Author's Note: I've created this story out of various true stories and a lot of my own imagination. This is an Alternate Universe story, but I've tried to allude to historical events, especially wars. I invented the title Jeu d'Athens, it's supposed to mean 'Jewel of Athens', heaven knows in what language.
I love Alexander and Hephaistion's relationship but I've concentrated on Hephaistion first, before he met Alexander. So, Alexander won't be appearing within the first five or so chapters. I'm sorry!
Finally, I've included guest appearances by the Kennedys and Princess Diana, as well as forming a part of Hephaistion's family from the movie Augustus. I love Julia and her tragic life- I just couldn't resist!
And lastly(really, now), I'd love to read any feedback- let me know what you think (:
Chapter one:
The family estate outside of Athens was bustling with activity in early spring. The heir's wife was in labour with their third child. The newly entitled Archon-Imperial Augustus had even come out to the country for the child's birth. The hope he had, it was said, was for a boy. And he got it.
"A son, madam, a son!" cried the midwife to her crying patient.
"Praise the gods!"exclaimed the Amyntor, taking the child from the midwife. ''A fine boy, Europene,'he said to his wife, handing her the child.
His wife smiled, "What shall we call him?"
Amyntor smiled,'' Hephaistion.'
Europene was enraged, "Amyntor!"she whined, ''That is such an Athenian name!"
'So?" Asked Amyntor. "He is Athenian.''
He smiled, he loved to irritate his wife every now and again; and the best way was over their different nationalities.
Europene rolled her eyes, ''Can I not choose our first son's name?"
''No, if there is a second son you can, but you chose your daughter's name, now it's my turn,'Amyntor smiled and played with Hephaistion's fingers.
Europene rolled her eyes. She said nothing and raised her child to her lips for a kiss and held it to sat down and kissed his wife's head.
After some minutes she said, ''Very well, let's call him Hephaistion, then.''
Hephaistion grew to be a happy child. Blessed with loving parents and doting family, gifted with charm and intelligence and very easy on the eye, his childhood was the most indulgent possible. His three sisters and he adored each other. Athene was the eldest- a pretty, determined girl adored in particular by her discerning grandfather. Laconike was a year older than Hephaistion and born for parties. Lycania had been born a little over a year after Hephaistion. She was reserved but highly opinionated and shared her mother's love of Macedonian culture. The family visited Europene's family in Macedon every year, staying for up to three months to enjoy Macedonian country life as well as attending court and watching the growth of their kingdom.
When Hephaistion turned seven, Amyntor's family was thrust into the limelight as yet another war unfolded. Amyntor's father Augustus had been called Archon-Imperial for over ten years after he defeated Anthony, son of Mark at Actium. Anthony and his faction had tried to reinstate a monarchy in Athens. A civil war had broken out, with Augustus leading the democrats. Most of the people had been for their beloved democracy, easily Augustus had won.
The gratitude of the Athenians had seen Augustus and his family treated, ironically enough, like royalty. As Archon-Imperial, Augustus was in charge of everything and everyone. There was still the archon, who was elected every year and he still ruled the city. The Assembly still convened and all the courts were still fair. Augustus presided over it all. His policy towards Macedon was friendly, he knew Athens could not win such a war- that had been why he'd found Amyntor Europene. If it came to war and Macedon won, he hoped Philip would be kind to his family.
The trouble now was Demosthenes, son of Demosthenes. He hated Macedon, hated its King Philip and by extension, hated Augustus and his moderate policies. As the war with Macedon broke, Augustus and his two sons were more desperate than ever to prove themselves to the Athenians and so defeat Demosthenes, too. Amyntor had served Athens before and now, at thirty years old, was a general commanding a quarter of the army. His younger brother Alciades commanded an eighth of it and their brother-in-law, fifty year old Agrippa was the army's commander. Augustus always accompanied the army but, a lousy fighter, rarely fought. His luck-which had made Agrippa his right hand man and given him two strong sons-was endless.
Europene decided that instead waiting around for husband to return in Athens, she would take her children to Macedon and to her family. She was only in Athens because of her husband, Macedon was her country and nothing would change those sentiments. That day, she was just finishing packing up her final things. Everything was already loaded in the carriage; they would travel by sea as the war was near Thermopylae. Hephaistion sat outside brushing the dog with his sister Lycania. They were arguing over whether the dog liked it or not.
"I told you she wouldn't like it,"Lycania pouted.
Hephaistion shook his head, "Uncle Agrippa said we must do it. She does like it."
"No, she doesn't," Lycania continued. Then Hephaistion brushed the dog's tail who sprung up and bared her teeth at him. They all froze, eventually the dog lay down again. Lycania recovered first, "I told you so."
Hephaistion rolled his eyes, "It's only because I brushed her tail. That she doesn't like. The rest she does."
And he continued brushing the dog, who had settled down quite comfortably again. Unbeknownst to the children, their Uncle Agrippa had just entered the garden and was watching them amused.
"Mummy says we can ride horses when we get to Macedon," Lycania said, now also brushing the dog.
"Obviously."
"Why's it obvious?" Lycania glared at her brother.
"Because that's all people there do."
"No, it's not! I like Macedon, I don't know why you hate it. You sound like that man with the long name!"
"If you mean Demosthenes, you're so wrong. I like Macedon, too but it's true- they do ride horses all the time, "Hephaistion shot back at his sister adamantly. Agrippa smiled and crossed over to them, startling them.
"Uncle Agrippa!" They started and leapt up. Agrippa pulled them both to him, ruffling Hephaistion's hair, "What are you two on about, huh?"
"Hephaistion hates Macedon," Lycania said matter-of-factly.
Hephaistion opened his mouth to rebut but Agrippa interrupted, "I heard that little exchange. I'm sure Hephaistion loves Macedon as much as you do, little princess."
She smiled, pleased at someone other than her parents calling her a princess. "One day, I will marry a prince and have eight children."
Agrippa laughed, "Really? Where will you find this prince? We don't have many in Greece, I think the Macedonian prince will have to do."
Lycania pulled her face, "His mother is a witch, Iphesia told me herself. She will poison me."
"Who's Iphesia?"
Hephaistion rolled his eyes, "Our grandmother's cook."
Agrippa nodded, "Well, I'm sure you can whip one out of your dreams."
She frowned, confused but nodded anyway. Then Hephaistion said, " We've been brushing Xanthus."
"Hephaistion is stupid to call him after a horse, isn't he, Uncle?" Laconike interjected, appearing from behind with Athene.
Agrippa laughed at her, "No, I don't think so. Like I told you, it's good to brush your dogs."
Hephaistion glared pointedly at Lycania who started sulking.
Athene came over to Agrippa, "We will win the war, won't we Uncle?"
"Well, what do you think?"
There was no hesitation. "I know Athens will win because of grandfather. He defeated Anthony so he can best anyone."
Hephaistion rolled his eyes. Aunt Julia, Amyntor's sister, appeared with her one year old son. Agrippa nodded slowly, " I think we can win, Athene, but with hard work."
Aunt Julia rolled her eyes, embracing her nephew, "You must also remember, Athene, that our wars are won not just by my father but by the thousands who help him. Among them are your uncle Agrippa, Uncle Alciades and your own father. Credit must not be given only to the figurehead."
"Julia!"Agrippa exclaimed sharply; secretly amused by his wife's dislike of her father. She was not alone, Amyntor and Alciades shared her sentiment; Augustus had never been a natural father nor had he tried.
Hephaistion sat down at the table on the lawn with little Gaius on his lap. Gaius pulled on the gold chain with the little silver horse dangling from it. Just then Europene appeared with her mother-in-law Scribonia, guiding the slaves to set some snacks out. Scribonia greeted her family, delighted to see her grandchildren, in particular little Gaius. She kissed Hephaistion, "Oh, Hephaistion, I'm going to miss you and your sisters."
"I'll miss you,too, grandma," he replied with truth. Scribonia was a different parent from her ex- husband, unafraid of showing her affection and delighted to spend quality time with her children and their children, openly proud of all them. She smiled warmly as she picked Gaius up and bounced him around.
"You must give your grandparents there my best wishes."
Hephaistion nodded. They sat around the table, happily chatting, aware that they wouldn't see each other for many months. Europene and her children were leaving within hours, tomorrow Agrippa would sail with his force to join Amyntor and Alciades.
"Where is Livia?" Europene asked. "Is she staying in Athens?"
Julia nodded, "Of course. You know how she is, she'll be here for the people." Her tone was bitter, but everyone there disliked Livia. After Augustus divorced Scribonia, he'd married Livia- a woman of good breeding and made her the "mother of the nation." Never mind that Livia had been forced to divorce her husband and give up her two sons to marry Augustus. She was cruel and economical, as single-minded as her husband, caring only for the Athenian state and her own glory from doing so.
"Well, Julia, we should not be bothered by Livia's politics," Scribonia advised her passionate daughter.
"No, indeed. Let's be selfish and only bother about our own desire to consume all this food," Europene joked. They all agreed.
Two hours later, having said their goodbyes, Europene and her children were on their way to Macedon, escorted by twenty-five guards and as many attendants.
Their time in Macedon was lovely. They rode their horses through the beautiful landscape, admiring the vast landscape, hearing tales of grand battles fought there, of the heroes which had come before. Hephaistion's grandmother Philanike recounted the simplicity of her youth, how Queen Eurydike saved Macedon's throne, how disaster had struck when Perdikkas led the country against the Illyrians. Her husband Leonnatus recalled the blood he himself had spilled and the injuries he had borne, he remembered the blood of their fellow countrymen, the return of the king's corpse, the crying of the infant king…of how Philip rescued Macedon from invasion, how he revitalised their economy, decorated the survivors, honoured them in their newly army. They smiled wistfully remembering the day Hephaistion's grandfather had come home from Assembly to tell her that they had elected Philip king, of the hope which had entered them and how, ten years on, it was being fulfilled.
Two years of Hephaistion's childhood passed so. The summer and autumn they spent on the family estate; in winter they went to Pella to meet Amyntor and other extended family, spring time he returned to the wars- now against the islanders-while they stayed on for the Dionysa and to catch up on court life. The royal family were like kinsmen, spoken of as familiarly as Amyntor in Euboea, or Scribonia in Athens. Philanike visited the palace to wait a while on her beloved Queen Eurydike, the king's mother, and returned home to join a table of politics, war and tradition. Europene took her daughters and joined the obligatory pilgrimage to the women's rooms in the palace to prepare for the Dionysa. Rife with admiration for Olympias's success, she nonetheless joined the other matrons who gossiped of Olympias's evil ways.
Leonnatus took his grandson with to watch the army drills. Chatting with fellow veterans doing the same, the battles which had moulded the sleek army before them seemed to have been fought yesterday. Europene would've taken her son to play with the prince but had made the mistake of mentioning it- along with Alexander's Spartan teacher- during the winter. Amyntor had looked up from his lamb and stated that Hephaistion would not be going anywhere near a Spartan. His son, he had continued, was Athenian and what the Spartans had done was unforgiveable.
By the time the wars finally decreased and the family returned to Athens, Hephaistion's Macedonian was as good as his Greek. The other boys in Pella had marvelled at his Greek, he had cringed at theirs. Even the prince, Perdikkas had said, could not speak like him.
Unpacking their belongings in the Acropolis facing hall, Europene resolved, "Hephaistion, we shall speak Macedonian every day now, I think."
He replied, "I really don't speak anything better, mama."
She smiled with pride and placed a gold box she'd brought with her on the chest.
Hephaistion grinned, his eyes suddenly brighter and added proudly, "I can't wait until grandfather hears! He'll be so proud!"
Europene coughed her laughter and replied, more mischievously, "Neither can I. Neither can I, my darling."