Overprotection...Ignored

by Elizabeth Plessinger

Copyright 1998

Jindra and Joxer were walking along the road near the village of Dalwaine, just an hour south of Corinth. The morning sun was not yet high in the sky, but the day was turning out to be lovely. But for all they cared, it could have been storming. They still didn't know each other very well and were talking animatedly. So much so that they didn't see anyone else on the road til they literally ran into them.

"I've always loved...oooh!" Jindra suddenly found herself on the ground, staring up at one of the handsomest men she'd ever met. Her eyes widened and she smiled slightly.

Joxer, not noticing who it was, was at Jindra's side in a flash. He shouted, "Hey, watch it, you oaf!"

"I'm sorry for making her fall," the voice said. "But she ran into me."

Joxer turned his head to look up at the familiar voice's owner. "Hercules!" he happily greeted him. He noticed Hercules' blonde companion was there too. "Iolaus! What are you guys doing here?" Suddenly remembering Jindra, he went right back to being angry. Frowning, he bent down to her and said, "Look what you did to her! She's all..."

"I'm OK, Joxer," Jindra said, not taking her eyes off Hercules. Joxer helped her up and she dusted herself off. "Nothing's broken or bruised."

"But he knocked you down!" Joxer insisted. "He should at least apologize!"

"Calm down, Joxer," Iolaus piped in. "It really was an accident and technically, she ran into him."

"He's right, Joxer," Jindra concurred, although she tried to placate him. She looked up at Hercules and smiled. "I'm sorry. I really should have been paying more attention to where I was going." Her eyes never left his as she spoke.

"Think nothing of it," Hercules replied, returning her smile with one of his own. "I'm sorry for knocking you down."

"It was still my fault," Jindra proclaimed, still looking into his eyes. "It's just that Joxer and I don't know each other very well yet and we were so into getting to know one another that we just didn't pay attention to anything else."

"Why don't we all go to the inn just up the road in Dalwaine and get to something to eat," Iolaus suggested. "We could all get to know each other that way."

"That sounds wonderful," Jindra said to him, her eyes bright with excitement. "Hercules, how 'bout it?" She turned to him to ask.

"But you and Joxer..." Hercules began, still not taking his eyes off Jindra, but feeling a little awkward. "Wouldn't you like to get to know him better alone?"

"Oh, nonsense. You're Joxer's friends." She lightly scolded him. "He doesn't mind you guys joining us, do you Joxer?" Jindra said and without waiting for a response, took Hercules' hand and led him off toward the inn. Iolaus trailing behind, looking at Joxer warily.

"Oh, no," Joxer said with dripping sarcasm. "I don't mind at all. We would be delighted to have you join us and ruin our time together." He just looked at the trio up ahead, sadness in his eyes when he thought about Jindra and Hercules together so soon after he and Jindra had met. Then hurried to catch up with them.

Once at the inn, Jindra and Hercules seemed to monopolize the conversation. Jindra even forgot that Joxer and Iolaus were there.

"So tell me about your mother and your family, Jindra," Hercules said.

"I don't know much about my family," She replied. "I was raised by my mother's sister and her husband but my mother was beautiful," she said. She got a far off look in her eyes as she continued. "Her laughter was like a siren's song and her eyes could warm you to the core even on the coldest of days."

"Did your aunt tell you all this?" Hercules asked.

"No," Jindra replied. "My mother died just recently but there was a situation at home that kept me from being able to live with my family."

"Then how do you know all that about her?"

"She spent whatever free time she could with me," Jindra told him. "Even if it was only for a few minutes, she treasured that precious time with me." Jindra looked down wearing a sad expression. "And I lived for the moments I had with her." She looked back up with tears in her eyes. "My aunt and uncle were wonderful to me and I love them dearly, but they could never reproduce that same special feeling I always got when I would spend time with my mother." Jindra quickly wiped her tears away and looked at Hercules. "So what is your mother like? She must be wonderful to have a son like you."

Hercules smiled and blushed a little at the compliment but told her, "She is wonderful. Well, she was. She also passed away not too long ago. She was warm and caring and she lived to help others first. She married Jason, the former King of Corinth, a few years back and they were very happy together. Even on her deathbed, she was more concerned for me, Jason, and Iolaus."

"She treated me like another son," Iolaus spoke up, though Jindra and Hercules basically ignored him.

"She had the best looking garden in Corinth too," Hercules bragged. He could never say enough good things about his mother wherever her garden was concerned. "Her flowers always smelled so fresh and looked so beautiful." He got a little quiet as he continued to speak. "She loved her garden so much that that's where we buried her. Iolaus and I just left from visiting Jason and weeding the garden."

"I'll bet its as beautiful as if she'd done it herself," Jindra comforted him.

"Would you like to see it?" Hercules offered excitedly. "I could take you there and we'd be back here before supper."

Getting up out of her seat, Jindra replied, "I'd love to! Let's go!"

They left without a word to either Iolaus or Joxer. Both sat there stunned.

"Did you have the feeling we weren't a part of their conversation?" Joxer asked.

"Yeah, but that's only because we weren't," Iolaus said, sounding a bit put out. "She was with you when we met you on the road and now she's with Hercules. Isn't she supposed to be yours?"

"What do you mean 'supposed to be'? She is mine," Joxer shot back.

"Well then, why did you let her go off with Hercules like she was his?" Iolaus countered.

"Like I could have stopped her," he said cynically. "You haven't seen her fight. One punch and even a guy like you would be down for the count." Joxer looked away dejectedly. "She didn't act like she wanted to stay here with me anyway."

"So fight for her," Iolaus encouraged him. When Joxer gave him a strange look, he continued. "Look, Hercules may be my best friend, but you can't just let him steal something of yours and get away with it. Jindra is yours, Joxer. Go get her."

"Go get her and then what?" Joxer asked, practically shouting at him. "Make her stay where she doesn't want to be?" Joxer shook his head and stood up to leave. "Forget it, Iolaus. I'm used to rejection. I can't make her do what she doesn't want to do."

"Are you going to let Hercules win without a fight?" Iolaus challenged. "That's not the Joxer I know."

"Yeah? Well maybe you don't know me then." Joxer turned and walked out of the inn, leaving Iolaus looking dumbfounded.

Jindra and Hercules talked on the way to Corinth. Hercules could tell she was as smitten with him as he was with her. He had never met anyone like her and he wanted to stay close to her. He liked the way her long dark hair shined in the sun, the way her eyes lit up when she mentioned her uncle teaching her the sword, and the way her smile made her even more beautiful than she already was.

Hercules hated to admit it to himself but he was falling in love with her. She's perfect, he thought. Why is someone like her with someone like Joxer? It's not that he hated Joxer or even disliked him. They were friends, after all. It's just that, in his eyes, Joxer was kind of a bumbler who had delusions of grandeur where being a hero was concerned. He was a nice enough fellow, and his heart was always in the right place but he was definitely out of Jindra's league.

He was about to ask her about her association with Joxer when a group of thugs popped out at them from the woods. They recognized Jindra immediately from a fight they'd had with her only a few nights ago. "Hey, fellas," one shouted in a low, raspy voice. "Looks here like we gonna get revenge. It's the little girl who beat us up trying to protect that wimpy warrior guy. Show no mercy!"

They all attacked at once, some going to Hercules, though most going to Jindra. She unsheathed her sword and began parrying off any attacks they threw at her. She was doing well and skillfully knocked a few of them unconscious but there was just too many of them and one managed to get behind her and hit her over the head with the hilt of his sword. As she staggered from the blow, another one swept her legs out from under her and she fell awkwardly, breaking her collarbone in the process. She passed out after hitting the ground. As one of them raised his sword to make the fatal blow, Hercules subdued him. The rest of them attacked Hercules but he easily took care of them.

He rushed to Jindra's side almost before the last attacker fell to the ground. "Jindra!" Hercules shouted frantically. He was afraid to shake her because he didn't know the extent of her injuries. "Jindra, wake up!" But she wouldn't move. I've got to get her some help, he thought. I'll take her back to Dalwaine to the healer there. It was at that moment he remembered Joxer. Joxer will need to know too. He seems to love her as much as I do. He tended her wounds as best he could then gently picked her up and carried her back to Dalwaine.

Outside the inn, Joxer stood in the middle of the road, wondering if he should wait for Jindra and Hercules to return or if he should just leave and let Jindra have her space.

As he was contemplating what to do, he heard a distant voice behind him. "Joxer," Iolaus called to him. "Joxer, wait." Iolaus caught up with him. "Maybe I don't know you as well as I thought I did but I can't remember a time when you would just give up without a fight. Isn't Jindra worth fighting for?"

"Of course she is!" Joxer replied forcefully. "What kind of question is that?"

"Hopefully, the kind of question that will get you thinking about going after her," Iolaus shot back. When Joxer didn't say anything back to him, he knew he'd gotten to him.

Just then, they heard "Help me!" coming from down the street. They both looked and saw Hercules carrying an unconscious Jindra. Without hesitation, they ran to him.

"What happened?" Joxer wanted to know. "Who did this to her?" Hercules gently laid her down under a tree at the edge of town. "Iolaus, go get the healer." Iolaus immediately ran to find him.

"We were attacked on our way to Corinth," Hercules explained. "I don't know who they were but they seemed to know her. They mentioned something about her beating them up a few days ago while protecting you."

"Oh, no," Joxer sighed. "I hope you didn't let them follow you. If they find her again, they won't stop till she's dead. She bloodied their noses pretty bad the last time."

"Well, I bloodied them further," Hercules informed him. "They'd better not mess with me or Jindra again."

Iolaus quickly returned with the healer, who began to administer his healing herbs to her and to set her collarbone.

Meanwhile, Joxer lit into Hercules, blaming him for Jindra's injuries. "How could you let them do this to her?" He yelled. "Why didn't you stop them from hurting her?"

"Wait a minute, Joxer," Hercules tried to calm him down. "You weren't there. You don't know what went on." Hercules combed his hand over his hair, obviously upset at Jindra's condition and confused at Joxer's outburst at him. "I tried to help her. There were just too many of them for me to do anything. It's not like I wanted her to get hurt." He paused as he tried to gauge Joxer's reaction. "I...I'm falling in love with her, Joxer. This hurts me too."

"This hurts you?!" Joxer exclaimed, looking as though Hercules had slapped him across the face. "What about me? How do you think this makes me feel?"

"I'm sure you're upset too..." Hercules began.

"Upset? Upset!" Joxer's voice rose in his throat. "Upset doesn't begin to say it, Hercules." Joxer began to pace back and forth, ranting and raving. "First I find her, then we run into you. I want to get to know her better but then you take her off to see your mother's garden and she gets hurt along the way, then you tell me you're falling in love with her and you think I'm just upset?" He didn't say anything for a few minutes as he continued to pace.

"Joxer, Hercules," Iolaus approached. "Jindra's waking up and calling for you both." They both were at her side in a flash. The healer was helping her sit up a little so she could drink a tea he had prepared for her.

"Jindra, I'm here," Hercules leaned down to her. "It's Hercules."

"I'm here too, Jindra," Joxer told her, giving Hercules a look that said, 'get away from her and leave us alone.'

Jindra slowly opened her eyes and looked at Hercules first. She smiled weakly. "So much for a first date, huh?" she joked. Joxer looked like he'd been slapped again.

"Jindra, I'm so sorry this happened," Hercules apologized seriously.

"You should be," Joxer broke in. "If you hadn't taken my sister off to Corinth..."

"Wait a minute. Your sister?" Iolaus interrupted. "Jindra is your sister?"

"Yeah," Joxer admitted. "Why do you think I was so mad about this in the first place?"

"Well... you, uh, said she, uh, was yours," Iolaus stammered. "I just assumed that you meant..."

"What?" Joxer said, realizing what Iolaus was implying. "You thought she was my girlfriend?" Joxer smiled at the thought that they thought he had a girlfriend. But he was irritated too and the smile faded as quickly as it had shown up. "When I said she was mine, I meant she was my responsibility. We just found each other and I feel it's my responsibility as a big brother to keep her safe now that mom and dad are both gone. We were trying to get to know each other seeing as how we never knew, at least I didn't know, that the other existed when you guys show up and Hercules steals her away from me."

"Joxer," Jindra called to him softly. Her strength was almost gone but she pleaded with him anyway. "Please don't be angry with them. It was my fault for leaving you like that. I'm really sorry, Joxer. Can you ever forgive me?"

"Oh, Jindra," Joxer said, taking her hand in his. "It's not your fault. I know you didn't mean to get hurt. If it's anyone's fault, its Hercules'. If he hadn't..."

"Don't blame him," Jindra interrupted him, with all the remaining strength she could muster. "If you noticed at all, I went with him willingly. He didn't force me and he certainly couldn't have known we would be attacked." She stopped suddenly and closed her eyes. Her breathing was labored. A moment later, she opened her eyes and continued. "Please, Joxer. I don't want to argue with you and I don't want to lose you. It was not Hercules' fault. It was mine. Please forgive me for going off like that."

Joxer smiled at his sister. "Jindra," Joxer admonished gently. "We just found each other and became a family. I can't break that up over this." He carefully lifted her head and shoulders and cradled her in his arms. "I love you, sis. Of course, I can forgive you."

"I love you too, Joxer," Jindra told him in barely a whisper. Then she went limp in his arms, the sleeping herbs having taken effect. Joxer just sat there cradling her for a few moments, tears welling up in his eyes. No one in his life had ever told him they loved him. Not even his mother, although he knew she did. It didn't matter who had said it to him. He was just happy to finally have heard the words directed at him in a sincere manner, not from a gods spell.

"What about me?" Hercules asked. "Can you forgive me for being insensitive and stealing her away from you before you could get to know her?" Hercules paused a moment to see if Joxer would say anything. Joxer just looked at the motionless figure in his arms.

"C'mon, Joxer," Iolaus nudged him. "It's not like you to hold a grudge. Jindra will be OK and you aren't going to lose your sister. You heard it straight from her. What do you say?"

"I really am sorry about all this, Joxer," Hercules told him sincerely.

Joxer carefully laid Jindra back on the ground under the tree. He stood up and faced Hercules and Iolaus. "I know you are," Joxer replied. "I can forgive you for being insensitive if you can forgive me for being an overbearing, overprotective big brother." Joxer smiled and held out his hand.

Hercules smiled back and grasped Joxer's hand in a seal of friendship. "Done," Hercules said. Then he pulled Joxer closer. "But if Jindra were my sister, that's the only type of big brother I'd be."

The End

Please take a moment to write to Elizabeth at Elizabeth.Plessinger@WPAFB.AF.MIL and let her know how you liked this story!

COPYRIGHT NOTICE:
Xena: Warrior Princess, Hercules: the Legendary Journeys, Hercules, Iolaus, Joxer, and all other characters who have appeared in either series, together with the names, titles and backstories are the sole copyright property of StudiosUSA, MCA/Universal and Renaissance Pictures. No infringement of copyrights or trademarks is intended in the writing of this fan fiction. The character of Jindra was created by the author for use in this fiction. This story is copyright © 1998 by Elizabeth L. Plessinger and is her sole property along with the story idea. This story cannot be sold or used for profit in any way. Copies of this story may be made for private use only and must include all disclaimers and copyright notices.