crack_van | Triptych Sex by Anima (R)

Fandom: XENA
Pairing: Xena / Gabrielle (and AU versions)
Author on LJ: Unknown
Author Website: Pink Rabbit Consortium Xena Fanfic Archive (scroll down to Anima)

Why this must be read:
An interesting story, that's actually three short stories on a related theme - one in the "classic" Xena universe, and two in alternate universes (AU, which is known as "uber" in the Xena fandom, and is actually canon since there were a couple episodes of the show with the "characters" of Xena and Gabrielle brought into different time periods). The first places places a Xena-like character and a Gabrielle-like character on a train in WWII-era Europe. The second explores the dynamic between Xena and Gabrielle on one of their many rides through the countryside on their way to save the day, and the third bring the two characters into the modern day. The theme tying together the three stories is sex, and so each of the three is basically a sex scene with enough backstory to make it interesting.

One of the hardest parts of an AU / uber story is keeping the characters in character - it can be difficult to keep the core essentials of a personality intact while placing the character in completely different surroundings. Anima does this quite well in this story, especially in the WWII-era piece.

There is also an excellent sequel, "Triptych Home", which revisits the characters in each of the three universes as they go home.

Triptych Sex and Triptych Home