Forewarning and Soulmate Lament

The following is fan fiction, meant for entertainment and not written for profit. This fiction in no way wishes to infringe on any rights given to holders of "Xena, Warrior Princess" or "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys"or any of the characters mentioned herein.

Again, this is fan fiction and written for fun, not profit.

The following is a short story I wrote (in just a few hours) one bleak December evening (1998). It was after the start of the H:TLJ-Dahak storyline that began, of course, with X,WP.

Concluding Xena and Gabrielle’s involvement with Dahak by destroying Hope did not satisfy me. Dahak, the god-demon who raped Gabrielle and helped to destroy Solan (through Hope), was still out there. The women, in my opinion, were traumatized and needed a closure that surpassed Hope. This story doesn’t do that but it does tie the two shows together in a sense, as does the later story, "Soulmate Lament". Just call them "missing scenes".

"Are you all right?" The dark haired woman awoke with a start, the quick movement beside her alerting keen warrior senses. She relaxed when she realized there was no danger. ‘Only Gabrielle.’ she thought then looked at her blond companion. She was sitting on the ground, looking dazed and slightly anxious. ‘Typical Gabrielle.’ Xena jested to herself.

The blanket the bard slept in was wrapped loosely about her young Amazon-toned body, against the coolness of the early morning air. "Fine." Gabrielle said, then explained, "A bad dream."

But she didn’t look fine, Xena thought. Gabrielle seemed tired, reflective and a little sad.

"You’ve been having a lot of those lately." Xena whispered, lifting a comforting hand to touch the girl’s arm.

A week ago the bard had a dream about taking a long, dangerous ocean voyage. An evening later there was that awful mental image: Being hit in the chest with a dagger. A few evenings after that there was a true nightmare. Gabrielle found herself wrapped head to toe in bandages, reaching out, and trying to understand what had happened to her. She was screaming a name ... ("Hercules!") but he couldn’t hear her. She tried to escape her gauze prison but no would help her -- although they all stood about, watching. Strange people -- from a foreign land. Yet, there was one familiar face ... ("Hercules!").

Then two days ago, the ‘Mother of all Nightmares’: She was entombed alive. Gabrielle awoke shrieking as she lay on her blanket on the damp ground. Xena came to her, attempting comfort, but it did little good. Gabrielle told The Warrior Princess that, in her vision, she pounded, pushed and scratched helplessly on the stone lid, tearing her nails and skinning her small fingers bloody. But no one was there. ‘I tried to tell them I’m alive. I kept crying out -’ Gabrielle had said, ‘- but no one ... not even Hercules could hear me.’

Xena withdrew her hand and stood, pulling a blanket up with her to fold, "What was this one about?" she asked, trying to sound casual but genuinely worried. The girl had been through so much over the past year and now, just when it seemed she was getting her head on straight again, Gabrielle was going through another hell. Were the visions trying to tell her something?

"Iolaus?" Xena half smiled, slightly relieved. "That’s a first. You always tell me your dreams of a certain golden-haired hunter are pleasant." There was no secret in the fact that Gabrielle had a crush on Iolaus. Xena doubted there were few members of Greece’s female population who, having met the hunter, didn’t have wonderful stories to tell about him.

Taking the opportunity for a stretch, The Warrior Princess looked into the woods, out at the fog as it hovered just above ground, in between the tall trees. It’d burn off soon enough, Xena thought. The sun was already warming the ground.

Another day, another adventure. Evil was everywhere. People needed help. ‘Heroines R Us’.

"My dreams about Iolaus usually *are* good." - ‘ Sometimes they’re so good I can’t even talk about them.’ Gabrielle almost smiled at the understated fact but couldn’t. She was too preoccupied. "I’ve had some of my most entertaining nights, dreaming about Iolaus ..." Her voice faded as she continued to think of him. Lovely dreams with the hunter looking especially handsome, those wonderful eyes and that laugh she thought just too adorable for words ... ‘Uniquely Iolaus.’ she’d often think when hearing it and suddenly the bard would be inspired to pull out a quill and blank scroll. ‘Ode to a Hunter’s Laugh’ was hidden somewhere in her pouch, inspired by Iolaus.

Gabrielle looked away suddenly, into space, trying to recall something, "I also dreamed of Dahak."

Alerted, Xena stopped in mid fold and looked hard at Gabrielle. "Dahak’s gone, Gabrielle. So is Hope ..." She began to fold again, wanting to forget the subject-matter altogether. Dahak meant pain. Dahak meant horror. Dahak meant loss of life. *No more Dahak!* - "It will take time but you’ll get over it. We both will."

"You don’t understand, Xena." The bard stretched and stood, "I wasn’t in trouble this time. I wasn’t even in the dream. It was Iolaus and Hercules ... and people in exotic lands ...." She narrowed her eyes, trying to recall the blur of movement. Hercules looking desperate and crying out ("It should have been me!") ... Iolaus fighting evil men and suddenly laying so still. She said, "They were in trouble ... I couldn’t really understand it all but one vivid image I have is of Iolaus’ amulet. You know, the black stone he wears around his neck? It was broken and he’d misplaced it. Or rather ..." She searched her mind, " ... He knew where it was but couldn’t get to it ..."

"Yes, it was." Unsmiling, Gabrielle looked at Xena and spoke sharply. "Because Dahak was there, watching over the whole chaotic mess. I didn’t see him but I felt his presence."

The Warrior Princess sensed her best friend’s anger. She spoke gently - "I’m sorry, Gabrielle. I don’t mean to make light of your dream but if a broken necklace is the most vivid image you have then I think you have little to worry about -- even if Dahak had something to do with it. It was just a dream."

Gabrielle stared at Xena for a long moment, thinking deeply, then nodded and relaxed slightly. "You’re right." She crouched to throw water then some dirt on the smoldering campfire they had laid next to during the night. "Maybe I’m just reading too much into my dreams." The Amazon bard then smiled for the first time that morning, "Iolaus and Hercules are together and just fine." Then another thought occurred to her, "If there is a problem, they’ll get through it. *They always do*."

Perhaps they’d meet Hercules and Iolaus on the road to Corinth. Then, they could all have a big laugh about Gabrielle’s vivid imagination.

The following wasn’t originally penned as a sequeal to "Forewarning" but they do connect in a sense. This is written in a way I think Gabrielle, the bard, might have written it in one of her (private) scrolls -- regarding the death of The Golden Hunter and her take on the situation.

(*NOTE* I’m a sidekick fan. Please indulge me)

*A short conversation between a halfgod and warrior princess*:

"She's taking it badly."

"I thought she might. They were close, probably closer than either of us imagined."

"He mentioned her often."

"And she him - until the last time we were together in Thrase. When we all parted she hardly spoke of him at all. I thought she was finally getting over her crush. Or maybe they'd argued. But it didn't seem like it."

"I know. I saw it too. The way they held onto each other. For awhile there I didn't think we'd get them apart. It was as if they ..."

It then struck them at the same time.

So obvious really.

"Oh."

"My poor Gabrielle."

***

I don't think anyone will understand because I don't really understand it
myself. I *knew* when he died.

We were traveling, Xena and I, and as we walked I felt it - an emotion, a
dread so raw I hardly knew what to think. It pierced my heart, just as the
dagger did it's job on my beloved.

Xena thought little of my change - only that I was still trying to get over
our experiences with Hope and Dahak. She knew and still knows that I am
searching for something. A peace, perhaps even a spirituality, which has
escaped me.

I'm growing up in so many ways, the little girl I once was disappearing into
an abyss where she may never return. But I almost came back to myself in
Thrace so many months ago.

Hercules and Iolaus were there and we ran into them quite by accident. A
street fight, of course. Xena and myself against twenty men. We were badly
outmatched but I've seen Xena accomplish a miracle, one woman against an
army.

Still, I was nervous until I heard his voice and saw the golden sheen of his
tousled hair. He'd come to me before this way. Showing up just at the
perfect moment. It was a talent of his.

We fought and we celebrated.

With the four of us the warlord and his minions did not have a chance.

We spent three glorious days together, the four of us - and I spent time
with him. We talked, joked, told stories and played ... and we made love.

It happened so suddenly -- or no. *Not* suddenly. We were holding each other
close as he was preparing to say goodnight. Then, we were in a
passionate embrace. He was hesitant to carry it further, fearing *what* I'm
not sure. Damaging my innocence? An irrevocable truth? We talked afterwards,
holding one another close.

*The future*.

I didn't want to speak of it. I wasn't ready. I loved him dearly and we
established something between us that night - but I also knew that Iolaus
*was* ready to settle down even if he wasn't certain of that fact himself. He
wanted a wife and children and if he couldn't have it with me it would be
with someone else. He didn't say this to me - he wouldn't - and I'm sure
it never occurred to him until that moment ... in Sumeria ... when she held
him in her embrace.

Me - I needed to roam a little longer. Something was out there beckoning me.
There was time - I thought.

I was such a fool. I couldn't see his yearning.

Nebula apparently did.

Those words he said to me so long ago, how you always think there is time to
speak what's in your heart to the person you love, came back to me. Iolaus
was referring of Xena at the time, when we thought her dead and gone from us
forever, but now -- *it's him* -- and those words were never so true.

If only I could go back.

If I can tell him how much I cared for him and of the agony I felt when we
parted.

How could I know it was going to be forever?

Now there are only tears, grief, loneliness -- and guilt.

The love of my life is gone and I have come to a irreversible conclusion. If
I hadn't been selfish he would still be alive. His death is *my* fault. If I
had held onto him, not allowing him to leave ... if I had agreed to be there
for him ... if I had become his bride, the mother of his children ... Iolaus
would still be alive.

Yet, even as I think these horrible things I understand something more: Had
Iolaus stayed with me, the sacrifice of his warrior heart would have gone to
another and we may now all be living in a world dominated by Dahak. An evil so
devastating could we, any of us in the world, be truly content?

What's done is done.

I shall survive.

Perhaps some day I will look back on this and it will make sense; my heart
won't break at the thought of his warm blue eyes, golden hair and those lips
that were so sweet as they pressed mine.

Now it's time to move on.

Time to be a strong, brave heroine.

The light ... *He watches over me*.

The End

(Feb. 2, 1999)

Both of these stories were fan fiction and the author in no way wishes to infringe on the rights of copyright holders to HERCULES, THE LEGENDARY JOURNEYS or XENA, WARRIOR PRINCESS. All mentioned characters belong to these two television shows (c). All rights to Rennisance Pictures, Universal and USA Studios (etc.).

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