Achilles Goes Home
Title: Achilles Goes Home
WC: 1001
Characters: Achilles, Patroclus, Hektor
Rating: PG
Summary: Achilles decides to go back to Sparta instead of fighting in Troy, with some interesting consequences.
Notes: Written as a Pinch-Hit for Aderam in the Yuletide 2008 Challenge
Achilles was tired. Of war. Of living in a tent.
He packed up, strolled back home. Patroclus came with him. It was a long journey home, but Achilles didn't do war without end very well. Especially when he wasn't allowed to fight properly.
"I could take Hektor."
"I thought Hektor was a friend."
"Don't be silly, Pat, Hektor stole the wife of the King of Sparta."
"No, no no. That was his brother."
"See, this is why I came home. His brother can do whatever he wants. Now, what are we going to do to occupy ourselves? There are plenty of young, hot, women around ..."
"Don't be daft, Ach. No-one can know we snuck home. You, sneaking home from the glories of war! And making me come with!"
Achilles laughed, rubbed Patroclus' head. "Don't be stupid, Pat. You could have stayed."
Patroclus pouted, "But I didn't stay. I came home. And rightly so. To be with you."
Neither man said anything for a moment, both of them looked at each other carefully. Then, both of them, without saying a word to the other, embraced for a long kiss.
"Well, Achilles said carefully once they had broken away. "That was sort of unexpected."
Patroclus was inclined to agree.
*
News of the war slowly filtered their way back to them.
"What do you meanTroy won?"
"Hektor's a formidable foe."
"Paris?"
"You know he can't fight."
"Dammit. Dammit! I could have had victory!"
"But Hektor's a friend."
"That he is. And now he's going to be the King of Troy. I can't very well go and take him out. What about Helen?"
"He let her go as a sign of good faith. She should be back with Menelaus soon. Once they get home."
"Good, in the meantime, let's fuck."
Achilles, it seemed, was rather easy to please.
*
"We should go to Troy."
"The war's been over for years, Pat. The gods are appeased, Hektor's happy. What more could you possibly want?"
"I mean, to pay our well wishes. He's just had another child. A little girl this time."
"Is her name Helen?"
"No, Ach. It's not Helen."
"Well, then, why do I care?"
"He's your friend."
"So you keep mentioning."
Truth be told, Achilles was scared to go to Troy. Not because he was scared anyone there would do anything to him, but scared of what Patroclus would do with ... oh, anyone there. Scared of what he'd do to Hektor if they were together. Scared of challenging that pansy Paris to a fight.
*
"Sparta and Troy, great friendly empires," Hektor beamed at his two guests. "Isn't that right?"
"That's something, that's for sure," Achilles muttered.
Patroclus glowered. "Achilles ..."
"I know, I know, play nice. I am playing nice. This is me, playing nice. I haven't done anything to Paris, have I?"
*
The night was quiet, dark. Achilles was in Patroclus' room, more for comfort than anything else. They were strangers in a not-so-strange land, but he still couldn't help but feel that something was bound to happen, eventually. Sparta was still smarting from the loss, he knew, and Troy knew it as well. For all Achilles knew, Troy thought that Sparta had sent him to finish what he hadn't done properly years ago. And that was kill the future king of Troy and bring the empire to an end.
Coming in good faith sure was more difficult than anyone made it out to be.
*
The last night all three men were together, twisted in a tangle of arms and legs, hands and feet, naked under the sheets. Achilles was in the middle, shared equally among both men. He was the one sought after, and he was the one gained. He was the god of sex, it seemed, and he was more than happy to have it that way. No matter what the wife thought, no matter what anyone thought.
If anything, this was the reason he had come to Troy.
*
"Let's stay."
"Ach, we can't stay."
"Sure we can. Let's stay a while. Hektor would be glad to have us, Sparta's not at war, there's nothing to do back in Sparta, and the women here! My goodness, the women!"
"Ach. We can't stay."
"Try me."
*
They stayed for ten years, growing older with each other, watching the young children of Hektor grow up. Only when there were rumours of ships on the horizon- ships from Sparta, did Achilles think of the consequences of staying.
*
"Fuck."
"Ach."
"Fuck."
"We could end this. Go home. Get in our ships and leave. We can't do this, let Troy fight Sparta like this. They won't win again. They'll kill his children, Ach. Even the babe."
Achilles pondered this, pouted, "But I like it here."
"Achilles! We. Cannot. Stay!"
Achilles stuck out his chin, stubborn, "Yes we can. We're staying."
*
It was a war raging ten years, Sparta fighting for something that didn't want to come back, and Troy fighting to keep them.
Achilles stayed out of the firefight, picking neither side.
Only when the horse showed up did he seriously consider Patroclus' words.
*
On the ship, bound for home, Achilles could do nothing but cry. Even Patroclus couldn't console him.
"Don't say I told you so."
"I wasn't going to."
"They even killed the babe!"
"I know. I know."
"It's not fair!"
"I know."
"We could have done something!"
"Achilles. There was nothing we could have done."
*
Troy had fallen, but Achilles had a secret. Once Hektor had fallen, and the line broken, he'd sneaked Paris out of the city, told him to go with the survivors somewhere safe, start over again. Made him promise not to take on Sparta- or steal anymore wives. He had reluctantly agreed, taking the sword of Troy from Achilles and leaving through the tunnels.
It was his secret and it would stay that way forever, until he died. But he was Achilles, and death did not know him.
WC: 1001
Characters: Achilles, Patroclus, Hektor
Rating: PG
Summary: Achilles decides to go back to Sparta instead of fighting in Troy, with some interesting consequences.
Notes: Written as a Pinch-Hit for Aderam in the Yuletide 2008 Challenge
Achilles was tired. Of war. Of living in a tent.
He packed up, strolled back home. Patroclus came with him. It was a long journey home, but Achilles didn't do war without end very well. Especially when he wasn't allowed to fight properly.
"I could take Hektor."
"I thought Hektor was a friend."
"Don't be silly, Pat, Hektor stole the wife of the King of Sparta."
"No, no no. That was his brother."
"See, this is why I came home. His brother can do whatever he wants. Now, what are we going to do to occupy ourselves? There are plenty of young, hot, women around ..."
"Don't be daft, Ach. No-one can know we snuck home. You, sneaking home from the glories of war! And making me come with!"
Achilles laughed, rubbed Patroclus' head. "Don't be stupid, Pat. You could have stayed."
Patroclus pouted, "But I didn't stay. I came home. And rightly so. To be with you."
Neither man said anything for a moment, both of them looked at each other carefully. Then, both of them, without saying a word to the other, embraced for a long kiss.
"Well, Achilles said carefully once they had broken away. "That was sort of unexpected."
Patroclus was inclined to agree.
*
News of the war slowly filtered their way back to them.
"What do you meanTroy won?"
"Hektor's a formidable foe."
"Paris?"
"You know he can't fight."
"Dammit. Dammit! I could have had victory!"
"But Hektor's a friend."
"That he is. And now he's going to be the King of Troy. I can't very well go and take him out. What about Helen?"
"He let her go as a sign of good faith. She should be back with Menelaus soon. Once they get home."
"Good, in the meantime, let's fuck."
Achilles, it seemed, was rather easy to please.
*
"We should go to Troy."
"The war's been over for years, Pat. The gods are appeased, Hektor's happy. What more could you possibly want?"
"I mean, to pay our well wishes. He's just had another child. A little girl this time."
"Is her name Helen?"
"No, Ach. It's not Helen."
"Well, then, why do I care?"
"He's your friend."
"So you keep mentioning."
Truth be told, Achilles was scared to go to Troy. Not because he was scared anyone there would do anything to him, but scared of what Patroclus would do with ... oh, anyone there. Scared of what he'd do to Hektor if they were together. Scared of challenging that pansy Paris to a fight.
*
"Sparta and Troy, great friendly empires," Hektor beamed at his two guests. "Isn't that right?"
"That's something, that's for sure," Achilles muttered.
Patroclus glowered. "Achilles ..."
"I know, I know, play nice. I am playing nice. This is me, playing nice. I haven't done anything to Paris, have I?"
*
The night was quiet, dark. Achilles was in Patroclus' room, more for comfort than anything else. They were strangers in a not-so-strange land, but he still couldn't help but feel that something was bound to happen, eventually. Sparta was still smarting from the loss, he knew, and Troy knew it as well. For all Achilles knew, Troy thought that Sparta had sent him to finish what he hadn't done properly years ago. And that was kill the future king of Troy and bring the empire to an end.
Coming in good faith sure was more difficult than anyone made it out to be.
*
The last night all three men were together, twisted in a tangle of arms and legs, hands and feet, naked under the sheets. Achilles was in the middle, shared equally among both men. He was the one sought after, and he was the one gained. He was the god of sex, it seemed, and he was more than happy to have it that way. No matter what the wife thought, no matter what anyone thought.
If anything, this was the reason he had come to Troy.
*
"Let's stay."
"Ach, we can't stay."
"Sure we can. Let's stay a while. Hektor would be glad to have us, Sparta's not at war, there's nothing to do back in Sparta, and the women here! My goodness, the women!"
"Ach. We can't stay."
"Try me."
*
They stayed for ten years, growing older with each other, watching the young children of Hektor grow up. Only when there were rumours of ships on the horizon- ships from Sparta, did Achilles think of the consequences of staying.
*
"Fuck."
"Ach."
"Fuck."
"We could end this. Go home. Get in our ships and leave. We can't do this, let Troy fight Sparta like this. They won't win again. They'll kill his children, Ach. Even the babe."
Achilles pondered this, pouted, "But I like it here."
"Achilles! We. Cannot. Stay!"
Achilles stuck out his chin, stubborn, "Yes we can. We're staying."
*
It was a war raging ten years, Sparta fighting for something that didn't want to come back, and Troy fighting to keep them.
Achilles stayed out of the firefight, picking neither side.
Only when the horse showed up did he seriously consider Patroclus' words.
*
On the ship, bound for home, Achilles could do nothing but cry. Even Patroclus couldn't console him.
"Don't say I told you so."
"I wasn't going to."
"They even killed the babe!"
"I know. I know."
"It's not fair!"
"I know."
"We could have done something!"
"Achilles. There was nothing we could have done."
*
Troy had fallen, but Achilles had a secret. Once Hektor had fallen, and the line broken, he'd sneaked Paris out of the city, told him to go with the survivors somewhere safe, start over again. Made him promise not to take on Sparta- or steal anymore wives. He had reluctantly agreed, taking the sword of Troy from Achilles and leaving through the tunnels.
It was his secret and it would stay that way forever, until he died. But he was Achilles, and death did not know him.