Disclaimers: The characters of Xena: Warrior Princess and all other associated with the television series of the same name are owned by MCA/ Universal Pictures. This is a work of fan fiction and no copyright infringement is intended.
Subtext: I guess with my writing so far we'll just quit calling it subtext and call it maintext. Yes they are in love with each other.
Sex: Oh yeah. This is a PWP 1st time piece.
Violence: None.
Language: Mild
Spoilers: Nope, none zilch, zero.
Other: A totally stand alone piece folks. No series here.
Snakebite
By T.Novan
The warrior grinned, watching her companion bathing in the nearby river. She crossed her arms, sighing as she leaned on the tree next her. She considered very briefly that she had been reduced to spying on Gabrielle when knew her friend would be unclothed.
"Pitiful, Xena, just pitiful." She chastised herself, even as she moved to a location that afforded a better view.
A low growl escaped from her chest, while she watched the sun and water dance off the bard’s body. Her breathing hitched, when the bard turned slightly, giving the tall woman a perfect view of the beautiful young body in front of her.
The warrior just shook her head, deciding to go down to the river rather than standing back in the woods like a scared rabbit. "Just keep your thoughts and your hands to yourself and you’ll be fine." She had discovered that she need to remind herself aloud, because doing it silently had lost all its effectiveness.
"Well, good morning Xena!" Gabrielle waved before submerging her body again. "Come on in, the water is great!"
"Nah, I think I’ll just sit up here." The warrior flopped down next to the bard’s clothes, absent-mindedly allowing her fingers to run over the fabric. "You enjoy your bath."
"Yeah, but I need my back washed." She grinned, gesturing to the warrior. "Come on."
"No really."
"Don’t make me beg Xena."
"Oh I’d like to make you beg." Xena mumbled, unlacing her boots.
She was slowly removing her boots when she heard the bard yelp. She looked up just in time to see her disappear under the water. She was on her feet, diving, headlong into the river before another thought could cross her mind. Feeling around, she grabbed Gabrielle and pulled her up and to the shore with the young woman coughing and sputtering the entire time.
"Gabrielle are you all right!" She looked her companion over when and answer wasn’t forthcoming immediately. "Are you hurt?"
"Bit." The bard choked, reaching for her calf
Xena’s eyes dropped immediately to the leg in question. She found two small puncture wounds. "Looks like a snake bite Gabrielle. Lay still while I take care of it."
"A snake bite? Xena what if it’s poisonous?"
"Don’t worry, just relax." The warrior moved back where she had left her boots, retrieving a small dagger. Returning quickly to the bard’s side she dropped down next to her leg. "I’m going to make a small cut so I can clean the wound. I doubt if the snake was poisonous, but we’re going to treat it like it is, okay?"
Gabrielle nodded, her teeth chattering a bit. She couldn’t decide if she was cold or scared. Lying naked on the shore with a bite to her calf, both were a possibility. She stiffened when she felt Xena’s blade on her skin, but the cut was quick and painless. Then she jerked a bit when she felt Xena’s mouth on her calf.
"What are you doing?" She stammered, looking down at the warrior huddled over her leg.
Xena stayed with the calf then pulled away, spitting toward the weeds. "Gabrielle, if the snake was poisonous then we need to get the poison out." She leaned over again, repeating the action.
"Oh." She lay back, allowing Xena to continue. She knew that she should be scared witless, but the feel of Xena’s mouth on her leg sent shivers down her spine. That scared her worse than the thought of having been bitten by a poisonous snake.
"Let’s get you back to camp and get this treated and wrapped."
Gabrielle started to sit up, only to feel herself being pushed back down. "Nope, lay still." Xena ordered. "I’ll get our stuff then carry you back."
"Xena don’t be ridiculous." Gabrielle protested, "I’m perfectly capable of walking back to camp." The warrior gave the bard a look that dropped the blonde back to the ground. "Okay, I’m staying put."
"Good choice." Xena mumbled, retreating to the shore to gather her boots and the bard’s clothes. She returned, handed the bundle to Gabrielle then picked the small woman up in her arms.
Had Gabrielle not been half frightened to death, this would almost be a dream come true for her. She spent many nights dreaming of being in the strong arms that held her now. Not to mention the day dreams she had experienced while following Xena and Argo down the road.
"Does your leg hurt Gabrielle?"
"Huh?" A very distracted bard, looked up into a very concerned face.
"Does your leg hurt?"
"Ah, yeah," Gabrielle paused, realizing what a great opportunity this was. Warrior sympathy was hard to come by. It was worth its weight in dinars. "Actually it does. It hurts a lot."
"Well, you just relax. I promise to take good care of you my bard."
Those words caused Gabrielle to moan a bit.
"Hurt that bad?" Xena carefully lowered the bard to the bedroll nearest the embers of their morning fire.
"It’s really sore and my leg feels a bit numb." She hoped this little white lie wouldn’t come back to haunt her later, it just seemed like the thing to say at the moment.
Xena covered Gabrielle with a light blanket, restarted the fire to boil water, then she began digging in her saddlebags.
"Xena?"
"Hmm?" The warrior never looked up from her quest in the bag.
"What kinds of things can I expect if the snake was poisonous? Am I gonna die?" The bard decided to ask, because if she were gonna die she was going to take her chances with Xena and wanted to do it before she got to sick.
"Well, Gabrielle, I don’t think you’re in any danger of dying, but you might not feel well for a couple of days." The tall woman returned to her friend and began preparing a poultice for the wound. "But like I said before, just relax. I’ll take very good care of you. I promise."
"I trust you Xena."
"Glad to hear it." The warrior smirked a bit.
Once the bandage was applied and Xena was satisfied she had done everything she could for the bard’s wound. She began preparing a remedy for any side effects the bard might experience if there were poison in her system.
"Oooo that smells awful." The blonde wrinkled her nose, half hiding her face behind the blanket.
Xena looked over, laughing a bit at the impish look in the bard’s eyes. "It tastes even worse, but if you get sick you’ll thank me for it later."
"Do I have to drink it now?"
"No, not now. Only if you start feeling bad, running a fever or anything like that." She set the cup aside then moved to the bard. "Speaking of which." She placed her hand across Gabrielle’s forehead. "Nope, you’re cool enough right now."
‘Depends on how you look at it’, the Bard thought when she felt Xena’s warm hand on her head, causing shivers down her spine that necessitated a slight shake of her shoulders to actually force all the way down her back. "Ohhhh…" She moaned then took a deep breath and closed her eyes. That shock down her spine had decided to travel even lower and settle firmly between her legs. "By the Gods." She whispered.
"Gabrielle are you all right?"
"Oh yeah, I’m good." Came a very throaty response from an increasingly horny bard, who hadn’t bothered to open her eyes or relinquish the fantasy that was now playing behind her lids
Xena sat back on her heels, she tilted her head just a bit, watching Gabrielle. If there was a good time to practice being a silent warrior, this was it. She watched as the bard slowly began roaming her body with her own hands under the blanket. Never in her life had Xena wanted to be a blanket as bad as she did at this very moment. She nearly fell over when the blanket slipped a bit and she got a look at very pink, tight nipples. She had to bite down on her lip to keep from growling.
Then the flush began to creep over the bard’s flesh and Xena felt the sweat break across her own. She watched Gabrielle’s hand move slowly down, leaving no doubt as to where it was headed. She had to concentrate on keeping her breathing deep and easy so she wouldn’t disturb the blonde. There was no way she wanted to see this end anytime soon.
It was, however just too much for her to remain on her heals when Gabrielle’s tongue slowly emerged, wetting first her top lip and then her bottom lip, leaving a glistening trail before returning into its home.
The sound of the soft thump caused Gabrielle to regain her senses. Suddenly she realized what she was about to do. Slowly she turned her head and opened one eye to find Xena staring at her. "I…I…" She began, trying to come up with an explanation.
"You certainly had my attention." Xena decided there was no sense in trying to lie about it. "But then again," She paused, moving closer to the bard. "You generally do."
"Really?" Gabrielle croaked, grasping the blanket a bit tighter, her heart beating harder.
"Oh yeah." Xena nodded, continuing to move closer to Gabrielle’s side. "Even in a crowded room or a large marketplace I always know where you are."
"You…you do?"
The warrior stretched out next to the bard, resting her head in the palm of her hand she looked down at the blonde. Her free hand moved on top of the blanket, rubbing gently back and forth. "Yup, I can feel you. Sense your presence. I know when you’re far away and I know when you’re," she paused, lifting a brow. "Close."
"Ungh…" Gabrielle felt the muscles tighten in her stomach. "You have no idea how good that is to hear. I like being close to you."
"How close would you like to be my bard?"
"Huh?" Now she cleared her throat, trying to force her brain to make reasonable conversation. "What do you mean?"
"Well, I get the feeling that while you were laying here a few moments ago, you were thinking of someone you’re ‘close’ to."
Gabrielle nodded, unable to form words now. She watched Xena’s eyes change color, becoming a deep blue. She had never before considered that might happen when she was aroused.
The warrior leaned in, whispering her next words directly into Gabrielle’s ear. "Very close to."
"Un-huh, you." It was a breathless admission, but one that had to be made.
"Somehow," She stayed close to that ear, giving it a little nibble. "I figured as much."
"You’re not upset?" The blonde felt her head shifting to give the warrior more working room.
"Now why would I be upset?" Xena took the offer and nibbled on a bit of neck. "There’s no reason to be upset over the fact that a beautiful young woman finds me attractive."
"Right." Gabrielle agreed. "You’re beautiful. I can’t keep my eyes off you. Or my mind either."
"Think about this a lot?" Xena placed a gentle kiss to a very sensitive spot behind the blonde’s ear.
"All the time."
"That must be very," she let the tip of her tongue trace a trail from the ear to the bottom of the neck she was exploring. "Distracting."
The bard gasped. "It is. Very." She cleared her throat again.
"Well then, it seems to me that you need to experience it. You might not be as distracted by it, if you know how it is."
"Good theory." The bard nodded.
"So," Xena pulled back, grinning a bit. "Let’s say for the sake of argument that I thought maybe you should be kept warm because of the snake bite and the best way for me to do that were to be, under the blankets with you. You wouldn’t object?"
"Not if you thought it were best. Wouldn’t want to get cold and maybe catch a fever or something."
"No," Xena shook her head, sitting up, she began to remove her clothes. "We wouldn’t want that at all."
"Oh Gods!" Gabrielle moaned the moment the heat of Xena’s body joined her own. Xena started to pull away, but a hand on her arm stopped her. "No stay. Please. Stay." The bard moved closer. "I’ll just die if you leave now."
"Oh I doubt if you would die." The warrior smirked a bit.
The bard took Xena’s hand, placing it between her breasts so the warrior could feel how hard her heart was beating. "Trust me, it would just explode."
"That could be messy. We wouldn’t want that now would we?"
"Wouldn’t be on the top of my list of things I’d like to experience."
Xena allowed her hand to rest on the bard’s midsection, feeling the heat between their bodies. "What would be at the top of your list?"
"You have to ask?" Brows shot into blonde bangs. "At this point, you have to ask?"
"Just making sure you haven’t changed your mind."
"Not in this lifetime. Or any other for that matter."
"Think we’ll be together for more than one?" Xena leaned over, her lips nibbled gingerly at chin, cheek and earlobe.
"I do."
"I’d like that. I’d like to spend all my lifetimes with you Gabrielle."
The bard took a chance, laying a hand on Xena’s hip, massaging gently. "Really? I thought I annoyed you."
"No, not at all. I’d simply be lost without you now." Finally, her lips traveled to Gabrielle’s. The kiss was warm, soft and far too brief for Gabrielle’s liking, but she remained quiet. "And if we go on with this, I intend to keep you around for a very long time."
"I’m not planning on going anywhere." To prove her point, she moved closer to the warrior.
"I am though." Xena snickered a bit.
"Where? Where are you going?"
"Down." Xena started with light kisses to Gabrielle’s lips, then moved slowly down. It was excruciatingly slow in the bard’s overheated opinion.
"Xena?"
"Mmm?"
"Umm, you really don’t have to…" When soft lips found a hardened nipple, her head simply began bobbing, nodding in agreement. "Oh yeah, that’s good."
"Hmm." The warrior hummed her agreement, moving slowly, bringing her body over Gabrielle’s and began and easy, rhythmic rocking that merely allowed their bodies to get to know each other. She groaned a bit, feeling the bard’s hands traveling up and down her spine. "Nice."
Xena had wondered how Gabrielle would react to this moment. She wondered if she would be a shy first time lover or if she would act and react with what her body was feeling. She was glad to find that she was indeed reacting. Reacting with some aggression of her own as a matter of fact, the warrior realized when she felt a leg wrap around her thigh, drawing her body in.
"Oh Gods." Xena groaned, feeling the sticky warmth that met her stomach when she settled gently between the bard’s legs.
"This is good." Gabrielle moaned, threading her fingers into Xena’s hair, arching into the firm body over her. "Wonderful, just wonderful."
"Less talking." Xena growled, capturing Gabrielle’s lips in a long, deep kiss.
Their bodies became one in unison with each other. Hands roamed, massaged and stroked heated flesh. There was no leader, no conqueror there were only the lovers. The two who wanted and needed each other. No one led and no one followed, they went together. They explored, experimented, and played.
Kisses led to nibbling. Nibbling led to gentle bites. Moaning from one, increased passions in the other. Bodies moved, as hands traveled lightly from place to place, covering, discovering, mapping, and learning.
Excitement grew between them, as they slid together, each forcing the other closer and closer to the point of no return. Taking each other to the edge. In the heat of this first time they both realized they were forming the perfect partnership. Both able to give and take, offer and receive. The union was perfect in both harmony and pitch. The erotic sounds became one, the bodies became one, the two souls merged and became…one.
Xena was the first to gather her wits. She slowly rolled on her side wiping her brow with the palm of her hand, blowing out a breath or two trying to slow her hammering heart. "Intense." She whispered into the bard’s ear.
Gabrielle could only nod, she was busy trying to regain control of her own muscles. "Very." She managed to agree a short time later.
Xena placed her hand on Gabrielle’s forehead when she curled up next to her. "Nope, no fever. As a matter of fact you feel a little clammy."
The bard chuckled, curling into the body next to her. "Wonder why?"
"Could be all the sweat." Xena offered, tracing her hand down the bard’s neck to her shoulders, removing more perspiration.
"Hmm, could be." Gabrielle kissed the shoulder her head now rested on. "Xena?"
"Yes?" She settled onto her back, pulling the blonde close, holding her continuing to softly caress a shoulder with her fingertips.
"You think I’m going to get sick from the snakebite?"
Xena snorted, turning her head to face the bard. "No, I don’t think so."
"Good, I’m glad."
The warrior realized it was time to confess. "Ah, Gabrielle you’re not gonna get sick because you didn’t get bit by a snake. My guess would be you got poked by a branch."
"How do you know?" The blonde lifted her head, looking down at the warrior.
"There aren’t any snakes in this region." Xena smiled then bit the inside of her lip, hoping Gabrielle wouldn’t be too upset.
"You set me up." The tone was slightly accusatory.
"I…I…well…" Xena stammered.
"You made me think I was going to die."
"No, I specifically told you, you weren’t gonna die." She defended.
Gabrielle didn’t know how to respond to that. She started to speak several times but never founds any words. She finally just lay back down on the shoulder under her. She drummed her fingers on Xena’s stomach, then finally began caressing the flesh under her hand. "And you did promise to take care of me."
"Yes I did."
"And you definitely took care of me. So, I guess, all in all you did exactly what you said you would do."
"Yup." Xena hugged the blonde. "And I’ll do it again if I have to."
"Will you do it again if I want you to?" The bard placed a little nip on the warrior’s neck.
"Oh, yeah, all you have to do is ask."
"Xena?"
"Yeah?" A dark brow rose in anticipation.
"I’m asking."
The End