Chapter Text
Penelope knew what would come for her after news traveled around that she was without a husband and Ithaca was without a ruler.
The war had lasted for ten long years, and everyday Penelope had prayed for the Gods that Odysseus would come home to her, to their son safe and sound. Her prayers went unheard, along with the prayers of the families of the six hundred men that went with him to war.
The queen of the island knew too well that greedy men would enter her palace, ignore her growing grief and the fact that only two years had passed since her husband failed to return from the war. The true nature of men wasn’t something that she was clueless about, especially from the myths that her mother would tell her.
She was prepared for anyone with malicious intentions that would enter her home. Except, Penelope wasn’t prepared at all to receive those who were the total opposite.
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That morning, thirteen men appeared in front of the entrance of the palace. They didn’t try to enter, not until the Queen herself appeared on the door, after one of her servants had called her to assert the situation.
“Who appears on my doorstep?” Penelope demanded, staring at the group with a hard stare. The men stayed silent, almost as they were waiting for something. The Queen grew impatient. “I’ll repeat my question, who appears on my doorstep unannounced?”
Suddenly, some men started to move to the side to let someone pass to face the Queen. After a few seconds, the eyes of the Queen were focused on the mysterious man who appeared to be the leader of the group.
He was young, probably ten years younger than her, with broad shoulders and a well built body. His hair was a darkish brown, identical to his eyes. He looked quite intimidating, especially when his right eye was covered with an black eye patch. On his waist, there was a sword.
"Greetings, Queen of Ithaca.” The unnamed man gave the Queen a bow, inclining his whole back to show respect. “Forgive us for our sudden arrival, it wasn’t our intention to startle you in your own home.” The man put a hand on his heart, still looking at the woman. “My name is Antinous, and those behind me are men who only wished to offer their condolences for your loss.”
The defensive attitude that Penelope held in that moment broke a little, when she saw the flowers that the men started to take out- her eyes weren’t focused on the leader anymore. The bouquets of flowers that the men started to give to the servants around them were immediately brought to Penelope, almost to be inspected. They were all purple, an unusual flower to bring to a mourning queen.
The queen tried to compose herself, trying to not give into her own sadness in front of these strangers. Her doubt still hadn’t been erased. She slowly descended the stairs in front of the entrance of the palace, until she was right in front of the man. She stared at him.
“And what do you wish for, Antinous?”
The tension only grew with that question.
Everyone around the two looked at them, their eyes moving to the Queen of Ithaca and the man with the eye patch. It almost seemed that time had stopped altogether, leaving the people around them guessing of what would a man like that desire.
As Antinous opened his mouth to reply to the woman, a strange and loud sound broke the tension of that moment in a matter of seconds. It wasn’t a sound that was heard often, but it wasn’t unknown by anyone who was present. It was the sound of a grumbling belly.
The eyes of all the people around the couple moved their eyes towards Antinous, who had his mouth shut with force and his eyes wide. He was staring at the ground, almost looking as he was begging Gaia herself to be sucked into the meanders of the earth to hide from the shame.
Penelope covered her mouth, hiding her amused expression as she moved to the side to let him pass, pointing towards the entrance silently. Antinous muttered a quick “ thankyoumyqueen ” and started to climb the stairs, his uncovered eye still glued to the ground.
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As the thirteen suitors sat down, some servants came out to bring them some warm food. Some brought boar meat and wine, while others brought refreshments and fruit to help them fight the summer heat.
Penelope observed in silence how each of them ate their meals, the majority of them looked like they were starving from how fast they were eating and how their mouths were so full of food that some of it came out, even though they had lived in comfortable homes for all their lives. As more time passed, they seemed to act more erratic and more like animals than humans, quickly creating a mess by knocking down pitchers filled with wine and throwing food around while talking way too loud to each other.
A strong sense of disappointment was forming in the queen’s mind, thinking of a clever solution to get rid of these rude guests, when she suddenly saw the man from before. He still hadn’t eaten anything, he was simply clutching his fork with force, bending the metal. Then, he suddenly stood up with an angry expression on his face.
"EHY! Didn’t your mothers didn’t teach you MANNERS?!” Antinous screamed, looking at each of the suitors sitting at the long table. They all stopped doing what they were doing, even if someone was drinking or had been munching food. A deep silence fell down the whole room, all too scared to even move an itch. Antinous continued to reprimand them, using almost a tone used to discipline children. Penelope had to hide her smile behind her hand once again.
“We are guests, for the gods’s sake!” He turned his head towards one of the men close to him, as from the other’s mouth fell a piece of meat to be stared like that. “Amphimedon, what would your father say if saw you act like a pig?” A finger was pointed to the person to his left. “AND YOU! Elatus, did you forget how to drink wine or you enjoy wasting this fine beverage? If I were Dionysus, I would turn you into a dolphin!”
A loud collective laugh filled the room at his words, some of them choked on the food, punching their chest to avoid dying at the table like fools. Nonetheless, they seemed to start to notice the mess they were making, each second their faces becoming more embarrassed and ashamed. They slowly turned towards the queen, and quickly bowed their heads profusely.
“FORGIVE US, QUEEN PENELOPE!”
The loud apology that filled the walls of the palace took Penelope by surprise, along with a few servants who almost lost their grip on the plates they were bringing at the guests. The queen stared at her guests for a few seconds still in disbelief, before she sighed and gestured to them to resume their meal.
As they did, Penelope noticed Antinous looking at her with admiration in his eyes, before he started to finally eat along with the others.
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A few hours later the main meal had ended, the guests were sharing stories of their adventures with some of the servants, making them gasp and laugh many times, while in the background played a talented bard. The atmosphere was so light that the queen seemed to breathe again after so many years to act as guardian to the island, to her home.
Penelope almost lost herself into the sounds of laughter and the vision of the smiles, her heart left lighter and her soul seemed to have forgotten the pain that plagued everyday. She closed her eyes for a second, enjoying the moment for that brief second.
Then, three distinctive notes started to be played by the bard’s instrument that made her eyes open wide. The whole atmosphere seemed to turn gray, destroying every good thought that the wife had in her mind. The queen’s hands started to slightly shake, she tried to stay composed by clenching her fists and taking deep breaths.
“ Sing, o’ Goddess, sing of the rage of Achilles, son of Peleus- ”
His husband, her king, the other half of her own heart who she missed so much in every waking moment, even when Hypnos gave her rest all she could see was his eyes, his voice whispering to her in the middle of the night that he loved her and he would come back for her. He PROMISED HER. He could come back for Telemachus, at least-
Suddenly, someone pushed the bard to the ground. That same someone took the instrument from his weak hands and made it fall, almost breaking it before his only eye focused on the artist with frustration.
“You dare to play THAT here?!”
The frighted bard tried to justify himself, searching silently for some help from the other men by turning his back to the man. “I was paid to play this song, it wasn’t my intention-!” Before he could continue talking, his feet left the ground in a smooth move, taking his breath away.
“Bard like you should be hanged, you SCUM!” Antinous had his hands clenched around the collar of the induments of the bard, the latter trying to escape. “If you had half the respect that the queen deserved, you would have refused such a request and sent him off to the deepest Hells!”
The bard managed to spit some words, as his face showed all the fear in his small body. “I’m sorry, I'll play something else I swear!”
“ YOU BETTER. ” Antinous said firmly. As he let him hit the ground with a loud thump , he immediately tossed him two gold coins. “Sing about Alcippe.”
“But… I don't know that song.”
As the bard said that, an uncomfortable silence fell in the room. The men stared at each other, almost as if they knew something that the queen and her servant didn’t know. A few of them started to stand up.
“He doesn’t know.” Antinous started to chuckled lightly, his shoulders shaking as he moved his hand to his forehead, caressing his own hair. His head looked at the main table, a strange smile appearing on his face. “He doesn’t know the song.” His eye twitched, along his head. The bard started to walk backwards trying to move away from him. It was the only smart decision the artist made that day.
[A few seconds later]
“FIRST HE SANG THAT ABOUT TROY, AND THEN HE DARES TO NOT KNOW ALCIPPE !”
“Anti, CALM DOWN!” Demoptolemus exclaimed loudly, failing to calm the leader. “Otherwise it will end like last time!” Added Peisander, both his arms around the right leg of the man to block him.
The bard had left the scene as soon as Antinous had tried to jump on him, failing thanks to his own men. Four men of the group were holding back the man, two pulling him from his shoulders and the other two holding his legs to stop him from committing an act of violence in front of the queen.
“I’LL TAKE HIM TO APOLLO’S TEMPLE AND BEG HIM TO TAKE HIS THE ABILITY TO PLAY AFTER HE SAID ALL THAT BULLSHIT, AND THEN I’LL TAKE HIS LUTE AND PUT IT IN HIS-”
“ Noble Antinous. ”
The man stopped his rambling as soon he heard the queen’s voice. He seemed to calm down, his breath slowing and his face becoming less red. His companions left his limbs cautiously, still hanging around him for precaution. Antinous opened his mouth to apologize for his outburst.
“You have nothing to be sorry for.” Penelope interrupted him even before the issue was said out loud. In her voice, it could be clearly heard a silent gratitude as she gave him a tired smile. “Please, feel free to stay for the night, you and all your companions.”
Antinous didn’t say anything, he nodded with his hands on his chest united, giving the queen a bow. Almost all of the men behind him did the same, and started to walk towards the room’s outrance. A loud cough got their attention.
“You’re not thinking…” The leader gave an angry stare at them, pointing at the dirty table and all his surroundings. “-of leaving this room looking like a pigsty, are you?”
“But there are servants around here, they can do it.” Eurymachus said, crossing his arms and he continued to walk away, never turning around to face Antinous. He only turned to look at the others for support. “Right?”
Every single man in the group had his eyes on him, already with brooms and buckets filled with water in their hands. The defiant man sighed irritated, picking up one of the nearby pieces of cloth. As they started to clean the room, Penelope left the room along with a few of her servants with a small smile, slightly looking behind her shoulders to observe for the last time Antinous, her curiosity about him only growing.
The day after, Penelope decided to extend her hospitality to one night to one week. The queen heard from one of her servants that the rumor that a group of suitors had invaded her palace was traveling mouth to mouth on the island, so she was pressured by her own parents to leave them be- she knew that they wanted her to remarry, mainly to ensure her protection.
But Penelope couldn’t push the feeling that Odysseus was still alive, she couldn’t simply forget that the father of her son could return home and kiss her fondly once again. She couldn’t betray Odysseus.
At the start of that long week, Penelope was convinced that the group was hiding their true nature behind those friendly attitudes. She wanted to be sure of the men who had walked through her door and were sleeping in the comfortness of her walls.
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Her convictions started to tremble the third day.
Penelope had decided to visit the fields close to the palace to see the local farmers pick up the latest crops. Some of them used some wooden carts to transport the products, while the majority put them in sacks that were put on their shoulders.
It was going smoothly, even if slowly.
Gradually, the queen started to notice that some carts were going faster than others. When she narrowed her eyes to see better, she wasn’t surprised to see some of the suitors stealing the wooden tools to pick up the crops faster. Penelope wasn’t surprised to hear a familiar loud voice speaking to two locals, two young children who were trying to work along with their elders.
“Hey, let me help you with those! They seem heavy!” The man said, the two young farmers moved her hands frantically, trying to stop him.
“There is no need, really-”
With an unnatural force, Antinous stole the sacks from two farmers that were on their shoulders while giving them a prideful smile. The tear of sweat that descended from the young man’s temple could be seen clearly, but he didn’t give any other sign that he was fatigued. Instead, Antinous laughed with all his chest to the reaction of the two farmers at his gesture.
“How is that possible?!” One of them commented, while the other had his mouth wide open. “Are you some kind of demigod? That’s impossible!”
Antinous continued to chuckle amused by such phrases- “Everything is possible if you train enough, little fella.” -before he gave both of them a big grin. “I bet you don’t expect THIS!”
Suddenly, Antinous lowered his whole body to pick up the two children, along with the heavy sacks. The young farmers laughed with glee and excitement, holding tight to the man as he walked to the closest shed to drop the products.
A few hours later, many of the farmers thanked Penelope for convincing her suitors to help with the harvest to gain her favor. She didn’t have the heart to tell them the truth.
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The fifth day, Penelope was returning to the palace after a long day attending her subjects. She saw the leader of the aforementioned suitors with the other two walking in the garden, and then she noticed another figure. It was a young female servant, who was pushed down by Antinous himself- a sense of deep anger started to burn in her.
The queen’s first thought was obvious, her confirmations were finally coming true and those men wanted to abuse her hospitality and take everything away from her, starting by treating the servants as trash. She started to move towards them with a determined look, hearing only scraps of their conversation.
“Then, when he least expects it-” Aletus spoke to the girl on the ground, who was staring at Antinous with a nervous look. “Punch him!”
She began to pale. “What do you mean punch him? And also, where?”
Antinous moved a hand on his waist, while he held up three fingers. “Don’t worry, if you are unsure on the best spots to hit, remember these three words! First of all, eyes are very delicate-” He started to talk without stopping, not noticing that the servant was standing up with determination. She held up her hand, and Helenus moved her fingers to form a punch.
The leader was so concentrated explaining that he didn’t notice the other showing her the movement until it was too late. Suddenly, Antinous’s breath was taken away by the punch of the servant, who punched him in the stomach without any kind of warning.
After a brief moment of uncertainty, he slowly started to fall to the ground, moving his hand to hold where his abdominals were and groaning quietly in pain. The female servant looked at the two men worried, but at the same time with a glint of pride in her eyes.
“Oh gods! Did I hurt him?”
“He’ll survive, don’t worry.” Aletus commented, grinning at Helenus as they chuckled a bit. The servant kneeled down, putting her hands on her things. “Are you alright, Antinous?”
As a response, he held out a thumbs up.
Penelope didn’t need to see more, but a small laugh came out of her throat as she entered the palace without being seen.
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On the sixth day, the queen finally saw the truth.
The woman was walking through the gardens alone, enjoying the beautiful sunny day and the soft breeze that caressed her gently. She stopped with elegance in front of the bushes to touch with her fingertips the petals of the flowers in full bloom, kneeling down to smell their profume.
As she moved towards the lemon trees, she saw a familiar group of men in a circle, talking between them with secrecy. She hid behind one of the bushes she was examining earlier, holding her purple dress to ensure that it wouldn’t be in the way in case she needed to run. Her eyes focused once again on the leader, who held a serious stare- it was quite out of character, especially from him.
“Friends, I need to talk to you about something.” Antinous started to speak, his tone of voice was low and slow. “I have an idea.” He caressed his dark hair nervously, closing his uncovered eye to find the words. Penelope could see the moment he found them. “I decided to stay here.”
“What do you mean by “stay”, boss?” One of the men, Peisander, asked at him with curiosity before continuing. “Did you change your mind? Do you intend to marry the queen?” Penelope felt a shiver running through her spine, clenching her fists slightly as she waited for the man’s answer.
Did she make a mistake by letting them into the palace? Did she put Telemachus at risk, did she condemn all of Ithaca because she couldn’t deny them hospitality? Did she just throw her husband’s home in the palms of these strangers? Had she been a fool, a bad ruler? Her mind continued to travel through the possible scenarios, thinking of a way to-
“ABSOLUTELY NOT!” Antinous’s voice brought Penelope back to reality, her heart stopping for a brief second. “Do you take me for an animal, Peis? She is still mourning her husband for the Gods’s sake.” The man crossed his arms, sighing a little bit. “If the queen had any intentions of remarrying, she would have said it days ago. From what I have seen, she doesn’t hold back her opinions.”
Antinous fell silent once again, closing his eye once again to concentrate and to not be distracted by his own emotions. The men looked at each other confused, before focusing their attention on their leader once again. Agelaus spoke up for them.
“Then, why do you want to stay?” The man walked in front of Antinous, putting a hand on his broad shoulder. “Why don’t you return to your home, to your father? Why are we staying here?” Antinous opened his eye, which was filled now with a strange glee.
“Because we are ALL going to court Penelope, of course.”
The men exclaimed in unison. “ WHAT? ”
“Think about it- we have been here for a few days, and rumors started to define us as suitors, even if none of us acted on it.” He moved in the middle of the circle, looking at each of his men with a big grin. “If we hold up the facade, we are going to make sure that nobody tries to steal the Queen away.” He put his hands on his waist once again, his eye hiding a little bit of sadness. “We already lost a ruler, we can’t lose another.”
Antinous continued to talk. “I have already decided to stay. Of course, you have the freedom to choose to return to your noble homes and pretend that you never heard these words. But what greater honor than to protect the queen herself from those who could destroy our island?”
While the men started to whisper among each other, elaborating on the whole situation. Penelope was still behind that bush as her own hand moved on her heart, moved by the man’s genuine intentions. She couldn’t believe that there was someone willing to stay by her side simply because it was the right thing to do.
Unfortunately, someone spoke up.
“Why would I waste my time by staying here, if I don’t get anything in return?” Eurymachus said, his whole body language screamed arrogance. “And why would I throw away the opportunity to become the new king of Ithaca, the opportunity to rule over all of you?”
“And obviously, you can pretend to court her.” He stated while grinning with malicious intent in his eyes. “But in the meantime, I will court her, and I will make her pray to make me her husband. I will use her body as I wish, and if I grow bored of her I will be generous enough to share her with you. She can’t rule without a man, right?”
The deafening silence that followed right after his words and the disgusted faces of his fellow companions broke the suitor’s confidence pretty quickly, his smile fading away ever so slowly. Eurymachus tried to play it off as a joke by laughing slightly, unaware that he was digging his grave.
“Wow, that was really funny!” Antinous said, smiling as he moved his stare towards the other men. “... Damas, Nomus?”
The two men turned at the same time to stare at him. Antinous closed his eye, moving his hands slowly towards his sleeves as the others moved around Eurymachus. “Hold him down.”
Penelope smoothly left the scene.
Later that night, when a servant informed her that Eurymachus had fallen into a ditch in the afternoon and had been obliged to return to his home to heal, the queen couldn’t help but smile with knowledge.
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“My queen, I must ask for forgiveness for what you have-”
“Which one of them saw me?”
Antinous was taken back by her words, not expecting the woman to admit her presence in the garden. He continued to lower his head, showing respect to the queen of Ithaca. “.... Promachus, my Queen.”
The queen nodded slightly, before gesturing to the man with her hand to follow her. He quickly followed her, not daring to walk to her side and instead walking behind her. When they arrived in a room in which they would not be disturbed, she closed the door and turned around to face him.
“I know that you want to stay here, along with your men.” Penelope cut to the point like a knife, not even giving Antinous the time to contest. “I want to understand the reason, and if it satisfies my curiosity you will be allowed to stay.”
“My queen, if you were there yesterday you already know why-”
“Allow me to correct myself, then.” The queen pointed at the man with determined eyes, narrowing them. “I want to know why you have come here in the first place.”
Antinous was taken back once again, he hesitated to reply to the queen. But when he met the woman’s eyes, he couldn’t hold the truth much longer. He kneeled down in front of her, putting his knee on the ground and looking up.
“ I have a debt to pay to King Odysseus. ”
Strangely enough, it wasn’t the first time that Penelope heard that. They were many of the people that her husband helped during his life, even during their marriage he would often save lives with the power of words alone. It was a trait that made Odysseus a good king.
“I understand.” She decided to not investigate further into the matter, since she noticed the shame radiating from the man. She held out her hand, inviting him to stand up. Penelope smiled with gentleness mixed with sorrow. “You are allowed to stay.”
Antinous’s face lightened up at her words, putting a hand on his heart with relief. He opened the door of the room for the queen, letting her out first. Then, immediately after, he spoke- his words held uncertainty.
“May I ask a question?”
“You may.”
“...Did you like the flowers?”
Penelope stopped her tracks, staring at him with suspicion. Then, she relaxed by taking a few slow breaths before replying.
“They were pretty, but I can't understand why you brought such colorful flowers. If you meant to show your condolences for the loss of my husband, you should have brought white flowers instead of purple.”
“That’s why I brought purple.” The man replied as he moved past her, showing her a sincere smile. “Irises are a symbol of hope, my queen.”
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From that day, if someone asked if the rumors calling the group of men “suitors” who wished to marry her and sit on the throne of Ithaca were true, Queen Penelope would remain vague enough to not give a clear answer.
While many decided to not investigate further, there was a young boy inside the palace who demanded answers.