls of the hand.
If her mouth hadnt been hanging wide open already, it was definitely threatening to
fall off the hinges when the lid went up. "Oh my god." Whispering breathlessly,
she grabbed the warriors arm to steady herself as her body experienced a small
tremor. "I think Im having an orgasm."
Taking this as a positive reaction, the warrior took a short bow to show appreciation for
the appreciation and chuckled as she moved the masterpiece onto the plate, and handed it
to her wife with another short bow. "Now, go feed the tummy monster before the eggs
get cold and dont let me catch you putting grape ketchup on that."
"Nononono. Noooooo grape ketchup." Shaking her head and smacking her lips,
Gabrielle trotted back inside to find the closest place she could put the plate down and
start eating.
Xena laughed at her wifes bubbling delight and peppy steps, and watched the blonde
head swing from side to side as she tried to decide between the dinning room or the coffee
table. After a second or two, the coffee table won out because it was apparently closer,
and the warrior laughed again as her wife whipped around the couch to plop down on the
floor with the ease of someone who wasnt six months pregnant, then pop back up when
she realized she didnt have any utensils. Giving her head another shake, Xena turned
away from the show to shut off the grill and close it up so she could go back inside for a
ring side seat.
Knife and fork in either hand, the bard flew out of the kitchen driven by her needy taste
buds and twitching nose, and was back at the coffee table, chewing a mouthful of steak.
"Gods, this is delicious." She said while chewing and stared at the plate trying
to decide what should go in next. "Eggs. Yum yum yum." Going after the next
victim, she attacked them as she had the steak and made little moaning noises while she
savored the incredible flavors in her mouth.
Once the grill was safely secured, the warrior came back inside and delivered a large
glass of chocolate milk to the moaning monster. "Wash it down before you choke."
When the glass appeared, Gabrielle did as she was instructed and took several large gulps
to wash down her food. Then she smiled up at the chef with a chocolate milk mustache.
"Want some?"
Flabbergasted by the offer to share, Xena was already half way to the floor beside her
wife when it arrived and completed the journey with a stunned look, and a thud.
"What?"
Still smiling, the bard chuckled and cut off a piece of steak to place in Xenas
gawking maw. "Chew." She said and cut a piece for herself, so they could chew
together.
Her mouth did as it was told, though her brain was nowhere to be found and a smile crept
onto the warriors lips to mimic the one she was staring at with baseball sized eyes.
When it came time to swallow, she did so without need for her still absent mental
functions, because they were off in la la land trying to figure out what had happened to
the woman who would normally growl if anybody got close to her food, and even tempted the
fates by opening her mouth for more. Another piece of steak got cut off with a chuckle and
shoved in the warriors mouth, so she chewed that while her taste buds tried to give
her little gray cells CPR.
"Good stuff." Almost giggling, Gabrielle went after the hash browns next and she
gave her wife a bit of those as well. "You need to cook more often, Xena. This is
great."
Xena was so close to getting her brain back in gear when the bard nailed her again, that
the second shock not only sent her mind reeling, but her body as well and she started a
slow sideways descent to the floor.
"Xena." She said with a short exasperated sigh and grabbed the warrior as she
went over. Pulling her back up, the bard rolled her eyes and tapped her wifes cheeks
lightly to get the woman to blink. When she did, Gabrielle smiled and shook her head.
"Why is it you can take on a screaming horde of cut throats without any problem, but
you cant take a compliment without passing out?"
"Cook." Muttering the problematical word softly, the warrior stared at the
blonde and remembered to blink. "I dont cook. You cook. I grill. You cook. Me
outside. You inside." She said in a very Me Tarzan You Jane sort of way.
Gabrielle could see her wifes obvious distress at the thought of rocking the boat or
even the slightest insinuation that their roles be reversed when it came to the cooking,
which hadnt changed in two thousand years. So, instead of pursuing the matter and
causing Xena anymore mental stress, she just smiled at her again because she, herself
wanted to get back to enjoying the rare treat that was getting cold. "Okay, Xena.
Ill cook. You grill and here," going for a forkful of golden brown potatoes,
she held it up in front of the warriors mouth, "have some more hash
browns."
Opening her mouth, Xena took the potatoes in and chewed happily in her unrocking boat, and
got a kiss to make them taste even better. "Mmmmm."
And so, Gabrielle continued to enjoy the meal Xena had prepared and shared it with her
wife in the quiet of their living room, sitting on the floor. Not too many words were
exchanged between them as they ate, though as the surface of the plate became more
visible, they were exchanging kisses more frequently, minus the flavor of grape ketchup
which had been dominating the taste bud scene as of late. Then they spent some more
quality time together cleaning the kitchen, which didnt infringe on the
warriors me outside, you inside rule because shed always helped
clean up and therefore didnt feel threatened in any way, but she did get her ass
felt up a few times when she bent over to load the dishwasher. Then, with the kitchen its
usual spotless self, the girls settled onto the couch to snuggle up in front of the fire
that Xena built while Gabrielle was wiping down her appliances and they spent the rest of
the predawn hours enjoying the quiet before the noisy people arrived to ruin it all.
Xena sat lengthwise on the couch, holding her wife in her arms with the bard curled up in
front of her, the blonde head on her shoulder, snuggled against her neck. Staring into the
flames, she stroked the golden fire-lit hair, gently running her fingers through it and
listening to Gabrielles breathing becoming more and more shallow. Smiling to
herself, the warrior placed a soft kiss on the bards forehead. "Are you going
to sleep on me?"
"Um hmm." Her eyes closed, Gabrielle smiled and nodded against the nice warm
pillow shed given up when her stomach had gotten too big for her to snuggle up when
they were lying down. The warmth from Xenas body, along with that of the fire, and a
happy tummy monster had put her into a state of total relaxation, which is why she was
having such a hard time staying awake. It was just too good an opportunity to pass up and
she had every intention of staying put until a team of wild horses showed up, and then
theyd get the fight of their lives.
"You like this, huh?" She asked quietly and felt another nod against her neck,
which made her smile a tad more. "Would this be a bad time to remind you that
youve only got till Tuesday to finish making up the final exams?" Yet another
nod came her way, along with a soft groan and she chuckled. "Would you rather have me
remind you that youve only got three weeks until you dont have to go to school
anymore?"
"Id rather have you tell me that youve changed your mind and youre
going to stay home with me, instead of waiting to go part time until after the babys
born." The bard said with a smile and leaned her head back to tempt her wife with
some soft kisses on a warm neck. "Wouldnt you rather stay home and play doctor
with me?"
The warrior let loose a deep throaty chuckle and shook her head. "Gabrielle
thats not going to work and weve been through this. You know Im gonna
need all the time I can get to get Jim ready to take over, so the transition will be
smooth. I worked too hard to make that team what it is and you said yourself that it
wouldnt be fair to just leave them hanging. Ow."
Grumbling at having her own words thrown back in her face, Gabrielle took a nip out of the
warriors neck in aggravation, then rubbed the spot with her forehead as she snuggled
up against it in defeat. "This is gonna suck."
The smile came back to Xenas face once the wince went away and she cradled
Gabrielles head against her. "I know and Im sorry. Just try to think
about all the stuff you can do with the whole house to yourself. Youll be able to
work on your scrolls and read, when its not too busy on the console, and you
wont have to get dressed if you dont want to."
"Hmmm." Still a bit dissatisfied, the bard imagined herself spending all day
alone in the house and all the things she could do with her time, then leaned her head
back to look up at the warrior with a pouty face. "Youll come home as soon as
the shift is over, right? You wont be dilly dallying around?"
Tilting her head to get a good look at the pouty face, the warrior smiled warmly and shook
her head. "No, Gabrielle. I wont be dilly dallying around." She whispered
and gave the pout a kiss. "As soon as the shift is over, Ill be home lickity
split. I promise."
"Okay." Nodding once, Gabrielle brought a hand up and wrapped her fingers around
the back of Xenas neck so she could remind her wife just what she was going to be
coming home to.
Xena really didnt need any reminding, but as she became enveloped in a breath
stealing kiss, she didnt feel the need to relay that particular tidbit to the bard
and let Gabrielle do all the reminding she wanted, for as long as she wanted, which could
be until hell froze over as far as she was concerned. However, as all good things must
come to an end, so did the kiss and the warrior let it go without a fight, or a protest,
or even a pout because when her wife snuggled against her to fall asleep in her arms, she
knew there were a lot more important things to life than being just a pillow, but for the
life of her, she couldnt think of a single one.
**********
Xena stood completely still in the bedroom, half dressed for work, staring at the phone in
her hand. "Mom!" She said finally and put the receiver back to her ear.
"What are you trying to do? Give me nightmares?"
Pulling on a pair of maternity pants, Gabrielle turned to stare at her wife.
"Whats she saying?"
Disgusted, the warrior heard wicked chuckling in the background and closed her eyes.
Putting her hand over the mouth piece, she sighed. "Moms telling me why they
left yesterday."
Frowning the warrior glanced at the note on the bed. "They left a note."
"Yes, well apparently there was more to the story." She shook her head, removing
her hand to growl at her mother. "Would you please tell Daddy to stop laughing.
Im already scarred for life as it is. I dont need his innuendo to send me to
the funny farm."
Her curiosity piqued, Gabrielle walked over to the bed. Reading the note again, she looked
at her wife. "Why did they leave?"
Hand over the mouth piece again, Xena rolled her eyes, then opened them. "To go get
naked in the jacuzzi. I guess we inspired them yesterday." She said sarcastically.
Eyes abnormally wide, the bard slapped her hand over her mouth.
"My sentiments exactly." The warrior scowled and address her mother again.
"Mom, are you done now? I do have a job to get to, ya know. Somebody in this family
needs to show some character and you can tell Dad I said so."
Lowering her hand, Gabrielle smiled. "Hes playing hooky today, isnt
he?"
"Theyre calling from bed. What do you think?" Tapping her foot in
frustration, she hung up the phone when both her parents started laughing. "Thanks
for the visualization. I may never have sex again."
The bard started chuckling. "Im so sorry, Xena. It must come as a shock to know
your parents still find each other attractive, but I think its kind of sweet."
"Sweet? How do you think you got here, missy? The stork?" Transferring the
visual image to her wife, the warrior went about finishing getting dressed. "Our baby
may have gotten a little help getting here, but you came from pure bump and grind, and the
last time I checked, your parents werent dead either. If you get my drift."
"Oh, gods! Stop." Waving her hand, Gabrielle squeezed her eyes shut.
"Dont do that."
"Yea, I can see it now. Old Sean and Joyce going at it. Rattling the rafters and
banging the headboard." Chuckling to herself, Xena started getting slapped on the
back and laughed as she dodged a couple of blind blows. "Whats the matter,
Gabrielle? Cant stand the sweat?"
Opening her eyes, because all she was hitting was air, the bard chased her wife around the
bed. "Stop it. I dont want to go there."
"No? Well, how about here?" Grabbing the bard around the shoulders, the warrior
wrestled her down onto the bed and began kissing her neck.
Not so averse to her situation, Gabrielle held up a hand, pushing her wife away.
"Xena! Xena! Stop."
"What? Another cramp?" Lifting her head, Xena looked for some kind of sign.
"No." Shaking her head, the bard took Xenas hand in hers and put it
on her stomach where there was another kind of action going on. "Feel that?"
A smile crept onto the warriors lips as her hand was thumped with a strong kick from
their baby. "Oooo, that was a good one." She whispered and stared down into
sparkling green eyes. "It wont be long now. Were almost there, huh?"
"Almost there." Gabrielle nodded with a smile of pure contentment. "Do you
think this baby will be as disgusted by how it got here as we are?"
"I dont know, but I plan on taking lots of blackmail pictures." Flicking
her eyebrows, Xena lowered her head to put a soft kiss on Gabrielles waiting lips.
**********
The End.
Epilogue: And so the countdown begins and by the way, the salmon steaks were discovered by
the construction crew in a very smelly way.
Thanks for reading.
FlyBigD