They followed the handmaiden through a grove of olive trees to a clearing at the crest of the hill, where a house worthy of a Turkish palace suddenly loomed into view. The white walls and turrets were glazed to an apricot color by the light of the setting sun. The sea wind sloughed through the cypresses that lined the stepped path to the house. The surf pounded the cliff on either side. From where they stood, Xena swore she could see clear across the Aegean to Vesuvius. Argo neighed contentedly behind them, anticipating, already, a hefty bushel of oats for dinner.

"This is a gift from the gods," Gabrielle said in a low voice. "It’ll be so nice to take a real bath and sleep in a real bed."

At the mention of a bath, Xena’s muscles started to ache. But she felt something else, as well, a distinct tightening of her nipples as though soft fingers had suddenly tickled her back. Yes, a bath would be nice.

The doors to Sappho’s home stood wide open, no sentinels posted anywhere in sight, just a boy who took Argo to get rubbed down and stabled. Xena lifted the saddlebags off and slung them over her shoulder, but immediately, another boy rushed out of the shadows to carry the bags to their room.

Gabrielle gasped at the sight of the interior courtyard. The blue and white tiled fountain, the potted flowers, tables and chairs arranged in intimate corners and under the shade of great magnolia trees.

"This is how I’d like to live," Gabrielle said, more to herself than her partner, but Xena heard the nesting tone to her voice loud and clear.

"Too much work," said Xena, though in truth, she was grateful not to have to spend the night on a beach or by a river somewhere. There was a lot to be said for the civilized life, at times.

"More work than fighting for a living?" asked Gabrielle.

"I don’t fight for a living, Gabrielle. I fight to live. That’s the path I’m on, a path you’ve chosen to take with me. It’s not glamorous by any stretch." She tousled Gabrielle’s hair. "But it does have unexpected moments like this one."

The handmaiden led them through yet another courtyard, this one with two pools in it and a grape arbor held up by tall statues of naked men, their marble bodies twined with old vines, their crotches dangling huge clusters of red and green grapes.

Xena bent over and whispered in her lover’s ear: "Hey, Gabrielle, wanna grape?"

Gabrielle jabbed her in the ribs, but laughed aloud anyway.

They walked up a circular staircase to a gallery that overlooked the pools. A row of miniature lemon trees, fragrant with blossoms, took the place of a balustrade.

"This will be your chamber," the handmaiden said, standing outside an arched door. "Sappho wanted to put you in the east tower, far from the central activity of the house, to make sure you weren’t disturbed. Can I get you anything? Refreshments are on their way."

"A bath," said Gabrielle, "if you don’t mind."

"The water’s being poured and scented as we speak. If you think of anything else--"

"Matter of fact," said Xena, sniffing at her underarm, "our clothes could use laundering."

Gabrielle scowled at her. These women weren’t Amazons, at the Queen’s beck and call. "I wouldn’t want to impose," she said.

"Not at all," said the handmaiden. "Just leave out the things you want washed and I’ll have someone take care of it. There are fresh shifts you can use, if you need something to sleep in." She smiled. "If there isn’t anything else, I’ll bid you both good night, then." She reached down to hug Gabrielle and gave Xena a kiss on each cheek. For an instant, Xena expected to feel the tip of the girl’s tongue on her skin, but, alas, it didn’t happen. Good thing, too, given Gabrielle’s eagle eye.

The room was appointed in silks and rich walnut furnishings. A pair of slave girls was just finishing casting the last of the rose petals into the steaming water in the bath. All around the tub, thick candles had been lit, and in between the candles stood different colored bottles of oil and jars of salts, a pile of thick, fresh sponges at the foot of the tub. One of the slaves curtsied to Xena and asked if she needed any help undressing. Before Gabrielle could protest, Xena acceded to the help, and the girl deftly removed the scabbard and breastplate while Xena pulled off her gauntlets and bracers. The other slave followed Gabrielle into the bedroom.

The girl helped her off with her boots and then Gabrielle stepped out of her skirt, halter, and underwear. She pulled out the rest of their clothing from their bags, and threw in their towels and blankets, too. Those hadn’t seen a good washing in weeks. The girl bundled everything up in one of the blankets and curtsied to Gabrielle before leaving the room. She was about to head for the bath, but was stopped by a knock at the door and a voice announcing refreshments. Gabrielle draped herself in a silk sheet from the bed and went to open the door.

It was Sappho, herself, carrying the tray. "I trust you’re making yourselves at home," she said, smiling and eyeing Gabrielle’s covering.

"Thank you so much for your invitation, Sappho. It’s much more than--"

"My pleasure, I assure you." Sappho didn’t let her finish. She swept into the room and set the tray down on the sideboard. "It isn’t every day one gets the opportunity to house the Goddess of Love, the Nine Muses, the Warrior Princess, and the famous Bard of Potidea in one evening. Actually, if I hadn’t given you your little assignment, I’d ask you to entertain us later with one of your stories."

"I’d be happy to oblige," said Gabrielle.

"We’ll see," said Sappho. "These Councils sometimes last all night. May I pour you some wine?"

"Oh, no, really, that’s too much. I can pour it. You’ve done enough, really." Gabrielle’s mouth was watering at the scent of roasted meat and fowl rising from the tray.

"Very well," said Sappho, "I’ll leave you to your bath." She let her gaze linger a little longer than necessary on the soft swell of Gabrielle’s breasts under the silk wrap. "That fabric suits you," she added.

Gabrielle blushed and thanked her again, and found herself wishing that Sappho would kiss her goodnight, which she didn’t. Just the slightest graze of her fingers on Gabrielle’s shoulder that gave the bard goose bumps. After Sappho had gone, Gabrielle touched her hand to her chest and was surprised at the quick beating of her heart. She’d never felt such instant attraction to any woman other than Xena, a woman as feminine as herself and yet with Xena’s same, almost feral, sensuality.

"Gabri-elle?" Xena called out. "What’s taking you so long?"

Gabrielle lifted the clay jug--in the shape of a woman’s torso, she couldn’t help but notice--and poured their cups full to the brim. The wine smelled of cinnamon and blackberries. She carried the cups into the bath and found Xena already neck-deep in the rose petals, her face flushed from the steam, and the slave girl pouring water over her hair with a conch shell.

"I can do that," Gabrielle said, feeling her usual twinge of jealousy at the sight of any woman getting familiar with Xena. The girl bowed, collected Xena’s shift and knickers from the floor, and left them alone.

"Ah, wine," sighed Xena, holding out her hand to take her cup. "Please, I’m so thirsty."

"You should see the food," said Gabrielle, unwrapping the silk around her and letting it slip to the floor.

"I’m looking at it," said Xena, tongue inching out between her lips.

"First we wash, Xena," said Gabrielle, "you know the rules." She stepped seductively into the tub, pointed toe first, followed by sleek calf, tanned thigh, blond pubis, tight torso, full white breasts, nipples like pink rosebuds. Xena almost came just looking at her. Gods, she loved looking at her sweet young bard.

Gabrielle moaned as the hot water penetrated her tired muscles. Xena gulped down her wine. After soaking for a bit, they took turns rubbing each other down, first with the salts, then the oils. They lathered each other’s hair with the lavender-scented soap, scrubbing hard at the scalp, shaping the lather into tall bouffants and Medusa-like coils, laughing like girls at their silly creations. For a final touch, they layered rose petals on their cheeks and eyelids and let their heads float back in the water.

"Sweet Artemis," Gabrielle breathed through her mask of petals, "thank you for this gift."

Xena slipped down into the water for a last rinse. "Are we clean enough, now?" she said when she came back up, her eyes gleaming silver with desire.

Gabrielle reached out with her foot and parted Xena’s thighs, letting her toes wriggle into the dense patch of hair there. Xena shivered as Gabrielle’s big toe hit the spot.

"Oooh," said Gabrielle, "someone’s juicy."

Xena lifted Gabrielle’s foot out of the water, and brought it up to her lips, kissing each toe, first, before suckling it. Gabrielle crooned with pleasure, her hands already beginning to fondle herself.

"So what story are you gonna tell me," Gabrielle murmured. "Remember, we have homework."

"Thought you’d never ask," said Xena, pulling that irresistible little body towards her in the water. "I’ve got just the thing." Gabrielle’s legs wrapped around Xena’s waist and Xena held onto the round, sleek globes of the bard’s buttocks. Unbeknownst to Gabrielle, she’d tucked a favorite toy between her legs which she could squeeze without needing any other manipulation.

"Remember that night with the Bacchae?"

"Are you kidding? How could I forget?"

"Do you remember when Joxer rescued you from that bar?"

"Joxer rescued me?"

"See what I mean? You don’t remember. Least not the early stuff. You were under the spell of those two women you were dancing, with. Really nice moves, too, by the way. Too bad you couldn’t see yourself, and the way those Bacchae were lusting after you. If I hadn’t been afraid they were gonna take a bite outa you any minute, I wouldn’t have let Joxer interfere. Quite a show. Even straight-laced Orpheus was impressed."

"I remember walking into the bar, the music was awesome, I’d never heard music like that before, all that syncopation that seemed to be shaking the house. And there were all these women dancing together. But I don’t remember dancing. With two women, huh? Were we dancing close?"

"Like a sandwich, and you were the meat." Xena slid a hand over Gabrielle’s silky breast.

"Hmm?" said Gabrielle, nuzzling Xena’s wet neck. "Sounds like a picnic."

"You know what else you don’t remember? Didn’t you ever wonder how you became a Bacchae in the first place?"

Gabrielle pursed her lips. "I was always confused about that, but since we never talked about it, I let it go." She shrugged, and nibbled on Xena’s earlobe. "I chalked it up to just another one of those weird experiences in my travels with Xena."

She tilted her head sideways and Xena kissed her, sliding her tongue in and out of the bard’s mouth.

"You taste so good," said Gabrielle.

"Maybe that’s why that woman took a bite out of me," Xena joked.

"Why didn’t you tell me right away that you’d gotten bitten? I remember Joxer thinking you were going to become a Bacchae because he saw the wound on your neck."

"One of the Bacchae managed to get a fang into me before I wasted her, but I wasn’t really worried that I’d become one, since it wasn’t a real bite, just a taste."

Gabrielle ran her teeth along the vein in Xena’s neck. "Good thing I didn’t see that," she growled, "or the bitch would’ve felt my staff in her face."

"You were too busy flirting with those two women to care what I was up to," said Xena, squeezing the firm flesh of Gabrielle’s ass cheeks into a two-fisted pinch.

"Mmmm," said Gabrielle. "I like it when you get jealous. Then what happened?"

"Well, that night, after we set up camp and ate that strange turnip stew you prepared for us--I knew something was wrong with me when you cut yourself and I felt this instant urge to suck the blood from your finger. Anyway, after Orpheus totally pissed me off blaming me for Eurydice’s death for the hundredth time, remember I left?"

"I remember you almost sliced Joxer’s head off with your knife. I told Joxer you only throw knives when you’re really upset, so he’d better leave you alone and not follow you if he knew what was good for him."

"Yeah, he woulda lost a body part that night if he’d followed me. I went for a walk to calm myself down, make sure there weren’t any Bacchae following us, and when I came back, the fire was banked and you’d already spread out our blankets on the other side of the tree. I thought you were asleep so I crept into bed as quietly as I could, and then I realized you were still awake, sort of. You wanted me to tell you what it had felt like, to be bitten by a Bacchae. There was a quality to your voice that made me doubt you were really awake, more like talking in your sleep, as you tend to do, and then I realized you were doing more than talking. Your hand was humping away under the blanket."

"Xena!" Gabrielle pinched Xena’s nipples. "You’re making that up!"

"Am not. You said you didn’t know what was wrong with you, but that you just couldn’t get that image out of your mind, the image of being bitten, so you wanted me to tell you how it was, and I understood that, somehow, you were still under the influence of the Bacchae spell, and that you wanted me to help you, you know, get there, so I said, ‘if ya want, I can show ya.’ That sure got a rise out of you. ‘But you have to keep your voice down,’ I whispered, ‘we don’t want Joxer to wake up.’"

Gabrielle had started sucking on Xena’s neck, pulling at the flesh delicately through her teeth. Xena felt a streak of heat run through her loins at the memory of Gabrielle masturbating, and her thighs got to work.

"And then what happened?" Gabrielle murmured.

"I kissed you and your mouth was all over me like you hadn’t eaten in weeks. I massaged your breasts hard, keeping one hand clamped over your mouth because you had started to make noise. You had your legs spread wide under the blanket and who knows what was going on down there, but from the juicy sound of it, I could tell you were working it, big time. Each time I released your mouth, you said ‘Bite me, Xena. Bite me, hard.’"

By now, Gabrielle’s hips had started to grind against her, and Xena’s fingers were exploring the soft crack between the oil-sleek cheeks.

"And then, what?" Gabrielle’s voice was thick as honey.

"Of course you hadn’t bitten me, yet, so there was no way for me to know how good that really felt, to have those teeth buried in your vein like that, to have your blood slurped out of you, but I guess I must’ve been convincing, because you sure liked it when I started sucking on your neck. I did it gently, at first, cuz I didn’t know how much pain you could really take, but your breath was all quivery and your hand was going wild under the blanket, sound of a juicy cunt --"

Her right hand had found the wet entrance between Gabrielle’s wide-open legs, and she jammed her thumb into the squirming bard, slipping the tip of her middle finger into Gabrielle’s anus at the same time. The double-impale move that she’d perfected in the bath.

"Oh yes, Xena, yessss!" Gabrielle clenched her thighs tight around Xena’s hand.

"--and you’re whispering, ‘harder, do it harder, let me feel your teeth.’ So I pressed my mouth down as hard as I could until I felt your skin break--"

At that, she felt Gabrielle’s teeth break the skin of her own neck as she rode Xena’s wrist like a saddle.

"--and at that point, I just let myself go. I don’t know if I turned into a Bacchae, or what, but I latched on to you and sucked your blood till you shuddered--"

Gabrielle was shuddering now. "Oh, Xena, oh Xena, oh Xena," she kept saying.

"--so hard and loud I had to cover your mouth with mine to keep you from yelling out." Xena doubled over with her own climax, remembering how she’d kept time with Gabrielle that night.

Gabrielle’s legs untwisted from around Xena’s back and she slipped a hand down between her lover’s thighs. "Hey!" she said, pinching Xena’s nipples again. "The old sponge trick again, huh?"

"I’m starving," said Xena, grinning with a tad of mischief at having tricked Gabrielle. "Water sports make me ravenous."

"Food must be cold by now." Gabrielle looked disappointed that Xena had come without her help.

"So’s this water," said Xena.

Gabrielle stepped out of the tub, but Xena pulled her back in and gave her another long, deep kiss. "You’re not getting off that easy," she said, winking. "There’s more where that came from. I promise."

"First, we dry, then we eat," said Gabrielle. "Then we’ll see if you can still keep a promise."

Xena couldn’t resist smacking Gabrielle’s wet butt when she stepped out of the tub.