Part One of the Miracle Child Series
Otherwise Titled: The 'If I Didn't Want It To Happen, It Didn't Happen' Series

Rating: G
Summary: Xena and party, in self-imposed exile to Xena's old stomping grounds of Mongolia, are tracked down by some old friends who must persuade them to return to a turbulent Greece.
ALERT AMARICE FANS! ALERT AMARICE FANS!
Disclaimer: See any other disclaimer.

Gabrielle, unable to sleep, was sitting up on her pallet with her arms wrapped around her knees and a thick blanket wrapped around her. These northern lands were so cold . . . her body, accustomed to the warm sunshine of the Mediterranean, had protested violently her first winter up here. Now, of course, there was no need. It seemed she had been there forever.

The hills, gray and bare, extended in every direction, a sea of grass. The sky was black and clear and the stars sparkled icy-white. The polar wind numbed her cheek and a place somewhere under her solar plexus, not freezing them, just deadening them. It smelled wild, free, and lonely.

She sighed, matching the note of the wind as it teased her ear, and Joxer stirred at the noise. Just as Xena had a sixth sense for danger, Joxer seemed to have developed one for unhappiness. "Gabrielle? You okay?"

She smiled at him, then shook her head a little. "Thinking in circles again."

"Oh."

"As long as you're up, you may as well come over here. I'm cold."

He obediently got up and joined her under the blanket, hugging her close to him. That was the only thing that melted the eternal chill: the warmth of human touch. As soon as Gabrielle had learned that, she'd recruited Joxer as her hot-water bottle, and he had of course had no objection.

"Do you know what tomorrow is?" she asked, already sure of the answer.

"Sure. Evie's birthday."

She smiled, surprised and pleased. "You remembered."

"Course I remembered. I love birthdays."

"Xena doesn't remember."

"Yeah, she does. Just not the exact day, the way we do. She knows it's sometime around now."

Gabrielle snuggled closer to him, pushing the chill a bit farther away. "She's turning twelve. Twelve years, we've been out here, and she's never even seen her homeland."

"She's never eaten grapes."

Gabrielle giggled. "I'm talking about culture, not grapes."

"I miss grapes."

"Me, too, but that's not the point. I mean, how long are we going to stay out here? In exile?"

"You know, Gabby, you're really not the one to be complaining. I mean, you're always going back to see the Amazons 'n' stuff."

"I know: they need me. But Joxer, I want to go home. I want Eve to go home. I want to see Lila again. I want to speak Greek with strangers. You know . . . all those things that mean a place belongs to you, or you belong to it. I want to go back home and stay there."

"We can't."

"I know." She sighed again. "I know."

Xena sat straight up like something bit her. "What was that?"

Gabrielle and Joxer both looked at her.

"Just us talking," Gabrielle offered warily.

"No, not that." She got up, chakram held firmly in one hand. "Look there."

They both stood up, squinting into the silvery darkness, made pale by moonlight. On a distant ridge, the orange flare of torches could be seen.

"Those raiders again?" Gabrielle asked.

"I don't think so: raiders don't lead their horses. But something's up. Any fool knows not to travel these hills at night." Xena set off down the hill. "Joxer, stay with Eve."

He nodded and sat down next to Eve, still sound asleep, as the two women went to meet the threat. She was hidden under a mess of furs, which moved rhythmically with her breathing.

He found his gloves and pulled them on before picking up his sword, to save his hands the shock of touching the cold metal. Just in case one of the strangers got past Xena and Gabby, he was armed, and ready to do everything he could to keep his niece safe.

As soon as she guessed the strangers could hear her, Gabrielle called out a greeting in the northern language. She was the best at it, and served as translator for Xena, who was the worst.

"Peace to you!"

"Evening!" called back one . . . in Greek. Plain, clear, simple, familiar, wonderful Greek. "How're you?"

Gabrielle glanced at Xena, who shook her head. Tempting as it was, it would be dangerous to reveal that they knew the language. Anyone could be a spy of the gods, and although theoretically the gods thought Eve was dead, one could never be too careful.

"I don't understand," Gabrielle called back. "I'm sorry."

"Gabrielle, is that you?"

That stopped them both dead in their tracks. They both knew that voice. There was no danger anymore.

"Amarice?" Xena shouted.

"Xena! Gabrielle!"

"Xena!" added a male voice. The torch-bearing group broke into a jog, as did our heroes, and in a few seconds they met in the dip between two hills. Xena and Gabrielle were met with welcoming embraces.

Amarice was not unexpected: she was the only person in Greece who knew where to find them and she and Gabrielle visited one another every few months. But the others were almost strangers, yet closer than blood: Hercules and Iolaus. Friends, protectors, and allies since day one.

"What on earth are you all doing here?" Xena demanded when she had her feet firmly on the ground again.

"We came to see you," Hercules said, his tone implying that it should have been obvious.

"For Eve's birthday," Iolaus added. "It is tomorrow, isn't it?"

"Of course it's tomorrow," Gabrielle answered. "You guys . . ."

"Wow, nick of time," Amarice commented. "We lucked out."

"Are you all right?" Hercules asked, anxiously studying Xena's face. "You look like you're not glad to see us."

"Of course I am," Xena almost snapped. "I just . . . have to be dreaming, that's all. I mean, I woke up in the middle of the night and here you are, like . . ."

"Like we only left yesterday," Gabrielle finished for her. "Twelve years! You've come to find us after twelve years?"

"We've been kinda busy," Iolaus apologized. "With you girls gone, we've been working double duty trying to keep Greece from destroying itself. But last fall Amarice hunted us down and kind of invited us, so -- here we are."

Xena gave Amarice an affectionate glare. "We give you the secret on which the fate of the world depends and you blab."

Amarice grinned and shrugged.

"Well, we're freezing cold and short on supplies, but how about a late snack? Our camp was always open to all of you."

"Sounds good to me," Hercules said. "And don't worry about us eating you out of hearth and home . . . we brought you some treats."

"We figured you might be missing Greek food." Iolaus explained.

Gabrielle sighed and smiled at the same time. "You read my mind, Iolaus."

"We have things for Eve, too, and all sorts of stories."

"I can't wait."

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