"Joxer?"

"Yeah?"

"Move your leg. It's making mine go to sleep."

"Oh. Sorry, Gabrielle." There was a soft flurry of noise as he changed position on their combined bedrolls. "Better?"

"Much. Thanks."

"Will you two keep it down over there? *Some* of us are trying to get some sleep!"

"Sorry, Xena!"

A low growl echoed through the small campsite in reply, which was followed up by an exasperated sigh before it grew silent in the clearing.

A little while later, the silence was broken by a sharp, "OW!"

Xena's eyes shot open but she didn't move from underneath her pelts as Gabrielle asked in a sleepy voice, "What's the matter?"

"Something's underneath here!"

"Shh! You'll wake Xena and Eve."

Too late for one of us, Xena thought, her eyes briefly shifting over in her daughter's direction. To her relief, Eve was sleeping blissfully, completely unaware of the racket her two friends were making.

"Okay, okay! Wait a sec." Xena heard the rustling of Joxer's pelts, followed up by him lifting a corner of the bedroll. "It's a rock."

"Well, get rid of it and try to..." Gabrielle's voice trailed off as the offending object sailed through the air and hit a tree. "...be quiet."

Joxer gulped loudly, waiting for Xena to rise up from her bed and give him holy Hades. When she didn't move from her spot, he breathed a sigh of relief and settled himself underneath the pelts again. "Sorry," he whispered.

"It's okay. You didn't wake anybody up."

That's what you think, smarty-pants, Xena thought, rolling her eyes.

"'Cept for you," Joxer replied with a giggle.

"Shh!" Gabrielle hissed, but it quickly turned into soft giggles. She managed to calm herself down and said, "C'mon. We've got a long day ahead of us tomorrow - and we need the rest."

"Mmm." Xena heard Joxer shifting position and she rolled her eyes when she heard a kissing noise. "Night, Gabrielle."

"Night, Joxer." Another kissing noise drifted through the camp and shortly after, silence fell.

Xena closed her eyes with a smile and felt her mind easing itself towards the land of Morpheus.

Until Joxer started snoring, that is.

Please take the time to write to Sandy at fiebrans@prodigy.net, and let her know how you liked the story!

COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER:
Xena: Warrior Princess, Xena, Gabrielle, Joxer, Eve, and all other characters who have appeared in the series, together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of StudiosUSA and Renaissance Pictures. No infringement of copyrights or trademarks is intended in the writing of this fan fiction. This story is copyright © 2006 by Sandy Fiebranz 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.