Disclaimers: Xena and Gabrielle belong to Renaissance Pictures. No infringement rights are intended to be violated. Only for entertainment purposes.

Warning: Alternative fiction. If you are under 18, do not read this. Story is about two women interested in each other sexually. If this is illegal in your state, do NOT read this..please delete this bugger as fast as you can...

Thanks to my beta readers. You know who you are..names withheld to protect the guilty...send comments to harker101@hotmail.com

Dedicated to the great LZ Clotho: you know why.....

Study as she goes....

By Harker

The sun swept morning foretold of a lazy summer day to come. You promised to help me study for the big anatomy test tomorrow since my college roommates were to busy having a party celebrating the end of the semester. Our previous adventure to stop the South African tiger skin smuggling ring in Portland made me miss two weeks of school and even your note, with the official Inter-Pol and U.S. Dept. of Justice headings, did little to sway my evil anatomy professor, Dr. Ohtolc. For total concentration, I decided to take out my sailboat onto the Columbia River. Only the sun, skies and water. No interruptions. I hoped.

The swells were practically nil as I maneuvered the 23 footer out of the queue, having to rely on the small, inboard diesel motor. You have said nothing since I picked you up in front of your home barely an hour ago.

"Are you okay, Xe?" I ask, hands clinching the cool metal steering column, wondering why my stomach is in knots. My concentration is divided between your moody ice blue eyes and to overstand the marker buoy. Taller than me by over eight inches with raven black, flowing hair, tanned flawless skin, long and lean in form with such strength that your presence alone will stop evildoers in their tracks, and a beauty that I have never seen surpassed, it makes me wonder why you have taken this little pre-med. student whom you had met only once at a Criminal and Forensic science seminar a year ago and turned her into a modern day Nancy Drew.

"What is my secret desire?" you ask. I blink. What did you just say? As if reading my mind, you lean your long form over the aft hull, gazing down at the scrollwork. My Secret Desire. The name of my boat.

"Oh!" I exclaim, then tense. Oh boy..Xe, you don’t want to know that..or do you?

"That is, well, someday..I will tell you." I manage to say feeling the prickling of a flush upon my cheeks. You suddenly flash a brilliant smile, warming my very soul. "I look forward to that day, Gabrielle." Out of the corner of my eye, I watch as you slide past me, the scent of Cinnabar and herbal shampoo that almost makes me swoon. I have it bad for sure and today, if my heart’s courage holds up, I shall let you know exactly what IS my secrete desire.

The Columbia River is over four hundred miles long and almost a mile wide. It undulates like a snake as a divider of Washington and Oregon, down to the Pacific Ocean, only stopped at sections by man made dams. It is below one of these dams, the McNary dam at Umatilla, that I intend to weigh anchor. High golden desert cliffs, edges weathered away by the ever-present wind that today has died down to a mere cooling breeze, arise either side of us, scrub brush scant and holding on precariously to the rocky soil. Even the two freeways, one in Washington and the other in Oregon have very little traffic. Perfect. The wind, not enough for the sails to be unfurled, but enough to refresh the sweat on our skin from the blazing sun, braces me as I shut off the small engine and make my way towards the foredeck to drop the Danforth anchor, releasing 175 feet of manila rope. Lazily, My Secret Desire settles windward in the slow current. The slight tug of the deck beneath my bare feet tells me that we are securely anchored deep into the silt-laden, muddy bottom. You gaze about in agreement at the boat’s position right in the middle of the meandering river, then make your way towards me, carrying my large anatomy book and oversize beach towel. I smile.

"Thanks. Why don’t you lie down. I have some sun tan lotion below decks."

"Sure."

Below, I take several deep breaths. We have been friends almost a year and there is this connection between us that I am sure you feel also. Today I plan on testing that connection. I grasp onto the coaming and am back up on the deck.

"Xe, I have two kinds here..." I say, carefully making my way to the bow. The boat is bobbing slightly in the crests, cries of seagulls fill the air, waves lightly splash against the hull making calm noises. The creaking of the wooden mast, mainsail and boom are a comfort to me. I hope they will relax you too.

"And for the anatomy book, I was kinda hoping that since you are so well defined, muscular, that I might..." I broke off, staggered at the sight before my wide eyes.

There you stand. Like a vision from ancient mythology, tall, beautiful, naked, the sun’s reflection off the water is sparkling around you as a vibrant, shimmering, alive aura. My knees almost buckle. We planned on being here all day and for me to suddenly pass out would put an end to this dream. I force a light tone into my voice.

"SPF 15 or 30?"

A dazzling smile greets me as I step forward, forcing my eyes not to take in every inch of your nude form.

"The 15." You say obvious to my jitteriness.

I glance around as you lie down on the towel at the open water and land around us. We are as if a tiny island in a vast sea, not a sailboat in the middle of a river for all the activity around us. No other boats. No other vehicles. Only the birds hovering above and the water rippling below. Almost as if in a daze, I kneel beside your face down body, head resting on the Anatomy book, hands idly flicking at its worn cover. It is then that I notice that you are wearing sunglasses to protect your eyes from the sun. I knew I had forgotten something, but I gladly will go blind to see you in all your natural splendor. Casually, I unscrew the bottle’s top and squirt a glob of white lotion into my hand.

"You were saying about my muscles?" you say, voice slightly muffled. I blink.

"Uh. Well, since you work out so much and are so defined, I was wondering if I could compare the real thing to the book. I think a hands on approach would help me memorize each muscle groping, uh, grouping by category."

"I am here to help you study, right?"

"Right."

"So how about this. I keep the book and you point out the muscles."

My lips twitch into a grin. That is what I had planned all along.

"Sounds like a good plan. You can let me know if I get any wrong."

"Oh yea. I can do that."

As I decide what area to start with first, I notice that you do not have any tan lines. Unbidden visions wash over me. Get a grip, Gabrielle, I tell myself. Just who is supposed to be in charge here anyway? I decide to start at your feet.

Rubbing the lotion on my palms, I tentatively touch your left ankle.

"I’ll start here and work my way up. Sound like a plan?"

"Sure."

I cannot help but grin as I begin to massage your foot.

"The Achilles tendon connects the Gastrocnemius to the heel bone, that being the calf muscle that is used for walking and jumping."

I slowly run my hands over those said muscles, marveling at the silky softness of you skin.

"When you stand, the Soleus muscle right here on your calf is what keeps you upright."

My thumbs probe deeply into the muscle.

"Too hard?" I ask. You shake your head.

"No. It feels great."

"Good." My lips twitch.

Working my way up to the back of your knee, I press lightly on that tender area.

"The hamstring moves hips and knees." I navigate up the back of your thigh, letting the palms of my hands push down with constant pressure. The muscles relax under my attentions and I think I hear you moan. Almost to the gluteous maximus, I stop and reverse my trajectory. Back down to the ankle, then after applying more sunscreen to my hands, do the same ministrations to your other leg.

"Aw, Xe. You’ve got cute phlanges, metatrsals and tarsals. Anyone ever tell you that?"

Your shaded eyes glare back at me.

"My toes are cute? Oh, brother."

I chuckle then as I make my way back up your thigh, I reach the fleshy mounds that cover the gluteal muscles. I pause. Dare I continue? I swallow and ease my hands over your rear.

"The greates gluteal muscle, or gluteus maxinus aids in standing and climbing. Up here, the middle gluteal muscel, the gluteas medius, is for walking."

The muscles tense, then relax as I massage that area then move to your hips, circling back down again. My thumbs then press against the small of your back, along the fifth lumbar vertebrae. You groan, the vibrations rumbling under my fingers.

"Gabrielle. That feels good."

My own skin is tingling with your voice. I cannot believe that you are letting me do this to you unless......I close my eyes, trying to settle down my breathing. There are still many muscles to go.

"The latissimus dorsi muscle moves your shoulder and is involved in coughing."

I move slowly up towards your scapulas, tension knots dissolving under my fingers. The twelve thoracic vertebrae and the attatched ribs receive special attention as I name them to myself. Your skins ripples under my touch and your breathing is deepening into a tranquil state.

"Rhomboid braces shoulder, levator lifts shoulder blade. The trapezius maintains shoulder position, erector moves spine."

At your neck, I use my index finger tips to massage the area, whispering soft words in Latin, my breath warm on your back. I cannot help myself and tenderly kiss the small section between your shoulder blades, your skin tasting of coconut, cinnamon and your unique fragrance. A sigh comes from your lips. I begin attending to your arms, my voice soothing.

"Deltoid, tricep, bicep, brachioradial, extensor." All these lovingly worshiped with my hands, gentle kisses following.

My mind is dizzy with your heady scent, the sounds of the waves and timber sending me into dangerous waters of desire. At your fingertips, I rub the lumbircals and flexors, flicking my tongue at your palms. A tingle passes my body and I look up to see your sunglasses gone, blue eyes darkened by what I hope is passion, your expression one of anticipation. We gaze at each other for a moment, an eternity. Somehow, air returns to my lungs as you wrap your hand around mine.

"Gabrielle." You whisper.

"Turn over, love." I quietly say, now knowing that I have you.

You do so without loosing eye contact. I find myself trembling as I fumble with the sunscreen. How I want you now, but my studies are not over yet. My anatomy textbook, long forgotten, remains a pillow for your head as you watch me start to massage your feet again.

"Anterior tibial muscle used for walking."

Up to your patella on which I suck tenderly, feeling the raw power in your legs that could kick me off into the water, yet what small tremors run though the muscles now.

"The gracilis bends and twists the leg, quaderceps straighten, sartorius helps bend."

And along that gracilis muscle I approach the apex of your legs, tasting the inner length with feather kisses. Your breath catches in your throat as I stop just shy of your center, my eyes glued to yours. I force myself not to smile as I bypass that sacred region and lick my way up the abdomen.

"Rectus abdominal muscle. So defined, Xe." I nibble at the umbilicus area. You twitch and giggle. Ah, ticklish there. I move across down your hip.

"External oblique, " up your ribs "serratus muscle," past your breasts to your shoulder, "greater pectoral muscle."

I nibble your neck, biting down a bit at the juglar. Small whimpers come from your throat. I am intoxicated with those sounds.

"Sternocleidomastoid muscle." I mutter, as I make my way towards your ear to latch onto that lobe of flesh. Somehow, I have kept my own body suspended upon yours with shaking arms. You start to reach up.

"No." I command.

You growl low, but restrain yourself. I can feel the pulse rate speeding up as I make my way towards the mandible. Lightly kissing the massater, working up to the temporal and occipitofrontial, something soft and hot touches my neck. A light buzzing sounds in my ears as you do your own exploration under my chin. It feels wonderful. I continue administrating along the obicular muscle, your eyes closing as I gently kiss your eyelids. The buzzing is getting louder. As I make my way down the nasal muscles, something out of the corner of my eye diverts my attention from your visage.

A speedboat, towing a water skier, is motoring fast our way. My eyes grow wide as the jerk barely misses the bow and the skier zips by waving, and as if in slow motion, I watch as the wake sends a torrent of waves crashing up and over the deck. Sucking in a choked breath, I fall upon you, arms covering your head, tensing.

Cold, COLD water floods over me, freezing my ardor.

"YEEWOOWWW" I yelp.

I look up,sputtering, blinking against the water draining down my face, waving a frantic fist as the retreating boat.

"You..YOU..SCUMBAGS!"

Shivering beneath me, you grasp my waist, face buried in my chest. Fearing that you were hurt, I pull back, automatically checking for any damage. Then I see that you are laughing...I stare, angry, then my anger dissipates as the seriousness and silliness of the last few seconds over takes me.. I too start to giggle. Soon we are both laughing hysterically, ribs aching, trying to catch our breaths. Finally, we are resting side by side, all the tension spent.

The sun’s warmth quickly dries off my clothes as we lay there in companionable silence. Then you reach over and trace my zypomatic bone with a feather touch.

"Gabrielle...what is your secret desire?"

"Look." I say, pointing up the mast, from a rigging line flutter four brightly colored semaphore flags.

"X..E..N..A."

Your breath catches in your throat.

"Really?"

I turn to face you.

"Really."

You grin and with passion, suddenly kiss me full on the lips. That exquisite taste almost sends me into rapture. We break apart, breathing raspy.

"So, how did I do on my anatomy test?" I ask in voice so husky, it could pull a dogsled.

"Oh, so far so good..but there are a group of muscles that you have not defined yet."

My eyebrow raises as your hand takes my own and shows me exactly where my attentions are needed. All the Latin phrases fly out of my head as I capture your sweet lips with my own and continue on studying the most perfect textbook that is now all mine.

Needles to say, I received an A on my Anatomy test. However, my secret desire is no secret anymore.

The End.

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