A/N: This story only takes place in the Mr. Peabody and Sherman film universe. However, said main characters do not make an appearance in this story. This fic focuses primarily on Greek Mythology. The reason why I have this story in the MPaS section is because I'm basing Agamemnon, Menelaus and some of the other Greeks on the way they look in the film.

Disclaimer: I don't own Mr. Peabody and Sherman, nor am I the founder of Greek Mythology.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Menelaus POV~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A knock on the door caused the new king to wake with a small jolt. Memories of the nights innocent events came rushing back to Menelaus, and he looked down at his wife, who was still fast asleep. A smile graced his face, and he couldn't help but brush his hand across her cheek as he watched her slumber on.

However, the tender moment didn't last long as a more forceful knock sounded from the door, causing Helen to stir and open her eyes.

"Who is it?" she mumbled while rubbing a fist against one of her eyes.

Menelaus turned towards the door, "Most likely one of the guests waiting to see if we did anything last night." He answered while climbing out of the bed.

He caught sight of Helen removing the blanket he had covered her with, and looked down at the still in-tact bridal knot. A second later, her worried eyes met his,

"Do you think we'll be in trouble?" she questioned.

Menelaus shrugged, "They'll probably throw a fit over us not consummating the marriage." He grumbled, "But don't let it get to you. This is our marriage, not theirs. We'll do this when we're good and ready." He moved forward and took a hold of Helen's hands, "When you're ready." He assured.

His heart swelled with happiness when his wife's eyes lit up with joy and relief. Unfortunately, the tender moment was shattered when the person at the other side of the door knocked for the third time, though by now the knocker sounded impatient.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Menelaus pulled back, "I guess I better get that." He grumbled.

Opening the door, he found Leda standing at the entrance with a couple of timid looking female servants behind her, no doubt here to check the blankets for Helen's stain. He really hoped they didn't give her a hard time. If they did, he would be sure to put a quick end to it since he was the one that gave Helen the option to wait.

Leda cleared her throat, "Good morning Menelaus. I trust everything went well last night with my daughter?" she greeted before trying to look over his shoulder.

Knowing that Helen was still fully dressed, Menelaus moved to the side and allowed the women access into the bedroom, closing the door once everyone was in.

It was when Leda turned to thank her son-in-law, that she noticed that he was wearing his wedding garments from the previous day.

"I'm glad to see that you're fully dressed, but you don't have to worry about wearing the same thing you wore yesterday," the older woman started, "as we've brought you and Helen some fresh clothes." She motioned to the two women, and Menelaus noticed that they were indeed carrying an extra pair of chitons for him and Helen.

"Helen…did you retie your bridal knot?" Leda questioned out loud.

Menelaus swallowed. 'Here we go.' He thought while moving so that he was standing besides his wife, who was now sitting at the edge of the bed.

"Actually," he placed a hand on her shoulder, "we didn't do anything last night." He stated in a matter of fact tone. He felt Helen lean against his side, clearly anticipating her mother's outburst. He reassured her by giving her shoulder a small squeeze.

The two slaves shared an unsure look before glancing over at Leda. The woman's mouth was opened in an 'O' shape as she regarded the two youngsters, looking from Menelaus to Helen and then back to him.

"You…y-you mean you…" Leda furrowed her brow and narrowed her eyes at Helen, as if she knew that Helen had something to do with it.

Just as Leda opened her mouth to go off on her daughter, Menelaus intervened, "With all due respect, I'm going to have to stop you from whatever you were going to say to Helen."

Menelaus didn't miss the way Leda's eyes flashed in anger, having been interrupted, though for some reason, she did not voice her anger.

'I guess it has to do with the fact that I'm the king now.' Menelaus thought before lifting his chin confidently before speaking once more, "I understand that it was expected that Helen and I were to consummate last night so that we could produce a son." He turned to Helen who was staring at the floor. Turning back to Leda and made direct eye contact with her, "But Helen is my wife, and even though I've only met her a short week ago, I still care about her. And when I saw that she wasn't ready for this, I respected her wishes and I agreed to wait until she is ready to start having children."

Leda's mouth gaped open at her son-in-laws words. "B-but this is unacceptable! It is required for a new husband and wife to spend the night together on their wedding night! You two were supposed to start having sons!" she argued, "Other married couples don't have this problem-"

"None that you've heard of." Menelaus cut in. There was no way he and Helen were the only ones holding off on love making on their wedding night.

Unfortunately, Leda didn't seem to want to back down, "Then how is Helen supposed to be accepted into your family if she doesn't provide an heir?"

Menelaus frowned, "My brother already accepts her, and I have no parents for her to impress." He stood up straight, "And like I told Helen earlier, I'll wait until she's ready to bear me a son or a daughter. I'll be happy with either. I don't care how long it takes, be it a few days, weeks, months, or years…I'll wait patiently for her to come to me." He looked down at Helen and saw that she was staring up at him with joy, and he beamed in return.

Leda gaped at Menelaus for a moment before turning to the two slaves, whom were standing off to the side, obviously not knowing what to do.

"Delbina, Thira." The two women perked up at their names, "Let's leave Helen and Menelaus to change into their fresh clothes." She looked back at couple, "The epaulia will begin once you two finish freshening yourselves." She announced curtly before leaving the room.

Thira and Delbina quickly placed the new clothes on the bed, and gave a small bow before scurrying after their mistress.

Menelaus picked up the two bundles and held out Helen's chiton. Once she took it, he scratched his head awkwardly, "Do you want me to leave the room while you change, or should we just keep our backs to each other?"

Seeing Helen's uncertain look he added, "I promise not to look…but if it really makes you feel better, I don't mind leaving."

"No, no," Helen shook her head, "I trust you. You can stay."

Menelaus nodded and turned towards a wall, catching a glimpse of Helen doing the same.

The next few moments were filled with near silence; the only sound was the rustling of fabric and faint noises outside the room as guests and servants moved about, waiting for the newlyweds to leave the room.

Once Menelaus was finished, he continued to stare at the wall. "Are you finished?" he wondered without turning.

"I'm just fixing my hair, but you can turn around now." Helen answered.

Menelaus turned and caught sight of Helen struggling to wrap her hair with a ribbon, a look of frustration etched on her face.

Catching sight of Menelaus watching her, she gave an embarrassed grin, "Sorry…I never did get the hang of these things."

Menelaus gave an amused smile, "Do you need help?"

Helen shook her head, "No it's alright."

"You sure? I can give you a hand."

Helen looked uncertain, as if she really didn't want to bother him with something she should have known how to do.

"Look, one of the few things I remember about my mom is that she used to do her hair all the time, in fact, she used to wrap her hair like that too." Menelaus reasoned. Helen raised a brow,

"Really?"

"Yeah…I mean I'm not saying I'm an expert on women's hairstyles, but I think I know enough to lend you a helping hand."

Menelaus waited for Helen's reply, and a few seconds later she gave a small smile, "Alright, if you're really okay with this…"

"What are husbands for?" he smirked as he approached his wife. "Now let's see here." He muttered while he and Helen began to fiddle with the thin ribbon.

Finally Menelaus announced, "Alright, here's what we'll do; you'll hold up your hair, and I'll tie the ribbons. Sound good?"

"Yeah." Came the reply as Helen's hands reached up and held her hair up.

Menelaus began to carefully wrap the ribbons and a short moment later, Helen's hair was done.

"How's that?" He asked.

Helen adjusted her bound hair, "It'll hold for the day. I promise I'll learn how to do this so I don't have to bother you for help every day." She gave a sheepish grin.

"Or you can keep your hair down. You look prettier with your hair loose." As soon as those words left his mouth, Menelaus' widened before he quickly stuttered, "N-not that I think you're not pretty with your hair up, it's just-"

Helen cut off his ramble by placing a finger over his lips with an understanding smile, "Its fine Menelaus, I know what you meant, and I would love to keep my hair down but..." she gave a sigh, "married women have to keep their hair up." Her smile turned into a frown.

Pulling his head away Menelaus suggested, "Well…I'm sure keeping it down every so often wouldn't hurt." His wives smile returned,

"I guess not."

Menelaus was about to say something else when an irritating knock came from the door again.

Letting out a frustrated growl, Menelaus made his way to the door. 'I swear these people have no patience!" he fumed silently before opening the door. The sight of his older brother made him scowl.

"Of course."

Agamemnon put his hands up in defense, "Hey don't blame me, I was just volunteered to come check up on you guys! I actually said that you two probably needed a couple of extra minutes, but they still made me come!" he argued before muttering under his breath, "plus they said you guys wouldn't need that much time since you guys didn't do anything last night."

Menelaus blinked, "You know about that?!" he prayed that his mother-in-law hadn't gone off and blabbed to everyone about his and Helen's decision to hold off on baby making.

To his horror, Agamemnon nodded, "Yeah…it's pretty much the talk of the party right now."

Menelaus rubbed his face with his hand and the Mycenaean added, "Hey, don't let them get to you two plus, just think, in a week or two, you and Helen will have the palace all to yourselves and no one can give you a hard time." He gave an encouraging grin.

The young king scoffed and turned to Helen, jumping slightly when he saw her standing right behind him, obviously listening in on the conversation. Quickly composing himself, Menelaus questioned, "Isn't there a group of elders here in Sparta that make regular visits to the palace or something?"

Helen nodded with a grimaced, "Yes, but luckily we'll have more authority over them."

"You see? You guys have nothing to worry about!" Agamemnon stated before pulling Menelaus out of the room, "Now come on, everyone's waiting for you!" He gave his brother a small push to get moving and motioned for Helen to walk besides her husband.

Menelaus wrapped an arm around Helen's midsection as they walked. 'Thank Zeus this is the last wedding day.' He mused in his mind. If everyone knew that he and Helen had not slept together last night, then it was definitely going to be a really awkward day.

This was supposed to be the day when all of the men congratulated him on becoming an 'official' man and wished him luck on his future sons.

'What a disappointment.' He thought sarcastically.

Eventually they arrived at the main hall, and like Menelaus predicted, the guests gave the new couple fake grins, though their eyes remained judgmental as if the new king and queen had just committed the biggest of taboos.

Tyndareus approached his daughter and son-in-law, "Today, you two will mingle with the guests, and later this evening, you will receive your wedding gifts." He instructed before guiding Menelaus to the other side of the room where the men were.

Agamemnon gave Helen one last reassuring smile and then turned to follow his younger brother.

Menelaus looked back at his wife before his view of her was blocked by one of the many men surrounding him.

It was definitely going to be a long day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Helen~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first person to approach Helen was her youngest sister Phoebe. The little girl had a huge, excited grin plastered on her face as she ran towards her older sibling.

"Helen, are you going to have a baby?!" she questioned eagerly, her tiny hands clasped together as she bounced on her heels. Obviously, she hadn't gotten the memo.

Helen gave her a small smile, "No not yet." She replied softly. Phoebe's face dropped,

"Awww…how come?"

Helen shifted as she felt multiple gazes on her, "Well…because I told my husband that I wasn't ready to have a baby yet, and he said that it was okay and we could wait."

Phoebe's mouth was open in awe, "Oooh, he's nice!" she mused. Helen nodded, "He's very nice." She glanced over at the man in question, watching him socialize with the other men.

She had meant what she said about him being nice. True she had been very reluctant about marrying him at first, but last night's story telling really eased the tension and Helen found out many things about her new husband. As it turned out, he was brave, kind, had a sense of humor, and as he had proven last night, he honestly did care about what she wanted.

"Well I for one am pleased to see that there are some decent men in this world." Helen turned to see Philonoe giving the other women a stern look.

Leda scowled at her eldest daughter, "Decent or not, you two could have at least created an heir."

Helen flinched, "We will…when we're ready. He didn't want any of this any more than I did."

"A rare catch indeed." Philonoe mused.

"Can we just please get through this day in peace so I can go home?" Clytemnestra hissed as she lowered herself onto a nearby chair, a hand pressed on her belly. Immediately, Leda's attention was on her second eldest daughter. "Are you alright?" she questioned in concern.

Clytemnestra nodded, "I'm fine. The little monster just kicked." Just then, Clytemnestra's body swayed slightly as the baby moved again.

Timandra smirked, "Just think Nes, in a few weeks, you'll have a screaming, crying baby to take care of." She teased with crossed arms.

"Don't remind me, and stop calling me that!" Clytemnestra snapped. Timandra stuck her tongue out at her sister, causing Clytemnestra's cheeks to redden in anger. The older woman was about to make a comeback when Leda moved in between two, "Now girls lets settle down. Clytemnestra, you need to stay calm for the baby and Timandra, stop pestering your sister."

Helen watched the small banter between her siblings in silence. For a ten-year-old, Timandra was quite bold, and had no problem picking on people older than her, particularly Clytemnestra and on several occasions, Castor and Pollux. 'Father always did say that Timandra was the most Spartan out of all of us.' Helen mused as she watched the girl cross her arms in a slight pout.

She frowned in thought. Would her children end up like that?

She really hoped not. Due to Helen's more timid nature, there was practically no way she would be able to handle her children teasing and rough housing with each other.

'Some Spartan you are.' A voice teased inside her mind.

"So Helen," The voice jerked her out of her thoughts and she turned to her Penelope, and her cousin continued, "If you don't mind me asking; what did you two do last night?"

This seemed to be the question on everyone's minds since the surrounding women all looked at Helen expectantly.

"Well…we laid in bed and talked for most of the night." Helen answered truthfully. She had nothing to hide.

Phoebe's eyes lit up as if she were listening to some juicy gossip, "Talked about what?"

"Oh nothing much…just stuff from when we were little."

"What kind of stuff from when you were little?"

Helen was about to reply when Leda cut her off, "Leave her alone Phoebe, this is neither the time nor the place to be gossiping. Now why don't you go off and play with the other children?" she gave her youngest daughter a slight shove away from the group.

Helen felt a strong twinge of pity as she watched her sister begin to trudge away, and leaned down to whisper in her ear, "I'll tell you about it later." She promised. Immediately, Phoebe perked up and she skipped away with a large grin.

As Helen spun back to the assembled women, she saw her mother begin to nudge Timandra away as well, "Perhaps it would be best if you left as well."

"Fine, this party was getting boring anyway." The young girl grumbled and stormed past Helen on her way out of the room.

Helen watched the violent female leave and sighed.

Gods give her strength if her daughter came out like that.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Menelaus~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Menelaus withheld a frustrated groan as he pinched the bridge of his nose. It had only been three hours since he and Helen had arrived, and already he was about to lose his patience.

During the time he had been stuck with the male guests, he had been subjected to teasing for not 'being a man' and getting started in producing heirs for the throne. Then to make matters worse the men started telling Menelaus stories about their own wedding night, in excruciating detail that Menelaus really didn't want to know about, all in hopes of convincing the young king to consummate his wife.

When he refused to be persuaded, most men just shrugged and insisted that he "didn't know what he was missing".

He nearly lost it when someone bluntly suggested he just take Helen by force.

"After all, she's just a woman and as such, it's her duty to please her husband."

Tyndareus, Castor and Pollux weren't in hearing range to hear the comment, but Agamemnon was, and as soon as he heard the cruel suggestion, he shook he scowled in disgust, "Not cool man."

Menelaus was glad his older brother was on his side. In fact, Agamemnon was one of the few who didn't condemn Menelaus him for not doing his 'job' as a husband. The others being Odysseus, Castor, Pollux, Diomedes, and Tyndareus.

At least Menelaus assumed the ex-king was on his side. Tyndareus hadn't said anything against him, so he guessed they were on the same page.

'At least things can't get any more awkward than they already are.' Menelaus thought with a small sigh.

A hand on his shoulder caused him to jump, and he spun around to find his friend Aloeus, standing behind him with an excited grin.

"I'm almost too afraid to ask what's going on in your mind." Menelaus stated uneasily.

Aloeus' grin seemed to grow, "I've got your wedding gift." He whispered.

Menelaus raised a brow, "Great, you can give it to me in a few hours." He was about to turn back around when Aloeus stopped him,

"No, no, this one is strictly for you, but I have to give it to you in private." He began to pull his friend away from the chatting group and towards the entrance.

"Wait, why does it have to be private?" The way Aloeus made it sound made Menelaus feel uncomfortable.

"Trust me its fine, I just want to give you a special scroll, but it's private and I really don't think you'd want everyone to see it." Aloeus smirked as they silently left the main hall and began to make their way down the many hallways.

Once Aloeus was sure the coast was clear and they were alone, he turned to Menelaus and pulled out the scroll he had tied to his belt.

"Just a heads up, some of these aren't good for first timers, and you'll have to wait until you two are more…experienced… but there are some good easy ones for beginners." The young man preceded to hand the scroll over to Menelaus, who took it timidly.

Menelaus stood there staring at the scroll, "I'm actually scared to open this…."

"Oh come on already!"

"Fine, fine." Menelaus slowly unrolled the scroll and blinked in disbelief.

It was a recipe scroll.

"You're kidding right?"

Aloeus chuckled, "Nope!"

Menelaus was confused, "If you were just going to give me a recipe scroll, why did you have to give it to me in private?"

Aloeus shrugged, "Because there's a part two." Upon seeing Menelaus's confused look, he pulled out another scroll from his belt. "Here, same rules as the first." He instructed casually as he handed the rolled paper to his friend.

Thinking it was another scroll of recipes, Menelaus unrolled the manuscript and nearly dropped it in shock before rolling it back up.

It was definitely not a recipe scroll. In fact, there were no words at all, just explicit drawings of men and women in various sexual positions.

Go figure.

"Aloeus…I can't accept this!" the king hissed while thrusting the scroll back at his friend. Aloeus wasn't deterred and pushed the outstretched scroll back to his friend. "Oh trust me; you'll thank me for it later."

Menelaus frowned, "I don't want this in my home! If Helen finds it-"

"She won't as long as you keep it hidden. Or who knows, maybe if you show it to her, she might be open to the idea." Aloeus turned and began walking away leaving Menelaus darting after him.

He was about to argue more when he and Aloeus came to an abrupt halt.

Standing in front of them looking completely innocent, though fooling no one, was Timandra.

"Hey girl, what are you doing roaming the halls by yourself?" Aloeus asked casually.

"My mom said it would be better if I played with the other children my age, but none of the other kids are good at fighting, so I decided to go for a walk instead." The young girl explained.

"Oh…" That was the only thing either man could say to a response like that.

"What's that?"

Menelaus was surprised to see his sister-in-law pointing at the recipe scroll. "Oh nothing, just a scroll with some recipes." He replied while hiding the other scroll behind his back. To his horror, Timandra peaked behind him and pointed to the dirty manuscript, "And what about that one?"

The two men shared a look before Menelaus thought of a quick answer, "Just some pictures."

Timandra tilted her head, "Pictures of what?" she perked up in excitement, "Oh, are they pictures with lots of blood and stuff? Or weapons?" Menelaus recoiled,

"Uh-"

"Can I see?" Timandra took a step towards Menelaus, causing him to hold the scroll away, "No sorry, it's basically just a map of Greece. Nothing too exciting." He lied, which thank the gods had worked. The second those words left his lips, the ten year old deflated.

"Oh." The immense displeasure could be heard in her voice, and she now looked bored to be in the presence of the two adults. Without another word, she brushed past Menelaus and continued her walk down the halls.

As soon as she was gone and out of hearing range, Aloeus smirked at Menelaus, "To think she's related to sweet, innocent Helen." He chuckled as he shook his head, "I actually feel sorry for whoever gets the 'pleasure' of marrying that little imp." He laughed as he started to make his way back to the party.

Menelaus took one final glance at the direction that Timandra went and shuddered.

'That kid is really creepy.' He thought as he followed his friend back to the party.

Before arriving to the room however, he made sure to stop one of the passing servants and instructed him to drop off the erotic scroll in his room. Knowing Helen wouldn't be spending the night with him this time, he wouldn't have to worry about her finding it anytime soon. But just to be safe, he would have to make sure he hid it in a better place later on.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Helen~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The hours had flown by, and soon evening had arrived once again, much to Helen's pleasure. After standing on her feet for most of the day and engaging in boring conversations, Helen wanted nothing more than to go to her room and sleep.

'Thank the gods all I have to do is sit and accept the gifts and then I'm free to sleep in my own room!' she thought.

She caught sight of Menelaus on the other side of the room and noticed that he looked just as tired as her. 'Maybe staying up all night wasn't such a good idea after all.' She mused as she watched Menelaus struggle to hold back a yawn.

Yes, they would both be getting some much needed sleep tonight.

At that moment, Leda approached her, "Helen, now is the time for you to accept your wedding gifts." She took a hold of her daughters arm and led her to a chair at the front of the gathering room. Helen stumbled after her mother; obviously Helen wasn't the only one that wanted the day to end.

As she settled into her chair, Menelaus sat in the empty seat next to her.

"Hi." She greeted. Menelaus looked over with a smile, "Hey you." He greeted in return.

"Ready for this day to finally be over?" he added with a small tilt of his head. Helen nodded, "Three days is way too long to celebrate a marriage." She complained in a hushed voice.

Menelaus chuckled, "I agree."

A tug on Helen's chiton caused her to look down. She grinned when she saw Phoebe standing before her. Apparently Leda had summoned Phoebe and Timadra back into the room.

"I got something for you Helen!" The little girl chirped.

"Oh really? What did you get me?" Helen replied cheerfully.

Phoebe faltered a bit, "Actually, it's for the baby, but you can keep it for now since you don't have any more toys." She removed her hands from behind her back and held up a doll. "It's my most favorite toy, but you and the baby can have it!" she beamed up at her older sister.

Helen blinked, "Oh thank you Phoebe, but I don't want to take away your toy if it means so much to you." The young girl shook her head,

"No it's okay Helen. I don't mind!" She held the doll out to her sister.

Knowing Phoebe would not back down, Helen slowly reached forward and took the doll from Phoebe's tiny hands.

"Thank you baby sister, I promise I'll take good care of it."

Phoebe beamed before skipping off to join the rest of the children. Helen handed the doll to Aethra, who placed it on a table.

Next came Aloeus, who handed Helen a new, blue Peplos. Before he left, he gave Menelaus an obvious wink, his mouth open in an exaggerated smile, causing Menelaus to blush softly.

Well that was weird.

"What was that about?" Helen questioned once the man was out of hearing range. Menelaus shook his head dismissively, "It's nothing, he's just excited about a recipe scroll he gave me."

Helen blinked, "Oh…was it that good?" she wondered with a small laugh.

Menelaus shrugged, "It's alright, but don't worry about him… he's weird."

Not believing her husband, but not willing to press him further for answers in front of their guests, Helen decided to drop the subject but vowed to confront him about it later.

Leda approached Helen next and handed her some weaving supplies. "Your father wanted me to tell you that he bought you a new loom as well. It's set up in the gynaikonitis." She stated as Aethra took the objects to the table.

"Thank you mother, and tell father I said thank you too." Helen replied.

Over the next couple of hours, the guests handed Helen her wedding gifts while Menelaus got a little something every once in a while.

Most of the gifts consisted of vases, sandals, chitons, several more peplos of every color, hair products, arm and wrist cuffs, a baby cradle, some baby clothes and toys, make up and even some weapons.

Philonoe was the first one to give such a gift. She walked up to Helen and held out a brand new bow and a quiver full of arrows.

Helen's eyes widened slightly as she took the gifts.

"Lady Artemis remembered the time I told her how good of an archer you were, and she insisted that this would be a good gift for you. I fashioned the arrows while Artemis carved out the bow herself." Philonoe explained with a proud smile.

Helen ran her hand over the bow, admiring the fine craftsmanship. "This is amazing…thank you Philonoe and please send Lady Artemis my thanks as well." She breathed with a large grin. She turned towards Menelaus and held up the bow for him to see. He nodded in approval, "It's beautiful."

Still smiling, Helen handed the weapon set to Aethra.

Last came Agamemnon and Clytemnestra.

Clytemnestra ended up giving Helen several peplos. 'With all this new clothes, I don't feel as bad for burning all my old ones.' Helen thought as she handed off the bundles to be placed on the table.

Just as Clytemnestra backed off, Agamemnon stepped forward. He gave a nod and a smile in Helen's direction before turning his attention to his little brother.

Helen noticed that Agamemnon was holding what she was sure was a sword, that was covered with a cloth.

She watched as Menelaus took the present from his brother and un-wrapped the long object.

Just as she suspected, it was a sword sheathed within its scabbard. What she didn't expect was the surprised, awed look that overcame her husband's face.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Menelaus~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Menelaus couldn't believe his eyes. He looked up at his brother before staring back down at the sword in his hands. Swallowing thickly, he partially pulled the sword out, as if to confirm what he was seeing was real, and let out a hitched gasp.

"…where did you find this?" he forced out as he looked up at Agamemnon.

Agamemnon sighed, "I found it in dad's secret room."

Menelaus blinked in disbelief, "Thyestes never got rid of it?" Agamemnon shook his head,

"Only because he never found it. That's why dad called it his secret room. It was secret." He smirked at his uncle's expense.

"Menelaus?"

The two turned to Helen, who was giving her husband a confused and concerned look, "Is everything okay?" she questioned.

Menelaus nodded numbly and turned back to the sword, "This was my dad's…"

"It was one of his old swords, one of his favorites." Agamemnon explained, "This one," he pointed to the sword in Menelaus' hands, "Is the one that our dad promised to give Menelaus when it was the right time."

Helen raised her brows in admiration, "Do you have one?"

Agamemnon nodded, "Yeah, the one I have now was the one my father used right before he died. Of course I had to take it from my uncle's cold, dead hand, but I still got it." His face darkened at the thought of his uncle keeping the sword that belonged to Atreus and in theory, Agamemnon.

Menelaus furrowed his brows, "Why didn't you give this to me sooner?" he demanded. Agamemnon cringed,

"Well…I was going to give it to you sooner, but then a bunch of other things came up and one thing led to another and eventually I figured it would be a good wedding gift." He explained.

Menelaus sighed. It was true, things had been a bit hectic lately. He couldn't hold it against his brother for waiting so long.

Finally smiling, he sheathed the sword and looked up at his older brother, "Well better late than never. Thank you."

Aethra moved towards her new king, "Shall I place it with the other gifts?" she offered.

Menelaus nodded, "Yes, but please be careful with it."

Aethra gave a nod of her own, and with gentle hands, she took the sword and carefully placed it on the table.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Helen~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once Aethra placed the last gift on the table, Helen turned back to her parents, whom were looking over the guests, checking to see if anyone was going to give a gift.

Seeing no one else step forward, the two gave a nod, and Tyndareus stepped forward once more.

"Alright! That officially ends the Epaulia…those that wish to go to bed are free to do so," he glanced over at his daughter who looked back at him pleadingly, "I believe the king and queen are going to retire for the night, but anyone that wants to remain here for a while longer are welcome to do so. We still have plenty of food and wine to go around." He announced.

Helen let out a sigh of relief. Finally the day, the wedding was over and she could get some rest. 'At least until mother comes and wakes me up in the morning. She never was one to let anyone sleep in late.' She thought with a sigh.

A hand came into view and Helen looked up to see Menelaus standing over her, holding his hand out to help her out of her chair.

Nodding in silent thanks, Helen took his hand and rose from her chair, and together the two began to make their way out of the large room.

Along the way, guests gave their final compliments and best wishes to the new couple, in which Helen and Menelaus thanked them once again.

As soon as they left the room and the doors closed behind them, they both let out a sigh.

"Is it just me, or did today seem longer than yesterday?" Menelaus joked as they walked down the halls, followed by several other tired guests that were making their way to the guest rooms, obviously about to turn in for the night.

"Oh it definitely felt longer," Helen agreed, "but at least I got a new bow, and you got your dad's old sword. So I guess this day ended on a good note."

Menelaus raised a brow at Helen, "Speaking of that, I didn't know you knew archery."

"Yeah it's my one true hobby. Philonoe taught me how to handle a bow and arrow when I was a bit younger." She clarified before adding, "And I don't mean to brag, but I'm probably one of the best shooters in my family, next to Philonoe of course." She boasted with a smug smirk.

"Really?"

"Mm-hmm, apparently Lady Artemis was impressed and was planning on offering me a chance to join the hunt, but my parents prevented me from leaving…hence the reason why they were in such a hurry to marry me off. In a way, it's Philonoe's fault that my sisters and I have to marry so much sooner than other Spartan girls. My parents are afraid that one of us would run off and join the hunt like my sister did." Helen rolled her eyes at the thought of her parents.

Menelaus scoffed, "They wanted grandkids that bad?"

Helen shrugged, "I guess, plus they needed an heir to the throne. Philonoe joined the hunt, Castor and Pollux are always running around, going on adventures, Clytemnestra married your brother and moved in with him, so of course I was next in line."

"Of course."

Helen laughed softly, causing Menelaus to look down at her, "What?" he asked with a curious smile. Helen looked up at him,

"I'm just thinking of how Clytemnestra's plan backfired."

"Plan?"

Helen froze. She had totally forgotten that Menelaus didn't know about Clytemnestra's "fool proof" plan. She didn't even know if Agamemnon knew that his marriage was formed only because it was a failed scheme.

"Well…you see…Nes was seventeen when our parents decided to marry her off, she tried to run away but the guards found her, which led to my father to start looking for a decent husband for her." She paused for a second, "I guess this all happened a little after you and your brother defeated your uncle, because when you guys arrived for a visit, Agamemnon was already king."

Menelaus nodded, "Yeah, your dad sent us some of his troops to help us and he wanted to congratulate us on our victory."

Helen gave a single nod, "Yes well, Clytemnestra found out that Agamemnon was only a year older, and she figured that if she was going to lose her maidenhood, it would be with someone that wasn't ten years older than her. Her reasoning was that if she was no longer a virgin, no man would want her. It was stupid reasoning, but for some reason she believed it would work."

Menelaus was silent before, "And how do you know all this? You weren't here when we came to visit."

"I was off with Chiron. Remember, I'm a demigoddess, and as such, Zeus required me to get training every few months or so from the best trainer around." Helen clarified. "Anyway, I don't think she was planning on Agamemnon getting her pregnant, but he did. Then as soon as my parents found out that Clytemnestra was no longer a virgin and carrying Agamemnon's child, they figured the best thing to do was to marry her and your brother together. I guess they didn't care since Agamemnon is a king and all that, so it worked out pretty well for everyone except Nes."

The hall was silent at the end of Helen's tale. The young queen bit her lip as she watched Menelaus glare off to the side, obviously fuming at what his sister-in-law had done.

Taking a step towards her husband, Helen started, "I swear I didn't know about her plan until after they were married. Had I known what she was up too, I would have tried to talk her out of it before I left." She looked down, "I'm so sorry she used your brother like that." She apologized.

She meant it. It wasn't fair for Agamemnon to be in a marriage that was considered the result of a plans miscalculation.

A hand on her cheek caused her to look up.

Menelaus let out a deep breath, "Look don't worry about it. You had no idea what your sister was up to and what's done is done."

She knew he was right, but it didn't make her feel any better. However, when Menelaus gave her a reassuring smile, she couldn't help but smile in return.

With that, they turned and headed up the stairs that would lead to the bedrooms.

Wanting to change the mood and subject, Helen looked back up at Menelaus, "Why did you and that man leave the party earlier?"

She saw Menelaus' eyes widen ever so slightly before composing himself.

"Oh that was Aloeus, he gave you the blue peplos, and uh…like I said earlier, he wanted to give me that recipe scroll I told you about." He replied, trying to be casual. Helen narrowed her eyes playfully, "Really?"

"Yep, really."

"I would like to see this recipe scroll." She announced as they reached the top of the stairs.

Without skipping a beat, Menelaus countered, "It's back on the table, probably buried under everything else."

Helen frowned. Yes she did recall seeing a scroll on the table when her mother was pulling her to the front of the room. However, she had a feeling that her husband wasn't being entirely truthful about the real reason why he left the party. She was curious about what really happened, but for her husband's sake, she decided not to push the subject further.

With that in mind, the two continued down the hall. Once they reached the end, they stopped and faced each other. Behind Menelaus, was the hall that led to the men's bathroom and bedrooms, and behind Helen was the hall that led to the women's bathroom and quarters.

The couple stared at each other gloomily.

Helen had been wanting to go to bed, yet she had completely forgotten that she would not have Menelaus to cuddle against since he was going to sleep in his own room.

"I guess this is good night?" Menelaus said after a moment of silence.

Helen nodded with a smile, "Yes I'll…I'll see you in the morning."

They gave each other a 'good night' hug and pulled away, though a bit reluctantly. Philonoe was right, Menelaus truly was a rare catch, and Helen felt lucky for having him as a husband.

A sound coming from the direction of the staircase caught their attention, and they turned to see one of the guests coming down the hall, carrying his young son, who was already fast asleep in his father's arms.

"My Lord, my Lady." He greeted as he moved past Menelaus.

The king and queen smiled at the slumbering child and watched as the father moved down the hall.

Helen was the first to look back at Menelaus, and before she could stop herself, she moved forward.

She had intended for her actions to be just a quick peck on the cheek…just something to further break the tension, something to assure her husband that she trusted him and was starting too really like him. But what happened instead was not what she expected.

As fate would have it, Menelaus, completely unaware of his wife's action, turned his head at the last second and before Helen could stop herself, she found her lips pressed against Menelaus'.

Both of their eyes widened in surprise, and Helen pulled away, blushing furiously.

"I'm sorry, that wasn't supposed to happen! I was aiming for your cheek!" Helen rambled, feeling her face burn in embarrassment. "I'm so sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable or-"

She was cut off when Menelaus leaned down and pressed his mouth against hers. He remained there for a few seconds before pulling away.

"Wow…" Helen whispered.

"Not bad." Menelaus agreed.

"Hey get a room you love birds!"

They whirled around and found Agamemnon leading Clytemnestra down the hall, a playful smirk on his face as he took in their blushing faces.

"I thought you two were heading to bed?" he teased.

"We are, we were just saying good night." Menelaus argued. This just caused Agamemnon to laugh, "Yeah whatever you say bro." he chortled as he led his wife to their guest room.

Helen watched them go. Normally it wasn't common for a woman to spend the night in a man's room or a man in a woman's, but since space was limited due to the amount of guests, many had to bunk together. Clytemnestra was allowed to bunk with Agamemnon due to the fact that she was heavily pregnant and he wanted to keep an eye on her.

'He really doesn't want to lose this baby too.' Helen mused as the couple disappeared into one of the rooms.

The sound of a throat clearing caught her attention, and Helen turned back to her husband.

"I guess this is good night…again." He said awkwardly. Helen nodded, "Yes, good night."

They smiled at each other before turning and making their way towards their own bedrooms.

Once they arrived at their doors, they turned back and gave one final wave before entering their chambers.

Helen leaned against her closed door and let out a loud sigh, the stress of the previous days finally lifting off her shoulders. Then there was the fact that she and Menelaus had kissed twice. It was nothing extremely erotic; her kiss had been an accidental and even his had been closed mouthed, yet…it was obviously enough to make her flush like an apple.

Pushing herself away from the door, she made her way to her bed, and laid herself on the soft covers. Her head was swimming as she thought about what her future held. Three days ago she would have feared what the marriage had in store, but after the events that took place last night and what happened just moments ago, she was sure things would turn out just fine.

True she still wasn't ready to lose her maidenhood and become a mother any time soon, but the thought of having a child didn't terrify her anymore.

Smiling, Helen pressed her cheek against her pillow and closed her eyes, allowing darkness to overcome her and lure her into a much needed, peaceful sleep.

A/N: By the gods and goddesses, I'm finally done with this chapter! Now on to a rather lengthy author note.

Ancient Greek wedding: As I mentioned a couple of chapters ago, ancient Greek weddings took place over three days.

Day 1 the Proaulia- On this day, the bride spends her last day with her family. There is a feast and various sacrifices to Artemis and Aphrodite are made. The bride's toys and old clothing are burned as an offering to Artemis as a sign of moving from childhood to adulthood.

Day 2 the Gamos- This day starts off with a nuptial bath in the woman's quarters. The water is carried in an loutrophoros (a type of vase) carried by a child to induce fertility and produce purity on the bride. After the bath, the bride changes in the same room and puts on a veil, which symbolizes fertility and won't be removed until she is handed over to the groom. She may also have a belt tied around her waist in a 'Hercules' knot , which is not to be removed until she is alone in the bedroom with her husband later that night.

Then there is another feast (men and women sit on separate tables) and in the evening, is the unveiling of the bride and she is transferred to her new husband. Soon after is a procession to her new home and it's there that she and her new husband are to consummate the marriage…with the guests waiting outside the door.

Day 3 the Epaulia- This is the final day, though it is treated as a bridal/groom shower. During this day, there is yet another feast and the new husband and wife receive their wedding gifts. Gifts include perfume, makeup, vases, jewelry and so on.

Differences in this story: In this fic, the wedding customs are pretty much the same, though with a few differences. On the gamos, Helen does not make a transition to a new home, giving that she and Menelaus are the new rulers, and they don't really have anywhere to go (plus Menelaus' city is a good ways away from Sparta. It would be a very long procession.) so they just went to the room that Menelaus was staying in.

On the epaulia, I don't think baby accessories are given as gifts, but in this story I went ahead and did it, if anything, to make Helen and Menelaus more uncomfortable about being pressured into having children.

Note about the palace: Based on ancient Greek palaces, Knossos and Phaistos, the palaces in my fics are going to be very big. Large enough to house guards and helots/servants/slaves as well as the royal family (obviously). I don't know if that's how it worked back then, but that's the joy of fanfiction…you get to tweak some minor details.

Wedding Ages: Most Greek girls got married around the ages of 13 or so and often to men in their 30's or older. In Sparta girls got married in their 20's. In this fic, Helen and Clytemnestra marry younger due because of their older sister, which I'll go into detail shortly.

Stuff about the characters:

Ajax the lesser: He didn't come out in any of these three chapters, but this is just something that will come into play in later chapters and in the squeals. Apparently, I made a mistake in regards to the Ajax in the Mr. Peabody and Sherman movie. I thought that the Ajax present in the film was Ajax the greater, but I was wrong… it was the lesser Ajax. With this in mind, I'm going to make some changes; Ajax the greater is still going to be a jerk, but Ajax the lesser (the one in the movie that I was mistakenly thinking of when I wrote the first chapter) will be the nicer, music loving one. I hope there won't be much confusion. :/

Agamemnon and Menelaus: As of right now, Menelaus is 18 and Agamemnon in 20. They marry so young because Agamemnon is already a king and Menelaus was just lucky.

Agamemnon and Clytemnestra's rumored dead baby: I've made several references to this in the story. Now normally in myths, Agamemnon and Clytemnestra only have four children, Iphigenia, Electra, Orestes and Chrysothemis. But at one point, I found a couple of (incorrect) sources that said there were five children in which there was another daughter named Iphianissa. I know that some sources say that Iphianissa and Iphigenia are the same person, but I thought it would be interesting to add Iphianissa as an unfortunate death as it will explain some of Agamemnon's later actions later in the story.

And as a heads up, here is the order of Agamemnon's children (from oldest to youngest): Iphianissa (deceased), Iphigenia, Electra, Orestes, and Chrysothemis. I don't know the actual order his children were in, but this is the order I'm following for the story.

Aethra: mother of Theseus (Helen's childhood kidnapper) that is now Helen's servant. (having been kidnapped by Castor and Pollux)

Leda: Helen's mother. Seduced by Zeus and had Helen. In normal myths, Helen and Clytemnestra are twins, but in this fic, they are separate children and Clytemnestra is the birth child of Tyndareus, so are Castor and Pollux.

Tyndareus: Father of Philonoe, Castor, Pollux, Clytemnestra, Helen (foster father), Timandra and Phoebe.

(Next are the children. Age's and order made up by me)

Philonoe: In myths, Artemis made her immortal so in this story, she lives with Artemis as a huntress. She is currently 28 but she looks 20 as that was the age she ran away, joined the hunt and became immortal. Because of her actions, Leda and Tyndareus have decided to marry of their daughters at an early age (for Spartans) before they could run away too. Birth daughter of Leda and Tyndareus.

Castor and Pollux: In myths they were twin sons of Leda with Zeus and Tyndareus being the fathers. In my story, Tyndareus is the father of both. I think in myths they joined Jason and the Argonauts before Helen's wedding, but in this fic, they'll meet him shortly after leaving Sparta. They are 26 as of right now.

Clytemnestra: Age 19 (a year younger than Agamemnon). Birth daughter of Leda and Tyndareus. In myths she was Helen's twin, but not in this fic. :-)

Helen: 15 at this point ( three years younger than Menelaus) and daughter of Leda and Zeus (in my fic she is the only child in the family that is the offspring of Zeus).

Timandra: Currently 10 years old. Typical Spartan and a bit of a tomboy.

Phoebe: currently 5 years old. Second nicest of the children, Helen being the nicest.

OC: Aloeus- a mischievous, somewhat perverted, friend of Menelaus.

Delbina, Thira- two helots that serve the royal family.

Alright, I think that's all I wanted to point out for now…if I think of anything else later, I'll update this note.

I would also like to apologize for the long wait…things have been busy here what school starting soon and all. :/

I'll get started on the next chapter as soon as possible. :-)

Chapter's 1-4 edited for grammar, spelling, punctuation and other wording errors on 9/16/14.