Another Way

by The Huntress

Authors Rantings: I've made my own little timeline here....

Disclaimer: Yeah...sure...okay. For legal reasons, I hereby state that I don't own Hercules, Iolaus, or any of the other characters I write about. I just play with them, have fun with them, and let them indulge in any and all pleasures they choose. Which is why they like me better then TIIC.

Authors Rantings: I've made my own little timeline here....

Another Way

by The Huntress

It had been a lousy night for the hunter. Sleeping on the cold ground was bad enough, but it was worse when you slept alone.

It had been an interesting week. The demigod was suffering from a bad case of the runs, brought on from one to many servings of possum stew, when word came that a warlord was running loose in Linthius. It took a while, but Iolaus managed to convince his partner that he could handle it, and for Herc to rest. Stubborn as he was, the demigod finally agreed, after secretly having a talk with Artemis that she would keep an eye on Iolaus.

And now, Iolaus was two days from home, and kicking himself over declining the use of a horse.

He woke that morning, and reached for his lover, groaning when he realized that Herc wasn't there. That put a damper on his good mood for the day. He stood, washing in a nearby stream, and the hairs on the back of his neck stood.

'Aww c'mon,' he thought. 'It's been four days of peace and quiet...I wanna go home to Herc!' Shouts and screams, and the sounds of fists on bare flesh brought him to a clearing where he found three marauders beating on a man who was laying on the ground. Quickly jumping into the fray, Iolaus quickly took care of the three, sending them running into the woods. He helped the man up, quickly surveying him, his gut telling him that the man was not dangerous.

"They got your sword," Iolaus stated. "And your other stuff."

"I don't have a sword...or anything else. I've just arrived here, and I got directions to Corinth, but I guess I got lost."

Iolaus shook his head. "Well, whoever gave you this path, should have told you it's a haven for robbers. I'm on my way to Corinth too...well to Thebes. But Corinth is on the way. You want some company?"

"I guess," the man answered. "You seem harmless enough." He smiled at Iolaus and got a grin in return.

"That's what I'm told. Yep, harmless Iolaus they call me."

"Iolaus? She told me about you...made it a point to tell me that if I ever came here, and couldn't find her, to search for you or Hercules, and that you could help me find her." He laughed. "She also said that you...that you...well never mind what she said."

Iolaus raised an eyebrow, grabbed the man by the arm, and spun him around. "*Who* said what about me? And it's not true, you know. Whatever *she* said...it's a lie."

"Oh really? She said that you were a good person to have at your side if I was in trouble...apparently, judging by what just happened, she was right."

"Oh," Iolaus answered sheepishly. "And just who is your friend? And what else did she say about me?"

"Her name is Gabrielle...and Xena said the same thing. But Joxer, well, he said...."

"Wait a second...who are you? And what did Joxer say?"

"Joxer said you're all hands, but if I said no, you'd leave me alone...as for me, my name is Eli."

"Eli?" Iolaus asked. "What are you doing *here*? Shouldn't you be, I don't know, in India or Chin or someplace?"

"Probably. But I had this urge to see Greece. I've never been here...Gabrielle sometimes went on and on about how friendly the people were, how good the food is...you know, the usual stuff."

Iolaus giggled. "So you came here and got beaten up. Sounds like me *wherever* I travel. Look, I happen to know that Xena and Gabrielle are in Corinth for Jason's birthday. Why don't we surprise them? And maybe we can compare notes, sort of speak. I did a little traveling in the East. It would be nice to talk to someone about it for a change."

As they walked, the conversation moved to many things, from the meditation techniques of Vishnu to the spiritual separation of mind and body, to Gabrielle's breast size. This last subject had both men in a daze as they wondered how she kept them inside her tiny bodice.

"You'd have to ask Xena," Iolaus laughed. "She's the only one allowed to touch 'em."

Eli grinned. "I am a man of peace, I will not fight, in any way shape or form...but I am still a man. I have yet to claim the oath of celibacy as some other...men of the cloth. And I spent one night in a cold river while the two of them...exercised."

"Did you watch?" Iolaus asked innocently.

"NO!"

"Oh...your loss." Iolaus shrugged. "They are a sight to see, let me tell you."

They finally decided to stop for the night, finding a clearing suitable enough to build a fire. While Eli worked on that, Iolaus went to get food, returning shortly after.

"I figure you don't eat meat, so I grabbed some fruit for you. Me, I gotta have meat. So I got two rabbits. I'm gonna skin 'em and roast 'em, and enjoy myself."

"You do that," Eli told him. "I'm going to take a walk and eat while you...prepare your dinner. I need a bath." He picked up an apple. "Some nourishment would be nice."

"Here." Iolaus reached into his pack and tossed him a towel. "By the time you get back, I'll be finished."

By the time Eli got back, not only was Iolaus finished cooking his dinner, he was finished eating it too. He sat against a tree, his eyes staying on his feet, lest his libido take over for the rest of him.

Sexual magnetism was something the hunter had in abundance, and Hercules had long ago given up the idea that Iolaus would sleep only with him. About the only reason Herc put up with Iolaus and his sexual proclivities was the fact that he knew he owned Iolaus' heart and soul...but not his body.

Unfortunately, the hunter knew of his lover's feelings and often denied his wants and needs in deference to the love and respect he felt for the demigod. But the man sitting on the other side of the fire, clad only in a towel, was making his cock twitch. Iolaus couldn't help it. He let his eyes stare into Eli's for a while, then allowed them to wander down his body, smiling as Eli's body turned different shades of red under the hunter's scrutiny. He stood, and moved to the other side of the fire, kneeling before Eli.

"I don't want to piss off a demigod. Xena had told me that you and Hercules were..." Eli's voice got low. "...that you belong to him."

"I do." Iolaus answered flatly. "And what Joxer said..." Iolaus moved closer. "He was right. You say no, I will leave you alone." He began to stroke Eli's hair, twirling his fingers in it. "Your hair is soft." He pushed it aside, and leaned in to nibble at Eli's neck. "Have you ever made love under the stars?" Before Eli could answer, the hunter's mouth was upon his, but Eli abruptly pushed him away.

Iolaus sat up, and moved back to his side of the fire; it was now his turn to blush. "I'm sorry. Herc says sometimes I get a little overzealous, and he's right. I had no right to do that. I'll just go to sleep now." He folded his arms, and leaned back, letting his mind drift, and allowing himself to fall into slumber.

He woke in the morning, seeing no sign of Eli. 'Great. I scared him off. He'll get beaten up again, Xena will find out, and she'll kick my ass.' He heard a noise behind him, and turned, ready to fight, instead finding Eli there, smiling at him. Eli held two fish, and handed them to Iolaus.

"If you can cook them, I'd be happy to eat them."

Iolaus laughed. "You eat real food...good. I'd be happy to cook them. Oh, about last night...."

"No harm done," Eli said. "Actually, I thought it was flattering."

"Good, I'm glad. I thought I scared you or something." Iolaus threw the fish on a spit and put them over the fire. "Joxer told me you resurrected them, but you don't know how."

Eli stared at him. "You seem to accept it easily. Most people would laugh and say it was ridiculous."

"Not to a guy that's been dead four times." He grinned as Eli choked on a mouthful of water. "Yeah...I said *four* times. Nothing shocks me anymore."

"Dead?" Eli asked, eyes wide.

"Yeah...dead. As in kicked the bucket, laid to rest, six feet under...you know...*dead*." Iolaus removed the fish and handed one spit to Eli. "You okay with that?"

Eli shrugged. "Sure...if I could resurrect Xena, I could accept the fact that you've been dead...*four* times."

"Good," Iolaus said. "Now, we finish eating, and head west. I have no dinars for an inn, so we have to spend another night outside...sorry."

"That's okay," Eli replied. "I'd like to talk to you some more about out-of-body experiences."

"And I'd like to learn more about your body," Iolaus said, then blushed. "I mean, your experiences...out of body ones."

'I bet you would,' Eli thought. Aloud, "It should make for some interesting conversation."

The sun was setting and they stopped again to make camp, finding a clearing by a lake. The talk of the day had been filled with philosophies, and shared spiritual experiences, and Iolaus was giddy from having someone to talk to about his own experiences, someone who understood. Iolaus quickly made a fire, and the two men stripped, going to the lake to wash.

Iolaus had been practicing his swimming, and headed off to the middle of the lake. Eli however, was a good swimmer, and headed underwater, toward Iolaus. He grabbed Iolaus by the ankles and pulled him under, and Iolaus panicked. He kicked out, getting loose and headed for the surface, managing to grab a breath before Eli pulled him under again. This time he kicked out more viciously, kicking Eli in the face, and swam up, gasping for air, and heading for shore. Eli came up a moment later, wiping the blood from his nose, and followed the hunter out. He didn't know what to make of the man in front of him.

Iolaus was sitting on the blanket, and he was shaking. "Herc said I wasn't ready for deeper water...I thought I could do it, but you grabbed me...and I got scared." A few tears ran down the hunter's cheeks. "Herc...shit, if I died again...he'd go to Hades or Michael or whoever and get me back. Just so he could kill me for doing this."

Eli built up the fire. "You're just learning how to swim, I take it. I would have thought...."

Iolaus cut him off. "What? That because I'm a...a *hero*...that I should know how to swim? Well, I don't. Never been too good at it. It's just the past few months Herc insisted I learn." The tears were ebbing, and Iolaus was breathing more evenly.

Eli wrapped a towel around himself, bringing one to the hunter. "Actually, what I was going to say was that I would have thought with all the water around here, you would have learned sooner." He took Iolaus' towel and began to dry the hunter's body.

When the towel brushed the hunter's nipples, Iolaus took Eli's hand in his own, and looked into his eyes. "Do you want this?" he whispered.

"Yes...." Eli moaned, pressing his mouth upon Iolaus'. Iolaus brought his hands around, wrapping them in Eli's hair, pulling him deeper into the kiss. Iolaus finally released him, grabbing both towels, and flinging them aside. He touched his fingertips to Eli's face, moaning as Eli's tongue snaked out and began to lick said fingers when they brushed his lips. Iolaus suddenly grabbed Eli by the hair again, and pulled their mouths together.

Eli's fingers were doing some exploring of their own; they moved down Iolaus' body, ever so lightly grazing the nipples, stroking down the taut abdomen, then caressing the waist. Iolaus gasped, waiting for the touch to his hard cock, but Eli's fingers moved back up his body. Iolaus broke the kiss ever so briefly, moaning, "more," and returning his lips to Eli's.

Eli pushed him onto his back, not breaking the kiss, covering Iolaus' body with his own. He raised himself on his palms, looking into Iolaus' eyes. "Hercules...he's not going to...I mean, I'm not going to end up in pain or anything, am I?"

Iolaus raised an eyebrow at him. "Herc? The man's a pussycat...except for this one time when Ares tied me to a saddle. Don't ask."

"Good." Eli's voice was deep as he leaned down, capturing Iolaus' mouth again. "I don't need an angry demigod after me." Another kiss, and his mouth moved down Iolaus' body, slowly tasting every inch of the hunter. Reaching his nipples, Eli laved each one, sucking and nipping, until Iolaus began to push against him. Further down, kisses on the abdomen, and further still, until Iolaus felt the hot breath on his cock. He arched up, and Eli took Iolaus' cock deep into his throat, causing the hunter to fall back, his moan echoing through the woods. "I take it you like that." Iolaus only moaned some more, pulling Eli's mouth back. A few minutes of this, and Iolaus was thrashing about, then Eli's mouth moving away. He took Iolaus' hands in his, interlocking their fingers, and the two men stared into each other's eyes.

They were both drifting, their breathing the same, and both felt their spirits rising, until both were floating above their bodies. They nodded to each other, no words necessary, and their bodies became as one, moving through one another.

The passion blazed within the two of them, and, after a while, both came back to themselves, to their physical beings.

Iolaus came to full awareness first, seeing that Eli was still recovering. Before Eli knew what was happening, Iolaus had him on his back, and was raining kisses down his body, and this time it was Eli who was moaning and thrashing about. Iolaus' mouth on his cock, sucking hard, then shifting, his hand now on Eli's cock, whispering, "Give to me...."

Eli came over Iolaus' hand and the hunter took his hand, spreading the seed on his own wanting cock, while his other hand continued to give Eli pleasure. Slowly spreading Eli's legs, Iolaus eased himself inside, his eyes not leaving Eli's, their breathing matched again.

Sheathing himself fully, Iolaus slowly pulled out, pushing back in at the same slow pace. But his body wanted more, and he began to take Eli harder and faster, his breathing labored, his hand on Eli's cock again, stroking him at the same pace, smiling as the cock in his hand swelled anew. His teeth on his lower lip, biting until it bled, and Iolaus came with a fury, taking Eli over the edge with him.

He collapsed, satiated, and kissed Eli softly, smiling at him. "I...I haven't felt anything like that since Chin." He pulled Eli into his arms. "It was...I don't know how to describe it."

Eli smiled back. "What about Hercules? From what Xena said, you stop just short of worshipping the ground he walks on."

"Nah," Iolaus giggled. "I *do* worship it. But Herc, I've been trying for years to teach him how to do that...you know, leave his body and experience the ecstasy. But he never had the patience to learn."

"Maybe when we get to Corinth, I can help you out. I've been known to teach even the most stubborn of people many things." He yawned, and started to drift off.

"Yeah," Iolaus murmured. "That would be nice...."

He drifted off, his mind having visions of everything they could teach Hercules when they arrived in Corinth...it would be fun.

THE END