Title: "After Ecbatana"

Author: Baliansword

Chapter: 13, "Exile"

A/N: Thanks again for all of the support, from both reviewers and simple readers. Please continue to send your reviews, to let me know what you think. Enjoy!

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The knock at the door was rather expected. Olympias stood, and went to the door. Before she opened it she glanced over at her bed. A frown crossed her lips. At least the furs on the bed hid Cassander enough. She wondered how he could sleep through all of the noise that had been going on all night, and all morning for the matter. Nevertheless, Olympias pulled the door open.

Alexander looked like he had been to the Underworld, had a fight with Hades, and had swam the river Styx back. His golden hair was tossed about as if he had not slept in ten years. His clothing was ruffled, and had been worn last night. His eyes were red from the crying he had been doing, his cheeks stained with tears. Olympias decided to let him in. Even if he were to see Cassander, he would not say anything, he would be concentrating on only one subject.

"He is not here," Olympias said as Alexander entered the room and she sat down. She picked up the snake that had been slithering over the parchment she was writing on. While she did this she pretended not to be concerned with Alexander in the least. Well, she really did not care about his problems at the moment. He had brought them all upon himself.

"Do you know where he is," Alexander asked. It took Olympias a moment to respond. He had before done some stupid things in his life. Sending Hephaestion into exile was by far the most absurd thing he had done as of yet though. Olympias looked up, the pen in her hand stopping. Her eyes were cruel, her words icy and cold, yet they stung and burned like lighting and fire.

"He was exiled," Olympias responded. "He left just after."

"What," Alexander said, his voice almost failing to come to him. The words barely made it out of his throat. Exiled, no. That was not what he had wanted. He had not meant that he never wanted to speak to him again, and he did not want him to leave. Alexander felt his heart braking even more. No, he had been foolish in his rage. He had only wanted Hephaestion to understand that he loved him and did not want to share him.

"That is what people do when they are told to leave," Olympias continued. She did not soften her attitude. Alexander did not deserve is. He deserved to be whipped, if she had any say in it. What a foolish, foolish man. He had everything, but would throw it away, when Hephaestion had asked something completely reasonable. "They leave."

"Mother," he pleaded with her, "I did not mean for him to leave. I only, I don't know what I was thinking when I said those things. Do you know what he asked me?"

"A mother knows everything," she replied simply as she put her snake on the floor. If it went and bit Alexander it would not be her fault. It would be a punishment from Aphrodite. There was no such luck though. She went back to her writing. "He should have asked you nothing."

"What?"

"You heard me," she said without pause. "I said that he should have asked you nothing, and I mean it. Did you ask him when you took Stateira? Or did you ask him what he thought of Roxanne? What about Bagoas, did you ask about the Persian eunuch before you took him into your bed?"

"How dare you," he loudly said. The rage was clearly coming back. But Olympias did not mind. She knew how her son could be. The only thing that kept her calm was that she knew he could yell, but her words could slice his throat, and tear at all the strings of his heart.

"I'm not the one that takes multiple lovers," she shot back, her voice never changing. "I'm not being hypocritical either. I do not do one thing, and then tell the man that I love that he cannot do the very same. Tell me Alexander, why did you force him to marry Drypetis?"

"I did not force him to do anything!"

"He does not love her. I don't think he would have, had you not pushed him so. What did you tell him? I wonder, did you promise him that it would not be so bad? Did you tell him that you had married Stateira, and the both of you could father children, and all would be well?"

"What is this game that you play?"

"Not a game. Just facts, Alexander. You made him marry her because perhaps you knew that Hephaestion could never love her. That gave you enough security. It is sad though, no children came from either of your marriages. His, because he was not in love. Yours, I think your humility cursed you and you couldn't do the poor girl right in bed."

"How dare you," he screamed.

"Oh yes, blame me for your mistakes. At least you got it right with Roxanne, which surprised me. But when Hephaestion told me why, I understood. Sad that you had to think of him, and scream out his name. I wonder how that made Roxanne feel, not that I care. I actually wished her death in childbirth. Now we'll just have to do something else, won't we?"

"Stop, you sorceress."

But she did not stop. She did not think he could make her, even if he were to leap at her and strangle her, as he perhaps wanted to right now. No, he did not scare her. She was not doing this all for her own pleasure, or to teach him a lesson though. She was doing this for Hephaestion. It must have been the fact that he was more a son to her than Alexander that made her do so. In fact, she was writing to him now.

"I don't see what you find wrong with Aryse. She comes from a good family, a good upbringing. She will give him lovely children. What did you tell yourself Alexander? Did you tell yourself that Hephaestion was blind- that he was under a spell and could not love her? Were you trying to save him, is that it?"

"No," Alexander exploded. "I love him! I love him more than I love anything in this world, and he is the only thing that no other can have! Did you hear that, gods above? No other can take him from me!"

"Hephaestion was not leaving you," she hissed. "He was merely trying to have a life, one which was somewhat normal. He has followed you across the world, done your biding, warmed you bed! He has been your slave for far to long. He only wanted to have a child! And perhaps he wanted to have someone with him that would ask him for nothing, just his company!"

"How dare you," he said, tears now coming to his eyes and running down his cheeks. He pointed at her, his cheeks red, his body shaking with anger. "That is all I ever wanted of him!"

"You, you, you. Does everything ever not begin with what you want? Hephaestion did not want to leave Macedonia, he did not want to fight in you war, or loose you to Roxanne, or Bagoas! Hephaestion wanted only you. He gave himself freely to you though. Instead of seeing that, you just took and took and took from him, and now he has nothing left Alexander! You are the one that is killing him, slowly and swiftly."

Alexander tried to look away, as she stood and approached, but she stopped that quickly. "Look at me Alexander! I want you to hear this. Hephaestion loves you, and still does. He only wants what you have, what he thinks will please you. Can you not see that?"

"What," Alexander said as he tried to push her away. "He wants to be rid of me. He is like all of the rest of them. He hates me!"

"Love and hate are a fine line with you!"

"Just tell me where he is!"

"Why," Olympias asked. "Why should I tell you where he is? You are only going to hurt him more. You will not be civil. You will just go to him, and take out your rage on him."

"You know where he is," Alexander asked, his voice cracking. He hated her, hated her more than he could describe. But if she knew, truly knew, where Hephaestion was he had to know. He wanted not to anger him more, but to hold him, and kiss him, and feel his breath against his neck. He wanted only that. Nothing more, nothing more, he just wanted Hephaestion back. He wanted things to be so less complicated. He wanted it to be simple. He just wanted Hephaestion.

"Of course," Olympias said as she sat back down and picked up her pen. "I told you, he has become more of a son to me than you."

"Mother, tell me where he is."

"I don't think he wants to see you."

"He wouldn't say that!"

"No," she agreed. "He would never say that. Love blinds him. But I won't let you hurt him anymore Alexander. I'm sick of reading letters from him. Do you know that I read his letters, and he tries to hide his pain, but his writing will not let him? He cries on the parchment Alexander! But never, never has he spoken ill of you, or regretted anything he has done with you."

"Tell me where he is, and I will make it right," he said as he fell to his knees at her feet. He cried, and he refused to stop. He deserved to cry. He only wanted Hephaestion. Why would she just not tell him?

"I told you, he left."

"Where did he go mother? Where, just tell me where!"

Olympias moved her leg as he reached for it. She then went back to writing. Every time he reached for her she would move. He was crying so badly that his reflexes were terrible. It did not take much for her to keep him off of her. Suffering would be good for him, she decided, but he needed to do years more of it.

"Mother," he begged, this time more sincere, "please tell me where he is. I just want to speak to him, I swear it. I just want to tell him that I love him. I just want to hold him in my arms. Mother, if you have ever loved in your life, feel what I am feeling now and tell me where Hephaestion is."

Olympias glanced down, "I don't think he will see you."

He thought that she was not going to tell him. He believed that he would never again see Hephaestion. Hephaestion was strong, so much stronger than he was, and would not come back. He would never look to see him again if he wanted. Gods, he had been an idiot, and now Hephaestion was gone. He was gone, and he would not come back.

"Three streets down," Olympias said as she continued to write. It caught Alexander off guard. Yet he listened intently. He knew that she would not repeat it twice. "Turn left. Two roads down on the corner. A small inn, he is there. Just ask and I am sure the man there will lead him to you."

"Thank you," Alexander said as he stood. He then fled the room. Olympias glanced up, as the door slammed shut. She then smiled as Cassander groaned from the bed. He'd had enough wine to sleep through Alexander's entire fit. She glanced over her shoulder and then looked back to her writing. Love was a very interesting thing.