I changed my mind, this is not the last chapter, I split what was originally chapter ten into two different chapters. It just worked better this way. Thank you all for the lovely reviews, I appreciate them deeply.

Notes: In this chapter I will be using the Greek goddess Athena, and making a reference to the myth of the golden apple. For those of you who don't know, the story goes something like this: Eris, the goddess of discord, was not invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis (yes, Achilles' parents.) As revenge, she took a golden apple labeled "To the fairest" and hurled it into the crowd. Athena (goddess of wisdom and warfare), Hera (goddess of married women), and Aphrodite (goddess of love and beauty), all saw the apple. They began to fight over it, each saying they were the fairest and should be rewarded the apple. They went to Zeus and asked him to judge it, but he refused (smart guy), so he appointed a mortal instead. That mortal was Paris. Each goddess offered Paris a different gift in return for choosing them the fairest- Athena offered great military victory, Hera offered great wealth, and Aphrodite offered the love of the most beautiful woman in the world. Paris chose Aphrodite, and she gave him the love of Helen, queen of Sparta, neglecting to mention the fact she was already married. Now, not only did this spark the Trojan War, but it also made the other two goddesses EXTREMELY angry with Paris. Even though this wasn't mentioned in the movie, as there weren't any actual gods, I'm going to play off that a little bit.

Also, from what I've read, the gods were known to be fickle, proud, and occasionally just plain mean. So that will come into play as well.

(P.S.- this is just one version of the story- I'm sure there are some that differ slightly, but I just wanted to put in some basic background.)

- - - - - -

I sat in the garden, running my fingers through the fountain's cool waters. Tears dripped down my face and into the water, causing my reflection to blur and the water to ripple. It had been five days since Hector had died, and four days since they had burned his body. Priam had gone to Achilles to recover him, bringing with him gifts of all kinds, to try to bribe the great warrior into returning the body of his beloved son. He had succeeded, and a few hours later had returned with Hector- and Briseis.

I didn't have to ask why Briseis had returned with Priam that night- she told me herself. She begged me for forgiveness, tried to make me see what had happened, how good a person Achilles was. But I could barely look at her, and she left my room in tears.

In truth, I was not really angry with her. In fact, I didn't seem to have any kind of emotion left. Instead, I was filled with a kind of emptiness. I couldn't sleep, I couldn't eat- I just wandered the palace like a ghost, always carefully avoiding Hector's quarters. My heart went out to Andromache, who could not escape him, trapped in the quarters that had once been his with the son he had adored- constant reminders of Hector's existence. I turned my head, shaking it listlessly, trying to rid myself of thoughts of Hector. I missed him more than words can describe.

"It's better this way, you know." A voice said from the corner of the garden. Anger swelled inside me and I snapped my head to see who was talking.

"Nothing is better without Hector. Who dares to say so?" I hissed, growing angrier when I realized the person was not visible from where I was sitting. "Show yourself." The person moved out of the shadow, and I gasped slightly.

She was unlike any woman I had ever seen. She wore armor that was more beautiful than any armor I had ever seen on a Trojan, or a Greek for that matter. Fine red horsehair spilled from the helmet on her head, and she held a shield. A slightly amused smile played across her lips.

"Who are you?" I demanded, my voice slightly less commanding than I would've liked it to be. "Are you Greek?" She chuckled.

"I am Athena, goddess of wisdom and warfare. I am no Greek."

I narrowed my eyes. Clearly, this woman was insane, and she was armed. I decided to play along, partially to protect myself, more for the fact that I was curious as to what she had to say. "If you are Athena, why have you come to me? It is told you favor the Greeks."

She smiled again. "Of course I favor the Greeks. You have your fool of a cousin to thank for that."

"Paris?" I did not know how much longer I could tolerate this woman acting as if she were a goddess. Where were the guards? How had she gotten in the palace?

"Yes, Paris." She shook her head, laughing softly. "Hector may have been a Trojan, but he was no fool." Her eyes adopted a wistful look. "I was almost sorry to see him die. Now, he was a prince. He would have chosen correctly."

"Tell me, Athena." I said, quietly, fervently wishing the guards would come find me. "What did you mean by saying that it is better that Hector is dead? Troy is doomed without him."

She laughed again. Her laughter was unnerving. "My dear, Troy was doomed with Prince Hector. Its fate was decided long ago. It is better for him, as well as for you, that he not be here for its destruction."

I stood up, forgetting that this had all been a ruse to encourage her, forgetting that she wasn't right in the head. "How do you know that Troy will fall? And how can his death be better for me?" I whispered.

"I am Athena, dear girl. I know of the end of this war- do not insult me by asking how. And as for you-" she said, beginning to move backwards, "You have not yet known true loss. Prince Hector was only the beginning."

"What?" I asked, bewildered, trying to follow her but finding my feet cemented to the ground. "What does that mean?"

She smiled once more, and it sent chills up my spine. Her smile was horrible, like a wide gash on her face. "You will know soon enough, girl."

I struggled to follow her once more, but my feet were beginning to sink into the ground beneath me. I fought to pull myself free, but nothing happened and I sank further than before. I yelled and screamed, but there was no answer, only the woman's laughing echoing across the garden.

- - - - - - -

I woke with a start, sweating and panting. It was just a dream, I soothed myself. Just a dream. My fingers were wound tightly around the bed sheets, and I uncurled them and put my face in my hands. The woman still haunted me, her cruel laughter still ringing in my ears, and I wondered if the dream would prove to be true.