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When In Rome

by Kamouraskan

Disclaimers: Characters from the television show Xena: Warrior Princess are not owned by me, to my regret. This is written purely for enjoyment with no thought to monetary gain.
Post FIN, I guess, though I have kept specific references to a minimum.
Thanks to the members of the Bardic Circle, especially Extra, Jaden, Jess, JFalconer, and as always, Claudia and the great Mary Morgan.

Chapter 15

After the tomb-like atmosphere of the tunnel, the moon's light almost blinded them both. Both women instinctively shielded their eyes with their hands, but it was Gabrielle who was struck dumb as she lowered hers. "By the Gods," she gasped.

They were standing on a rise surrounded by the most spectacular garden she had ever seen. Massive lattices draped with vines enclosed perfectly manicured bushes, dotted with statues and fountains. Above and surrounding it all, the vast bowl of the sky was pricked by stars and pierced at its lower rim by the hills of Rome and the landmarks built upon them. To their right, the city of Rome rose and dropped on its hills as though tossed on waves. To their backs, the shadow of the Coliseum's peak loomed menacingly against the darkness. To their left, the Palatine hill dropped away to the Tiber. But in front of them, enclosing the gardens, were the palaces of the rulers and Emperors. Architecture designed to stagger and astound by the best and the brightest, for the richest and most powerful.

Xena was somewhat less affected as she stared out over to the city. "Up this high, where you can't smell the stench, it doesn't look half bad. Still Rome, though."

At that reminder, Gabrielle forced herself back to a working state of mind. She looked down at the unconscious soldier under the rubble. "Someone will come looking for him."

Xena was already listening to the breeze. "Armed some bodies."

Gabrielle listened as well. "Like the dozen or so coming now?"

Xena nodded. "Six on the right, six on the left, a dozen coming right for us."

"Don't these guys sleep?"

Xena shrugged. "Security. Look at all the money around us."

Both began analysing their choices. "So?"

"Three choices," Xena reckoned.

Gabrielle ticked them off on her fingers. "Give up. Take them. Evade."

"Evade?" Xena asked.

Gabrielle thought before nodding. "Agreed." Then turned to her partner in curiosity. "Why didn't you go for letting them capture us?"

"Couldn't be sure where we'd be taken."

"Ah. Funny. I didn't think it would be very impressive for the negotiations if we arrived tied up."

Xena grinned. "Different paths…"

Gabrielle returned the grin. "Same road." She looked about them, this time evaluating the land. "So how do we evade?"

Xena pointed up. "You should like this, Amazon."

Gabrielle followed her finger to the long rows of lattice that ran above the gardens and swallowed. "It'll never hold us."

Xena ignored the sour expression and cupped her hands together. "Leg up?"

With a sigh of frustration, Gabrielle placed her foot into the handgrip provided and sprung to the top of the wooden pergola. Even as Xena made the leap unaided, the sound of the hobnailed boots of Roman soldiers came closer

The passage of centuries had not diminished Gabrielle's fear of heights. While the soldiers marched underneath, she lay along the crossbeams of the pergolas, clutching the wood with her fingernails. On the other side of the pergola, Xena stood absolutely straight, the shape of her body mingling with the shadow lines cast by moon. Once the soldiers had passed under them, Gabrielle carefully rose to her knees, and then slowly raised herself on her trembling feet. With a nod to Xena, she leapt to the next crossbar, nearly toppling over by overbalancing. Instead of falling, she pushed off to the next, and then the next after that. Xena ran alongside, at first matching her speed, but once it was clear that Gabrielle had found her stride, the warrior increased her pace. Gabrielle began to fall behind, but her blood seemed to be humming as she took in the experience. Above the gardens, she felt as though she was immersed in the night. Her nose caught the scents from bushes, flowers and herbs gathered from around the world at her feet, the stars scattered carelessly above her. Xena had already sped ahead, crossing the beams with an effortless pace that drove Gabrielle to increase her own jumps. She quickly realised that the spacing between the crossbars was the same for both of them, and for once, Xena's longer legs would not give the warrior any advantage.

With a stadium's length still to go, she drew parallel with Xena, and flashing a grin began to pull ahead. Xena increased her own speed, and the two began racing full out. The scents of the garden wafted up, the great dome of the sky surrounding them, Gabrielle felt exhilarated like no time in her life since, since she had been with this woman before. Then one of the pillars moved, and unable to slow her momentum, she began to tumble. Some part of her mind scanned ahead to one of the garden statues, and she laughed as she realised whose it was. She placed a foot on the tip of the helmet of Ares, pushed upwards in a tuck, tumbled and landed perfectly on her right foot on the next pillar without breaking her tempo.

They arrived in a dead heat and as Xena began her patented leap upwards, Gabrielle fired herself forward tucking herself into a ball. She skidded lightly over the earth, and kicked against the ground for one last flip, landing upright on her feet. A split second later, she heard Xena's boots contact the ground behind her. She stared at their relative positions for a moment.

"I beat you." There was wonder in the breathless whisper.

They had landed in front of their target. A sumptuous palace that gave credence to the name. A small entrance led inwards to a sunken garden, lined on three sides by pillared archways. Two of the Emperor's Praetorian Guard stepped forward into the doorway, drawing their swords, only to be lying unconscious on the ground seconds later. They might have been somewhat annoyed to realise that their dispatch had not even caused the two women to pause in their conversation.

"You could have hurt yourself tumbling-"

"I beat you," repeated Gabrielle gleefully as they slipped into the garden. A water feature lined the garden and the quiet gushing of water covered the very slight sounds of their footsteps.

"You got your toga all dirty," Xena whispered.

Gabrielle brushed off the negligible amount of dirt. She grinned.

Xena laughed. "Yes, you beat me."

"YES!" To Xena's increased amusement, Gabrielle began to silently imitate a dance Xena had once done when under the influence of the Furies. She waited while the smaller woman shook her butt and pumped her arms in satisfaction. Finally, she took one arm and said quietly, "you know, that there are hundreds of things you can do better than I, don't you?"

As the thought flashed through Gabrielle's mind ‘No. No, I didn't,' out of the silence came a scrunching sound and both slipped into the shadows of the pillars. Gabrielle's ears identified it as a giant snail being crushed on marble, likely by a hobnailed boot. Before she could congratulate herself on her perspicacity, she realised that Xena probably could have told her the kind of marble and the complete physical build of the soldier treading on the shell. ‘Is that what this is all about now? MY competitiveness and not Xena after all?'

A throat cleared and a modulated voice reached across the garden to them in Latin. "If you're here to speak with me, come forward." The same phrase was repeated in Greek.