After Troy
Chapter 6 – The Lesson
Achilles again found himself inwardly mocking the young prince Paris. He was in a complete state of power, pressed down upon this young man. Yet now he was uncertain as to what to say. What was his grand lesson? His legacy? What did he have to teach this boy or, rather, where did he start?
Paris watched the ex-myrmidon commander stare down at him. The warmth of Achilles body could be felt, even on this hot night.
"So," Achilles began, feeling much more subdued than before. He had proven his power, now he stood against an intellectual challenge. He decided to question the boy instead. "I was the first man you killed?"
'What is he talking about?' Paris thought. 'I expected a lesson on life, love and war, not questions.' He replied nevertheless. "Yes."
"And Helen was the first woman you loved?"
'Maybe this is a lesson on life, love and war, after all. But for whom?' Paris pondered. "She was the only woman I've ever loved!" He said angrily. "Now remove your self, at once!" He struggled again, realising the secret about his life that he had divulged.
"Not yet. So you've only ever loved one woman?" Achilles chuckled at this, though it surprised him, given how attractive the prince was. He really was inexperienced.
"She was." Paris told him, no point denying it now. "Where is this leading?"
"Oh, nowhere." Achilles resolved, amusing himself. "I just thought we'd have a chat while we've got the change." He smiled again and Paris would have hit him, if he could make use of his arms. Achilles changed position again, this time straddling Paris' waist. "So tell me about Helen. As you knew her. I, of course, met her as everybody else knew her, but what changed around you?"
"We loved each other. That's all that needed to change." Paris was fuming, and embarrassed about being questioned like this. "She was my escape from the pressures of being a prince." He told Achilles, why was he telling Achilles? "And I was her escape from everything." He was telling Achilles because it needed to be told, regardless of who heard it. "We were in love." He stopped.
"Where did she go?" Achilles asked. Something had broken down in each of them. For Achilles it was an emotional wall. The relationship he had with Briseis didn't mean much to him, though he did enjoy it and cared for her. The previous relationship, the one he had with Patroclus, was much deeper, and it had nearly killed him when Patroclus died. That was the closest he had ever come to love. It was not the same level that Paris was describing. Achilles was fascinated, absorbed in the prince's speech.
"She went back into the city. She could no longer wait for me." Paris felt a tear escape his eye. Yet pride evaded him and it no longer mattered that Achilles was present. "She didn't believe that I would return." Paris gasped, partly at his own realization, also for air. Another tear left his eye and he closed them to resist the flow.
Achilles watched the prince struggle with his emotions. Just then, a tenderness occurred within him, and reached his spare hand out and brushed away the wetness on Paris' cheek, at the same time as releasing his hands.
Paris was shocked and looked up. The soldier upon him had changed somehow. His manner, his face and the emotions upon it. Care was written all over him. He closed his eyes again, feeling safer.
Suddenly, and for no reason he could explain, even to this day, Achilles bent down and, without any consideration, kissed Paris. Tender, loving, and like nothing he'd ever done or felt before.
But Paris' eyes shot wide open again. A state of alarm ran through him, and with a hidden strength that caught Achilles off guard he shoved him off and sprinted back to the camp.
Achilles sat up, facing the retreating figure, mind clogged with regret. He suppressed his emotions again, as he had done for years. "Damn it." He said to the darkness. Then he found himself thinking 'Another time. Again, but another time.'
"What?" he asked, arguing with his own thoughts. He remained where he was for several hour before rising, at dawn, to return to the camp, to face another day.
At that moment, away in Mt. Olympus, Thetis watched her sons exploits with some degree of sadness. "My poor boy, after all you've been through! To be rejected again." She sighed, and Aphrodite pondered for barely one moment before making a decision.
"It's time I intervened with my lovely Prince's love life again." She said to Thetis.
"Aphrodite, you can't make him fall in love. That is forbidden." Thetis attempted to be the voice of reason, though she did desire greatly for her son to be happy.
"I won't make him fall in love." Aphrodite said, mischievously. "I'll just... point out the advantages." She winked and got to work on devising a plan. "My first stop will be a little convincing for our good Zeus."
A/N: Incidentally kids, if you care to check back on chapter 4 I made some changes, taking into account the Aeneas situation. Also!!!!oieur3wu84uwe! My dad went out today while I was at work and got the Iliad! Yay for him! I didn't even ask, he just randomly bought it! So I'll get to work on reading that and things will be sorted. So messages for readers again: Yana5, don't get your knickers in a knot! Just read. And believe me, I love Paris as much as you do! bradleigh, I have no idea what you're on about, but yay, thanks for reviewing, hehehe. And Caligula, jesus (sorry, religious types) man! You scare me with your good arguments and reasoning... why do people have to make so much sense. Anyhoo, the argument seemed alright when I was writing it. Heh, sorry dude! Purplemoofu, how much slashyness are you expecting, cos (sorry lucy) since my cousing started reading I feel tense about writing. Um... find the slash in my HP fic and see if that will do. And by the by, no cats, please! Euch! X-shadowcat! Nice to hear from you again! Can I call you x? hehe, x. sorry dude, had to be a cliff! I hope this is soon enough, I'm an hour and a half behind schedule already! Haha! Where'd you get the "I Love Slash" pin? I want one! Lydia, thanks for the review, and for respecting the depth! Unfortunately it's not such a small world, I live in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, other-side-of-the-world-in-the-middle-of-a-huge-fucking-ocean!!! Haha, you can't get there by bus! (Rove fans would appreciate that one). But still, Palm bay? Is it nice? Sounds nice. And last but, by no means least, LovemeBroken. Thanks dude! But don't expect too much, I'm not that good at writing anything slashy and, like I said, it's tense! Jesus (sorry, religious types, just a figure of speech), I may as well start an entirely new fic just for responses! Toodles kids!
Achilles again found himself inwardly mocking the young prince Paris. He was in a complete state of power, pressed down upon this young man. Yet now he was uncertain as to what to say. What was his grand lesson? His legacy? What did he have to teach this boy or, rather, where did he start?
Paris watched the ex-myrmidon commander stare down at him. The warmth of Achilles body could be felt, even on this hot night.
"So," Achilles began, feeling much more subdued than before. He had proven his power, now he stood against an intellectual challenge. He decided to question the boy instead. "I was the first man you killed?"
'What is he talking about?' Paris thought. 'I expected a lesson on life, love and war, not questions.' He replied nevertheless. "Yes."
"And Helen was the first woman you loved?"
'Maybe this is a lesson on life, love and war, after all. But for whom?' Paris pondered. "She was the only woman I've ever loved!" He said angrily. "Now remove your self, at once!" He struggled again, realising the secret about his life that he had divulged.
"Not yet. So you've only ever loved one woman?" Achilles chuckled at this, though it surprised him, given how attractive the prince was. He really was inexperienced.
"She was." Paris told him, no point denying it now. "Where is this leading?"
"Oh, nowhere." Achilles resolved, amusing himself. "I just thought we'd have a chat while we've got the change." He smiled again and Paris would have hit him, if he could make use of his arms. Achilles changed position again, this time straddling Paris' waist. "So tell me about Helen. As you knew her. I, of course, met her as everybody else knew her, but what changed around you?"
"We loved each other. That's all that needed to change." Paris was fuming, and embarrassed about being questioned like this. "She was my escape from the pressures of being a prince." He told Achilles, why was he telling Achilles? "And I was her escape from everything." He was telling Achilles because it needed to be told, regardless of who heard it. "We were in love." He stopped.
"Where did she go?" Achilles asked. Something had broken down in each of them. For Achilles it was an emotional wall. The relationship he had with Briseis didn't mean much to him, though he did enjoy it and cared for her. The previous relationship, the one he had with Patroclus, was much deeper, and it had nearly killed him when Patroclus died. That was the closest he had ever come to love. It was not the same level that Paris was describing. Achilles was fascinated, absorbed in the prince's speech.
"She went back into the city. She could no longer wait for me." Paris felt a tear escape his eye. Yet pride evaded him and it no longer mattered that Achilles was present. "She didn't believe that I would return." Paris gasped, partly at his own realization, also for air. Another tear left his eye and he closed them to resist the flow.
Achilles watched the prince struggle with his emotions. Just then, a tenderness occurred within him, and reached his spare hand out and brushed away the wetness on Paris' cheek, at the same time as releasing his hands.
Paris was shocked and looked up. The soldier upon him had changed somehow. His manner, his face and the emotions upon it. Care was written all over him. He closed his eyes again, feeling safer.
Suddenly, and for no reason he could explain, even to this day, Achilles bent down and, without any consideration, kissed Paris. Tender, loving, and like nothing he'd ever done or felt before.
But Paris' eyes shot wide open again. A state of alarm ran through him, and with a hidden strength that caught Achilles off guard he shoved him off and sprinted back to the camp.
Achilles sat up, facing the retreating figure, mind clogged with regret. He suppressed his emotions again, as he had done for years. "Damn it." He said to the darkness. Then he found himself thinking 'Another time. Again, but another time.'
"What?" he asked, arguing with his own thoughts. He remained where he was for several hour before rising, at dawn, to return to the camp, to face another day.
At that moment, away in Mt. Olympus, Thetis watched her sons exploits with some degree of sadness. "My poor boy, after all you've been through! To be rejected again." She sighed, and Aphrodite pondered for barely one moment before making a decision.
"It's time I intervened with my lovely Prince's love life again." She said to Thetis.
"Aphrodite, you can't make him fall in love. That is forbidden." Thetis attempted to be the voice of reason, though she did desire greatly for her son to be happy.
"I won't make him fall in love." Aphrodite said, mischievously. "I'll just... point out the advantages." She winked and got to work on devising a plan. "My first stop will be a little convincing for our good Zeus."
A/N: Incidentally kids, if you care to check back on chapter 4 I made some changes, taking into account the Aeneas situation. Also!!!!oieur3wu84uwe! My dad went out today while I was at work and got the Iliad! Yay for him! I didn't even ask, he just randomly bought it! So I'll get to work on reading that and things will be sorted. So messages for readers again: Yana5, don't get your knickers in a knot! Just read. And believe me, I love Paris as much as you do! bradleigh, I have no idea what you're on about, but yay, thanks for reviewing, hehehe. And Caligula, jesus (sorry, religious types) man! You scare me with your good arguments and reasoning... why do people have to make so much sense. Anyhoo, the argument seemed alright when I was writing it. Heh, sorry dude! Purplemoofu, how much slashyness are you expecting, cos (sorry lucy) since my cousing started reading I feel tense about writing. Um... find the slash in my HP fic and see if that will do. And by the by, no cats, please! Euch! X-shadowcat! Nice to hear from you again! Can I call you x? hehe, x. sorry dude, had to be a cliff! I hope this is soon enough, I'm an hour and a half behind schedule already! Haha! Where'd you get the "I Love Slash" pin? I want one! Lydia, thanks for the review, and for respecting the depth! Unfortunately it's not such a small world, I live in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, other-side-of-the-world-in-the-middle-of-a-huge-fucking-ocean!!! Haha, you can't get there by bus! (Rove fans would appreciate that one). But still, Palm bay? Is it nice? Sounds nice. And last but, by no means least, LovemeBroken. Thanks dude! But don't expect too much, I'm not that good at writing anything slashy and, like I said, it's tense! Jesus (sorry, religious types, just a figure of speech), I may as well start an entirely new fic just for responses! Toodles kids!