Chapter Text
Within the whole of the world, there are two truths that must be acknowledged. The first, that when an unlikely account is reported by a third party, one cannot, with good sense, bring any sort of justification in their mind that every word that is spoken is that of truth, or of any consequence.
The second, that when a young, single man of reasonable fortune leaves town, the comfort of his family and friends, and enters the countryside, there is bound to be talk by the families that preside there.
Of course, the talk will always be on the subject that such a man will only be coming to their small village because he wishes to be settled, and that means, as is universally acknowledged, that he must be in want of a partner.
In fact, Patroclus himself finds himself coming to terms with both of these undeniable truths within the span of one sunny afternoon.
“Oh, Mr Tauros, my dear Mr Tauros!”
Patroclus can hear the shrill cry of his mother’s voice echo from the salon while he is in the mudroom, wiping the dirt and grime of his work boots as he enters the house from the garden. A door slams shut, and is yanked back open from inside. He can feel the breeze it makes as the mudroom door jostles with the force.
Hearing such an excitable exclamation from his mother is not uncommon - ever since he was a child, he had always known her to be enthusiastic and caring, but something about her sentiment today has his brow raised. His mother and his sisters must have just arrived back from the marketplace with news, though what news that could warrant such a reaction is a mystery to him.
He places his boots on the mat by the front door, and upon opening the door into the house, he is nearly swept aside by a rush of cotton skirts and ribbons dashing in front of him as the air is corrupted by a contagious bout of giggles.
“Helen?” He calls out, confused, and cranes his neck down the hallway to see his sister rushing down after their mother, dragging Clytemnestra by the hand as their laughter echoes into the salon. “What is it?”
Helen turns back, her golden hair and child-like grin stretching ear from ear. “Oh, brother, you will never guess what we have learned today at the market!”
“The marketplace?”
He’s not graced with an answer. Another door opens - this time from the library, and his mother rushes out, her hair falling out and around her face. She catches sight of Patroclus, and smiles, panting for breath.
“Oh, Patroclus, my dear,” she says, “have you seen your father anywhere near? I am in dire need to speak with him at once!”
“I have not,” he replies, giving his mother an odd look, and he can hear Helen and Clytemnestra’s giggles grow louder as they head back towards the salon. “Though I would imagine he would be near the study at this time, if anywhere. Why, what has happened?”
His mother seems to inflate with excitement at the very question. She still has her boots on from the walk, her jacket still hanging on her shoulders. “You’ll never believe it! ” She exclaims, brushing past him towards the hallway that leads to the study, on the other side of the house. “Fairview estate is bound to be let at last!”
Patroclus, well and truly confused, cannot hide the perplexed frown that crosses his face. “What?”
Helen and Clytemnestra race past him again, their skirts causing such a ruckus that he can see dust fly in front of the windows in the sunlight, laughing and giggling with each other as they race towards the study, mere footsteps behind their mother.
“Helen! Nestra! What is happening?”
He is answered only with laughter.
He frowns well and good at their response, feeling quite at a loss as he is left behind in a flurry . He cannot decide whether he should go after them or leave them to their own devices when he hears the creak of footsteps trailing down the stairs.
He sighs in relief when he sees his older sister appear in the doorway. “ Briseis. Have I gone mad, or has everyone lost their mind this afternoon?”
Briseis - the eldest of all the Tauros children - gives him a bright smile, and Patroclus is relieved to see that in her, there is the same confusion that he seems to be afflicted with as well. “They heard a report in town this morning about Fairview.”
“Yes, well, I barely got that out of them, though little else was provided. Surely that is not all the news?”
“I dare say not, but I know about as much as you, as I didn’t hear the report myself. Mama rushed home with the urgent need to speak with our father, and wouldn’t tell me a thing.”
“And I suppose Helen and Nestra weren’t much help in that regard either.” It is not framed so much as a question than a statement - the twins were only fifteen years old, and inherited the same excitable trait as their mother.
Briseis stifles a laugh with a bite of her lip. “Naturally. Come, let us see what all this fuss is about.”
Helen and Clytemnestra are already piled at the door to the study when Patroclus and Briseis come upon them, opened just a crack to hear the conversation inside, urgently stifling their unending giggles to avoid detection. Briseis urges them to be quiet as they approach the door, crowing the threshold as their mother’s breathless and excited voice echoes down the hall.
“ Oh my dear husband, have you heard the news?”
“News? What news?”
“Oh, my dear, it is the most wonderful news I have heard from our neighbor, Mrs Chryses, in the marketplace this morning. Fairview Estate is to be let at last!”
A hum comes from their father, not to display a tone of interest in the subject, but rather one of basic acknowledgement. “Is it now?”
A huff of indignation from their mother follows. “Oh, husband, you do vex me so, with your hums and ahs. Do you not at least want to know who has taken it?”
“I am sure to find out, if you are so set on telling me.”
This, surely, was all the invitation required.
“Then you must be made aware, as Mrs Chryses has informed me, that the place is to be taken by a young man of substantial fortune, all the way from town. He had come down here this past Monday in a chaise and four to see the place, and was so much enamored with it that he signed it in his name on the very day! He’s meant to have it by Christmas, at the latest, and some of his servants are expected down later this week to get it all settled!”
A real hum of interest is prompted at this. “Did you happen to receive his name?”
“Andrelis, though I have heard he prefers his given name, Automedon.”
“And does he bring a significant other with him?”
“Oh, my dear, surely not! He is as single as a young man of good fortune can be, and what a splendid thing for our children! Five thousand a year!”
Patroclus frowns upon hearing such news, and Briseis’ brows draw in realization at the implication. Helen and Clytemnestra erupt in another bout of barely hushed giggles.
“How is that? How can this news affect any of our children?”
He is answered by their mother’s scoff. “Oh, my dear husband, how tiresome you can be! You must know that he will marry one of them, to be sure.”
“And are you sure that his moving down here is for that intention?”
“His intention! What a presumptuous choice of word! No, I can hardly believe you would suggest such a thing.”
Then what is such the fuss? Patroclus cannot help but think, given the current afternoon’s activities so far. He glances over at Briseis, sending her a questioning look, but she answers him only with a shrug, as lost in the dark about the whole affair as he is.
“... But if he does happen to fall in love with one of them, by chance, then I shall hardly discourage it.”
Patroclus does not need to face his father to see the quizzical brow raising, his tone dry when he repeats, “by chance.”
“Yes, of course! At least, it would sound much nicer when the families ask how they met, of course. But this is all beside the point, my dear, if any of our children are to gain his favor, you must call on him at once! And make haste, as I am dreadfully afraid that this report has not been made to us first.”
A long-labored sigh. “I see no occasion for such a display. If you wish to introduce yourselves, I am sure you are capable of doing so. Or, if not, they may go by themselves, if they wish.”
“Nonsense! Husband, you must go to meet Mr Andrelis when he comes to Fairview next, at least for the children’s sake! Mr and Mrs Chryses are already set to go, even though their daughter can have no hope of catching his admiration, comely as she is. Even if you were to welcome him to the town, I know of others who are going out of generosity and hospitality to welcome a new family to the neighborhood.”
“And if that were the only reason I would have to go, then you can count on my leaving this very hour.”
“ Oh!” Another cry of frustration. “Mr Tauros, you know that neither I nor the children can visit him if you do not! Have you no compassion for my nerves?”
“On the contrary, my dear, I have a high respect for them. They have been my constant companion these past twenty years.”
“Oh, you do not know how I suffer!”
Rushed footsteps echo as their mother heads towards the door, and Briseis and Patroclus are obliged to pull Helen and Clytemnestra away from the doorframe lest they be trampled. Their giggles have transformed to uncontrollable laughter, and most likely would not have noticed.
Their mother storms out of the study in a hurry, leaving Patroclus and Briseis frowning at each other as she mutters.
“Mother, what is the matter?” Patroclus calls after her, and she turns back, a face of frustrated indignation.
“Only that your father must not love you as much as he claims, as he will not have any of you marry and settle when you ought to! Not if he does not take the effort in saying hello!”
Helen and Clystemnestra laugh, running off after their mother, leaving Briseis and Patroclus alone in the hallway. Patroclus gives his sister a confused, questioning look.
“Marriage? One of us is to be married?”
“Well, don’t look at me, brother, I know nothing of this matter at all. I haven’t even heard of the name: Andrelis. ”
They both glance into the doorway, where their father sits in his chair, behind his large, mahogany desk, glasses perched on his nose as he reads the stack of letters in front of him.
“Father, is it true?” Briseis asks, prompting him to tear his eyes from the page.
“Is what true?”
“That this Mr Andrelis intends to marry by taking Fairview,” Patroclus adds.
Their father sighs, shrugging his shoulders. “I neither know it or know of it at all.”
“Mother seems to believe so,” Briseis comments.
“Your mother, compassionate and generous as she is, believes all sorts of things. Whether such things prove to hold any truth is a matter under constant debate.”
“And what of the debate on this subject?” Patroclus asks, unable to let his own curiosity unveil itself.
The Fairview Estate is miles away, just past the small town of Ilium in the southern part of the country. It has been vacant since Patroclus has known it, only servants of the house maintaining the grounds and property as it should be without an owner for nearly two decades. Patroclus could not say why such a fine property had gone unowned for so long a time, though he has yet to visit the grounds themselves, and cannot say much else on the matter. It is a true curiosity that this Mr Andrelis had decided after one viewing that he was set on the place at all. Patroclus cannot think of a well and true reason for him wanting to stay in such a short time.
“That, my dear boy,” their father says, a slight smirk edging on his face, “only time will tell.”
~
The town of Ilium sat about five miles away from Pelion house - the home and livelihood of Chiron Tauros and his family, consisting of one adopted son, and three daughters. The town itself was quaint, housing just over two and twenty families altogether, and four more living just outside of it. As the town was often a center of activity for the surrounding neighborhood, filled with society, music, shops, butchers, and markets, it was a frequent destination of the Tauros family, especially for Mrs Tauros and her youngest daughters - Helen and Clytemnestra.
It is a fine day for a walk when Patroclus and Briseis agree to accompany the twins on their trip into the town. There is to be a ball held in Ilium in just under a fortnight, and the twins had insisted - mostly to Helen’s exclamation - that they simply had nothing to wear, and are in dire need of new ribbons and lace.
Mr Tauros would not go, as is usual. Patroclus himself had much work to do on such a fine day as this, often helping to assist in the garden or the farmyard on the estate, but his mother would not hear of anything other than his accompanying his sisters on the walk. It was not much that he minded, as the air was warm, and the sun shone brightly above him, and the walk into Ilium was usually a pleasant one. Besides, Briseis would need more help than just herself in minding the girls do not get themselves into trouble when in town.
“I just cannot wait another minute for the ball!” Helen exclaims on their walk to Ilium, confiding in her siblings about which color ribbons she should wear, and who she will plan to dance with. “A fortnight seems like forever! I wonder if Mr Laertes’ son will be there, and whether he will dance two or three songs with me.”
“I wouldn’t count on it,” Patroclus tells her, not wanting her to get any ideas in her head. “Telemachus is a few years older than you yet.”
Helen made a face at him in response. “You are only saying so because you do not have anyone to dance with at all.”
Nestra laughed along. “That’s true, do you remember at the last ball, when he had such trouble asking poor Iphis for a dance! Oh, I cannot forget the look on his face when she said no!”
The twins laugh, skipping along the path towards town as they chatter to themselves, leaving Patroclus with a scowl and burning ears.
“Don’t mind them,” Briseis tells him, her voice consoling. “I’m sure there’ll be plenty of partners lining up to dance with you.”
“It’s not about a lack of partners,” Patroclus tells her, “I just wish they would let the whole affair from last year go .”
The whole affair with Iphis was embarrassing enough - but the fact that his family had witnessed the rejection in so public a setting was worse, especially the way the twins found the matter a subject of hilarity, and would simply not let the event go, even though it had been almost a year since the ball had come to pass.
“Don’t worry,” Briseis tells him. “Surely they’ll find something new and exciting to occupy their talk by tomorrow.I’m sure everyone else has forgotten about it by now. I hardly expect Iphis to recognize you next week, if she’s even there at all.”
Patroclus nods in agreement - there was talk of Iphis going away to London within the past months, though none of that was confirmed by any credible source, and Patroclus is hesitant to believe much of anything either of the twins tells him anyway.
“Speaking of attendants,” Briseis adds as they cross the bend in the path, another thought coming to her mind, “do you think Mr Andrelis will make an appearance?”
“Is he set to be at Fairview at the time?” Patroclus asks in return. “I had heard he wasn’t to be by until Christmas, at least.”
“I’m not sure, to be honest, though if he had just purchased an entire estate, I can’t imagine he would stay away from it for long if he could help it.”
Patroclus hums in agreement. “I suppose you have a point, though I don’t really expect him to be at the ball next week, in any case.”
“Why do you say so? What better way than to meet new people in the town one plans to live in?”
“Well, he makes five-thousand a year.”
Briseis glances at him with a frown. “Whatever do you mean by that?”
“Sister, please,” Patroclus smiles at her, as if to tease, “he makes at least double the income of any other household in Ilium, and besides, I’m sure a man of such fortune is accustomed to a different type of society . Didn’t mother mention he was settling at Fairview from town?”
“Oh, you can’t expect to believe everything from mother’s account. You know better than anyone how she likes to exaggerate.”
“True as that may be,” Patroclus counters, “he has very truthfully purchased Fairview estate, and both you and I know the grounds to be vast and - most importantly - of no mean value. I believe he is rich, and the rich are generally not like to attend balls with us common folk.”
Briseis gives him a wry sort of smile. “How you love to presume, brother. What happens when he does arrive at the ball and ends up the most amiable, well-tempered man on earth?”
Patroclus gives her a wry, teasing smile back. “Then I shall bite my tongue forevermore, and you will have the satisfaction of dancing with the most amiable man for the rest of the night.”
A blush rushes its way onto his sister’s face at that, and she looks down at her feet as if to hide. “Oh stop, I beg you! I’m certain that even if he is there next week, he most likely won’t dance with me.”
“And I’m certain that if he truly is as amiable as you believe, he’ll fill your dance card completely after seeing you once from across the room.”
Briseis’ blush only deepens, and Patroclus must bite his lip in order not to laugh in response. Briseis - not only being the eldest of the Tauros children - had grown into the most beautiful and well-tempered young women that Ilium had to boast of. Patroclus remembers just a few short years ago when there were a few young men who would vie for her admiration, and Briseis - the humble girl that she is - could not understand as to why. It went so far as for one young man in particular was rumored to make an offer for her hand, and their mother was so overjoyed she began to order wedding clothes for her adopted daughter with even the barest inclination of a wedding. The match ended up for naught, as the young man left not soon after, but Briseis was left with a good amount of what their mother called ‘pretty verses’ - though Patroclus himself could hardly read any of it without laughing at the absurdity of it all.
He has no doubt that if Mr Andrelis does make an appearance at the ball next week, he will not be able to help but notice her.
The town of Ilium is bustling with movement as they round the next bend, the twins already paces ahead of the two of them, the sun beating down on the dusty paths that lead to the town’s square. Sounds of chatter from the tradesmen and market stalls echo down the street, and the clatter of hooves rustle the dirt underneath their feet as the horses carry their carts down across the roads. There are children laughing and playing by the fountain in the middle of the square, and a man with a violin is playing a jaunty tune, his case open at his feet.
The air is dusty, but clean. The smell of lemons and apple wafts over top the stench of the horses and dirt, and a breeze brings the scent of freshly baked bread from the bakery down their way. Patroclus enters the town, and cannot help the feeling of contentment from arising. This town has been his home for the last twenty years, and he cannot think of another place now that he would rather be.
A loud bout of giggles erupts to his left, and he knows just by the tone of it that the twins have found their desired shop. When he glances over, they are already admiring the ribbons and hats displayed in the shop’s window, and Patroclus knows it is only a matter of time before they barrel their way into the shop itself. He knows he, at least, should accompany them inside, lest they make any trouble for the shopkeeper otherwise.
“Patroclus!”
The bright, cheery greeting pulls him away in an instant, and when he turns, he cannot contain the grin that crosses his face.
“Chryseis!” He returns as his dearest friend comes to meet them, one had on her hat to keep from blowing away, a grin on her face that could match Patroclus’ own. “I hadn’t heard of you coming into town this morning, or we all could have walked together.”
“Oh, no, it’s not worth the trouble,” Chryseis returns, curtseying to Briseis with a bright smile. “I'm here with my father for some business with the church, is all. What are you two doing here today? Just the two of you?”
Another bout of giggles echoes from the shop, and Patroclus must suppress a grimace at his sister’s absurdity. “Ribbons, apparently.”
“Ah, yes, for the ball, I presume,” Chryseis says, glancing over his shoulder towards the shop. “Well, I don’t suppose we should leave them alone for long, shall we?”
The girls are much quieter inside, only stifled giggles and ridiculousness scattered from the other end of the shop as they tie ribbons around their wrists. Briseis tours along the rows of lace adoring the walls with mild interest. Patroclus, for his part, stays near the front of the stop with his friend, finding himself in sore need of her association.
“Have you heard the news?” she asks.
“About the estate?” Patroclus returns. It was Chryseis’ parents who allegedly gave his mother the full report about the status of its new owner. “Yes, how a Mr Andrelis has bought it upon only one showing. My mother and sisters gave me the full report a few days ago.”
Chryseis only gives him a frown. “You talk of Fairview Estate? No, not that news, I believe everyone in all the county knows about that by now. I mean about the officers staying in town for the next few months or so.”
“ The officers?!”
All eyes are turned to Helen and Clytemnestra at the cry, and Patroclus must suppress a grimace as the twins abandon their intentions of ribbons in favor of rushing towards Chryseis in an excited hurry.
“What do you mean?” Clytemnestra asks as her sister pushes past her, eyes wide and hopeful.
“My dearest Chryseis, did you say that the militia is intending to stay here at Ilium?”
“I did hear of it, yes.”
“For how long?”
“I was not given a strict timeline, but I can imagine they would be expected to stay for at least a month or two.”
The look of hopefulness turns into wretched, unrestrained excitement. Helen grabs her sister's hands and squeals, “ Officers!”
The shopkeeper glances up in alarm from his desk as the girls begin to giggle and chatter.
“The officers, Helen, did you hear?”
“Yes! Oh, the officers, coming to stay in Ilium, think of it! Imagine them in their wonderful red coats! They’ll be sure to come to every dance, and they shall have to fight each other over who will dance with us next!”
The eyes of all the other patrons land on the two girls, and their utter lack of mindfulness sends Patroclus into a pit of dread and embarrassment.
“Helen, Nestra, please, will you quiet down?”
Evidently, they do not hear him, instead rushing back to the racks of lace and ribbons.
“Shall we see them march down the street, to the square, do you think?”
“Oh, undoubtedly, and what a chance it will be to catch their eye! We shall bring our handkerchiefs, and let them be blown away only for one of the officers to be obliged to run back and fetch it for us!”
“ Helen! Nestra! Calm yourselves, please!”
Helen only glances at him over her shoulder, and annoyed glint in her eyes. “Oh, brother, you must not be so miserable as that! They are only officers, you know, and if you’re nice enough to us now, perhaps we’ll design to set you a place at our table when we are off and married before you.”
This sends Clytemnestra off into a fit of laughter, which Helen is quick to follow, leaving Patroclus with frustration and a frown.
“Perhaps I shouldn’t tell you the rest of what I heard,” Chyrseis says to his side, her voice consoling.
Patroclus’ face is still burning, frowning at the girls’ complete lack of propriety in favor of their own silliness. “Will I want to hear the rest of it?”
“The officers are set to be in town for the ball next week, and it is very likely they will be in attendance.”
Patroclus buries his face into his hands to stop himself from groaning in despair, the echoes of laughter reaching past the door and into the square beyond.
~
“Officers!” Mrs Tauros echoes with an air of delight when Helen and Clytemnestra inform the family at dinner the same night. Mr Tauros had eyed them warily as they told the whole story. Briseis gathered another spoonful of potatoes onto her fork, and Patroclus took a deep sip of wine as the twins giggled and their mother reminisced.
“Oh, how long it has been since we last had officers stationed in Ilium! Why, I remember fancying a red coat or two back in my day, long before any of you were born, mind you, but what a sight they should make now. How exciting for you all of their coming!”
“And I suppose, then, that you’ll be wanting me to call upon the whole militia as well?” Their father retorts.
Patroclus snorts with laughter at the remark, barely masking it with a cough. When he glances up, there’s an amused glint in Briseis’ eye from across the table.
Mrs Tauros only huffs with a type of indignation. “I hardly see the point, my dear, since you will not go up to Fairview to introduce the family to Mr Andrelis. I have put the notion from my mind completely. In fact, I am completely sick of even hearing the name.”
“Is that so?”
Patroclus watches as the same, mischievous glint reaches his father’s face, though his voice remains as calm and passive as is usual.
“It is,” their mother returns.
“Well, I am very sorry to hear it,” their father says, “as I have called on him just three days past, I am afraid we very well cannot escape his acquaintance now. You should have told me sooner, if you really despised him so.”
The effect was immediate. Mrs Tauros exclaimed with all the joy in the world at how pleased she was, how good of a father her husband was to make such a well-placed acquaintance for their children, and what pains he has put her through to conceal such information for so long a time. Helen and Clytemnestra shared in exclamations of joy and amusement, feeding off of their mother’s excitement, filling the room with questions of their own: is he handsome? Is he tall? Is he amiable? Is he really as rich as they all supposed?
Briseis and Patroclus glance at each other from across the table, shaking their heads in amusement.
“Father, please, tell us!” Clytemnestra exclaims, her voice carrying over the dining room over top of her mother and sister. “What is he like? What did he say?”
All eyes turn to Mr Tauros, a seated spectator at the head of the table, who then starts to smile. “He let me know with certainty of his and his friend’s intended arrival at a certain ball taking place in Ilium this next upcoming week, and how pleased he would be to meet you all there.”
The twins share a look, and squeal with delight.
The rest of the night was spent all in talk of Mr Andrelis, even after the dinner plates were cleared and their father had escaped to his study to wait out the excitement - if at all possible. Patroclus deigned to sit with them into the evening, steadily trying to drown out the chatter from the three of them until the night fell quiet, and the candles burnt low.