Charon's Troubles

by B L Miller

part 4

"Hey Linos, didn't take long for that bitch to get you, huh?" Toxeus said as he clapped the blond man on the back. "Got me a couple of days ago. So did you at least get a lick in? Thersites over there says he got her in the side but we all know what a bullshit artist he is."

"You watch your mouth, Toxeus." the assassin growled while some of the other men chuckled at the insult.

"Yeah, what are you going to do about it? It's not like you can kill me or anything."

"No but I can make your life in Tartarus far worse than you ever had it. All it takes is a little word in Hades' ear and your ass will be sitting in a firepit for eternity." the blond assassin said as he moved closer. Linos backed up out of the way of the two men. Blows were soon exchanged and the two fighting men were surrounded by the other souls cheering them on. Linos continued to back up toward the rock wall, trying to blend into the shadows. All he had to do was get past one large stone pillar and he would be able to slip away. He almost reached it and was beginning to think he was going to get away when he felt a strong hand slap down on his shoulder. "Linos you old dog. So come tell us how Xena got you." he turned to see the charred remains of Dagnine staring at him.

"Uh…sure." he replied, knowing there was no way out of it. The burnt warlord chuckled and led Linos back to a small crowd of men staying clear of the fight. "Hey guys, look who I found." within moments the newest arrival to the Underworld found himself relaying a believable tale about how the warrior princess managed to outsmart him and send him back. Linos knew that he'd have to bide his time and try to slip away later. 'Hang in there, Xena.' he thought to himself. 'One way or another I'll find a way to get that portal open.'

Xena looked out the window, noting grimly the presence of yet another undead looking for her. That made seven she had seen within the last candlemark. Obviously word had gotten around the Underworld that she was in Laconia and all the escapees were arriving in search of her. "I have to get her out of here. It's not safe." the warrior said quietly.

"Well, it doesn't look like she's going anywhere soon." Charon replied. "Why don't you just leave her here and head for another town? After all, it's your sweet ass they're looking for."

"I can't leave her behind." Xena growled. "And it's not just me they're after. I'm the grand prize but there isn't one of them that wouldn't take delight in killing her just to hurt me." she looked over at the sleeping woman. "There's no room for discussion about this. No matter what, she has to be kept safe." she turned away from the window and sat down on the chair next to the bed, taking a moment to make sure the blanket was tucked securely around Gabrielle.

There was a knock at the door. Xena motioned the ferryman away and drew her sword as she rose to her feet. She cautiously opened it to find a nervous innkeeper standing there. "What?"

"I..." he looked down at the floor and wrung his hands together. "I understand that your friend is hurt but you can't stay here any longer." he took a step back in fear even though Xena had already returned her weapon to its sheath. "Men keep asking if you're here. Of course I tell them no but...look Miss, I run a small inn. I don't need any more trouble. These men look like they'd just as soon kill me as to look at me. I've got a wife and kids...please, you must understand."

Charon stepped up and wedged his way between them. "You run a business, such as it is, what with having no dancing girls and all." he began, pulling out dinars from his pouch and dropping them in the innkeeper's hand. "Perhaps we can work something out?" he continued to put coins in the portly man's hand.

"I...I can't...oh my, that's quite a bit of money." his face showed his indecisiveness.

"Wouldn't that put quite a bit of food on the table? Certainly would keep your rather large family happy, wouldn't it?" the ferryman said, giving the innkeeper more dinars. Soon the portly man had to use both hands to hold all the coins.

"Uh...but those men..." he looked down at the pile of money. "Um...all right, but just for one more day. You'll all have to leave by morning." he dumped the coins into the pocket in the front of his stained apron and took a step back. "And no amount of money will change that." he said before quickly retreating down the hall, uncertain of who he feared more, the steady stream of dangerous looking men or the woman they were looking for.

Xena slammed the door shut, her face clearly showing her anger. "You just wasted your money, Charon. What difference is one more day going to make? If he even bothers to keep his word." she went to the table and poured herself a mug of port, draining it with several long swallows before slamming the empty container back down.

"Now look, my leather covered wonder woman, you needed some time, I bought you some time. What are you so upset about? Britches too tight?" he took a step back from the angry glare she shot at him. "Why don't you just go down and take care of those men and I'll stay here with sleeping beauty?"

"I can't do that, Charon. I have to take care of Gabrielle first. I need to get her to a safe place where she can recover before I can even think about dealing with the rejects from Tartarus." a low groan from the bed interrupted the warrior's ranting. Immediately she was at the bard's side. "I'm here, Gabrielle." she said softly, her voice devoid of anything other than concern for her injured companion. She knelt down next to the bed and without thought began stroking the golden hair in a comforting motion.

"Everything hurts." the bard croaked.

"I'll brew up a tea for the pain, okay?" she stood up to get the herbs but was stopped by the small voice calling to her.

"Xena?"

"Right here, what?" she said softly.

"I have to go to the pot." Gabrielle replied, the unbruised areas of her face blushing slightly.

"Oh." the warrior's face took on a decidedly uncomfortable look as she tried to figure out a solution to this newest problem. "Okay, just um...just hold it for a moment. I'll figure something out."

"Uh, make it quick, will you?"

The first thing she had to do was get rid of the ferryman. She knew better than to trust that he wouldn't turn around and try to sneak a peek. "Charon, you have to leave. Stay out of trouble and don't let anyone see you. Those men from Tartarus will surely recognize you."

"Not to worry, my dear, I have it all figured out." he replied, pulling the hood of the cloak up over his head, effectively hiding his face. "Now if you ladies will excuse me, I believe the Blue Bull is about to open."

Once the ferryman was gone, Xena looked around at the scattered containers in the room, finally settling for a wide bowl that wasn't quite as deep as the width of her hand. "This should do." she said, picking up the bowl and heading for the bed. "Gabrielle, I'm going to have to lift you up and put this under you."

"Oh gods, this is going to be embarrassing." the bard groaned as Xena pulled the blanket out of the way.

"It's okay, Gabrielle. It's only me." she said reassuringly. "Besides, I need to change your bandages anyway."

"It's still going to be embarrassing."

Xena slipped one hand under the bard's rear and lifted her up slightly, using the other hand to push the bowl underneath. When Gabrielle was finished, the warrior reversed the procedure and cleaned the bard up. "There, all done." she said as she took the bowl away and washed her own hands in the basin. She put a pot of water over the fire to heat up for tea and collected the bandages she needed before returning to Gabrielle's side.

"Xena?" she waited for the blue eyes to lock with hers before continuing. "I wanted to thank-"

"Shh." the warrior replied, putting her finger over the bard's lips to silence her. "You'd do the same thing for me and you know it." for a moment they simply stared at each other as Xena felt the softness under her finger and Gabrielle felt the tender touch on her lips. "Um...well..." the warrior said as she broke the contact and picked up a damp cloth. "Let's take a look and see how you're doing." she reached down and removed the bandages covering the gash on Gabrielle's thigh, trying hard not to think about the all too brief contact she had with the bard's lips or how much she wished it was her own lips touching them instead of just her finger.

Charon paid the stable boy to hitch up the wagon, then headed toward the north end of town. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted several men that he had previously transported on his boat. He pulled the hood lower on his head, making certain that he looked no different than anyone else leading a wagon through town. He pulled to a stop in front of a small house on the outskirts of Laconia. Two small children were playing in the yard while a young mother was busy hanging up laundry. In the distance the ferryman could see the father tending the fields. Charon stepped down from the wagon and waved the mother over. It took quite a few moments for him to convince her not to faint at the sight of his stark white face and black lips and that he wasn't there to commit murder, mayhem, or any other sinister acts. It also took pulling several dinars out of his pouch to get her to believe that he was serious in his offer and for her to go get her husband from the field.

"You want to buy my house?" the father, Matheos, said.

"Not buy it, just rent it for about three moons. I'll pay you handsomely for it." the ferryman replied as he continued to pull dinars out of his pouch and set them on the table. They were sitting in the kitchen of the modest home, the adults seated at the table, the children standing next to it, wide-eyed at both the amount of coins and at the strange looking man who owned the coins. "I'll give you more than enough money to go away. Just think of it as a vacation."

"A vacation?" the wife repeated.

"Yeah, a vacation, you know...no work, relaxing, having people waiting on you for a change." he looked at the woman, hands rough from a lifetime of work. "Well, I guess you wouldn't know about that. Imagine being able to spend time with Studley here and have someone else watch your brats-I mean your kids."

"Well, where would we go?" Matheos asked.

"You can go wherever you want. Just pack yourself and your family into your cart and head out. Go to Athens, visit a resort, take in a show or two, have the time of your lives." the pile of coins became too large and spilled over to the floor only to be quickly chased down by the children. "Ah, look at the little tikes. You'd think they never saw a dinar before. How touching." he said sarcastically. "So do we have a deal?"

"Mister, for that much money you can keep the house." the father said.

"Oh, there's just one more little detail I forgot to mention." Charon said. "You have to be gone by sundown. So hurry up and collect your clothes, pack your cart, and get going here. No time to waste. Chop chop." he grinned as the mother and children scurried to collect the items they'd need for their trip. "Oh, one more thing."

"Anything, name it." Matheos said eagerly, noting with extreme pleasure that the strange man sitting across from him continued to toss dinars onto the table.

"Not a word to anyone, not a soul can know that you're leaving town. If someone asks you, you're just taking a short trip to visit a sick aunt, got it?"

"Got it." the father replied.

"Good. Now, hows about being at least somewhat sociable and offering an old soul like me a drink?" Charon made a gasping sound with his throat. Matheos quickly jumped up to fetch his only bottle of port for his new found benefactor.

Linos looked at the portal carefully, studying the wires and traps that were set to keep it closed. He studied it for over a candlemark before realizing that he had to get back before someone discovered him missing. He took one last look at the puzzle, mentally committing it to memory, before slipping back into the crowd of souls. He found a small area against a rock to sit and lean against and began going over the problem in his mind, hoping against hope to figure out a way to disable Sysiphus' trap without trigging the counter traps that were set. There was no doubt in Linos' mind that the former King was a master magician and he now understood how Sysiphus was able to trap Death and steal the mantle of Ares. But there was one thing that the man who kicked Charon out of the Underworld hadn't counted on, that was someone on the inside who had nothing but time to figure out the secret of the portal traps. He knew that eventually he would figure out how to disable the locks that held the portal closed, but as he watched three more warlords being released into the Overworld, Linos hoped it would be sooner rather than later.

Upon returning to town, Charon stopped at the marketplace, spending the next four candlemarks making assorted purchases. By the time he finished his shopping, the back of the wagon was filled with meats, herbs, several bolts of cloth, and other assorted sundries. He had been careful to keep his face hidden, not wanting to draw any attention to himself, and to keep his mouth shut for fear of being tossed into the jail before he finished his task. However, when he saw one of the former residents of Tartarus shoplifting knives from the weapons merchant, the ferryman couldn't resist the opportunity. Making sure they were within full sight of both the constable and the merchant, Charon deliberately bumped into the warlord, causing the stolen weapons to fall out onto the ground. The merchant drew his sword and screamed to the constable about a thief. Before the warlord could even think about escaping, he found himself caught between two swords and unable to do anything more than put his hands up in defeat. Charon chuckled to himself all the way back to his wagon. 'Got one for ya, Xena.' he thought to himself.

She looked down at the peacefully sleeping bard for the thousandth time, telling herself that it was only concern that kept her chained to the bedside. Remembering the sensation of her finger touching the softness of Gabrielle's lips earlier, Xena tentatively reached over and allowed her fingertip to trace the outline of the bard's mouth. "So soft." she murmured, running her finger across them again and again. Without realizing it, Xena leaned closer, eyes half-closed, her mouth only a hand's distance away from those enticing lips. Gabrielle shifted slightly, bringing the warrior back to reality. She jerked away, mentally chastising herself for what she almost did. Rising and crossing over to the basin, Xena splashed the cool water on her face, hoping to regain control over her raging emotions. She had come so close to kissing Gabrielle, so very close. She splashed her face again, knowing full well that even an icy river wouldn't do any good when it came to the fire burning inside of her. When Charon arrived a few moments later, Xena found herself grateful for the distraction. At least with the annoying ferryman around she wouldn't lose control like she had come so close to doing before.

"Did you have fun at the Blue Bull?" she asked as she closed the door.

"I never made it there. I had some other things to take care of. By the way, you'll be pleased to know that at least one of your former kills won't be bothering you." he went on to explain what he had done in the marketplace, pleased to see a nod of approval from the warrior. He looked over at the sleeping bard. "She still naked under that sheet?" he asked, his gaze quickly turning into a leer.

"You know, Amazons aren't the only ones capable of turning you into a eunuch." Xena said casually. "And I've warned you before about thinking about Gabrielle like that." she said with a growl. Charon swallowed and took a step back.

"Heh heh, just kidding, you know. I would never think of taking advantage of an unconscious woman like that."

"Sure." Xena replied, not believing a word of it. "What were you doing at the market anyway?" she decided that a change of subject was in order.

"Oh that. Not much really, just buying all the things you'll need to take care of that naked little woman." the ferryman said. "Oh, I also got you a safe place to stay just outside of town." he added as if it was an afterthought.

"You what?"

"Oh, did I forget to mention that? I found a house just outside of town. Kinda secluded, easy to see who's coming, very private." he said casually. Xena stood there for a moment, uncertain of what to say. "Well? Are you gonna stand there like a fashion model or are you going to get going? After all, those guys aren't going to wait forever before they storm this place looking for you."

It was pitch black when they slipped out of the back door of the inn. Charon had made two previous trips down to carry their belongings and to move the wagon into the alleyway while Xena wrapped Gabrielle up in the blankets. Knowing there was no way to avoid aggravating the injured ribs and not wanting to take a chance on the bard screaming out in pain and alerting anyone to their presence, Xena gave her a heavy dose of sleeping herb to knock her out. Gathering the now unconscious woman in her arms, she carefully and quietly made their escape.

Xena chose to ride in the back with Gabrielle, both hiding under a large canvas cover. Her hopes of making it to the hiding place without being detected were foiled when she felt Charon pull the wagon to a stop. "Hey old man, kinda late to be out for a ride, ain't it?"

"Oh, I didn't know there was a law about riding late at night." the ferryman replied. Realizing that from beneath the covers Xena couldn't see how many there were or what they were carrying, he added "So what do the four of you want and what's with all the swords?" immediately the warrior's hand lowered to her chakram.

"We don't mean you any harm, old man. We're looking for someone...someone who owes us big time and we intend to collect. We'll just check the back of your wagon out and if we don't find her then you can be on your way."

"There's nothing back there but some bales of hay and feed."

"Well, we'll be the judges of that." the tallest one said, drawing his sword, readying it to poke through the canvas. With blinding speed, the cover flew off the back of the wagon, covering the tall man before a well placed boot sent his head crashing down to have a lengthy visit with the ground. Before the other three men could draw their weapons, Xena was standing before them, chakram in hand.

"You should have taken his word for it." she hissed, sending her chakram flying. She caught the spinning disc on the return path and looked down at the three dark silhouettes lying on the ground. She drew her sword, preparing to send them back to the Underworld. A feral smile formed on her face as she strode over to stand above the closest one. The pale moonlight revealed little about the man, save that he was once part of Cortese's army. Whether she killed him during the attack on Amphipolis or summers later when rescuing her only remaining brother, Xena didn't know. It didn't matter, she decided. Either way he would be dead again in a moment. She raised her sword up, the sharp tip pointing at the unconscious man's chest.

"…I know these men were part of your past but you need to remember that you're here, in the present. You're not the person you once were. You've battled the demons and found the goodness in your soul. If you don't keep yourself focused on that you'll slip back to what you once were..." Gabrielle's words echoed in Xena's mind. Blue eyes looked downward again, this time unable to blaze with the anger that had been present just a moment ago. After a heartbeat of hesitation, the warrior sheathed her sword and headed for the back of the wagon. She jerked the canvas off of the tall man and crawled up next to the bard. Once the canvas was back over both of them, Charon sent the horses into motion.

Xena turned from the blazing fire and looked around the room. It was obviously the parent's room, the bed against the wall was more than large enough for two to sleep comfortably. From a quick inspection of the house, the warrior knew that the children's room was on the other side of the wall. No doubt the mother slept on the inside, listening for sounds of her offspring even in sleep. Looking down at the sleeping bard, Xena realized that she did that very act herself every night, waking up the moment she heard any odd sound from Gabrielle's sleeping lips. Some nights she woke to the sounds of the bard laughing at some happy dream, but more often Xena wakened to the sound of the young woman crying out at yet another loss. Once it had been Talus, then Perdicus, now it was the warrior's name that came out in strangled cries during the night.

Xena placed her weapons next to the bed and changed into her shift. The events of the last few days coupled with not only the lack of sleep but the sight of an incredibly comfortable looking bed drained the last of the warrior's reserves. Trusting that Gabrielle would sleep until morning, Xena crawled in next to her, hoping to quickly fall into Morpheus' arms. Instead she found herself propped up on one elbow, staring down at the bard's face. Control, discipline, and restraint were all forces that the warrior dealt with every day but she could no more stop her mouth from lowering down to kiss the sleeping woman any more than she could stop breathing. Xena had to fight the urge to moan at the sweet contact of her lips against the softness of Gabrielle's mouth. It felt right, so very right. She caught herself only when her tongue threatened to slip past her lips to taste the bard. Xena rolled onto her back and sighed. When sleep finally claimed the warrior, it was with a small smile on her face.

Linos was getting restless, as were the rest of the souls piled up along the riverbank. He now had no chance to work on the portal. There were just too many people milling about. Two more men arrived to join the overcrowded group. "Did Xena get you too?" Toxeus asked. The two men looked at each other, deciding at the same time to lie instead of telling the truth that they had killed each other in a jealous fight over a woman that no doubt could have cared less about them.

"Yeah, she surprised us." the taller of the two men said.

"Where were you? I don't remember seeing either of you near Laconia. That was the last place she was seen." Thersites said.

"Naw, she got us just outside of Sawpolis." the shorter one lied. Thersites looked at them for a moment before slapping the taller one on the back.

"Well, at least you put up a fight, eh? Did you connect with her at all?"

"Oh yeah, for a while there I thought I might have had her." the tall one said, falling into the tale.

"She must be looking for that brat of hers. That blond little bitch." Toxeus joined in.

"Yeah, she said something about her." the short man offered, hoping to add credence to their story. Soon the conversation dragged down to a standstill and they were left with the problem the same as it was before. More people arriving but nowhere to put them all and nothing for them to do. At least in Tartarus they had something to do, even if it was pushing a rock uphill or dancing on hot coals. Most were lucky enough to just hang around the fiery realm, reliving old times and missing their families. When Sysiphus came to them with his plan to kill Xena, they jumped at the chance for revenge. Now many wondered if they hadn't made a huge mistake. Certainly Hades wouldn't be happy when it came time to judge them again, no doubt they would be sentenced far harsher than they originally were. And for what? For a few candlemarks of mortality again? The wondering became quiet conversations between small groups. Linos watched the goings on with great interest and soon found himself moving through the crowd, encouraging the self questioning and making observations about how it wouldn't be too much longer before there wouldn't be enough room on the riverbank to hold them all yet Sysiphus was continuing to release souls to the Overworld. The blond man thought that there might just be a way to get that portal open after all.

The barest grey of morning found the warrior dreaming away, a slight smile on her lips. Her dream was not a new one, nor was it one she could share with Gabrielle. Oh but how she wanted to turn the familiar dream into reality. Xena often fantasized about taking the bard and making love to her until the young woman was dizzy. She dreamed of hearing Gabrielle cry out her name at the height of passion, to see the small body tremble at her touch, to feel those soft bardic breasts under her hands. The sleeping warrior smiled even more at that thought. She could almost feel the warm softness, the gentle pressure of an erect nipple against her palm. It seemed so real, so tangible, it was almost as if…

Xena remained still as her eyes opened. One horrified look confirmed what her senses were telling her, that her fantasies of night had spilled over into the reality of the day. Her left hand was planted firmly on Gabrielle's right breast, the darkened nipple hidden beneath her palm. 'This is not good.' she thought to herself. Of course there had been times when the process of flipping and flopping during the night had caused one of them to end up with their hand or arm against the other's breast, but this was different. This wasn't a case of accidental movements during the night, this was her body acting on her desires. She stared at the sight for a moment, burning into her memory the feeling before slowly removing her hand from atop Gabrielle's breast and pulling it up behind her head. She closed her eyes as she felt the warmth of her hand against her head and remembered where that hand had been just a few heartbeats before.

After a moment Xena turned her head and looked over at the sleeping bard. The absence of her warm hand had caused Gabrielle's nipple to harden against the cool morning air. It was a sight that the warrior found mesmerizing. Several heartbeats passed before Xena realized that she was staring and looked away, angry at herself. She tried to remind her warrior libido that despite the bard's advances of a few nights ago, Gabrielle just wasn't interested in her that way. That was a mistake. Thinking of the previous time they had shared a bed together only served to cause Xena's heart to beat a little quicker. The feel of Gabrielle's hand below her breast, the feel of the bed rocking in rhythm with the bard's hips, the sounds of pleasure being uttered…

"Anyone up yet?" Charon said loudly while pounding on the door with his foot while his hands balanced an overloaded tray of food and hot tea. The warrior carefully slipped off the bed and covered the naked bard's body with the blanket before opening the door to glare at the ferryman.

"What the Tartarus do you want so early in the morning?" she growled, not at all happy with having almost been caught letting her desires show.

"Well, and a good morning to you too, Miss bright and cheerful." he replied, brushing past her and setting the tray down on the table. Xena strode across the room and sat down in the chair next to the bed. "So is she still naked under that sheet?"

In one fluid motion Xena reached down, grabbed her chakram, and sent it flying, not bothering to turn around to see how deeply it sank into the ferryman's chest. "I warned you not to think about her like that." she said. She waited a moment before rising and helping Charon pull the weapon out of his chest. It took quite a bit of tugging to free it but less than a heartbeat for the wound to close back up as if nothing had happened.

"Sorry, forgot that was your department." he said, taking a quick step back from the withering glare of the warrior. "So, what's the plan now? I mean, you can't just leave that crazy woman locked up in that cell while you play nursemaid."

"Why not?" Xena replied casually as she returned to her seat. "Let her starve to death, I don't care."

"You'll care if she gets back down to the Underworld before your friend can get that portal open. If he can get it open."

"I'm sure if Linos hasn't gotten it opened by now that he's not going to. He was probably discovered by Sysiphus." she rubbed her eyes, trying to sort through the rash of problems she had to face, the most important one being the care and protection of Gabrielle. "If you want to go check on that bitch, go ahead. I'm not stopping you." she gently tucked the corner of the blanket under the bard's shoulder. "If I see her again, I'll kill her without a thought."

Abrama opened one eye and looked around. She didn't have to check to know that the cell door was locked, the keys nowhere in sight. She rolled over, groaning at the pain. If only she had paid more attention, not been so quick to fight Xena. Now it was all over. The leather-clad bitch had won again. Abrama struggled to her knees, loosening her belt. The blond man that she killed was helping Xena. The brown haired warlord struggled to remember what he had said before he died. "I'll get the portal open." Her bruised and swollen eye widened. That's it, he was going to open the passageway so Charon could return. There was no way she was going to let that happen any more than she was going to just sit here and wait for Xena to return and exact more revenge on her.

"I'll go check on our psycho friend." Charon said. "Then I'll stop at the Blue Bull for a while."

"No need for that." both heads turned to the look at the unexpected guest. Hades set his helmet down on the table and looked at his ferryman. "Charon, you're looking well. I trust you've had no problems with the Overworld?"

"Oh no, not unless you count being thrown in jail every night, beaten up by a deranged lunatic and being used as target practice for a certain warrior princess a problem." he said. Hades looked over to Xena for an explanation but received only a shrug in reply.

"Is the portal open?" she asked, her attention still focused on the bard.

"No, not yet. However, things are looking good. I believe that Sysiphus didn't really plan things out as well as he thought he did. There's a great deal of grumbling going on amongst the souls. They're getting restless and the constant influx of people isn't helping. Even Abrama's entrance and announcement that Linos was a traitor didn't phase them."

"Abrama's entrance? Hades, I didn't beat her that hard. She was alive when I left her in that cell." Xena protested.

"No, but you did a good job from what I saw. Actually she hung herself from the bars of the cell. Guess she couldn't take the thought of failing again." Hades leaned against the wall. "How's she doing?"

"She'll live." the warrior replied, absently smoothing out the covers over the bard. "She took quite a beating."

"I'll be fine." the bard mumbled, slowly opening her eyes. She looked up at Xena, seeing concern and something unfamiliar in the blue eyes for the briefest moment before the warrior rose and crossed the room, mumbling something about getting some water.

"Glad to hear that, Gabrielle." Hades said, wisely not commenting on the rapidly beating heart that his godly ears heard pounding within Xena's chest. "Well, the point is that there are just too many souls waiting down there right now. I've asked Celesta to stop until we get that portal open." he noted that when Xena returned to the young woman's side with a glass of water, her heart was beating at a more normal level. He also observed a complete lack of emotion on the face of the woman who had sent so many people to him over the years.

Xena held the glass and helped Gabrielle drain half the contents before asking how she felt. "I feel like a dozen Centaurs ran over me but other than that I'm fine." the bard said, forcing a smile to her lips. Xena returned an equally believable smile in understanding.

"It's going to take a while. Don't worry, though…I'll get you fixed up in no time." without taking her eyes off Gabrielle, the warrior addressed Hades. "So no one else will die until that portal opens and we can't do anything to get that portal open except wait and see if there's a revolt in the Underworld?" her tone made it clear what she thought of *that* situation.

"Yup, that's pretty much about it." Hades said as he picked up his helmet. "Anyone you deal a death blow to will remain alive until the portal is opened and Charon can make room for them on the banks."

"Well, drop me a scroll when you get that portal opened, boss." the ferryman said. "I'll make sure to wrap up my vacation and get back as soon as possible."

"Your what?" the God of the Underworld shook his head. "Never mind, I don't want to know. Stay with Xena. The instant the portal is opened I'll return for you."

"How close to I have to stay to her?" Charon asked wickedly. Hades took a quick step back when he saw the chakram appear in the warrior's hand.

"I'm not baby-sitting him." Xena said flatly. "Get Hercules to do it or something. I have more important things to do." she set the chakram down and turned her attention back to checking Gabrielle's wounds.

"Uh, sorry, can't do that. Keep an eye on him. I'll be back as soon as the portal is open." Hades said quickly before disappearing in a cloud of dust. Charon looked down at the floor, wondering if he really could slip all the way to the door without her noticing. He got as far as placing his stark white fingers on the latch. "Don't even think about it."

"Who, me? Heh, I wasn't going anywhere, Xena. I um…I was going to put some water on to boil. Yeah, that's it, put water on to boil. Be back in a minute." he grabbed an empty bucket and quickly left the room, knowing full well that if tried to head for the front door that the warrior would no doubt beat him to it. "Great, trapped in a house with two incredibly sexy women who have absolutely no interest in me except as target practice for their weapons."

"You don't have to be so gruff with him all the time, you know." Gabrielle said.

"This from the woman who told me to put the pinch on him?" Xena replied, unwrapping a bandage from the bard's arm. "Well, while he's gone let's take a look at everything."

"Uh, in a moment, I have to use the pot first." she said, turning slightly pink. While Xena went to look for the bowl, Gabrielle laid back and thought about how nice it had been to wake up in the middle of the night and find her tall companion curled up against her.

After taking care of the bard's essential need, Xena began the long process of changing bandages. Gabrielle was showing no signs of fever or anything else that would indicate an infection but the warrior insisted on checking every wound carefully, from the ones that were held together with stitches to the tiniest scratch. Xena did her best to be gentle and the bard did her best not to cry out when the warrior's fingers touched a particularly painful area like her ribs. "Sorry."

"It's okay, Xena. I know you're not trying to hurt me." Gabrielle reassured, biting her lower lip to keep the groans of pain inside.

"But it still hurts. Do you want me to make you some more tea?" she asked as she finished wrapping the bard's ribs. She pushed another pillow behind Gabrielle's back to prop her up before sitting down again.

"I don't want to go back to sleep, but something for the pain would be good, okay?" Gabrielle asked while using her right hand to pull the sheet up over her breasts. The warrior rose and crossed the room to retrieve the pouches of herbs.

"Are you sure you don't want to rest more? You have been through a lot, you know." Xena said, holding up the pouch containing the sleeping mixture.

"No." the bard replied, shaking her head slightly. "If it gets to be too much, then I'll go back to sleep for a while, but not right now." she patted the empty space next to her on the bed. "Right now I'd like to talk."

Xena swung the metal arm that held a small pot of water over the fire and returned to the chair next to the bed. "Talk about what?" she asked while sitting down. Gabrielle hid her disappointment at not being able to feel the warrior against her and allowed her hand to fall to her lap.

"I want to know what happened with Abrama." she noted that Xena's expression changed, becoming stony and expressionless. "Hades said you beat her up."

"Oh yeah, I beat her all right. Not nearly as much as she deserved." her tone relayed the anger she still felt at the warlord that hurt Gabrielle so much. "When I saw what she did to you, I wanted to kill her." the warrior quietly admitted.

"Xena, I'll live. You know as well as I do that within a moon I'll be almost completely healed." she smiled, trying to draw the warrior out of the dark mood. "Just think, you don't have to worry about me running off and getting into trouble for a while."

"Mmm, or making me buy a bag of beads just to get you to follow me." she quirked her lip at the bard's confused expression. "You don't remember that, do you?" she leaned back and pulled the saddlebag closer, rummaging around until she found the pouch of brightly colored pieces of wood. "You wouldn't come back to the inn until I agreed to buy these for you."

Gabrielle loosened the tie on the bag and poured the contents of the pouch into her lap. "I made you buy these?" she whispered.

"Insisted. I was worried that you'd throw a temper tantrum if I didn't." Xena struggled to keep the amusement off her face at her friend's expression.

"Uh…" visions of the merchant seeing the exchange flashed through Gabrielle's mind. "Just how much did you pay for these?"

"It doesn't matter." the warrior said, knowing full well that she had significantly overpaid for the gaudy beads. "I got you to follow me like a puppy back to the room, that's all that counts."

"How much?" the bard repeated firmly.

"Two dinars." she muttered.

"Two dinars? You paid two dinars for this little pile?" Gabrielle asked incredulously. "Boy, he saw you coming, huh? Xena, you had to know they weren't worth it."

"I did." the warrior admitted. "But I would have hocked my saddle if that's what it would have cost me to get you back to the room." she looked down at the floor, visibly uncomfortable with the admission. "You know something, Gabrielle…it was kinda funny."

"I-It was?" she stammered, bracing herself for whatever embarrassing incident Xena was about to tell her.

"Well…yeah." the warrior grinned, looking up into green depths. "First of all, I couldn't figure out how you could see anything at all. Your eyes were nothing more than little slits. I could have used thread to blindfold you."

"Oh gods." Gabrielle groaned, letting her head fall back onto her pillow. "Please tell me that was the worst of what I did."

"Did you enjoy your conversation with the tree?" Xena hopped over the bard's body and flopped down on the bed, her actions causing no jarring to the still-healing woman. The warrior propped herself up on her left elbow to look down at the pink face. "You also found it fascinating that you had ten fingers and toes but only two…" she stopped, remembering the entire conversation. "…uh, ears."

"Ears, huh?" Gabrielle looked down at her broken hand. "I do remember a little bit of what happened, Xena. Ears weren't the only things that I noticed I had two of." she blushed even more.

"No it wasn't." Xena admitted. She reached out and wrapped her hand around the bard's smaller one. "It's okay, Gabrielle. You were drugged, you weren't responsible for your actions."

"Did I…well, did I…say or do anything that um…well that might have been…wrong?" she couldn't bring herself to look at the dark haired woman next to her.

"How much do you remember?" Xena asked softly. Before Gabrielle could answer, Charon pounded on the door. "We'll talk about this later." the warrior said before crawling over the bard and heading for the door. Although grateful for the interruption, it also served to make Gabrielle more nervous. Unbeknownst to the bard, Xena was feeling the same things.

"Well it's about time you opened the door." the ferryman said as he stepped in with two buckets of hot water. "I'm immortal, not a god. I can't walk through walls and doors, you know."

"I guess single women should count their blessings for that, huh?" Xena quipped.

"Hardy har har, very funny." he replied sarcastically. "So what's on the agenda for today? The dancing girls start at the Blue Bull in less than half a candlemark."

"Don't even think about it, Charon." the warrior said. "We can't take a chance on someone seeing you."

"What? Oh no, I'm not sitting here stuck in this little shack until the portal is opened. I'm not spending my last few days of freedom trapped here. I'm going to the Blue Bull and that's final." he said firmly. Xena crossed the room and towered over the immortal.

"You're not leaving my sight and I'm not about to leave here. Got it?" she snarled, giving her best intimidation look. "If you need to gamble so much, play cards with Gabrielle."

"Yeah, I'd love to play a game to help pass the day." the bard chirped in. "Come on, Charon. You know you only end up being arrested every time you go there."

"You know that's another thing about this town that I don't understand. They have a tavern with a gambling room and every day they raid the place. That doesn't make sense."

"It doesn't?" Xena sat in a chair and placed her booted foot on the table. "Tell me, if you were in control of a city that needed money, wouldn't having a rigged gambling establishment make sense? The city probably gets a cut of the winnings and then the added bonus of the fines for whoever they catch in the raid. The locals probably know what time the raid happens and leave before the guards arrive."

"But it's no fun playing with Gabrielle. All I could do is win money." he whined.

"At least you don't end up being thrown in jail." she said, grabbing her cloak. "I'm going to go get Argo from the stables. Charon, be nice to her or you'll see just how dangerous my chakram really is." the ferryman gulped and nodded furiously.

"Be careful." the bard said.

"Always." Xena replied while fastening the scabbard to her back. "I'll be counting on seeing a pile of dinars when I get back." she shut the door without waiting for a reply.

Xena blew out the last candle and carefully climbed into bed. "You didn't have to spend the whole evening with Argo, you know. I can only take so much of Charon. He's like Joxer in a way." Gabrielle said.

"Sorry." the warrior replied, moving as close to the wall as she dared without looking like she was trying to be against it. "Argo took good care of me when I was looking for you and pushed herself as hard as possible. I just figured that she deserved some quality time too."

"You know I don't begrudge the time you spend with Argo." she started. "But I would have liked to have seen more of you than just when you came in to change my bandages."

"I'll make up for it tomorrow." Xena replied with a pretend yawn. "Good night."

There was silence for several moments before Gabrielle spoke. "Xena? Do you want to tell me what happened that night?" there was no sound or movement from her bed partner and the bard thought that perhaps Xena had indeed fallen asleep until the warrior rolled onto her back.

"Tell me what you remember." she asked softly.

"Um…" Gabrielle was grateful for the darkness that surrounded them. "Well…I remember the being rather…interested in my…" she felt the heat rising in her cheeks. "breasts."

"You were very interested in them." Xena said, grinning at the embarrassed groan from the bard. "It's not the end of the world, Gabrielle…it happened."

"That's because it didn't happen to you." the bard replied, slapping Xena's forearm in the dark. "Do I dare ask what else I did?"

"Uh…not too much really. You were pretty drunk." the warrior said dismissively, hoping that Gabrielle would drop the matter.

"That bad, huh?" she said softly. "I remember just little glimpses."

"You have to remember that you were drugged." Xena said encouragingly. "It made you act that way."

"In other words I was hornier than a toad, huh?" Gabrielle joked. She felt rather than heard the warrior's silent chuckle.

"You were quite…er, um…aroused."

"Oh gods." the bard groaned, moving her hands up to her face. She groaned again but this time it was from the pain of moving that still healing shoulder. Xena was next to her instantly, easing the wounded arm back down and rubbing the sore area gently.

"Easy now. It wasn't that bad. You didn't bounce off the walls looking for a guy or anything." she continued making feather light circles on the bard's shoulder. "There's nothing to worry about."

"I did it, didn't I? I…in the bed…" Gabrielle blushed furiously. "…and you were…oh gods."

"It's okay…relax." Xena said gently, allowing her fingers to stroke the length of the bard's collarbone. "It happened…there's nothing you can do to change it. Just chalk it up to being one of those embarrassing moments in life." she anxiously wanted the conversation to end. "I think that's enough talk for tonight. Get some sleep." she leaned over and gave Gabrielle a friendly peck on the forehead before rolling over and scooting closer to the wall.

"Was that it? Did I do anything else?" she asked softly.

"Not really." Xena replied, her voice muffled by the pillow her face was resting on. "You giggled and mumbled a bit, but that's about it. Good night."

"Good night." the bard said, staring up at nothing in the darkness. She remembered, albeit fuzzily, more than one time when she had propositioned the warrior during her drugged haze. She wondered now why Xena was deliberately avoiding mentioning it. She also wondered about the warrior's reasons behind the gentle rubbing of her shoulder and collarbone. It wasn't the touch of working out a cramp or an ache, what she received was too gentle for that. Gabrielle's mind puzzled over the confusing actions until sleep finally claimed her.

"Are you ready?" Linos asked, receiving several nods in reply. He turned his attention to Toxeus. "Your group has to get Sysiphus off that boat. We'll concentrate on the portal."

"What about the others…they're going to try and stop us."

"I don't think so." the blond man replied. "Think about it. All you've heard lately is how bored they are and how they can't believe that Sysiphus is letting more people out of Tartarus. I think if we start something, they'll stay out of the way."

"You'd better be right." Toxeus replied. "I'm not one for doing good. If I get blackballed in Tartarus because of this, I'm going to make your eternal life far worse than Hades ever dreamed of making it." Linos gulped and saw the statement reflected in the eyes of the others that had agreed to listen to him.

"Well…I guess it's now or never. The boat's approaching." he did his best to keep his voice level. "Let's do it."

"I can't believe this." Charon grumbled, setting his cards down on the blanket. "And just where did you learn to play cards?"

"A friend of mine taught me, Autolycus. He's a master thief." Gabrielle replied, collecting the cards and handing them back to the ferryman to shuffle. "It's not that hard a game to play. I mean, it's just Axes, Hammers, Clubs, and Maces. Pretty simple if you ask me. I don't know why they don't teach it to us as kids."

"Because it's not a simple game, my dear." he said while dealing out the cards. "Axes and Hammers takes skill, cunning, the ability to bluff. Those aren't skills that kids have."

"Oh really, have you ever seen a kid trying to hide something they did wrong from an adult? They can be very creative." she tossed two cards down and waited for the ferryman to hand her two more. "Besides, you know it's the innocent looking ones that you have to watch out for. Full Tavern." she grinned and set the cards down. Charon scowled and tossed his down.

"I can't believe this. My first vacation in six hundred summers and I end up spending the last ten days trapped in a room with you, losing my pension playing Axes and Hammers." he groused. They played a few more hands, all of which he lost, when a wicked smirk crossed his black lips. "Gabrielle, would you like me to make some more brownies? I mean, you've been trapped in that bed for ten days now, eating nothing but that nutritious stuff that Xena insists on feeding you."

"Oh no, I'm not eating anything you bake. I know better." she said, blushing slightly at the memory. "I'm not in the mood to study the leaves on the trees again."

"I don't have any more of that stuff." he said. "I was just thinking of a tasty treat, that's all. I'll even make nutbread. You were complaining last time that I didn't make enough of it."

"Well…the nutbread did taste good."

"Oh, of course it did. You loved it. Said it was better than your mom's." he urged.

"I'm sure I didn't say that." Gabrielle replied. "But the nutbread was good."

"Exactly. That's why you should let me make some more."

"Make some more what?" Xena's voice boomed from the doorway, startling the sneaky ferryman.

"Oh, um…nutbread. Gabrielle and I were just talking about me making a loaf of nutbread." he said, wondering if it sounded as lame to the warrior as it did to him.

"You're not going anywhere near the food, Charon. I don't trust you." Xena said, moving to the fireplace and setting a bucket of water on to heat up.

"You're too cynical. Never trust anyone, do you?" the ferryman shot back.

"Charon…" she turned and looked at him, eyebrow slightly raised. "So far you've propositioned, fondled, and drugged my best friend and you expect me to trust you?"

"Fondled me?" Gabrielle looked from Xena to Charon.

"Oh yes…when I found you two in the Blue Bull, Mr. Trustworthy over here was enjoying feeling how soft your ass was." the warrior said casually. "Well, I think I'll go check on the horses then come back and take a look at you, Gabrielle. I think some of those stitches can come out. Have fun, Charon."

"Uh…heh." he looked at the angry bard, doing his best to give her a boyish smile. "More cards?"

"You are very lucky my left hand is broken, Charon." she threatened. "If I could wield my staff, you'd-"

"I know, I'd be a soprano." he sighed. "You know that's quite a mean streak you have there, Xena." he said, turning his attention for a moment away from the angry green eyes to capture the warrior's amused blue ones. "I guess it's true what they say about sexual frustration, eh?" now it was his turn to gloat with a point scored as Xena's face registered shock, then anger at the inability to come up with a good retort. She lowered her hand down to rest pointedly on her chakram.

"Now Xena, let's rethink that, shall we?" Hades appeared between the warrior and the ferryman. "I see you're making friends as well as ever, Charon."

"Well, you know, I have that way with people. I don't know why but they just fall in love with my sparkling personality and witty conversation." Charon said, receiving derisive snorts from the two women. Xena leaned against the wall, mentally calculating the angles in the room and the possible flight of her chakram. The ferryman didn't know what she was thinking about, but he knew it couldn't be good. "Uh, Hades, you're here for a reason, right? Like the portal's open?" he asked hopefully.

"The portal is open." the handsome god declared proudly, as if it was his doing. "Xena, Gabrielle, I appreciate all the things you've done to help keep Charon safe. Now if you'll excuse us-"

"Just wait a heartbeat here." the ferryman said, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "I'm not going back."

"What?" three shocked voices said at once.

"I quit, I'm not going back, I no longer work for you, how many more ways do you need me to say it?" he said defiantly. Hades looked from him to Xena, hoping she'd be able to reason with Charon.

"You're the god, you handle it." the warrior said.

"Uh…Charon, if there's a problem, why don't we go back to the Underworld and talk about it, okay?"

"No."

"Now look. I'm a god. You have to listen to me. You're going back and you're going back right now!" Hades said sternly, running his fingers through his dirty blond hair in frustration.

"I'm not going back until certain conditions are met. Think of it as renegotiating my contract." he pulled a scroll out of his robe pocket and held it out to the god. "I've made a list of reasonable demands that have to be met."

"Reasonable demands?" Hades repeated, taking the scroll and reading it. "You want WHAT? Breaks every candlemark? Every holiday off? Down feathered seats for the boat?"

"Don't forget about the dancing girls and stage." the ferryman added. "I figure that little nook near the main portal would be a good place for them. You can put a stage there large enough for oh, three or four of them, I think."

"I am not giving you your own set of dancing girls." Hades said firmly. "The other things we can talk about once we get back."

"Once I get back I'll be working at least a moon straight ferrying people back over the river. Nope, I'm not moving from this spot until you agree to my demands." Charon said, sounding every bit like a spoiled child.

Hades looked at Xena, silently begging her for help. To his surprise, the bard spoke up. "Can I see the list please?" she asked. The god handed it to her, careful not to touch the mortal in any way. Celesta wasn't the only one with a deadly touch. Gabrielle read the entire list before speaking. "Charon, you want a break every candlemark. I think every other candlemark is fair, don't you?"

"If I thought every other candlemark was fair I would have said that. I want a break every candlemark."

"Every other candlemark and you get the down seat cushions as well as a padded backrest." she offered.

"What about the dancing girls?" he countered. "I want my dancing girls or it's no deal."

"All right, all right." Hades said, hating negotiations as much as the warrior. "I'll give you a stage and one performance per day of dancing girls. Now can we go?"

"Three shows per day." Charon pushed.

"Now look here! I-"

"Two shows." Gabrielle interrupted, completely afraid of the red tone the god's face had taken. "It's a fair deal. You think so, don't you, Xena?" she asked, hoping the warrior would help.

"Well, if I have to put up with that weasel one more day I may just start seeing how many pieces an immortal really can be cut up into." she smiled insincerely at the ferryman.

"Uh…two shows sounds good to me." Charon said weakly.

"Well, I suppose I can find some dancers that wouldn't mind putting on a couple of shows each day." Hades said in defeat. "Can we go now?"

"Absolutely." the ferryman said happily, hopping to his feet to stand next to the god. "Well ladies, it's been a slice. A slice of what, I'm not sure, but it's been a slice. Hopefully I won't see either of you anytime soon."

"Thank you." Gabrielle said to the backhanded blessing. "You know, behind that lecherous act you put on, you really are a nice man."

"Yeah well don't let that get around, will ya? I have a reputation to maintain." Charon replied. He looked at Xena. "Take care of her. I want to win my dinars back but I'm not in any hurry, okay?"

"It's been an experience, Charon." the warrior replied. "Hades, before you go…" she started.

"You want to know about Linos, don't you?" the god guessed. "Not to worry. He won't be returning to Tartarus." he smiled at the look of relief on Xena's face.

"Thank you." she said sincerely. There was the briefest flash of light and then the residents of the Underworld were gone, leaving the women alone.

Concluded in Part Five

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