Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Xena: Warrior Princess. They belong to Studio USA and Renaissance Pictures. No profit has been made from this story, damn!
Rated: T

Author's note: The story takes place in that period when Xena was trained by the God of War, when she was let's say at the half of her warlord days. She was not yet evil but she has conquered enough as to make a name for herself.

PINK SPARKLES

(XENTRYA)

Pink sparkles were left behind by the Goddess of Love, while making an appearance in the Halls of War,to pay a visit to her favorite brother.

"Gods I hate this place! Waaaaaayyy to dark and depressing for my own taste, Ar should definitely lighten up a bit. A pink couch ,right in that corner should do the trick, the Goddess said to herself, and a pink carpet it's a must have these days. And more light. Yeah, Definitely more light. And again some pink curtains."

While contemplating what on earth she could do to fix that place, a deafening blast threw a hall into the southern wall, covering the bubbly Goddess into dust from head to toe. Aphrodite was in shock.

"Ewwwwwwwww! !Stud muffin like come on! I didn't even got the chance to change the color of the couch! That's not fair! My hair is like totally messed up! And just take a look at my dress! It took like forever to turn it into the right shade of pink! And now it's just…..grey!"

"What the fuck are you doing here Dite? Just leave me alone, ok? The last thing I need right now is an empty headed blond to lecture me about fashion and stuff"

"OOOOH! Take it easy bro! I mean getting so huffy fluffy is totally wrong for your face. You know, I told you the last time we had this conversation, remember, when you blasted Thena's temple, that you had a wrinkle, right there ,next to your left eye and that…."

Out of nowhere, a blue fiery ball, was starting to form in Ares' palm, under his extremely irritated face, and Aphrodite thought that he didn't even have to use it. Looking into his eyes, she realized that looks could indeed kill, and the next second she was contemplating a half burned dress while she was hiding after a column.

"Ok, stud muffin, take it easy. Don't get all godly on me. We can figure this out, I mean, ya know, we are like, gods and…it's a wrinkle after all, nothing that a little ambrosia can't fix."

The next lightening bolt flew just an inch over the goddess' hair.

"Ar, listen, like, ok, I got the point. Something's wrong here, I know it. You should probably take a loooong vacation. Ya know Cupie is organizing a cruise on the Mediterranean next week ,there will be beauty pageants and stuff, it will be a lot of fun .You are just stressed out. But if you want we can do one of my special yoga sessions ,you will feel much better, I'm telling ya, all those wars….."

Another fire turn the column behind which Aphrodite was hiding into smithereens.

"I'm just trying to help ok? You don't have to ruin my basic hair care efforts. Just doing my job!"

"Well, I guess you're gonna have to do your job elsewhere cause, I'm really so not in the mood today. Now don't let me tell you twice, and move your pink ass out of here, before I get to turn you in a fresco on that particular wall, right over there"

"Whoaaaaa! Like I'm being totally serious right now bro'... what's with the attitude?"

Needless to say that Aphrodite would have been blown to pieces if she didn't vanish in time.

In her pinkish temple, outstretched on her favorite pink fluffy sofa, the Love Goddess was gathering her thoughts, while her new hair-stylist was fixing her lame looking hair:

"Don't put too much hair-spray jeeeeesh! It gives the impression that I haven't washed for like days, which is clearly not the case here...Just give it a … spring-like look, ya know?"

Seconds later, the blond immortal was using all of her her divine energy into solving the riddle and finding out what was wrong with her favorite brother.

"Oh but of course! What else? It has to be it! Ar isn't that upset, but for the times that something has gone wrong with the warrior babe! That is like soooooo romantic! Now all I have to do is to fix that little problem-whatever that is- and everything goes back in place. Oh! I'm so good at this! Solving cases is my thing, I'm telling ya'.

So: first thing on today's agenda: find Xena and see what happened"

...It was but a matter of minutes till Aphrodite located Xena and left.

XXX

After my sister had left, I could genuinely feel my head exploding. The pain in my chest was so strong, so acute that at times, it left me breathless. In eons of existence I have never felt something similar. It was horrible suffering, and it was breaking my heart into pieces. The pain coming from my bond with Xena, was absolutely unbearable ,and I knew that besides my own agony, I was also sensing hers, courtesy to that particular bond we shared, and that's what was tearing me apart the most. Knowing that unwillingly I had hurt her beyond human imagination, that I couldn't stop this, that it was impossible for me to go to her and enfold her in my arms, to just kiss the pain away, to tell her that any of that bull-shit was real, that she was my chosen, my princess, my Enyo, my everything. Damn you Zeus for doing this to me! for doing it to her! …..The agony was more and more intense each minute and I was gradually beginning to sense myself slipping slowly. This had to end soon cause it was driving me crazy.

I screamed, I screamed so loud... from the bottom of my mangled heart, but the pain still seamed to strangle me, sucking the life out of my core. I could't believe myself. The God of War dying inside out of love. It was quite ….uncomfortable so to put it, but the memory of her face, her beautiful face, when she saw me….by the Gods I'm surprised that the utter shock of seeing her so disappointed, that look in her eyes didn't actually kill me on spot…I could intensly feel her entire world breaking apart. When that tear fell from her eyes trickling down her face, I just turned my head. I couldn't watch her anymore... .It was beyond my power .Even now I can hear her voice on and on in my head, calling my name ,and I swear it on Styx, that was more than Tartarus to me!

For a moment there, I tried to calm down ,I sat on my throne and opened a mirror ,in a desperate attempt to to take my mind off this mess, and detatchedly started to analyze some battles that were taking place in the southern part of Greece ,but it was torture! I swear it was!

XXX

Through my magic mirror I finally located Xena and puff! In a second I was standing on the shore, next to my favorite warrior babe. I began my speech right away, wasting no time with chit chat. I knew she hated that beyond words...

"Like hallo there sweet pea! I have to tell ya !I don't know what you and Ar did or did not do, but he's like out of control . Look...I know that you couldn't care less about my problems, but he like totally ruined my new pink dress, and trust me,you don't wanna hear about the hair! I'm telling ya Xe, that's one wild angry, God of…."

And that's when I took a really good look at her .I mean really looked at her. You'll just say that I'm like the Goddess of Love and that's why I notice even the most insignificant details one could ever think of, but I'm telling ya, that very moment, even if I hadn't been, I still could have seen the hurt and emptiness in her eyes.

I was absolutely shocked .It blew me away. Ya know, Xe was always the strong type ,never too carring ,but I knew that she loved Ar with all her heart. Wrong word! Better said she adored him, even if she didn't want to admit it! As for Ar, he was like totally obsessed with her. She was the only thing he ever talked about. It was always: "Xena this, Xena that, my princess this and my princess that…"Yeah! Love is such a cool thing I know. Like, that's my job,remember? And looking at Xena, I just froze ,she seamed like so out of this world….When I touched her shoulder, she didn't even flinch, and she usually hates being touched; she didn't say a word, despite the tears that were still streaming down her face.

I felt it. Such incredible pain... She was hurting inside so much that I literally sensed a massive surge of power leaving me in that very moment. I barely managed to open my mouth, I didn't know what to say:

"Sweet pea like what's wrong?"

She didn't answer .I wasn't even sure that she heard me.

"Sweetie ,talk to me... .like what's the matter? Maybe I can help? What are you doing here? You're not safe here and in this state….warrior babe, come on ,you know you can trust me"…and that's when she broke down, tears rolling down her face, shaking like a leaf:

"You said he loved me Dite!You said so!"

"Ar? he does sweetie! You know he does!I mean he does behave like the ultimate jerk sometimes and he can be such a a pain in the ass when he wants to, that's true, but one thing I'm sure of, he does love you warrior babe! More than words could ever tell"

"He dosen't Dite! He never loved me! It was all a lie! It was just another one of his schemes, a game to make me a better warrior.I never mattered to him. Not like this anyways! He was just using me!And I believed him!I trusted him! I trusted every single word he said!"

"Were did you get this idea from? Like honestly, you know what I feel about you and bro'! You're a match made in Olympus! You two totally rock!You're definitely the couple of the century! A quarrel? You can put it behind you. I'm sure you crazy kids can work things out! You did it so many times before! Nothing that a little kiss can't solve!"

"A quarrel? A quarrel Aphrodite?..."

And what Xena said afterwards just took my breath away and ripped the heart out of my chest. I mean, the suffering that came from her words, stroke me like only one of daddy's lightening bolts could. The only thing I could think about was that wave of hate that filled her eyes, surfacing like a hurricane from the depths of her soul.I was speechless.

XXX

For the first time in my immortal existence, I didn't know what to do. I was so lost and drained out...and she was clearly in no condition to fight anyone . Fragile like that she would have been an easy target for any stinking worlord eager to make a fortune or a name for having taken the life of the mighty Warrior Princess.

The only thing I could think of, was to put a spell on her, putting her to sleep for a while since she clearly nedded to rest and shelter her in one of my temples till things were to improve. I was pretty much aware of the fact that bro would have gone ballistic if something happened to her.

XXX

When I materialized myself in the Halls of War, I couldn't hold back a "Sweet mother of Zeus!"

The place was a was like the Athenian war or worse had taken place in the middle of the room, and, steps away from his throne, lying down the floor, head in his hands, Ar was shaking back and forth. For me that was an absolutely striking image. I mean... me and Ar, we have like heavy history together in more sense than one. Not too proud about that one but anyway...he's like my favorite bro, and never, and when I say never I mean never,in my life,have I seen him like that.

Instinctively, I ran next to him and hug his quivering form:

"Bro,are you like,ok?it's me ,Dite!" but his eyes seamed so lost,so empty...it was as if his mind had driffted to some other distant realms, far away from reality.

His resemblance to Xena's own blank stare was far to scary, that's for sure, and when he finally looked at me , my heart almost skipped a beat despite his almost whispering voice:

"It's over Dite,it's over"

When I actually saw him crying like that... powerless, totally crumbled on the floor, holding me tight as if he were a frightened child holding his mother…..I have never seen him cry before. I didn't even thought that gods could cry. It never happened to me anyway...And I have never seen another one since...

"It's gonna be ok Ar, I promise. Everything's gonna be just fine. But you gotta tell me exactly what happened, you got that? .We can make this work, ya know? I mean...the warrior babe loves you and, like it or not, love conquers it all ya know!I am well aware that you're not a big fan of that motto but, deep down ya know I'm right."

With a burdening sigh, Ar slowly got up, and he looked as if he was carrying the weight of the humanity on his broad shoulders.

For a second there, he just stared at me, or better said through me, unmistakingly giving me the impression that I was invisible or something. He looked as if he were so tired and so depressed….I could genuinely feel my heart breaking for him.

After a while he just said:

"Zeus wants her dead! If I get anywhere near her,he'll kill her on the spot,no questions asked"

I didn't quite get it:

"Like what does dad have to do with Xena?Don't tell me that he's jealous or something. Is he?"

"I wish…."

And , by all the Olympus, there it was! Every time Ar said such thing, I knew it had to be serious. I mean he couldn't actually stand the idea of witnessing in any circumstance what so ever the presence of a guy on this planet looking at his Chosen the wrong way. That unlucky fellow would have been fried on the spot, everyone knew that. It was like an unwritten law he had established the minute she became his no 1 girl. And I strongly believe that he would have killed the king of the gods himself for such primitive reason ,no doubt about it, and he had made that very specific on a certain occasion a while back, leaving all Olympus in shock for like months, just for the sake of prooving a point.

"It's a prophecy, Ares finally spoke. Dear old dad visited the Fates,a moon back , and all in all they told him that the Twilight would soon take down Olympus and his reign"

"So what does this have to do with the warrior babe?"

"It's the daughter of the Chosen of War that seams to be destined bring the unnapealing end of our kin, and in order to protect them, they foretold that War itself will rise against the Olimpyans . Concerned with the subject matter, Zeus pretty much talked the other Gods into accepting his little devious plan, convincig them that me and Xena should be apart .He would have killed her anyway but fortunately, he can' t...the whole " don't harm the other God's Chosen" rule, established so long ago by his own evil self dosen't allow him to simply act on his impulses, keeping her safe for now. The old toad honestly believes that by separating us he could cancel the prophecy, and that Xena would be left defenseless . It would be easier for him to brake the rule anyway if it were the case, without me keeping a watchful eye on her."

"Whoaaa bro!like this can't be! This is so not fair!"

"Yeah!Tell me about it!"

"But this still dosen't explain the state the warrior babe was in .In mean,I understood where she was coming from but still...she was devastated!"

To my logical expectations, the mere mention of her name, certainly got the stud muffin's attention:

"Did you see her?"

"Yeah I did. Right after you burnt my dress and all!"

"Sorry about that sis!But I'm going crazy over here!"

"Yep,like you're totally loosin' it,I'm tellin' ya!"

"So?"

"So what happened bro?I mean when I saw her she was a mess!"

"Is she ok?"

"Yeah she's fine.I put her asleep and took her to my temple in Heraklion. She 's safe there"

"Thanks sis !I owe you one!"

"You sure do lover boy!So... tell me!Does she know about Zeus?Is that what happened?"

"Not precisely….."

There was a long heavy silence again and I could see how hard it was for him to talk about it. He was trembling perceptively and a shade of guilt could be easily read in his eyes. He was ashamed. I could see it as plain as daylight , and when he started talking his voice was shaking:

"I had to do it Dite. I mean …I can't face Olympus all by mysel! And don't get me wrong here, it's not like I wouldn't, but they would definitely kill her before I would even get the chance to say :"duck!"

Carfeully listening to him speak, I could distinctively hear the poundings of his heart, hammering hard against his chest, on the verge of exploding.

"By the Gods Ar,what did you do? Xena said something about it but I couldn't believe it..."

"I….-he swallowed twice, considered his options, and, gathering his words, he told me- …I betrayed her."

I was shoked:

"Betrayed her as in…"

"Discord"

This couldn't be. It was to much... even for my experienced, All Knowing self.

"And that's not all…:"

"There's more?"

Bitting his lower lip, he just looked into my eyes,worlds away and added:

"I made sure she saw us, and that she overheard a certain conversation…"

"What did she hear?"

"All in all I was telling Discord that Xena ment absolutely nothing to me,but that she had potential and that was something I didn't want to see wasted. She was also a good fuck each time I was in the mood and that she always seamed to be around when needed... We even took a good laugh about it"

"Sweet Gaia bro!Tell me you didn't!"

His head bent ,he just looked down and said:

"I had no choice , Dite! It was either let her live,or just like kill her myself.

Well,that explained it all! Everything had become so clear within minutes...…this was like one of Sofocle's hard to digest tragedies...It was sooooooooo sad! There had to be something we could do!

"So bro,what can we do?I mean,we can't just let them brake you apart right? Isn't there something we can use?"

"Don't even go there, Dite! If there had been something don't you think I would had done it? The decision has been made, end of story"

This was going to be a though one but hey…..it was worth the effort.

"Ar come on! Are you like giving up on her? Just like that? No fight ? This isn't you!"

"Nice try Dite! But really! It ain't working"

"Ares be serious! Like I know that I'm the ditzy, airheaded sister here, plus all the other nasty stuff you use to call me ,but when it's about love.I'm your lady, ok? !And I happen to know that you love her beyond words!She's your Chosen! She is your other half!"

"She is more than that for me Dite"She is my Enyo!For me there will never be another. Just her."

"Oohh!that's like totally sweet bro!See what I was saying? You can't let her go!"

"No sis,. That's precisely why I have to let her go."

"But we can come up with a plan!We could talk to Zeus!Maybe if we….."

"Even if Zeus were to reconsider,Xe would never forgive me. I know her far to well.I made sure of that."

And, having said those last words, he simply vanished,no blue light,no sparkles,no godly effects. He was obviously depressed..

With a smile on my lips,I decided to check on the warrior babe. Yeah! A smile. I had a plan, you know. Blonds have always been always underrated. I wonder why…like that's so definitely not true!

XXX

I just can't get enough watching the power of that waves crushing the shore,that water having such unbelievable force though it seams sometimes so serene, so magic. I wish I had such power within my veins. To strike my enemies with the energy of a flod, leaving no trace behind me,only the human bodies,as silent witnesses to my lethal force. …..I look around…it's one of those fairy-tale days. And I certainly don't get much of those any more. I'm out of time to just take a breath and look around me and actually notice something else besides strategic points and future conquered lands.

I'm waiting for Ares. We should have began our practice till now,and Zeus knows I don't have all day. He was already late, as always. I hate him when he does it. I'm not too much of a fan when it came to waisting time. Onthe other hand, he has all the time in the world to waste, thus, being late it's usually not the end of the world for him.

Anyway, since I'm not really in the mood to wait, never have been never will, I guess I'l just call him…."Ares! Aresss are we gonna do this or what? 'Tired of admiring the view already!"

No answer. Fucking bastard! He's probably toying around with his priestess or making a war even more messy than it already is.

I look around. His temple is just in front of me,on top of that cliff,and since I've got nothing elese better to do,I start climbing. This should make the perfect workout for the day…..When I get to the temple I call out his name one more time. Still no answer. This is strange,... he should be able to hear my voice calling him even beyond the grave or something. Usually I only have to think or whisper his name and in an instant, he pops up from generally nowhere with that annoying grin glued on his face. And now...

I enter the temple. The coolness of the air is invigorating comparing it to the dryness outside. I take a deep breath. The air smells like him.I can feel him everywhere, a sort of a mixture of cinnamon, cedar and something else, I just can't put my finger on. The rich smell of him overwhelms all my senses, making me wanna close my eyes and loose myself into his presence, and the bastard is nowhere to be found. He's not in his throne room .Surely he's downstairs ,making battle plans, analyzing campaigns, giving advice to some wannabe warlord, doing all those things that draw me to him like a moth to the flame,dispite my resisting it. His power, his being one step ahead of me all the time, his tenderness ,his…

And suddenly, I'm paralyzed. I just can't react any more, I can't move ,I can't scream though my lungs are ready to burst. There he is, in between the sheets, feeling so good, Discord on top of him ,having the fuck of their lives! And he can't even feel my presence. How could he? He 's way to focused on sucking on that bitch's nipples, I guess. I don't know whether I'm more shocked by what I'm seeing or by what I' m hearing:

"So Ares dear, have you thought about the plan?"

He moans softly, I can see that he enjoys it and I hate the fact that she can make him feel like that,I 'd stab her right through the heart with my dagger if she were mortal.

"Which one, doll?"

"Xena"

"Why you are so obsessed with that slut, is beyond me."

"No honey bunny, it is you the obsessed one"

"Me?come on Discord,I thought that you were smarter than that. Way smarter.I mean yeah, I won't deny that she's a good fuck each time I'm in the mood,and yes she has potential. That's a rare thing nowadays. She 'll make me the fucking King of the Gods in nowtime, But that's all there is to it , babe"

"King of the gods ha?And …You will need a queen, won't you? Have you got someone in mind, may I ask?"

"No need asking cupcake. Who would you bet on?"

"Me of course"

"That's right baby! Now shut up already and give your king a proper blowjob"

"You are such a perverse!I like it"

"I know you do. Turns you on dosen't it?"

...There is nothing else left but the pain,only the agony of that endless moment,and suddenly the realization of it struck an arrow right through my heart. He probably felt the pain coming from our bond,cause he looks right at me,his eyes still shining with pure bliss and I can swear, that was one time I truly regretted he was not mortal.I would have ripped his heart out of his chest with my bare hands.

The truth is that I am so shocked, suffering written all over my exhausted face and all I can do is to shed a tear,one single tear that I feel burning even the depths of my soul .One single tear before I turn around and leave, hearing Discord's laughers ,her invitations to bed with them,seeing Ares turning his head,not dearing to face me.

...The pain,so much pain...my chest heavy,the disappointment, the hate towards him, towards myself for having believed him,forhaving trusted him with my life,the knifes I was walking on ,the lack of air,the…

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!With a tug I was up,covered in sweat and tears,releaving again anad again all those monstrous images that were haunting my mind each second of the day. And It seamed to me that I was in some sort of labyrinth from which, try as I might, I just couldn't brake loose. It's like one of those nightmares, when you scream so hard and nobody can hear you. It's way too much similar to Lyceus' death, the same feeling of emptiness, of disillusion, of a life without a purpose. Only that now, there was no War God to hold me ,to tell me that everything would work out fine. There was nothing...nothing left

XXX

When I got myself to Heraklion ,the warrior babe was already awake, crouched in the middle of the bed, a pillow encased between her arms,still crying,still displaying that empty look in her eyes.I sat next to her and started:

"Sweet pea! Like I know that you're hurt and all,but I have a good news for ya!"

"I'm not in one of my good news moods Dite. I think it's obvious."

Boy,this was going tyo be a chore!First Ares than her. They were completely like for each other. Perfectly right!

"Yeah it kindda is, but this is like a VIP ya know.A very important problem.! A MI-as in major issue!

"It can wait I'm sure. Now will you do me a favour and leave? "

"Sweetie,I hate to brake it to you,but you and I are gonna talk,and we're gonna talk now"

I'm so good…..but when I'm bad I'm better! And I did get her attention, at least the rage I caused inside her, made her tears stop for a minute.

"Things aren't always what they seam to be,ok?And like,I know that you have like this total impression that Ar cheated on you and stuff, butt,I gotta tell ya, you're wrong babe"

"Dite…is it the color of your hair…or the one of your clothes that makes you so... airheaded at times?

"I will like pretend I didn't hear that right now,only because I want you and the stud muffin to be happy. But you do owe me an apology Xena"

"Don't you dear talk to me about that two faced cyclop!"

"Sweetcheeks,I can see that you're in pain and I know that this must be tough on you,but I gotta show you something"

"I don't wanna see anything! Can't you understand that?I just wanna be alone for a while... .I need some space . Now...doyou think that this could be possible,or do I need to make you give that space to me? I'm easy ,we can try any strategy you like best. And trust me Love Goddess, you are not up for that",Xena added clenching her teeth.

She seamed really menacing and boy,everyone knows that if Xena's pissed of,you'd better hit the road while you still can. But no, not me! I stood my ground ,so bro,you owe me two now,cause my own head's on the line…..I made one last attempt.

"Xena,please,hear me out will you? It will only take a sec, i promise"

"Fine. Just get this done with, already! And be sure to make it quick before I loose my nerve"

And with that I opened a mirror for one of my converstions with the stud muffin. It had to leave an impression. There was no other way.I was just praying that this worked out and that Xena's heart wouldn't be so stricken with grief that she couldn't see big bro's sacrifice It would have been a waste.

I was watching her. She was touched,I could see it in her eyes, though she was trying to cover her feelings with that thick cloth of hate that she had in store especially for him. The conversation was over.

"Should this wipe out the fact that he slept with Discord Dite?Should I forget the fact that he was there, enjoying it , as a part of the so called big sacrifice thing? Should I erase from my memory those images too?"

I was terrefied. What if if this was not working after all?No,that was impossible.

"I could erase them for you, if you think it helps you in any way….."

Bad reply. I got that killer steely gaze of hers in return.

"Sorry. Ya know Xena, I wonder"

"Wonder what?"

"If you really appreciate what Ares actually did there for you. You weren't there. You didn't see him, Xena. It broke his heart into pieces,and it hurts him twice as you are hurting right now,cause besides his pain, he also feels your pain too, through the bond you share.

The shame,the guilt,the idea of having caused you so much suffering in order to spear your life,to protect you, seeing the disappointment in your eyes, IN YOUR eyes, the only one that matters to him in the whole wide world. He would kill Zeus in cold blood if something happened to you. Don't you see how much he loves you?So much that he gave you up…...yeah,he had to put up a convincing show with Discord in order for you to believe him,but that dosen't even mean that he actually slept with her…It could have been just an act,something for you to see,to not want him in your life anymore. But Xena,what does your heart tell you?Could he have done such a thing to you?"

…...There was a long, thick silence and then she just burst into tears.I was so happy that I wanted to scream…..I was radiating with joy. Even the color of my dress changed it's shade into an intense red one. Ar ,you owe me big time, I said to myself

"How can we fix this? she asked.

"I don't know Xe…..but we'll work it out"

"Take me to Ares"

"Sweetie, I don't think that's a very good idea…..I mean he was very specific about this….if Zeus found out….and he's still in the Halls of War…I bet Zeus has an eye on every single one of his temples"

"How about his fortress in Macedonia? That's sealed isn't it?"

"Well sealed is a good word for it. So if it's sealed how will we get in?"

"Let me worry about that"

And with that we were through the aether, right in front of Ar's fortress. Impenetrable fortress, we might add.

"So what now?"

And I didn't even finish my question that Xena palced her chackram into some craved round thing on the main gate and it opened instantly. I was mesmerized. I didn't think that big bro could ever have some taste concerning decoration. I mean, this place was something else. Xena chuckled softly:

"My decorations Dite"

We both burst into laughter:

"Figures"

One of the servants approached:
"May I bring you anything Milady?"

"No,Amersa,I wil call if I need you"

"Yes Mylady"

I smiled. She felt like home here….so this is where Ar used to dissaper with days when I just couldn't get a hold of him. I chuckled.

"Dite,go get Ar here.I need to talk to him. But don't tell him I'm here. Just bring him to me"

"Ok sweet pea. I'll be back in a zippy"

XXX

And I was. Just telling Ar that I had new information on Zeus' plans about his Xe, and that we needed a safe place to talk, did the trick. I'm so good at plotting! I'm good at everything actually.

He sensed her the minute he entered the room. Gods their bond was so strong!

"Xe? sweet? Is she here Dite? Did you talk to her? What did you tell her?

And when Xena entered the throne room where we were now standing, he just pinned the floor with his eyes. He could't look at her. He didn't knew. He didn't want to see the hurt in her eyes again. Once more, he was putting on that macho mascarade .He's like so cute when he does that.

"What do you want Xena?"

"Cut the charade Ares I now everything"

His eyes turned soft:

"You….you do?"

"Yeah, Dite filled me in with all the details"

"Than you know that's for the best,sweet I hate this , believe me I do, but I don't wanna loose you . Not like this.I couldn't bear it."

She reached for his lips, but he turned away quickly, as if frightened that some unknown force could literally storm inside the fortress and take his Princess away from him. But you know the warrior babe...She never gives up…...So she was standing in front of him, holding his chin up, forcing him to look her in the eyes, her other hand touching his right shoulder:

"Ar ….remember that day when you gave me the chackram ?"

"How could I forget? my beautiful Princess learning how to master an unique weapon like that. Your own trademark"

"Yeah ,but do you remember how long it took me to learn just how to appreciate the right angles for each throw,the speed,the right time to catch it?"

"It took you a while,but not too long". He smiled.

"How many times did you make me trow it?"

"Countless, that day"

"I remember as if it were yesterday, my hands bleeding, you standing besides me ,just in case I didn't catch it on time"

"You didn't complain. Not once". His eyes were flickering with love and admiration and a loyalty than I'm sure that no one would ever expect to see in the God of War.

"That moment, when I fell on my knees exhausted and disappointed, on the verge of giving it up, what did you tell me?"

Oh Gods, this was such an emotional moment. I always said that those two were right for each other. Love was in the air and I felt absolutely ecstatic. I didn't leave though. Still waiting for Ar's answer. I was curious. This was certainly a story to tell.

"Do this on the battlefield, when you'll find yourself alone against an entire army, and you'll never leave the ground. As long as you breath, you fight, Xena .Do you understand me? you fight."

Ares watched his Princess for a moment and enfolded her into his arms. Realization struck him like a lightening bolt. Their lips met, and that sparkle was back in their eyes ,chasing that scary emptiness away. "We fight princess"

"I guess that's my cue to leave now" I said, wanting to give them their space.

"Not so fast Dite,we still need your help"the warrior babe added.

"Ya know,'I might just charge you too. So much wasted time and all…"

"I'll give you a good backrub when all this is over,I promises" Ar said,adopting one of his sexiest pose.

"Well I guess the other mortals could wait a little bit longer" and we all started laughing. It was soooo good,seeing them together and happy…..it made all efforts worth while.

There's not to much left to be said in the end. Xena had this fabulous idea of creating their own alliance against Zeus and the others.I mean me and Cupie were in,and so was aunt Hestia and Hera,who was constantly questioning what the Fates said,and in the end Ar bribed even Artemis to join us in exchange of eternal piece in the Amazon's land. But this wasn't it. Ares used his connections with the northern and eastern gods,and they all agreed to help if it were the case. Let 's just say that dad was not a very popular guy,and that his ideas of expanding his dominion were well known.

All that I can say is that my favorite bro and the warrior babe are fine, living their fairy-tale story in their own wierdo kinda way,having their ups and downs as usually, but their bond is strong and I think they will survive no matter what. Even their threads are intertwined and so their destinies are bounded for eternity. I mean I'm always keeping a watchful eye on those two anyway, plotting for them to be happy. Like I said:"I'm soooo good…But when I'm bad I'm better"...