Rated: R
Summary: Has Jett gone back to his old ways, or is something more sinister in the works?
Author's notes: I also want to thank Sandy for doing the fight between Ares and Xena.

Three weeks had passed since Jett's first parole hearing. Jett was trying to show Joxer how to use his new sword. Joxer was having a little trouble, but Jett was being patient with him. Jett stood with the staff firmly in his hands. "Come on Jox, just knock it away like I showed you."

Joxer nodded then swung his sword at the staff but Jett swiftly blocked him. "How am I supposed to knock it out of your hands if you keep blocking me?"

"Joxer, I'm not going to make it easy for you. You have to pretend this is a real fight and your life depends on you getting this staff out of my hands. I'm your enemy right now, not your brother, so fight me." To prove his point, Jett swung the staff, knocking the sword away.

Joxer grabbed his stinging hand and rubbed it. "OW! That hurt!" he whimpered.

Jett walked over, placed a hand on Joxer's shoulder and looked to see if he was badly hurt. Satisfied that his brother was all right, he said, "Then you have to avoid it by moving out of the way. Let's try again. Give me your sword and watch me so I can show you what you're doing wrong." Nodding in agreement, Joxer gave Jett his sword. Jett turned to Xena and Gabrielle. "Will one of you help me here?" he asked.

Xena looked up from sharpening her chakram, but Gabrielle got up and walked over to the brothers. "It's my staff so I'll help, but I'm warning you Jett, I won't be easy on you."

"Good I don't want you to be easy on me," Jett replied and turned back to Joxer. "Jox, pay attention."

Joxer sat down and watched carefully as Jett and Gabrielle practiced fighting. The sound of metal meeting wood rang through the crisp morning air for some time before Gabrielle managed to get behind Jett and brought her staff down hard on his back, knocking him to the ground. Jett lay on the ground for a moment trying to catch his breath then slowly got up and rubbed where she hit him. With a soft cry of alarm, Joxer jumped to his feet and strode forward to help his brother. Jett turned and gave him a look that made Xena seem harmless. Joxer stepped away and sat down again, looking at his brother with concern on his face.

Jett slowly composed himself and looked at the bard. "Uh thanks, Gabrielle," he said. He then turned back to his brother. "Joxer, I think the lesson is over for now."

Joxer looked disappointed. "Come on Jett, let me try please. I think I've got it now."

Jett waved his hand to shoo his brother away. "Later Jox, I need a break," he replied. Jett walked away mumbling to himself and rubbing his lower back where Gabrielle's staff had struck him. Joxer watched him walk away with a very worried look on his face. Sighing, he picked up his sword and began parrying in the air, remembering what Jett had done.

Gabrielle walked back over to Xena with a triumphant look on her face that quickly faded when she saw Xena's look of... Gabrielle wasn't too sure what kind of look it was but she saw that Xena was not pleased, not one bit. "That was really mean, Gabrielle," she said finally.

"What? I told him I wasn't going to be easy on him," Gabrielle protested.

"Easy on him!? Gabrielle, you could have broken the man's back - and right in front of his own brother! What's the matter with you, anyway?"

Gabrielle sat down next to Xena with a loud thump. "Xena, come on! It's not like you haven't been rough on me at times when we've practiced!" she scoffed.

Xena looked at the bard for a moment, her steel blue eyes cold. "I just think you went too far, that's all."

Gabrielle had the grace to look embarrassed. "I didn't mean to. I just got carried away, I guess," she replied huskily. She looked up and watched Joxer sparring with his sword for a few moments in silence before she spoke again. "Xena, look! Joxer was really paying attention."

Xena looked up to watch him and smiled at his progress. "Very nice moves, Joxer!" she called out.

Joxer stopped for a moment and turned in their direction, rewarding the two with his infectious grin, which they returned. "Thanks, Xena." He started his sparring again.

Xena turned back to Gabrielle. "Why don't you help Joxer practice?" Her eyebrows rose. "Gabrielle, go easy on him."

Gabrielle nodded, blushing slightly. "Okay, Xena, I will. Where are you going?"

"To see if Jett's all right."

Xena found Jett by the riverbank rubbing his lower back. "Here, let me do that for you."

Jett looked up and nodded. Xena sat down behind him and rubbed his back slowly. "Gabrielle kind of got carried away, huh?"

Jett sighed and winced when Xena rubbed at a very sore spot. "It's my own fault. I told her not to go easy on me. I forgot how good a fighter she is," he mumbled.

"Yeah, she is. How are you feeling now?" Xena asked.

"Oh, much better. Thanks."

"Glad to help. You've come a long way, Jett. I'm proud of you," she said as she rose to her feet.

Jett's cheeks turned pink for a split second. "Well, yeah. Thanks," he growled.

Ares sat on the throne of one of his many temples, drumming his fingers angrily on the armrest as he watched Xena and Jett talking. "What does she see in him? I am ten... no, a hundred times better looking than him!"

Discord moved into the light and smiled so evilly it would make one's blood curl. "What's the matter, Ares? Losing your precious warrior princess to someone else?" she purred in a sultry voice.

Ares stood up and threw a fireball at her. "Discord, if you can't help, get out!" he hollered.

Discord ducked, managing to avoid the fireball, where it blew a hole into the wall about the size of a bowling ball. "Hey, watch it! It just so happens that I have an idea - a way to get rid of him."

Ares smiled and rubbed his chin. "I could kill him..."

Discord shook her head roughly. "Now there you go thinking that killing's always the answer. Now, where's that gonna get you? Xena has feelings for this mortal." She rolled her eyes snorted in disgust. "Why, I have no idea! If you go and kill him, she'll be on you like bees to honey. I've got a much better idea. Listen to this..."

Ares quietly sat back down. "All right, I'm listening."

Seeing that she had his attention, Discord told Ares her plan. Ares smiled. "I love it! You are the mistress of perverse. I like that kind of twisted thinking," he grinned.

Discord returned the grin. "I promise that by the end of the week, he'll be back in prison - and there's nothing that Xena can do about it."

"I want him back in 24 hours."

"It's pushing it, but I'll try."

"Don't try, do it!" commanded Ares. "Or I promise you, Discord: fail me and you will live to regret it - for a long, long time!" He leaned forward in his throne. "If you thought being a giant chicken was bad, you ain't seen nothing yet!" he glowered.

Discord nodded nervously and vanished to find her victim.

Jett climbed out of the water after taking a swim to relax his muscles. Unbeknownst to him, Discord appeared right beside him and touched him on his shoulder. Jett suddenly began to feel nervous and tense. He hurried back to the others, only to find Joxer alone. "Xena and Gabrielle, where are they?" he snapped.

Joxer was surprised by the way Jett was acting. "There's some trouble up in a mountain village. They went to help, so Xena told us to wait in town for them," he explained.

Jett scowled angrily. "Why didn't they wait for me so we could go too?"

"The man who came for them said it couldn't wait - some kind of monster was attacking the village. They had to leave right away," Joxer told him. "Are you all right?" Jett turned around and walked down the road. Joxer ran after him. "Jett, wait up!" he yelled.

"Come on, Joxer! I'm not waiting for you, so you better keep up!" Jett yelled over his shoulder. Joxer had to run to keep up. He knew something was bothering Jett, but he wasn't sure just what it was. He wondered if he was mad at Gabrielle, but said nothing.

They arrived in town a short while later, where Joxer found the tavern. They went inside to wait for Xena and Gabrielle. While they waited, they both ordered ales. Joxer looked at Jett, who seemed to be watching everyone and everything around him as he drank. "Hey! It's okay," Joxer placed a warning hand on his brother's shoulder and he shook it off.

"Knock it off, Joxer!"

"Jett, are you sure you're okay? You've been acting edgy all this afternoon. What's bothering you? Are you upset over what happened this morning?"

"It's nothing. I'm fine. How long did Xena say we have to wait again?"

"Just a few hours and they'll meet us here. The ale's pretty good here," Joxer replied.

Jett nodded curtly and took another drink of his ale. He kept watching and listening to the men at the next table. Discord appeared, invisible to all the mortals in the room, and also listened to the men. They were talking about the upcoming festival, but Jett heard something entirely different once she waved her hand at him.

"Did you hear about the King of Assassins?"

"Don't you mean Xena's pet? I heard she makes him wear a collar and leads him around on a chain!" Laughter broke out at that.

"Oh yeah! Hey, I even heard that his dork of a brother, what's his name... Well, it's the idiot sitting next to him, can beat him in a fight!"

"Hey, and get this! Xena makes him wear a kitty T-shirt!" The four burst into loud laughter.

Suddenly the table where the brothers were sitting at overturned and Jett stood up holding Joxer's sword. "You four are going to die cursing the day you ever heard of the King of Assassins!" he hissed.

The four men looked confused and frightened. Joxer grabbed his brother's arm. "Jett, are you crazy? Give me back my sword! What is wrong with you?"

"No one talks about me that way and lives!"

Joxer and the men looked even more confused than they already were. Joxer wished Xena was here to help, but she wasn't and he had to do something. "Jett! Listen to me! They weren't talking about you. They were talking about the festival they are having here next week."

"Yes we were! Please sir, we have family! I beg you!" one of the men pleaded.

Jett suddenly brought Joxer's sword down on their table with such force that it broke the table in half. He then stormed out of the tavern, threw a man off his horse, mounted and rode off. Joxer and the men ran outside to see where he had gone.

"JETT! COME BACK HERE!" Joxer shouted at the retreating figure of his brother.

One of the men looked at Joxer. "He's insane! What do you plan to do?"

Joxer bit his lip, looking more worried by the second, but his voice was surprisingly calm as he replied, "Go after him. Do you have a horse I can borrow or buy?"

"I can rent you one," a voice broke in.

Joxer turned his head in the direction of the man's voice and nodded. The man rented him a gray stallion and he set off after his brother at top speed after making several attempts to mount the horse.

Jett was riding hard, trying to escape the taunting voices and derisive laughter. He shook as he rode, hearing the same words over and over screaming in his mind:

"Xena's Pet..."

"She has him on a leash..."

"Thought he could change his ways - HA!"

"Meow... Here kitty, kitty. Aww, want a back scratch?"

"STOP IT! LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!"

Invisible to Jett's eyes, Discord watched with a triumphant smile on her face as he fell from the horse and dropped to his knees, cupping his hands over his ears.

"Jett?" Joxer had caught up to him and was approaching him slowly.

"Stay away, Joxer! I don't know what's wrong with me!"

"It's okay! Jett, let me help you!"

"GO AWAY!"

"No! You're my brother, and I have to help you!" Joxer shouted back.

"Oh no you don't!" Discord growled as she made Jett stand up with the sword and walk towards Joxer with jerky movements.

Jett found he had no control over his body as he was slowly forced towards Joxer. "Joxer, get away from here now..." he warned.

"No! I'm not leaving you!" Joxer insisted as he stood in front of Jett. Jett felt the sword, as if it had a mind of its own, twist in his hand and plunge into Joxer's shoulder. Joxer cried out at the pain as the blade sliced into his flesh. He looked up into Jett's eyes with a stricken look on his face before he fell to the ground and passed out.

Jett stared down at his brother lying on the ground pale and still and found that he could control his body now. Horrified at what had just happened, he dropped the sword onto the ground and looked at the blood on his hands. Joxer... He dropped to his knees and knelt beside his brother. "Jox? Wake up, please!" He screamed in despair when Joxer made no sign that he had heard him. "JOXER!!!! NOOOOOO!!!!!"

"You can't change. Xena was a fool to try and change you. Look at what you've done to your own brother," a smooth voice broke in. Jett turned around and saw Ares standing behind him. "You killed him."

Jett rose to his feet, shaking his head. "No... It wasn't my fault! The sword... It... I..."

"No, you killed him, just like you always kill," Ares grinned at Jett. "That's what you were born to do," his voice lowered to a soft purr.

Jett stared at the God of War. "I didn't! I would never hurt Joxer."

"Oh, really?" Jett was horrified to hear Ares speak his next words to him in his own voice. "Nobody hurts my brother except for ME, remember?" Ares mocked him and began laughing.

Jett's already pale face grew even paler at the war god's recollection of what he said during the aborted Cleopatra assassination attempt. He watched as Ares rubbed his fingernails against his leather vest, raised them to his mouth and blew on them nonchalantly. "Once Xena catches you, you'll be going back to prison in a box. That's what she said - a box. You better run Jett, and hope she never finds you for what you've done to your own brother!"

"Leave...him...alone...Ares..."

Ares turned to see Joxer shakily getting to his feet and holding his injured shoulder with one hand and clutching his discarded sword in the other. Blood seeped through his fingers as he stared at him and Jett. Ares' eyebrow rose in surprise at the youngest triplet's sheer determination. "So... You're still alive. Pity."

Joxer winced in pain but stared back. "Yes...and... you...leave...Jett...alone.... "

Ares laughed at Joxer. "And who's going to make me?" he scoffed. "You?"

"I...won't...let...you...harm...him.... " Joxer weakly attempted to swing his sword, but the pain was too much and he fell to the ground and passed out again. Ares kicked him hard in the side.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!"

Ares turned around sharply. "As soon as I take care of this loser, then I'll take care of you. In the meantime, chill!" Ares froze Jett so he couldn't move or talk, and then he moved in to finish off Joxer. "This will be fun - take care of two birds with one stone!" he gloated.

"AIIIIIIIIIIIIYIYIIII!" Ares whipped around just as Xena hit him head on, sending him into a nearby tree. "I knew there was something wrong. I could smell you," she snarled. He shook his head and stood up, only to see Discord standing before him, madder then a wet hen.

"Xena, I have a job to do! Get out of my way!" the young goddess yelled.

Xena smirked. "Come on Discord, let's dance!" Xena let out her war cry as she flipped over Discord.

"Hold still, you bitch, so I can blast you!" Xena gave her a kick right in the stomach, sending her flying. Discord landed in the water and screamed in frustration because she hated to get wet, then she vanished.

Xena turned to Gabrielle, who arrived just as Discord disappeared. "See to Joxer! I'll see to Jett."

"You forgot about me, Xena," Ares purred and threw a fireball at her.

"I didn't forget about you, you bastard!" Xena snarled as she ducked and rolled to avoid it.

Gabrielle held her staff ready to help Xena fight Ares. "Come on, Xena! Let me help you!"

Xena yelled as she charged Ares, "Gabrielle, take care of Joxer! I can handle Ares!"

Gabrielle nodded and went over to see how badly Joxer was injured. "Hey there," she said softly. "Let's see how bad that wound is, huh?" She bent down and checked him over. She saw with relief that the wound was not serious. It needed a few stitches and Joxer would need to rest, but he would be all right. Soon, Gabrielle had him patched up.

Joxer smiled at her weakly. "Thanks, Gabrielle."

Gabrielle returned the smile and said, "You just rest, Joxer. I'm going to see if Xena needs my help, okay?"

Joxer nodded in agreement as she stood up and watched her leave.

"Ares, what in Tartarus are you up to now?" Xena yelled, whipping her sword from its sheath as he withdrew his. Her eyes flashed with rage as their swords clashed.

"Xena, have I told you lately how much I love it when you get pissed off?" Ares replied, his eyes gleaming as sparks flew from their swords.

"Shut up, you bastard! What do you want with Jett and what does that stupid idiot Discord have to do with it?" Xena growled, knocking him off balance for a moment. She turned around and gave him a solid kick to the midsection. He went flying to the ground and jumped back to his feet in moments. Xena let out her battle cry and their swords crashed together again.

"Tell me, Xena. Why are you wasting time with that loser when you could join me and have the world at your fingertips?" Ares purred and grunted as they fought viciously.

"I DON'T WANT YOU! HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU THAT?" Xena screamed, returning his parries with her own.

Ares' face turned red. "Maybe I can persuade you to change your mind," he growled.

"That's just it, Ares. I won't change my mind!" she replied. She saw that she was close enough to him and before he could react, she moved her right leg forward and swept his feet right out from underneath him. He went crashing to the ground with a loud yell. Before he could move, she drew her sword straight over his crotch.

"You wouldn't!" he sputtered.

A dark eyebrow rose. "Try me," Xena muttered. With a quick flick of her wrist, she cut the laces to his breeches. "The next cut will be, shall we say, of a more personal nature," she said, her eyes bright with anger. "Now unfreeze Jett before you lose something I really don't think that you'd want to," she growled, moving the sword closer until the tip was pressing against the leather.

Ares' eyes narrowed. "You win this time, Xena," he snarled. He waved his hand in the air and Jett fell to the ground, shivering and coughing as he breathed in loud gasps. "But next time, I won't be so... generous..." were his last words before he disappeared in a white-blue flash accompanied by a loud clap of thunder.

Xena ran over to Jett and helped him to his feet. He was shivering violently, his brown eyes wild. Xena gathered him into her arms and he tried to pull away. "Stop fighting me! You need to get warm!" she said in his ear. Teeth chattering, he slowly stopped struggling and settled down. "Good boy," she murmured.

Gabrielle watched as Xena and Ares battled it out. They were both excellent fighters and neither one was giving in. She looked at the frozen form of Jett with concern. She knew that if Xena didn't find a way to get Ares to unfreeze Jett, he would die. Gabrielle ran back over to Joxer to tell him what was happening and saw that he was sitting up. "Joxer, I told you to rest!" she scolded softly.

"I'm fine! Gabrielle, is Jett okay?"

Gabrielle sat down beside him, taking his hand in hers. "I'm sorry Joxer, Jett is..." she broke off, not knowing how to tell him.

"Is what Gabrielle?" Joxer asked.

"Jett is...." she started again.

"Fine. I'm fine - a little cold, but fine."

"Jett! You're all right!" Joxer exclaimed excitedly.

Jett knelt down in front of Joxer and looked at his brother's wounded shoulder with haunted eyes. "Yes," he said sadly. "But you're not. Listen, Jox... I didn't mean..." he began to turn away when Joxer reached out and squeezed his shoulder.

"I know you didn't and it wasn't your fault," Joxer said quietly.

"I can't teach you anymore, Joxer. Look what I did to you," Jett said.

"You were under a spell, Jett. I know that - and I have faith in you," Joxer replied.

Jett looked into Joxer's eyes and knew he spoke the truth. He didn't say anything in response but smiled very slightly.

Gabrielle looked at Xena. "How did you get Ares to unfreeze him?" she asked curiously.

Xena's eyebrow rose slightly and her lips curved upward. "Let's just say I threatened something that was a little too precious to him, Gabrielle. Come on, you two. Let's go," she called out to the brothers. Jett helped Joxer to his feet and they walked over to the women.

Gabrielle frowned. "What do you mean by that, Xena?"

Xena laughed quietly and would say no more as she walked away. Gabrielle rolled her eyes and joined the others.

Later that night, the four friends sat around the campfire after eating supper. Joxer smiled at Gabrielle. "I'm so glad you guys came when you did," he said. Gabrielle returned the smile.

Jett looked at Xena, shivering slightly. "How did you know we needed help?" he asked.

"When we got to that mountain village, there was nothing there, so we headed back to town and the tavern keeper told us what happened, so I tracked you down," replied Xena.

"I see," Jett said as he shivered again.

"Are you cold?" asked Xena.

"Just a little," he admitted reluctantly.

Xena pulled her blanket aside. "Come on and share my blanket," she invited.

Jett stared at her. "You sure?" he asked.

Xena smiled, "Yeah, I'm sure." She held the blanket open in a silent invitation.

Jett sat down beside Xena and together they shared the blanket. Joxer glanced at Gabrielle and then looked away. Gabrielle smiled and shook her head. "Come on Joxer, let's share my blanket." Joxer turned around, jumped up and hurried over to Gabrielle with a huge goofy grin on his face. Once they were settled, Xena lay her head against Jett's shoulder. Jett was surprised at first, but he said nothing and watched her with a thoughtful look on his face as she fell sleep. His shoulder eventually began to ache with the weight of her head against it, but he found he could care less about it.

"DISCORD!"

Discord appeared in front of Ares, looking very scared. "Yes, Ares?" she gulped.

"YOU FAILED ME!" His face turned ugly as he leaned forward in his throne and stuck his face in front of hers. "And you know how much I don't like it when someone fails me!"

"Ares, it was all that bitch Xena's fault! I..."

"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT!" Ares waved his hand and Discord vanished.

Discord found herself in the Artic Circle. "I'll get you Xena, and Jett too! I swear I'll make you pay!" she screamed. She heard a loud growling sound behind her. She turned around and her eyes widened to saucers when she saw a polar bear standing on its' hind legs before her. She tried to zap it away, but discovered her powers weren't working. She yelled in terror and began running, the bear hot at her heels.

Ares watched through his scrying mirror as Xena fell asleep against Jett's shoulder. "I will have you some day Xena, even if I have to kill every man on earth," he vowed.

Please take the time to write to Susan at sasondo42@yahoo.com, and let her know how you liked the story!

COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER:
Xena: Warrior Princess, Xena, Gabrielle, Joxer, Jett, Ares, Discord, and all 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 © 2002 by Susan Owens 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.