Chapter Text
The goddess stares at him blankly.
“No.” Came her curt response.
The prince frowns. “Why not?”
She raises his arms, adjusting his form and his hold on the bow.
“Stand straight, Telemachus.”
“Why not?” He repeats, tilting his head. Athena sighs, folding her arms behind her back. “He won’t want me there.”
“I do.”
“Eyes on the target.” She says, gently turning his head to face the mark 10 feet away from where they stood. “Draw arm level with the arrow.”
“You have to come!” He continues, pulling back the string until it was taut. “My birthday, my rules.”
“Almost 21 and you’re still acting like a child.”
“Hey!”
Athena sighs again. “Your father and I aren’t exactly on speaking terms, Little Wolf.”
Telemachus groans. “You haven’t talked to him?”
“We’ve talked.”
“Six months ago!”
“Precisely. We still talked, didn’t we?”
The snap of a string halts their back-and-forth. The arrow flies through the air, impaling itself on the tree trunk. Telemachus huffs, from the frustration of missing the mark and the goddess’ stubborn nature.
“It clearly wasn’t enough.” He trudges toward the tree, yanking the arrow out of the wood. “Everytime I mention you, his face does this weird thing where you don’t know if he wants to cry or attempt a murder. It’s probably both most of the time.”
She grimaces. The last time she saw that expression was when the king was attempting to coax Achilles into aiding them in battle during the Trojan War. She remembers when he would complain about the incompetence of the other warriors as he whacked his head against the wooden table in his tent, rolled up parchment spilling onto the floor.
“Screw Agamemnon and his gods forsaken-”
“Patrocles can’t even lift a-”
“I miss my wife, Athenaaaaa…”
“It’s just…I don’t want things to be awkward between the both of you.” Telemachus continues, snapping her out of her reverie.
It was odd—how they purposely danced around each other. The only thing that established some form of connection between them was the ever enthusiastic prince. Funny, considering there was a time when she was seen as his most trusted confidant.
Sometimes, the king would come out to watch them from the balcony. Only, he looked past her like she was simply part of the background. He’d wave when Telemachus called his attention, then disappear into the confines of his study.
“He misses you.”
Her ears prick at those three words. She chooses to ignore the pang in her heart.
“We’ve agreed to go our separate ways. It’s for the best.”
“No it isn’t!”
Snap!
Another miss. Telemachus blows the hair out of his face.
“You’re too tense. Relax.”
He rolls back his shoulders, wiping the sweat from his forehead. The goddess can’t help but admire his determination. They’d been at this for more than two hours and he still hasn’t put down the bow.
“I know you can’t exactly fix things and go back to the way it was before but…it’s never too late to start something new, right?” Telemachus says, notching another arrow. His eyes narrow in concentration.
Athena ponders this for a moment. She doubts that trying to make amends once more would go any better than the last time. But, then again, Telemachus’ puppy dog eyes were very convincing.
She drags her hands against her face. “Fine.”
Telemachus releases the string, flinging the arrow across the courtyard. It drives into the wood, right into the center of the x mark.
“YES!” Telemachus pumps his fist in the air. “Finally.”
She shakes her head fondly. “Nicely done, Little Wolf.”
He grins wildly at her praise, holding up his hand. The goddess stiffens. For a minute, a man with darker hair and deep brown eyes stands in place of the young prince, his mouth lifted in a triumphant smirk. Athena feels another sharp pang in her heart.
She isn't used to feeling this way. She's a war goddess, cold and unfeeling. She wasn't supposed to get attached, or feel these kinds of emotions.
Yet she does. Unknowingly, these mortals had changed something within her. Impossibly opened her already clear-sighted eyes. She isn't exactly sure if she liked the change or not. Especially when she's constantly reminded of him.
She blinks, and the image in front of her fortunately rights itself.
The goddess returns the high-five, her spiralling thoughts momentarily put to the side. She quirks her lips at the glow on her protégé’s face and the sparkle in his bright blue eyes.
Maybe these feelings aren't that bad.
“So…you agree to have dinner with him?” He says, dusting his hands. He hurriedly lays his weapon against the wall, swiveling around to face her.
Her smile drops.
“What?”
Dinner was not part of the agreement.
“Great! I’ll go tell him about it.”
“Telemachu-” She reaches an arm out, but he’s already long gone, his frame disappearing through the palace gates. She sighs, shaking her head. “What am I going to do with this boy…”