Ages Apart
by dawnm
Mochas & More
[reviews]
Title: Ages Apart
Author's Note: Please read and review. I'd love to know what you think of the story. Also, feel free to email me with any questions or comments if you like. Email: dawnm92@yahoo.com.
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Chapter 5 - Mochas & More
The mochas were a hit. Gabrielle enthusiastically drank hers while Xena took only a cautious sip or two, unaccustomed to such a sweet drink. Buffy, Willow and Gabrielle chatted animatedly while Xena looked on.
"Mochas are wonderful." Gabrielle exclaimed, looking a little disappointed as she finished the last of her drink.
"You can have the rest of mine, Gabrielle." Xena offered, smiling at the bard's enjoyment of the drink. "I'm not really that thirsty."
"Are you sure, Xena?" Gabrielle asked.
"It's all yours." Xena replied, sitting the cup down in front of her friend.
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About an hour later, the group was back at Willow's house, heading upstairs to Willow's room. "Buffy, I've got some spell books that you can look through if you want. And I will go online and search for any information I can find on reversal spells."
"What do you want us to do?" Xena asked, anxiously.
"I don't know." Willow replied. "There's not really much you can do to help with this."
"Why don't you guys just relax and watch some TV or something." Buffy suggested.
"Actually, it might be nice to wash up a little." Gabrielle said.
"Yeah...a bath would be great." Xena agreed.
"Sure." Willow said, leading the two women to the bathroom down the hall. Buffy watched as Willow took a fresh bar of soap from the cabinet and handed it to Gabrielle, then offered a quick demonstration of how the faucets and shower in the bathtub worked.
"Great. Thanks." Xena said, confident that she and Gabrielle could figure it out.
"Okay. Just make yourselves at home. There's plenty of hot water." Willow said. "Oh, and let me get you some fresh towels." She added, heading out of the bathroom.
Xena and Gabrielle followed Willow down the hall to the linen closet and took the towels that she offered them. "If you need anything else, just let us know." Willow said as she and Buffy headed to her room at the end of the hall.
"Hot water...flowing right into the bathtub any time you want it. Can you believe it, Xena?" Gabrielle said as they re-entered the bathroom.
"It's different here alright. No horses far as I can tell. Fire to cook on without wood. And all the hot water you could ever want just flows out of the wall into the bathtub." Xena replied, shaking her head at the wonder of it all.
"It's wonderful, isn't it?" Gabrielle said as she started to undress.
"It's nice I suppose." Xena answered distractedly.
"What is it, Xena?" Gabrielle asked, sensing the warrior's distant thoughts.
"Oh...I just miss Argo. That's all."
"Don't worry, Xena. I'm sure she's all right. And she'll be there when we get back."
"Yeah. You're right." Xena agreed, fumbling with the buttons of her shirt.
"Here, let me help with that." Gabrielle offered, working the buttons of the shirt with ease, sending the warrior's pulse racing with her touch.
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Xena adjusted the water temperature and turned on the shower as Willow had shown them. Both warrior and bard climbed into the bathtub. "It's like having your own personal waterfall, Xena." Gabrielle remarked, clearly enjoying the experience.
"Yes, I guess it is." Xena replied, smiling fondly at her friend. "You always find the good in every situation, Gabrielle." The warrior noted.
"I try to." Gabrielle said. "It's the little things in life that really count. There are always hard times, problems...so much pain. It's important to enjoy every moment that you can."
"If more people shared your ideas, the world would be a much happier place." The warrior commented.
"You think so, Xena?" Gabrielle asked, cocking her head to the side, searching the warrior's eyes.
"Yes, I do." Xena said sincerely. "Now, would you hand me the soap before I shrivel up here?"
"Of course." Gabrielle responded, turning into the stream of water to search the shelves at the front of the bathtub for the bar of soap.
In her quest for the soap, Gabrielle bumped the cold water faucet.
"What did you do, Gabrielle?" Xena asked irritated. "The water is getting cold."
"I don't know." Gabrielle admitted. "Which one is the hot water? I'll turn it up."
"No, I'll do it." Xena said. "Switch places with me."
Gabrielle stepped past Xena and the warrior moved to the front of the stall to confront the faucets. "You're right, the water is cold. Did you find it yet, Xena?" Gabrielle prodded, dancing impatiently under the stream of cold water.
"Yep, I've got it." Xena replied triumphantly, giving the hot water dial a healthy turn.
When the stream of hot water hit her, Gabrielle let out a loud shriek and jumped toward Xena, trying to escape the searing downpour.
Hearing the scream, the slayer instinctively sprang into action. She was off the bed and down the hall within seconds, with Willow right behind her, as she flung open first the bathroom door and then the shower curtain.
This elicited another surprised scream from Gabrielle, who still clung to Xena, frozen in place. Willow jumped, went into full babble-mode consisting mostly of a string of incoherent apologies, and tried to avert her eyes from the sight of the two very naked women in her shower. She slowly backed out of the bathroom as the blush crept up her cheeks until her face was as red as her hair.
Buffy, not so easily shocked, simply offered an apologetic smile. "Oh, sorry. I heard a scream and I thought something was wrong. I, uh, didn't mean to interrupt." The slayer added, trying to stifle a laugh, and stepping back to vacate the bathroom.
"Nothing to worry about. We were just having a little trouble getting the temperature right." Xena explained, fumbling for the shower lever and finally stopping the hot stream.
"Yeah." Gabrielle said, laughing nervously as she let go her hold on Xena and took a step back once the shower had stopped.
Straightening to her full height, Xena offered a tight smile, "I think we can handle things from here."
"Oh totally. Sorry guys." Buffy said with a smile and a small wave, retreating from the bathroom to join Willow who still stood shocked in the hallway. When the bathroom door was securely closed, Buffy turned to Willow and her smile faded slightly when she saw the look on her friend's face. "Hey, Will...you okay?" Buffy asked.
"Oh, yeah...sure. Perfect, Buffy." Willow babbled as she hurried back to her room with Buffy following after her.
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Moments later, with the water temperature under control, the warrior and bard continued their shower. Meanwhile, Buffy and Willow were settled on Willow's bed in research mode. Buffy sat cross-legged casually flipping through a book of spells, while Willow lay on her stomach with her laptop in front of her trying, without success, to forget what she had seen and concentrate on the task at hand.
"Buffy..."
"Yeah, Will?"
"Oh...nothing." Willow answered, not sure how to broach the subject of what they had just seen.
"Come on, Will. Something's obviously on your mind." Buffy prodded, closing the book and shifting on the bed to catch her friend's gaze. "Spill." The slayer insisted.
"Uh, I was just a little surprised I guess...that they were in the shower, you know...together."
"Yeah, I know." Buffy said with a laugh.
"Do you think..." Willow started, her voice trailing off before she finished her question.
"I don't know." Buffy answered honestly, sensing what Willow had been trying to ask. "It's obvious they're close. But maybe it's just normal where they are from to bathe with other people."
"Maybe." Willow conceded. "Anyway, they're really nice, don't you think?" she added, changing the subject.
"Yep, they're totally nice. Gabrielle reminds me a little of you, actually." Buffy said.
"That's funny. Today when you were sparring, I was thinking how much you and Xena have in common."
"That was fun." Buffy admitted. "It was kind of like when Faith came to town." Buffy added, attempting a laugh, "That is before she started killing people and decided to join the bad guys."
"I'm sorry, Buffy. I know it's been hard for you...things with Faith."
"S'okay." Buffy replied with a smile, trying to lighten the mood. "I just meant...it's kind of nice to have a sparring partner again. Xena's really nothing like Faith."
"Oh, I know. I mean Faith can fight, but she's so full of anger...she's completely out of control."
"Xena, on the other hand, is very much in control." Buffy noted. "She's smart and strong, very focused...let's just say I'm glad that she's on our side."
"Yeah, me too." Willow agreed with a laugh.
"So, what do you think? Should we get back to the research?"
Willow nodded. "I'll contact some of Miss Calendar's friends online and see if they know any spells that might work."
"Good idea. Meanwhile, I guess I should hit the books."
-------------------------------------- Continued in Chapter 6