ForevaXena's FanFic . . .
Heaven
On Earth
by Julia Ford
Disclaimers:
The characters Xena, Gabrielle, and company are owned by
MCA/Universal/Renaissance Pictures/Studios USA (have I missed anyone?).
Kennedy and Dawn may seem familiar and I thank X:WP for the inspiration.
Many of the places in
Toronto that are described really exist…come & visit sometime.
Subtext:
Oh yes. If you object to
intimate relationships between two women and/or if it is illegal where you live
or for your age, do not read any further.
Violence:
None worth mentioning.
Thanks:
To Dango for ensuring I don't mangle the English language too much and to FX for
giving my stories a home <g>
Inspiration:
An upcoming double wedding in the Xenaverse <g> and my own journey through
the priesthood.
I’d
love to hear your thoughts about my creative endeavors :-)
I can be reached at
fordju@attglobal.net.
Chapter 9
“Kennedy?”
“Forgive
me for pushing you away. It felt
awful and I just couldn’t believe that I was doing the right thing, but it
took Joanne’s letter to really show me that by turning my back on you I was
ignoring a door that God was opening for me.”
The
blonde, green-eyed woman looked up at Kennedy with tears glistening in here
eyes. “Please, please forgive
me.”
As
she stood looking up at Kennedy, Dawn could see the Priest’s blue eyes soften.
“Dawn,
this decision you’re making…if it’s just for tonight or just the weekend,
or for anything less than recognition we’re soul mates, I need to keep
packing.”
Dawn
didn’t answer in words. Instead
she reached over and took the pair of underwear in Kennedy’s hand and
carefully put it back into the dresser drawer.
Then she stepped closer and wrapped Kennedy in a hug.
Kennedy
resisted the warmth of the hug for a moment or two before relaxing in the other
woman’s arms.
“Are
you sure Dawn?”
It
was Dawn’s quiet, confident “yes” that melted Kennedy’s heart and she
gently kissed Dawn on the top of her head.
Without
another word Dawn led Kennedy away from the room that had a mostly packed
suitcase on the bed down the hall to her own room.
Once there she lit a few candles, turned back the bedclothes looked at
Kennedy and repeated what she had asked earlier.
“Please kiss your Bishop?”
This
time Kennedy did not hesitate.
Much
later Kennedy woke with Dawn nestled into her.
The Priest smiled as she thought about the delightful ways that she and
the Bishop had used to get to know each other (and yes, in the Biblical sense).
Kennedy had been surprised and honoured to discover that she was Dawn’s
first lover. It was with infinite
gentleness that she led Dawn over the threshold to ecstasy.
Dawn had learned quickly and had made Kennedy feel as she had never felt
before. Well, that wasn’t quite
true. Some how what had happened had
caused a tremendous sense of déjà vu for Kennedy.
It certainly wasn’t evocative of any of the men she had shared sex with
over the years. No, it felt like a
past life experience had been touched. Kennedy
couldn’t explain it any better than that.
Still
wakeful Kennedy pondered over the options she and Dawn had to look forward to.
Perhaps they could leave and go to one of the more liberal Diocese in the
Perhaps
they could stay in
**
Earlier
that evening, Dawn and Kennedy were not the only ones trying to work out their
relationship.
Julie
had pretty much given up any hope she ever had that Joanne would ever
acknowledge, let alone do anything about, Julie’s love for her.
So as she walked up the path to Joanne’s front door she figured that
Joanne just needed some reassurance that everything would go well with the
surgery scheduled for the next morning.
“Hi
Jules, come on in,” said Joanne sounding happier than Julie thought she had
ever heard her sound.
“You
seem to be in a good mood, Joanne.”
“Yep,
I sure am.”
“What’s
up?”
“Keep
your shirt on, I’ll tell you in a second,” said Joanne as she grinned to
herself that what she really wanted was for Julie to take her shirt and
everything else off. But first
things first…Joanne had to tell Julie how much she loved her to start with!
As
Julie walked in she was surprised to discover that the lights were dimmed and it
seemed that every candle Joanne owned was lit.
“Not Joanne’s usual style,’ thought Julie.
Waving her arm at the candles she teased, “I didn’t know I was coming
for an ancient Druid ceremony.”
Joanne
grinned and said, “Well, perhaps not Druid, but hopefully something
ancient!” Hooking her arm into
Julie’s she dragged her over to the sofa.
“Please, sit with me.”
“Joanne,
talk to me. What’s going on?”
Talk
the two women did…and much, much more.
**
The
rambling of the announcer on the CBC Radio station was the wake up call for Dawn
and Kennedy. As Dawn slowly woke up
Kennedy feasted her eyes on the loveliness of the blonde woman beside her in the
bed. The urge to just stay in bed
together tugged at both but duty called so they rose, showered (together) and
ate a huge breakfast. Amazing what
exercise before sleep does to one’s appetite!
That breakfast was probably the most cheerful meal that was ever eaten in
the Bishopric as it seemed that neither woman had ever been so happy.
When
Dawn and Kennedy eventually arrived at the office they found a message from
Julie saying that she would be in after Joanne’s surgery.
The two women smiled as they heard the bounce in Julie’s voice.
They could imagine that things had also gone well for Julie and Joanne
the night before.
Dawn
and Kennedy had decided over breakfast that they wouldn’t rush into telling
the world of their newfound love. Not
that they decided to hide, exactly, but they wouldn’t let the other bishops
know just yet. They thought that
they would know when the time was right to speak up.
So, they plunged into their regular work with Kennedy preparing for the
next parish visit and Dawn dealing with a number of appointments that morning.
Dawn,
as she sat in her office, felt as if there was lightness in the air reflective
of her own happiness. She was
surprised that everyone that walked in didn’t see it right away!
Even more surprising to the Bishop was that she had no sense of guilt
over her choosing to love and make love with Kennedy.
It had been right and fitting. It
was several hours later when Dawn was still shaking her head in amazement over
the rightness of it all that the phone rang.
Kennedy
picked it up, “Good morning, Bishop’s office.”
“Kennedy,
we’ve got problems here. I don’t
know when I will get in.” Julie’s voice was cracking with emotion and
Kennedy could sense that she was about to hang up.
“Whoa,
slow down, what happened?”
“Joanne
stopped breathing in the recovery room. They
had a tough time getting her breathing again.
She’s in intensive care now and they are really worried.
Damn – code blue - got to go.” The
phone was hung up with a vengeance.
Kennedy
hung up the phone and as soon as she tapped on Dawn’s door the Bishop knew
something was wrong by the furrow on Kennedy’s brow.
“Kennedy?”
“Joanne
had complications post surgery and is in intensive care.
Julie’s freaking out. I
think at least one of us should go to the hospital to help.”
“Let’s
both go. I just need to make a
couple of calls and reschedule a couple of appointments.”
Kennedy
nodded, went back to her desk and started packing up her briefcase.
It wasn’t long before they were on their way to the hospital.
As she drove, Kennedy looked sideways at Dawn who, despite the worry that
showed on her face, looked absolutely beautiful.
It was as if an inner light had been lit the night before and it was
still glowing strongly.
The hospital, fortunately, was not very far away and soon the Bishop and her Priest were walking towards the intensive care waiting room. Once there they saw Julie sitting in a chair weeping as if her heart were broken in two.
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