As bad days went, this couldn't have gone much worse, Xena reflected as she paused for breath. She looked over at her best friend, still in shock from what had just happened. She clasped her arms around her friend's good shoulder, holding her tightly, as the tears flooded down.

"Why?" Gabrielle demanded, a cry from her very soul echoing through the valley. "Why did he have to do it Xena?" She looked up at the dark-haired Warrioress by her side, her eyes searching for reassurance from her friend.

"Gabrielle, he did it to save us," Xena said after a pause, squeezing her partner's hand tightly. "He knew he was mortally wounded and he did the only thing he could."

She stared again up at the massive rockfall that had stopped the Romans from overrunning her and Gabrielle, the cloud of dust still settling. She began to pull at the rocks covering her friend, heaving them to one side. She looked to Gabrielle for help, but she seemed to be as though in a trance.

"Gabrielle, snap out of it!" she shouted, shaking her firmly by the shoulders. "He's dead! The least we can do is recover his body and give him a proper burial."

Her friend nodded in recognition of the urgency of her words and crawled over to join Xena, pulling the rubble and rocks away. Eventually after what seemed an eternity, the still form of their friend could be seen and they pulled him free.

Xena removed his armour and crumpled helmet, then lifted him onto her shoulders; without all his noisy makeshift armour, he was surprisingly light and she was able to carry him easily.

"Come on Gabrielle, we'll take him back to Corinth to be buried with his family," she said softly, gently pulling her away from the avalanche.

"What about the Romans - won't they still be after us?" Gabrielle said anxiously.

"Nope - they won the battle and that's all they came for," Xena said firmly. "Octavian is as single-minded as his great-uncle was. He'll be returning to Rome and strengthening his position there."

The two women walked off together, carrying the body of Joxer the Mighty, to find the road south to Corinth.

2 days earlier...............

"So where is Phillipi, anyway?" Gabrielle asked the dismounted messenger standing in front of her.

"2 days ride north of here," the messenger replied. "Brutus is waiting for you there."

The messenger mounted his horse again and disappeared in a cloud of dust northwards. Xena watched the rider leave and stood beside her partner. "Gabrielle, what did the messenger want?"

"It's a message from Brutus," the Bard answered, " he wants me to meet him to sign a treaty of peace between the Romans and the Amazons."

"How do you know it's not a trap?" Xena queried.

"Who from?" Gabrielle said, "There's no-one left - all our enemies are dead; Callisto, Alti, Caesar, they're all gone and we're still here. "

"I thought Chilapa was leader of your tribe?" Xena said.

"She is. But I'm acting as ambassador for the tribe outside the Amazon lands," Gabrielle explained. "Caesar burnt the treaty Brutus and I agreed to, so we're signing another. We're meeting at Phillipi."

"Mind if I come too? Just in case?" Xena asked her.

"You don't trust anyone, do you Xena?" said Gabrielle with a sigh. "Whatever happened to 'Brutus, a man of honour'?"

"People change when they gain power Gabrielle," Xena said shortly. "We'll see."

"The messenger said it was two days ride north from here," Gabrielle said thoughtfully," we can stop in Amphipolis on the way, it's been a while since you've seen your mother."

"She'll be glad to see you too, Gabrielle," Xena said with a laugh, "what do you two find so much to talk about?"

Gabrielle shrugged in answer, knowing full well that within five minutes of entering the inn in Amphipolis, she'd be deep in conversation with Cyrene. The journey from Argilus was a fairly short one by horse and they were at the gates of Xena's hometown in half a day's travel. Xena stabled both Argo and horse and they entered the inn, finding Cyrene in the middle of serving a couple of customers with a couple of tankards of ale when she saw them.

"Xena! Don't you ever tell your mother you're coming to visit her?" Cyrene cried, before enveloping her daughter in a hug.

"Hello Mother. What, and spoil the surprise?" Xena chuckled, as she kissed her mother.

"Hello Cyrene," Gabrielle greeted her, with open arms and a broad smile.

"Hello Gabrielle - my, how you've changed," Cyrene remarked, noticing the change of outfit and the holstered weapons.

She ushered the pair through into a separate part of the inn and they sat down with a small platter of food each.

"I'm not the only one who's changed, Cyrene," Gabrielle said pointedly, casting a glance at Xena.

"Xena, you're -" Cyrene gasped.

"Yup. Don't know how, don't know who, but it's happened and I'm due in a few months," Xena said abruptly.

"You always were a one for long explanations, weren't you Xena?" said Cyrene, after recovering from the shock from seeing her daughter pregnant right in front of her. "So, are you going to tell me what's happened to you recently, or do I have to give you the Spartan Inquisition, hmm?"

"Okay Mother, I promise to tell you everything," Xena conceded.

A few hours later, Cyrene was looking more than a little bewildered after the adventures Xena and Gabrielle had been through the last six months. "So; you both died, were brought back to life, went to Chin to regain your darkside and your fighting skills, Gabrielle got a horse and almost became Ares' new Champion, Alti was defeated again, and Xena was transported into the body of a girl and out again. Did I miss anything out?"

"No, that's pretty much it," Xena said easily.

"By the Gods, Xena, don't you ever wish for a quieter life?" Cyrene said with a shake of her head. "Especially now that you're due to become a Mother, you ought to be taking it easier," she continued. "Gabrielle, can you keep an eye on her and keep her out of trouble, please?" Cyrene entreated her. "You're the only one she listens to."

"I'll try, but you know what she's like!" Gabrielle answered with a small smile.

"I know when I'm beaten," Xena said, throwing up her arms in mock despair.

"Thankyou Xena," her mother said, cuddling her neck, " you know I worry about you." "Oh, I almost forgot - Gabrielle, a young man left a bunch of flowers for you."

"Anyone we know?" Xena asked with a smirk, noting her friend's blush.

"He didn't leave a name, but he did have the most unusual armour on." She raised her eyebrows at the exchanged glances between the two friends. "I take it you know him then?"

"We've been good friends since about six years ago," said Xena. "He travels with us a lot and he and Gabrielle have got quite close," she said, raising her voice slightly to cover the coughing fit Gabrielle was having.

"Something got stuck in your throat?" Xena asked her mischievously, giving her a hearty slap on her back to clear the food from her throat.

"I'll get you a jug of water," Cyrene said, looking concerned.

"What was that for?" Gabrielle hissed in a whispered conversation to Xena. "Why are you mentioning the non-relationship between him and me in front of your mother?"

"I thought you discussed everything with Mother?" Xena murmured back, tongue in cheek. "What does he have to do to prove his love for you Gabrielle? Die for you?"

"No, but - " Gabrielle started to reply , but stopped at the re-appearance of Cyrene, whose hands were full with a jug of water and a pitcher full of flowers. "I'm fine, now Cyrene, thank you."

"Look at these lovely flowers your young man brought," Cyrene beamed.

"Daisies, my favourite flower. How kind of him," Gabrielle said flatly. "I must thank him when I see him next - did he say where he was going?"

"Neapolis, I think," Cyrene said with a frown, trying to remember, " a friend he said he was looking up."

"That's lucky - we're going that way," Xena said with a enigmatic smile.

"Are you going far?" her Mother asked her.

"Just over a day's travel to Phillipi, we'll be back soon," Xena responded.

"Good, I want you to stay for a few days at least," Cyrene announced, " I see you little enough as it is, I don't want you rushing off as soon as you've arrived."

A few hours down the road, Argo and Horse watered and fed, carried their riders at an easy trot across the hills of coastal Thracia basking in the day's sunshine, the sea visible in the distance to the east. "So Gabrielle, how are you going to thank Joxer for leaving those flowers?" Xena asked her friend impishly.

"I'll think of a way," Gabrielle muttered.

"Look Gabrielle," Xena said seriously, bringing Argo to a halt, "he's been away from us for a month and a half, he didn't know when he was going to meet up with us again, what have you got against him leaving you a bunch of flowers for Zeus' sake?"

"Well, nothing," Gabrielle replied, stopping Horse alongside Argo, " but it's just that ever since he told me loves me, he's always looking for a response from me, even though he said there were no strings."

"But how can you react when you don't know him at all?" Xena said surprisingly.

"Of course I know him - he's my friend," Gabrielle insisted

"So what do you know about him?" Xena asked, persevering with her line of questioning.

"Well, he's the son of a retired Warlord, has an assassin brother called Jett, comes from Corinth, a disappointment to his family, and - " Gabrielle stopped, as she couldn't think of anything else she knew about Joxer. Xena's stony look bit on Gabrielle's face, causing her head to droop and admit defeat. "Okay, okay, I'll have a long talk with him when I see him next," the Bard acquiesced.

"Good," was the only comment from Xena as she nudged Argo into a trot again.

"We'll have to stop soon, it's getting dark," Gabrielle said, after trying to focus on the track ahead and losing sight of it for the umpteenth time, with her eyes beginning to tire after the long ride.

"Well, we're halfway between the nearest villages," Xena declared, who seemed to be as alert as ever, " I suggest we camp in that thicket over there and carry on tomorrow morning."

"Sounds good to me," Gabrielle agreed and dismounted, securing Horse and Argo to a tree sapling. She fetched enough wood to make a small fire, while Xena scouted around the wooded area. Having lit the fire, she retrieved some of the provisions Cyrene had given them and the sleeping wraps.

Xena skirted around the trees to hear a familiar tune being whistled; after jumping up the nearest tree, she saw a familiar figure, crouching amongst his meagre belongings and vainly trying to light a fire. She nimbly leapt down behind him and tapped him on the shoulder, making him jump with fright.

"Oh, er, hi Xena," he said nervously, "what are you doing out this way?"

"Hello Joxer," she greeted him," we're on a mission half a day's march from here. Want to share our warm camp with us?"

"Us?" prompted Joxer.

"Gabrielle and I," Xena said simply.

"Um, yeah, ok," the warrior agreed, trying to hide his pleasure at the presence of his paramour nearby," seeing as you're set already." He collected his armour, helmet and backpack, and followed her around the other side of the copse, to see an exhausted Gabrielle sleeping in her wrap beside the crackling flames of the fire.

"Sleep quietly," Xena warned him, indicating the snoozing Bard.

He nodded his understanding, then carefully laid out his things with the minimum of noise, easing himself close to the fire. She did likewise, wrapping her animal skins tightly around her, lying between her two friends, who were now both sleeping soundly. She'd get them talking together if it was the last thing she ever did, though she'd swear they were worse than a pair of fighting cocks once the slightest thing started an argument between them. Tomorrow, however was another day.

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