"Forgiveness" Pt. 2 (fanfic repost)

Arianna's sword was raised above Xena and she thrust it down with everything in her. She heard
the cry coming from Gabrielle and the footsteps behind her. So she reached into her left wrist
guard and withdrew a small but formidable dagger. Then she swung her right arm around so that
the dagger greeted Gabrielle with a stern warning.

Gabrielle stopped in her tracks. She was almost in tears as she stared into Arianna's eyes.

There was a burning in Arianna's eyes that Gabrielle had only seen in Xena before. It was angry,
pained, and sad, all at the same time. Arianna stared at Gabrielle for a few more moments,
dropped her arm and turned towards Xena. Her sword was embedded in the table next to Xena's
neck. It had slightly cut Xena's right shoulder. Then she leaned in towards Xena and said "I don't
know what's wrong with you, but I won't end it like this. I want you at full strength when we face
off. No excuses. You see Xena, there are still some people left in this world with a little integrity
and honor. Something you know nothing about.

Then Arianna yanked her sword upward, freeing it from the table. She re-sheathed it and turned
around to walk away. But before she took one full stride, she turned back to a dazed Xena and
said "Oh, by the way! Let me introduce myself. I'm Arianna of Cirra. Callisto was my best friend
in childhood." and she walked away.

"Xena?" Gabrielle cried with concern as she pushed past Arianna on the way to her friend. "Xena,
are you alright? What happened?"

Xena was still dazed. Gabrielle helped her into a chair and started to brush back the hair out of
Xena's eyes, gently tucking the loose strands behind Xena's ears. "Xena, talk to me." she said.

Xena looked up trying to focus on Gabrielle. "Gabrielle, I can hardly move." Xena said weakly.

"Can you get up? Can you walk?" Gabrielle replied

Xena waited, took a deep breath and knodded approvingly.

With that, Gabrielle helped Xena up by sliding her arm around Xena's waist and pulling Xena's
arm around her shoulder. The two slowly exited the bar, past Arianna and D'Lara who kept their
stares on the pair until they left.

After the scene was over, the faux barback, who watched all the events with interest, retreated
hastily from the tavern. He had seen enough and needed to report back to camp.

Xena and Gabrielle walked very gingerly until Xena felt that she could walk under her own
strength.

"Xena, what happened back there?" Gabrielle asked with concern.

"Gabrielle, I think my drink was poisoned." Xena surmised. "I'm not sure what exactly it was. The
symptoms aren't familiar to me."

"What exactly are the symptoms" Gabrielle asked, still giving her friend a concerned glance.

"I seem to become weak and disoriented when I exert a lot of energy. My head just pounds and
my limbs feel extemely heavy. Yet at the same time, the symptoms seem to diminish when I relax
for a while." Xena said

"Then you should ride Argo. We need to get you to a healer to see if there's an antidote for this
poison. Where's the nearest one?" Gabrielle asked

"In the last town we just came from, but I want to go back and talk to the bartender and find out if
my hunch is correct. At the very least, we can find out what exactly it was that he put in there."

"XENA THAT'S CRAZY" Gabrielle yelled. She was upset at her friends continual lack of
concern for her own well being. "let's get you to the healer first. We can always come back.
Besides, have you forgotten about your latest enemy who's still sitting in the tavern? She might
forget about her 'integrity' if she sees you again. No, you need to be well before you face her. So
stop with this need to interrogate and think about yourself for a change.

Xena listened to Gabrielle thoughtfully. She knew that Gabrielle was right, but she really wanted to
know what was going on. Something inside told her that this incident was somehow related to the
random attacks they'd been experiencing lately.

"Gabrielle" Xena said in her usual low voice. "You know that if we're attacked on the road again, I
might not be able to defend us."

Gabrielle nodded

"I want you to promise me that you won't stick around. They want me and there's no reason for
you to get hurt just because of me. I don't know if I'll be able to protect us."

Gabrielle furrowed her brows at Xena's request, then took Xena's hand and said "Xena, I'm not
going anywhere without you. Whatever happens, we're in this together. I won't leave you."

"Gabrielle..." Xena started, but she was abruptly cut off

"I mean it Xena. I won't run. If I die by your side, then so be it, because if I ran and you were to
die, I might as well die too. I wouldn't be able to live with myself."

Xena and Gabrielle stared at each other for a moment. Then Xena gave Gabrielle a crooked
smile, put her arm around her and said "You can be so stubborn sometimes."

"You should talk" came the reply

"Come on, let's go" Xena said. Then she turned to Argo and mounted her.

Xena was feeling better already. The relaxing nature of the ride had restored her to her natural
vigor. Gabrielle was feeling better too. The sun was still out and a gentle breeze had started
cooking through the valley. The pleasantry was soon forgotten, however, when Xena pulled Argo
to a stop. Up ahead, another band of would-be attackers awaited. Xena dismounted Argo and
looked ahead at the small band of men, sizing up the situation.

"Gabrielle, please. If the symptoms come back, we could both end up dead."

"I meant what I said earlier Xena. I'm with you to the end"

Gabrielle's heart was beating furiously with that statement. She was so scared that her adrenaline
was transcending her body, but she wasn't about to leave Xena.