Not but a Name Chapter three

"Alexander… Alexander… wake up, Alexander!" The excited voice of Hephaistion woke Alexander from a deep dream, for which he was glad. It was a terrible dream to behold. Within his dream, Alexander saw that Hephaistion lay lifeless as stone and a glass of wine next to him. The wine glass lay on the floor as lifeless as the person next to it. Then the wine spilled upon the floor left a trail which he followed that lead to a horrifying image; the image of his father's head upon a golden plate. A shudder ran through him as he clung to his dear friend, "Hephaistion, I had a dream… It was…" "Not now, Alexander! Your father has taken back the events of last night!" Overwhelming joy hit Alexander, making him forget completely of his nightmare and tears of relief swarming at his eyes. He pushed them away however, and relaxed into Hephaistion's arms. The prince soon forgot all his problems and for a second, had almost fallen back asleep into the embrace. Unknown to him, his older friend was smiling and blushing quite awkwardly. In his mind, Hephaistion knew that he had to tell Alexander before he asked one of the ladies in Macedonia. He attempted to gather his courage as the prince murmured in his chest and closed his eyes.

"Alexander?" He timidly started as his heart raced. Why was he doing this? It wasn't as though Alexander felt the same way. Why was he even going to bother telling him? It was because he didn't want his heart shattered into many pieces even if it meant ruining the ladies' chances. It was selfish to think that way but Hephaistion was so selfless about so many other things, that this was okay. Alexander murmured some more, "Mmmmhmm?" Hephaistion's courage was flying fast, "I-I know that y-your mother wants you t-t-to…" Inside, the young man was killing himself for not being able to manage any more words than that, but there was nothing he could do. His words had gotten Alexander's attention, however, and he finished the rest of the sentence, "To marry and produce an heir?" The older one nodded, "Yeah… w-well, I just wished t-to tell you something…" At this point, the boy actually thought he was going to get it over with… that is until he heard a knocking on the door by some slave girl. After that he knew he had wasted his chance and sighed. The prince cupped his face and pressed a light, quick kiss on the other boy's lips and then gave him a smile, "We will have to talk about this later. Are you alright, Patroculus?" Hephaistion nodded and gave him a wan smile, and without another word, they left to prepare for Cleopatra's wedding.

(Not but a Name: Olympias)

"Come with me, your majesty. The King has even been kind enough to buy you a dress for the occasion." A young woman that the king had probably had his way with dragged Olympias out of her rickety bed and into a bathing room. In the room laid a bronze basin large enough for ten fully grown ladies to wash the filth from this world off of flawless bodies. As much as she hated to admit it, Phillip sure did take damn good care of her physically, though she couldn't say the same about him nurturing her emotional needs. Inside she boiled in a fit of rage against herself. Here he was about to cut her last chance for life and she was thinking how good he was taking care of her! Utter nonsense that she would not tolerate began to leak out of her mind as her slip fell to the floor, exposing her bare skin to the humid summer air. She dipped her feet into the basin, soon to be followed by the rest of her body. She lathered herself with the sweet magnolia oil quickly as the servant girl took a matching bronze pitcher filled with hot, steaming water and poured it lazily all over her queen. She apparently was just as sensitive to Phillip's wedding to Eurydice as Olympias was. Still, the queen had felt no sympathy for her whatsoever. "That's what you get for being a muse," her low voice rumbled softer than a whisper. The slave girl didn't hear and had realized how awfully she was doing her job, seeing that since Olympias was still queen she could be put to death if she didn't do better. "I entreat your pardon, my queen," She pleaded for mercy, "My mind is not on my duty today. Please bless me with your forgiveness." With nothing more than a curt nod as her answer, the imprisoned queen fell back more into the basin and attempted to relax the tension rising in her shoulders.

A soft groan of pain erupted from her as nearly scalding water slithered over her weak, naked body like the beloved snakes she kept with her at all times. Thinking about them she summoned the girl to bring them forth to her, "My snakes enjoy the pleasure of water. Bring them here." Without knowing how to react, the slave did as she was told instantly. Olympias was well aware of the myths being told about her, but she had no intention of letting false assumptions keep her from the people and things she loved. However, her husband was an exception. He was a people pleaser, whether by doing well or forcing them to be pleased with him; he hated having people sprout rumors about him. So naturally when the stories of his wife sprang to his ears, he stopped laying her down so that the people thought more of him. This she could not help, but it still hurt her deeply. Their marriage had been another one of the things Phillip had done to gain power by pleasing people, but over time Olympias had grown to love him. This was why it hurt that he'd betrayed her and never loved her all along.

The slave girl then came in with her snakes and on her request; she let them into the bath. Delightful and thankful at Olympias for letting them in, they curled around her. One coiled around her from the bottom of her left breast to the right side of her hip. The other had slunk to bask in the water and rest upon the crease of her left shoulder and around her left arm. All three relaxed and Olympias closed her eyes as more hot water filled the space around them. All three indulged in the pleasant scent of the magnolia oil that she had spread on her skin and all three let their feelings leak off of them and into the water like the dirt that washed away from their bodies. The queen let out all her insecurities and felt safe within the embrace of her serpents. This was one of the scarce moments in her life where she actually felt perfectly content and happy with herself. (Which was a rather odd feeling to enjoy at such a time as that.)

The servant had always believed the stories about their queen just as faithfully as she believed in Zeus himself, but now she saw the truth. The poor lady was not into witchcraft, she was simply misunderstood by most, even by her own husband. Aliyah thought to herself whilst dunking the pitcher into more hot water that she had freshly heated over the fire in the kitchens. She now did not blame Olympias for being so cautious in who she trusted. These snakes were her only friends in her life now that the wedding between her daughter and her brother was to take place. "You are a strong woman," Aliyah chided her; "I wish I had your courage."

Taken by surprise, the lady in the basin took a moment to mull over the comment she'd just received and then threw away considering what to do about it. She was about to die and she then figured that there was no point in hiding herself. A tear hotter than the freshly boiled water slid down her cheek and she smiled at the slave, "I am grateful. What would your name be?" "Aliyah." The servant promptly responded, "My name is Aliyah." Olympias pondered her name in her mind and spoke once more, "It sounds Egyptian. Where be your family?" The slave gave her a wan smile, "Where you named, my lady. My father came from Thebes, my mother from Cush. After my father died in war, my mother killed herself. I then ran from being put to death myself after I tried to steal some food to eat." Olympias was never good at reaching out to other people and so she refrained from it at all times possible, thus giving her a reputation to be eccentric. In a way replacing the use of words, she reached for the girl's hand. She was losing Cleopatra today, but she felt as though she was gaining a daughter rather than losing one.

Aliyah helped her queen arise from the basin and placed a warm towel around her. Olympias placed her snakes in their baskets and then inquired about the dress Phillip had chosen her to wear, "Now, at once show me this robe that my husband requests I wear." Aliyah nodded and brought forth a slim, black silken dress that held together by a silver clip that had the sign of Hades engraved upon it. Olympias shook her head from side to side. King or not, she would not succumb to such a low demand, "No. I will not wear it. Instead, bring me my red dress, Aliyah." The slave gaped at her wide-eyed, "The red one? Your majesty? He would spit upon you in shame!" The imprisoned queen rose her hand to slap the girl, "Bring it forth I say! What he will do in the next three days will be worse than mere spit." Aliyah obeyed the firm demand and began to dress the queen in a blood red robe. Pulling the dress up above her breasts and to her shoulder, Aliyah stayed silent as she focused on fastening the new golden clip into the dress. Then both women remained deathly quiet as the slave placed a golden headdress with blood red gems upon Olympias's fair head.

The queen flinched slightly, thinking about how this would probably be the last time she wore it. Aliyah, being a skilled mind reader saw her flinch and understood at once, "My lady, if I may say that new girl may be queen after your death, but you will always be the first and most remembered." Somehow her words rung into the queen's mind and gave her much peace of mind. Olympias gave the girl a soft, quick kiss and wiped fresh tears out of her eyes and straightened her back into a regal pose. After this she embraced the slave, "Aliyah, I request that you be the servant to escort me to the wedding. I will have no other." The young girl nodded and they soon walked out after Olympias put on her scandals.

(Author's Note)

Okay, this was a short chapter, but I felt that it was necessary for a little development in the story. I hope you all enjoyed it. I'm beginning to relax a little and mold into writing this. This is my first fan fiction on "Alexander" so please be patient. Thank you!

-The Empress of Whispers