Adult-FanFiction.org : Television / Streaming

Home Unknown	By : katecooley Category: S through Z > Xena Views: 15190 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Xena, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
Same junk as before. See part one for all the jargon. As always, thanks for the reviews! And if it helps to read, Hermes has a bit of a Bridge and Tunnel accent, while Strife�s is mostly Dude. Hermes is TOTAL non-canon, since he was a chubby older dude on the show. Here, he�s younger and more reedy.

Part VII - Getting Flighty and Helping Dite

Grumble.

Shift.

Wriggle.

Snort.

Shift.

Wriggle.

Sigh.

Joxer cracked open his left eye, hoping that he at least could roll over and go back to sleep. But the first creeping light of dawn was starting to dissolve the indigo of the night sky. He'd promised himself that he wouldn't dawdle today. Plus, there was a stick that seemed to keep migrating under his back during the night, determined to remind him how utterly rotten it was sleeping on the ground. Especially after having spend the past few nights in an actual bed with actual sheets and an actual pillow in an actual building.

Yeah, on Actual Olympus.

Joxer snickered to himself. If anyone had told him he'd be the gods' own personal go-to-guy this week, he'd have looked at them like they'd lost their last marble. And yet� Maybe he was a marble short lately. Maybe it was all a nice little dream and he'd wake up getting his nose tweaked or something. Maybe�

The pouch still hung on his belt from the tree limb above him, dangling from where he'd slung it. It had only made sense, really. He wasn't going to keep that near him when wild animals could happen by at any given moment, take a sniff and then decide to root around for the thing. Besides, it gave him the creeps. He'd be glad to deliver it to Eris� err, Discord when he got to her temple in the next town. The village he'd been 'working' in had very little in the way of worshipping opportunities and he really wasn't sure how things worked. Could you go to any temple and call a god? It really wasn't praying, just letting her know that the job was done and he had her (ick) proof. He supposed if the temple was a friendly one, belonging to a god or goddess that got along with Discord, then they could pass the message along or get her or whatever. And that brought another question to mind - who got along with Discord? Ares for sure, and maybe Strife, but there was a decided lack of war-type-god ashrams in Nanylos so that left Joxer kind of short. He didn't want to keep Discord waiting, mostly on principle but there was a little 'not-wanting-to-be-gutted' mixed in, and he didn't want to jump in the middle of any family problems, either.

He sighed, straightening himself up a little, retrieving twigs and pebbles and the odd bug from places they didn't belong and dusting himself off. Not bad for a night on the ground. Maybe there�d be a bed waiting for him tonight. That�d be sweet. I could get used to that whole �indoor sleep� thing.

A few jumps and he retrieved the pouch that swung overhead, as pungent and nasty as it had been at dusk. More so, probably. He had to shake a couple of scavenger beetles loose, kicking them off into the brush. "Sorry guys, no poaching. This one�s been promised." A quick check to his boot� yep, still there. Discord wouldn�t be the only one benefiting from this little trip. That foreign guy, Daedelus, had really skittered around for a few steps before dropping to the ground like a stone. The dagger he�d had hidden on him had skipped across the floor and Joxer had scooped it up nice and easy. It wasn�t much to look at, in fact the blade was pretty crusty. What did foreign ambassadors know about the care and cleaning of weapons? He shrugged. The balance was good and once he cleaned it up, it�d be a nice addition to his arsenal. His brown eyes rolled. You mean the �arsenal� Strife turned into confetti? OK. So once he cleaned it up, it�d be a nice starter piece for his arsenal.

Everything checked and ready, Joxer retook the road, heading at a good pace for Discord�s temple. The sooner the better, anyway. He got three steps down the road before the hairs prickled on his neck. Over the past few days, he�d come to know exactly what that meant. A golden flash appeared before him and a slender guy in a toga that was riding up quickly appeared. A quick yank brought it back where it belonged and sparkly blue-gold eyes peered out from under a helm. With wings on it. And matching ones on the heels of his long-laced sandals. The god didn�t land, hovering right in front of Joxer with a tiny hum, like those little birds that always seemed to think Joxer�s ear smelled like a hibiscus or something.

"You Joxer?" the floating blond was chewing on something vigorously. It smelled like beeswax and fruit. How many gods are in on this deal? Joxer nodded quickly and the god chuckled, holding out his hand. "Hermes." Out of polite reflex, Joxer clasped the offered forearm and squeezed genially. "I got some errands to run down here an� I told Rissy I�d pick ya up. No sense in makin� ya smell THAT all day." Hermes squeezed and then nodded to the bundle Joxer still had in his free hand.

"Rissy?"

"Y�know. Short, painted-on leather, broody, rack like no tomorrow, pale like a moon lily� Rissy!" Their mutual grasp loosened enough for The Messenger of the Gods to grab his hand tightly. "Listen, you don�t get seasick, do ya? Cuz this could get messy."

"Well actually, there was this one time�" the rest of Joxer�s tale of nausea and woe was lost as Hermes lifted one leg in preparation and took off.

Greece as a whole zipped by in flashes of color, wonderful greens and blues and red that streaked past Joxer�s vision. His feet wiggled for the ground, eager to toe the dirt, but found none underfoot. A glance down produced lightning-fast brown and green and sometimes grays and blue. And if his feet weren�t touching it� oh, I�m flying! FLYING! More truthfully, he was being dragged like a disobedient kite, but he didn�t want to nit-pick. Not while he was soaring over the known world like a bird. And then, it felt as if the colors were going through him, as if they were passing through all the things in their path. Joxer wondered if this was what it felt like to be a god, to blast through everything as if it were made of nothing more consequential than vapor. It was fantastic.

He decided pretty quickly, though, that stopping was the pits. One second, he was hurtling through the air, tethered only to the lanky young-looking god who had his hand gripped tightly, and the next� every blur came into sharp focus at once, as if it were suddenly created out of the symphony of color that had bombarded him. Every edge around him was pointy. Every smell too strong. Some more than others. They may have stopped in front of a temple, but someone had a pigpen nearby. His feet were tingly and numb from the landing and they made him lurch all over the place. Between that and the sudden jolting stop, all the food Joxer had managed to eat yesterday and the day before was now heading for the exit at top speed. He barely made it to a nearby bush before introducing half-digested Technicolor to the landscape. It took a minute to finish, leaving that sour taste in his mouth that only made him want to throw up all the more. An unhappy groan burbled up instead.

"Sorry, man. I warned ya." A hand rubbed his hunched over back and the queasiness dimmed. "Stick around out here an� get yer wits aboutcha. I�ll be out in a jiff." And the lanky messenger god bounced up the stairs to the bright looking temple, leaving Joxer to sit and catch his breath. Maybe being a god isn�t all so great then. I�d probably puke anytime I had to go somewhere.

It wasn�t long before Hermes jogged back out again, bright smile in place. "One down, kiddo. You ready to go?" Joxer held up his finger, asking for a minute. "Sure, sure. I always forget how hard that is on you mortal-types. When you�re ready."

"You sure I just can�t walk?" Joxer�s voice was a little scratchy from the sudden upchucking session. "There�s got to be a war temple around here somewhere. At least Strife could bring me back�"

"Nuh-uh. I told her I�d cart ya back and cart ya back I will. Just close yer eyes. It�ll make it easier to take." Fingers tightened and Joxer squinched his eyes closed as quickly as he could. The rushing sensation enveloped him again, but without watching, it just seemed like a heavy wind. Before he could even register that, though, they were stopped. He waited a second or two until his feet steadied to open his eyes. Hermes was in front of him, nodding approvingly. "See? I toldja. Hold on here a sec." And he was up the stairs into another temple, parchment in hand. Joxer was surprised, but the need to ralph wasn�t there. Maybe because you threw up your shoes last time. He got the chance to look around. He didn�t recognize the town, but it did look familiar. Maybe he�d been there before. It was a lovely traditional white marble building with impressive columns and inlaid goldwork. Blue threading traced the stone in elegant sweeps and swirls. It was very serene.

Unlike the shriek that came from inside the temple. And if the place seemed familiar, that squeal�

A flurry of diaphanous pink surrounded him and his face was buried ear-deep in cleavage. He wasn�t sure if he was hugging her out of self-preservation or a reflex reaction to her godhood, but it just felt right to squeeze just a little. "Hah Afa�deye-ee." His greeting was just a wee muffled by perfumed bosom.

"Joxiekins! Sweetie! I was wondering where you got to!" Her fingers scrunched his hair a little, affectionately. Just as abruptly as she grabbed him, she pushed him back a step, searing him with a head to toe look of appreciation. "Hermie told me he was escorting you back home, and judging from the new duds, it ain�t your home." The blond goddess� eyes held more than just color - standing this close, Joxer could see the machinations of her mind through them, power swirling in pink whorls through the blue. At least she was smiling. That dampened the whole �raw energy� thing happening. "Now, who in our family likes pants that tight� aside from me, naturally."

"I�m, ah, running an errand for Discord." Joxer shuffled his feet, trying not to look like he�d been caught doing something incredibly naughty. He wasn�t sure if working for Eris counted in that regard.

"Yah, I noticed the smell. How�dja get rooked into that?"

Joxer shrugged, not entirely sure how much he was allowed to talk about. "It�s a favor. For Strife. I� kinda owe him." One lone blond eyebrow lofted in question. "Um, Ares said it was OK."

"Ol� Leather Drawers is getting awful generous with his power sources, ain�t he?" Hermes interjected over Aphrodite�s shoulder, copping a look down her cleavage as well.

"Yeah, well, Joxie�s kinda special." The Love Goddess tweaked his chin and winked even as she shoved the Messenger God away with her elbow.

"Y�know, everyone keeps saying things like that. I don�t get it. How am I so special?" He wanted to sound irritated, but couldn�t manage it in the embrace of Love herself. It just came out sounding wistfully confused.

"You�ll figure it out, sweetie. Just give it a little time." Aphrodite�s smile was warm and her hand was rubbing his back so soothingly. It was impossible not to believe her. "It�ll be worth it. Trust me. In the meantime�" She turned her head, making sure Hermes stayed out of earshot, adjusting his sandal straps and tying and retying them to get the perfect fit. "You think you can do a favor for me, too?"

"I dunno, Aphrodite. I have to get back and give the, ick, package to Discord and then I�m sure Strife�ll have something else for me to do. I never realized how much work he actually has. I mean, I always thought gods just sat around and made things happen from on high, but he really busts his butt!"

"Dying�ll do that for you," she gave a sad little smile, remembering all too well the anguish, both hers and others, that had caused. "He�s been an industrious little booger ever since. So, if he doesn�t say so, let me. Thanks."

"You�re welcome." The wave of unfiltered affection from the goddess made Joxer�s head spin a little. He guessed he should be really surprised. If Cupid liked him, why not his mother? They were, after all, family. He chuckled a little, remembering the wrestling match at breakfast a few days ago and he and Ares� Areeeesss�

"OOH! Thanks, Joxie! I love a good nibble of energy just before my nap!" Aphrodite wriggled against him and he temporarily forgot everything except the sparkling warm deity in his arms. Which made him blush and try and back away a step. "Don�t freak. I won�t tell tales. Besides, if I did, you wouldn�t do me the favor, right?" And that conspiratorial look in her eyes told him that he wasn�t just dealing with a squeaky, wiggly blond here.

"Right. I guess."

"Cool. And don�t worry. It won�t get in the way of whatever Strife�s gonna lob your way. In fact, in the long run, I think he may thank you himself�"

-tbc-
- 6
- 7
- 8
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Home Unknown