Part Eight

After breakfast the now fresh and ready-to-go travelers re-started their trip. It was high noon when the group arrived in the Amazon village. Rhea and Eris both ran over to them. "Gabrielle! Can I feel the baby?" Rhea energetically cried.

Eris exclaimed excitedly, "We're so glad you came! I can't believe it! A baby's going to be born right here in our village!"

"That's enough, you two! It's not like that it's the first time it's happened here before," said Cyane as she came over to greet the travelers. "Welcome back, friends. You must be tired from your long journey. Huts have been prepared for you. Eris and Rhea will take you there."

Joxer looked at Cyane. "Will Gabrielle and I be together?" he asked nervously.

Cyane smiled a little. "Are you still married?"

"Yes," Joxer replied without hesitation.

"Then why would you ask me such a silly question? I will see you all after you have rested. As for now, I have things that need my attention." And with that, Cyane walked away.

Xena picked up Eve. "Okay, let's go see where we'll be staying, huh?" Eve giggled happily and Xena laughed.

Rhea and Eris took them over to a group of huts. Eris ran over to the biggest one. "Gabrielle and Joxer, this is your hut. Rhea and I decorated it for you." Joxer and Gabrielle stuck their heads inside to look and blinked at what they saw. They exchanged glances and Gabrielle shrugged her shoulders slightly. Joxer nodded and placed his arm around her shoulders as they turned around.

Not noticing the couple's reaction to the elaborate decoration inside their designated hut, Rhea went over to the next hut. "And this one is for you, Xena, along with Eve and Arose."

Both of the young girls looked at Jace and Ricky. Eris walked over to Jace. "When Gabrielle sent word that you all were coming, she told us about you being an honorary Amazon so this hut is yours, and since Arose and her consort are not married, he can stay with you."

Jace smiled. "That sounds fair to me." Ricky nodded in agreement.

"Oh, we're going to have so much fun before the baby comes! There's going to be so much dancing!" cried Rhea.

"Uh, hold on a minute there, Rhea. I really can't do any dancing in this condition!" Gabrielle objected, putting her hand on top of her swollen stomach.

"Oh, don't worry, Gabrielle! You don't have to. Joxer will be doing the dancing," Rhea explained with a smile.

"Uh, what kind of dancing?" Joxer asked, his dark eyes growing wide with worry. "And when? Tonight?" His voice shot up a couple of octaves at the last question.

"No, not tonight." Jace walked over to Joxer and put his hand on Joxer's shoulder then patted it in reassurance. "She's talking about the dance to make sure the new baby - or in this case, babies - is strong and healthy that gets performed close to the birth. Don't worry, Joxer. I know the steps and I'll teach you. By the time I'm finished, you'll be dancing like a pro!"

"There will be dancing tonight to celebrate your return to the village," Eris explained. "In fact, there's a series of celebrations planned throughout the next couple of weeks at least." She smiled at Joxer. "You don't have to dance tonight." Her smile widened at Joxer's look of relief and she turned to gaze at Rhea before turning back to look at the rest of the group. "The rest of you are more than welcome to dance in tonight's celebration though," she said. Jace's face lit up in a huge smile at the invitation and he nodded eagerly.

Xena's eyebrow rose. "I don't dance," she stated firmly.

"But..." Eris was about to protest when she saw the look on Xena's face and her mouth snapped shut. She and Rhea exchanged nervous glances before they excused themselves and quickly walked away. Arose raised her hand to her mouth to hide a sudden smile that came to her lips.

"Xena! You didn't have to scare them!" Gabrielle scolded as she scowled at her friend.

Xena's ice-blue eyes glittered. "Who said that I scared them? I merely said that I don't dance," she replied mildly. She gently kissed Eve on her forehead. "C'mon, Evie. Let's see what's inside our new hut. What do you think of that, sweetie?" she crooned, walking away from the rest of the group and entering the hut. Arose followed close behind her, still trying not to laugh.

"Hoo boy," Gabrielle said, shaking her head a little.

One month after arriving in the Amazon Village:

"Hi, Arose! Hi, Ricky! Have you seen Xena this morning?" Gabrielle asked curiously as she emerged from her and Joxer's hut wearing a new dress that would accommodate her ever-growing stomach. "Joxer said just before Jace came to get him that he hadn't seen her around at all." She put a hand on her stomach and patted it absently, smiling as she felt a kick underneath her hand. "And where's Eve?"

Arose and Ricky looked up at the sound of Gabrielle's voice and smiled. Ricky put down the new arrow that he was making while Arose stopped putting a feather on a new ceremonial mask. "I haven't seen either one of them this morning, Gabrielle," Ricky answered in his soft, gentle voice.

"Gee, I haven't either. Sorry, Gabrielle," Arose apologized.

"Thanks anyway," Gabrielle said with a smile. She began walking towards the village center when she came upon Eris, who, along with several girls, was carrying a sack of laundry to be washed down at the stream. "Good morning, Eris! Have you seen Xena and Eve this morning?" she asked.

Eris turned around, stopped following a couple of the younger members of the tribe heading towards the stream and bowed a little in a gesture of respect. "Yes, Queen Gabrielle. Rhea is watching Eve and some of the other babies in the camp this morning," she explained with a smile.

"Oh, that's good. So, where's Xena?"

Eris' smile faded. "I'm not really sure. She headed in that direction," the young woman pointed towards the woods. Gabrielle noticed that Eris' finger was shaking a little as she indicated the direction Xena had walked in and her eyebrow rose. Eris gulped before continuing with a soft, "She was carrying an axe." She hurried off to join her companions before Gabrielle could say another word.

Gabrielle shook her head and sighed. "Ohh-kay." She rolled her eyes and began walking in the direction that Eris had pointed in. She walked for some time down the path, stopping every so often to take a little rest before she finally heard the sound of someone hitting something against a tree. She walked for a little bit longer when she finally saw Xena chopping away at the trunk of a very large tree. She walked forward a few more paces before she finally came to a stop. "Hi Xena."

"Gabrielle," Xena grunted in reply as she jerked her arms back and swung ferociously at the tree. The axe-head met the trunk with a satisfying WHAM. Xena's lips twisted up in a little smile as she put her arms back and swung at the tree again.

"Xena... Is there something bothering you?" Gabrielle asked finally after watching her friend for a few minutes in silence.

"What on Earth would" - *WHAM* - "give you" - *WHAM* - "that crazy idea, Gabrielle?" **WHAM!** The trunk cracked at the last blow and the two women hurriedly moved away as the tree fell down in the opposite direction with a loud thud. Xena mopped her forehead then turned around to face Gabrielle, who had crossed her arms over her ample stomach and tapped her foot on the grass.

"Xena..." Gabrielle said in a disapproving tone.

Xena dropped the axe and threw up her arms in exasperation. "What do you want me to say, Gabrielle? That I'm blissfully happy to endure Community Laundry Day and elaborate but weird ceremonies that involve howling and feathers every night? I'd do anything for you and Joxer, you know that, but living like this is slowly but surely driving me insane!" she exclaimed. "All these rules and traditions..." she growled as she paced back and forth restlessly. "I'm bored out of my mind!"

"I know you are, Xena, and I can't thank you enough for doing this," Gabrielle said in a soothing voice. "I appreciate it. Really, I do."

Xena stopped her pacing and gazed at Gabrielle for a few moments before smiling crookedly and walking over to stand in front of her. She reached out to take Gabrielle in an embrace. "I'm sorry, Gabrielle. I'm just frustrated, I guess," she sighed.

Gabrielle returned the embrace and patted Xena on the back. "I know - and something's bound to happen sooner or later with Joxer, Jace, Arose and Ricky here to upset the apple cart!"

"I hope that it happens soon!" Xena mumbled, making Gabrielle laugh. "Anything to break the routine," she added in as they broke the hug.

Gabrielle nodded. "So, are you going to come back for lunch?" she asked as her stomach growled loudly.

Xena shook her head. "Nahh... I think I need to get a little more frustration out," she said, pointing to the fallen tree and picking up the axe with a slightly crazed expression on her face.

Gabrielle chuckled and nodded. "Okay, Xena. I'll see you later then." Xena didn't respond - she was already too busy hacking at a tree limb. Gabrielle shook her head a little, sighed deeply, and began walking back towards the village.

Six weeks later

"So, Joxer... Are you ready for tonight's ceremony?" Cyane asked as the group sat down at one of the large tables for breakfast.

Joxer paled slightly and his hands shook as he lifted up his mug of water. "Yes," he managed to answer in a relatively steady voice.

"Good," Cyane said with an odd little smile. "I'm sure that you will please our Goddess Artemis greatly with your dancing." She picked up her fork and dove into her scrambled eggs with relish.

Joxer nodded and took a huge drink of water, using both hands to hold the mug as he drank. A little water spilled from his mug as he set it back down on the table with a thump. Gabrielle reached out to pat his shoulder and he smiled weakly at her. She returned the smile and took his hand in hers. She placed his hand over her stomach and he smiled as he felt movement underneath his hand. He leaned over and kissed Gabrielle passionately, forgetting about everything for a moment. She returned the kiss with equal fervor, cupping his face with her free hand.

"Awww," Rhea sighed dreamily, smiling at the couple as she placed her elbows on the table and rested her chin atop her hands. Cyane raised her head to stare at the girl and cleared her throat loudly in disapproval. Rhea blinked in surprise and quickly turned her attention away from the couple and back to her breakfast. Xena rolled her eyes and rose to her feet.

"Is there something the matter with your breakfast, Xena?" Cyane asked as Joxer and Gabrielle gazed up at her in alarm.

"No. It's fine. I suddenly realized that I'm really not that hungry after all," Xena said through tightly clenched teeth. "Arose, would you and Ricky mind watching Evie for a little bit? I have to... do something." She stalked from the table before anybody could say a word in response.

"Sure Xena!" Arose called out to the retreating warrior princess' figure. She turned to Eve and smiled widely. "We'll have lots of fun today, won't we?"

Eve giggled and nodded. "Uh huh, Auntie Arose!" She turned to look at Xena before turning back to the others. "Is Mommy mad, Auntie Gabby?"

"No, honey. She just has something that she needs to do," Gabrielle reassured Eve with a smile.

"Involving a tree," Ricky muttered before he could stop himself. He stifled a yelp when Arose suddenly elbowed him on his upper right arm. He turned to glare at her and say something when Jace wiped his mouth with a napkin and rose to his feet gracefully.

"Remember that you wanted to get in one last practice session before tonight's ceremony, little brother?" Jace reminded Joxer.

Joxer sighed and rolled his eyes as he also rose up from the table. "Will you stop calling me that?" he grumbled.

Jace shrugged his shoulders and grinned. "Old habits die hard," he said as he walked over and put his arm around Joxer's shoulder.

Joxer sighed again. "I suppose. C'mon. Let's go. See you later, Gabrielle." Joxer leaned down to kiss Gabrielle on the cheek before the brothers began walking from the table. Cyane cleared her throat once more. They turned around to gaze curiously at her.

"I just wanted to remind you that the ceremony begins precisely at sundown, Joxer," Cyane said. "I'm sure that you will honor Artemis and Queen Gabrielle with your best efforts."

Joxer felt his mouth go dry and he licked his lips. "Of course." He and Jace left the breakfast table, speaking in low voices. Gabrielle watched them leave with a concerned expression before she turned around to finish her breakfast.

"I'm sure that everything will be fine, Gabrielle," Ricky said in a reassuring voice.

"I know that, Ricky. I just wish that someone could convince Joxer," Gabrielle sighed. She looked down at her half-eaten breakfast before she turned her attention back to the couple and Eve. "So," she said brightly. "Is there anything special that you two are planning on doing today?"

"Not really. I have to get ready for tonight's ceremony too once Xena comes back," Arose answered after finishing the last of her eggs. "Ricky, don't you have to help out with setting up the talking drums in the village center?"

"Yes - and I'm playing one of them too because Lucinda twisted her wrist pretty badly from that fall she had while helping out with yesterday's hunt. Hippolyta said that she needs to rest it, so Lucinda won't be able to play tonight," Ricky nodded.

"That's great!" Arose exclaimed with a huge smile as she rose to her feet. She realized what she said and her cheeks turned red as she gazed at Cyane, who was glaring up at her. "I meant to say that it's great that Ricky can take over for her on such short notice," she explained hastily.

Cyane nodded curtly as Arose, Ricky and Eve left the table, Eve running ahead of the couple, laughing. She watched them in silence before turning around and also rising to her feet. "I have some urgent matters that I must attend to before getting ready for tonight's ceremony," she said softly. She inclined her head forward in Gabrielle's direction before turning around and heading for her hut.

Gabrielle and Rhea watched her leave in silence before they exchanged glances and Rhea smiled weakly. "Nerves," she explained, shrugging her shoulders helplessly as she rose to her feet and began clearing the breakfast dishes away.

"I don't know, Jace. Are you sure I look okay?" Joxer asked fretfully as he anxiously paced back and forth in Jace and Ricky's hut.

"Joxer! Trust me, you look fine - and you did great at practice today," Jace quickly reassured Joxer with a huge smile. "I need you to help me put this on," he said, turning around and picking up an elaborately feathered headdress.

"Okay," Joxer agreed, taking it from Jace's outstretched hands. "Wow, this thing is heavy!" he exclaimed.

"Yeah. That's why I need you to help me put it on," Jace nodded in agreement. "I can't tell if I've got it on correctly or not without a full-length mirror." He leaned down a bit so Joxer could place it on his head. He reached up and adjusted it about his head before he felt that it was on securely. "Is it on straight?" he asked finally as he rose up to full height.

Joxer gazed at Jace carefully for a few moments before nodding. "Yep."

Jace smiled and walked over to Joxer, putting his arms around his brother for a hug. "You'll be fine," he murmured, patting Joxer's back.

Joxer returned the hug and sighed. "Thanks. I needed that." He looked up when the sound of a ram's horn echoed through the village.

"That's the signal to join the others," Jace said as they broke the embrace and began walking towards the hut's entrance. He turned around to gaze at Joxer, raising his eyebrows. "Ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be, Jace," Joxer replied in a rough voice as they exited the hut and began walking over to where the core group of Amazon dancers was starting to assemble. Arose, dressed in her new costume, flashed a smile at Joxer and Jace before turning around to gaze at Cyane, who held a staff and wore an even more elaborate headdress than Jace was wearing.

Cyane gazed at the brothers coolly. "I am pleased," she said finally before a second horn call echoed throughout the village. "AMAZONS!" she yelled and turned around and proudly began walking towards the village center. The women let out a group cry and began following behind Cyane in pairs, Joxer and Jace taking up the rear.

Xena sat down on a bench next to Gabrielle, who was seated on an elaborately decorated throne. She pulled a giggling Eve onto her lap and gazed at her friend, who was watching the path where the dancers would walk down to start the ceremony with a worried expression on her face. "Gabrielle?" Xena queried.

Gabrielle jumped a little in her seat. "Huh? Oh! Hi, Xena. I didn't see you and Eve sit down next to me," she stammered as she turned to face her dark-haired friend.

Xena's eyes began twinkling. "Obviously not," she replied, trying not to smile. "Joxer's going to be fine, Gabrielle. Jace said that he's been practicing very hard for this ceremony." She gazed up into the sky and saw that the sun was beginning to set. "It shouldn't be much longer before things start up."

"Yeah," Gabrielle nodded in agreement. "I know that Joxer's going to be fine." Her face brightened a little. "I wonder what he'll be wearing for the ceremony," she mused.

"I'm sure that feathers somehow will be involved," Xena replied, wrinkling her nose and rolling her eyes in disgust. Gabrielle began laughing when she saw the look on Xena's face and rubbed her stomach as the babies kicked. Xena looked up at her and began laughing too, shaking her head. Eve giggled along with them, clapping her hands together as more Amazons gathered around the village center, some sitting down while others, dressed in ceremonial costumes and masks stood around talking quietly. Another small group lit up several torches that were placed safely outside the semi-circle.

The musicians arrived a few minutes later. Ricky, dressed in a simple sleeveless tunic, dark brown breeches and boots, joined them at one of the talking drums. Eris placed a ram's horn to her mouth and blew a long, clear note. The audience immediately grew quiet in anticipation. Eris blew the horn again and a moment later, a loud cry echoed in their direction.

"Here we go," Xena muttered as the drummers began a slow, staccato beat and cymbals clashed together.

"Shh!" Gabrielle hissed as a low chanting started up from the women waiting in the village center. Xena shrugged her shoulders and turned towards the path where Cyane and the group of dancers would arrive.

Rhea, who was acting as lookout, ran into the village center and signaled to the musicians that the group was coming. The beat picked up then and the chanting grew louder. Gabrielle moved a little in her seat as Cyane regally led the procession into the village center.

The dancers, walking behind Cyane in pairs, split up to walk in opposite directions and began forming a circle. Arose smiled in Gabrielle, Xena and Eve's direction before turning to face the circle of stones.

Gabrielle craned her neck, frowning worriedly as she looked for Joxer and Jace. "Where are they?" she muttered with a worried note to her voice. An appreciative wolf-whistle from the opposite side of the village center suddenly cut through the chanting at that moment.

Xena felt her lips twitch involuntarily when she heard Gabrielle growl possessively under her breath as Joxer and Jace, who were bringing up the rear, entered the village center. She saw that both brothers were dressed in simple tan deerskin fringed breeches and matching fringed knee-length boots. She also saw the reason why Gabrielle growled - both brothers were shirtless, although Jace wore several beaded necklaces around his neck and a huge feathered Amazon headdress on his head in his own unique sense of style, while Joxer wore the single leather necklace that Gabrielle gave him for a wedding present and two feathers were placed carefully in his hair. Poor Joxer. Even HE couldn't escape the feathers, Xena thought to herself in silent amusement as the dancers finished forming the circle, facing the audience as the drumming and chanting came to a halt.

Another loud wolf-whistle cut through the village. Joxer's cheeks flamed with embarrassment while Gabrielle grumbled several not-too-nice words under her breath and Cyane glared at the audience, trying to figure out who was making the ruckus.

"Mommy, Uncle Joxer and Uncle Jace look nice, don't they?" Eve whispered.

"Yes they do, honey," Xena whispered back, kissing her daughter fondly on the cheek and hugging her close. Eve wrapped her arms around her mother and returned the embrace, watching the dancers curiously.

Cyane thumped the end of her ceremonial staff on the ground and proclaimed in a loud, clear voice, "Tonight we are gathered to celebrate the upcoming birth of Queen Gabrielle and her consort Joxer's twin children. May these children greatly please our Goddess Artemis and be born strong and healthy so that they will become great citizens of the mighty Amazon Nation!"

A loud cry of approval echoed through the village and Eris blew a loud, clear note on her ram's horn. Cyane nodded in the musicians' direction as someone from the audience took her staff. The drummers re-started playing the slow, staccato beat from earlier and the chanting began. The dancers turned around, joined hands and slowly began moving around in the circle, raising their arms and stepping to the beat.

Xena and Gabrielle watched the dancers in silence as the steps became more complex and the music started going faster in tempo while Eve happily clapped to the beat. Xena could see Joxer mouthing something to himself and then realized that he was counting the steps so he could keep in time with the rest of the group.

Gabrielle looked on proudly as Joxer finally seemed to relax a little and it appeared that he was beginning to enjoy himself as he wove in and out with the other dancers. Other Amazons began joining the core group of dancers as the beat got faster and the chanting grew louder. She noticed that as the beat became faster and more complex, so did the steps. She lost sight of Joxer as more and more dancers joined the circle, although she did see Jace dancing wildly at one point, his head flung back and his many necklaces sparkling in the firelight from the nearby torches before he whirled around with a huge smile on his face and got lost in the crowd again.

Joxer, who was dancing in the middle of the circle, was starting to get very hot from all the dancing and his stomach began to feel a little queasy. He began wondering how much longer the dancing ceremony would last. To his dismay, the music became louder and faster as he whirled around. Sweat rolled down his face in torrents and he blinked hard when a few drops fell into his eyes, the saltiness making them sting.

Distantly, Joxer saw Arose dancing at the edge of the circle and she flashed a smile in his direction. He felt his lips move upward to return it before he turned around and began dancing towards the outer edge of the circle, not noticing the concerned look on her face. The music and chanting kept getting louder and faster and he found that he was having trouble focusing on his movements. He blinked fiercely as he kept whirling around, still moving towards the outer edge of the circle, getting dizzier by the moment.

Joxer lost count of his steps and stumbled to the side, hitting against a dancer who shouted out in surprise and smacked into another dancer. They fell to the ground in a tangle of limbs as the two women brought down another dancer in the process. He stumbled again as he dizzily held a hand to his forehead, this time stepping on another dancer's foot. She yelped and quickly moved away from him, pushing into another dancer, who lost her balance and fell onto the ground with a loud yell.

"Gabrielle, something's wrong," Xena muttered, her eyebrows furrowing together in a frown when she saw a commotion break out near the outer edge of the dancers' circle.

Gabrielle carefully stood up, craning her neck as she saw several dancers break formation and fall to the side. "Oh no," she whispered, covering her mouth.

"AMAZONS! STOP!" Cyane roared from the inner circle. The drumbeat and chanting slowly came to a halt and the dancers who were still standing moved away while the other dancers who had fallen to the side moaned painfully.

Gabrielle's jaw dropped in complete astonishment when she saw Jace sitting on the ground with his headdress askew, looking about in puzzlement. "What happened?" she asked, moving towards the group.

"That... That... man! That's what happened!" Cyane fumed, her fists clenching together as she gazed at her fallen comrades. "That idi..."

"Don't you say another word!" Gabrielle warned Cyane, her eyes narrowing and turning a dark emerald shade in the firelight. She looked around the village center, trying to see where Joxer was and grew worried when she didn't see him. "Xena, I don't see him anywhere! Joxer? Joxer?" she called out anxiously, her voice raising as she called out her husband's name. "JOXER!"

There was no response from her husband. Arose, who was helping Jace to his feet, softly volunteered, "Gabrielle, when I saw him earlier, he looked like he was getting dizzy..."

Xena and Gabrielle exchanged glances before Gabrielle straightened up to full height and nodded. "Do you want me to look for him, Gabrielle?" Xena asked.

"No. I think I know where he is," Gabrielle answered in a determined voice, shaking her head.

"Okay," Xena nodded and watched as Gabrielle turned around and headed away from the village center before turning around and walking over to assist anybody who needed help.

Gabrielle walked up to the entrance of her and Joxer's hut and sighed quietly to herself, seeing that it was enshrouded in darkness. She entered the hut and lit a candle before turning around to see Joxer sitting cross-legged in the furthest corner of the hut, his head hanging low and his mouth jutted out in a sad pout. His arms were crossed limply over his legs and his hands lightly touched the ground. She gazed down at the dejected figure of her husband for a few moments before she murmured, "Oh, Joxer..."

"I did it again. I screwed up," Joxer whispered, still staring at the ground.

Gabrielle frowned at his words and shook her head. "Joxer, look at me," she said quietly. "Please?" she asked when he didn't move.

Slowly, Joxer raised his head to gaze up at Gabrielle. She saw with dismay that Joxer's dark eyes were filled with tears that he tried to blink away, but one fell down his left cheek before he could stop it. He wiped at his face carelessly and sighed, turning away from her clear-eyed gaze. "I'm sorry, Gabrielle. I didn't mean to mess up the ceremony..."

"Joxer," Gabrielle interrupted him before he could continue babbling an apology. "Dance with me."

Joxer immediately stopped talking to gaze up at Gabrielle, goggle-eyed. "W-w-what?" he stammered finally after a minute of stunned silence.

Gabrielle smiled at Joxer and held her hands out to him. "I want you to dance with me," she repeated.

Hesitantly, Joxer held out his hands and Gabrielle helped him to his feet. She looked Joxer over appraisingly and nodded. "You look so handsome in that outfit," she said in a husky voice, running her hands over his lean but muscular chest. "I could've belted whoever kept whistling at you though," she growled possessively, wrapping her arms around his waist and leaning her head against his chest so that she could listen to his heartbeat. "You're my man," she breathed, missing Joxer blush furiously as he wrapped his arms around her in an embrace.

Joxer gently kissed the top of her head, taking in the soft scent of daisies and vanilla from her last oil bath before he moved back a step. Gabrielle made a soft noise of protest until he carefully took her left hand in his right hand and slid his arm against her back. He smiled and reminded her softly, "You said you wanted to dance."

"Yes I did," Gabrielle replied, returning the smile.

Slowly, the couple began moving back and forth in the hut in a simple box step pattern, Joxer humming to himself at first before he began singing a ballad that was popular a few years back in Athens in his rich voice. Gabrielle's smile widened as they gazed into each other's eyes and continued to dance.

"Where are they?" Cyane growled as she watched her tribe sisters collect themselves and begin to take down the ceremonial poles and other assorted decorations that had been strung up for the dance. "That idiot completely ruined tonight's ceremony!"

"Don't talk about my brother like that!" Arose snapped. Cyane turned around to glare at her and the girl quailed at her angry gaze. Ricky placed an arm around Arose's shoulders and returned the glare defiantly.

Cyane opened her mouth to chew Ricky out for his disrespectful attitude when one of the dancers ran up, bowing slightly. "My Queen, there's light coming from Queen Gabrielle and Joxer's hut," she reported.

Cyane shoved the dancer aside without a word and began storming towards their hut. Xena picked up a sleepy Eve in her arms as she and Jace exchanged glances. They immediately followed the angry Queen, Ricky, Arose, Eris and Rhea hot at their heels.

Cyane skidded to a halt at the open hut flap and stared in silent astonishment at the sight and sound of Joxer singing sweetly to Gabrielle as they slowly danced around the middle of the hut. Jace and Xena exchanged grins as they watched the couple dancing while Arose gently put her head against Ricky's chest. Eris and Rhea smiled and sighed sentimentally before they turned around and walked away.

The rest of the group watched for another minute or so in silence before Cyane slowly turned around and walked away from the hut. The others followed behind her until she came to a halt in the middle of the path. "I can't yell at him. I just can't," Cyane mumbled finally, shaking her head in disbelief. "He's a dork, but he's the sweetest damn dork I've ever met." She shook her head once more and headed for her hut.

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