Who Would I Be Without You

The warrior left the man gazing after her. She couldn't respond to his
question. "Who are you" the man had asked. Xena had started to reply,
but was suddenly cut off by the overwhelming feeling that she didn't
know who she was. She knew that she was a mighty warrior. She also knew
she battled the ugliness of the world. But what still puzzled her was
her motives---What gave her the right to fight for goodness? Was it for
her own sake-to make up for her sins of the past? This is truly what she
had believed at one time. Now she was not sure. But she was also not
confident about the feeling in herself that her fight was simply for the
best of the people she seemed to help daily.

Deep in thought, she hadn't noticed Gabrielle catching up with her. As
she tapped her on the shoulder, Xena spun around, face to face with the
answer she had been searching for. As she looked into the eyes of her
friend, Xena felt the overwhelming sense of unsureness disappear. The
light that radiated from Gabrielle's eyes was a reminder of the light
she was reaching for in her own life. Gabrielle had a spirit like no
other, because she did know herself well enough to answer the question
of who she was. What meant the most to Xena was that Gabrielle gave her
reasons for her actions, and shows her the light that comes after the
darkness. This light and knowledge always amazes Xena, and Xena at once
knew this was her source.

With Gabrielle so close like this, Xena could almost feel herself
pulling away from the darkness and closer to that light. So, Xena stared
intensely into the light in Gabrielle's eyes, and then smiled.
Gabrielle smiled back, and asked, "Xena, what are you thinking?"
It only took a minute for Xena's reply, "Who would I be without you?"

Shuna