Author's Note:
So thank you so much to everyone who read the last chapter and especially to everyone who reviewed! Reviewing is good! Thanks to, Starpossum, Sekowari, Salsagirl626, and LOTRlover1066. You guys are the best! Seriously you guys have been reviewing all the chapters!
Chapter #8:
I spent a lot of time thinking about Patroclus as I sat in the cell. Somehow I felt as if his pretending to be Achilles and leading the men into battle was partly my fault. I mean not entirely but in a way. What had I said to him?
"Go dress up like your cousin and charge straight into battle tricking all of us into following you on a suicide mission!"
No I hadn't said that, it was definitely something I would not have encouraged…
"Just act like Achilles, you look enough like him to cause the men to start treating you like Achilles if you start acting like him."
Yeah, I might have said that. And I could even see where he had gotten the wrong idea from my words of wisdom. Damn, Achilles would kill me if he ever found out. I would just have to avoid mentioning it. Of course in order to lie by omission to Achilles I would first have to get out of this cell in Troy.
It wasn't until the next evening that someone came back to my cell. This time it was not prince Hector, but rather his brother, prince Paris. Paris held more food and another goblet. He held these things out to me.
"My brother mentioned that you might appreciate some wine lady Maggie," he told me. His face was sad and tight.
"He fought Achilles didn't he?" I asked sadly. The prince nodded and I gulped down some of the wine. I didn't have to ask what had happened. Achilles was lethal when he fought total strangers, let alone men who had killed his cousin. "So is this my last meal prince of Troy?" There was no doubt in my mind that I was not going to be a welcome guest now that my boss had killed their prince.
"My brother told me that you helped him out and that he had promised you freedom," Paris answered, "and I'm not going to defy his wishes."
"Thank you," I smiled at him, "I have met nothing but noble men here. More in fact then I know from my own side."
"And yet you still wish to go back?" he asked as I started to devour the food. I masked the pause before my answer by chewing the food slowly.
"Some of the people there are monsters," I said slowly, "and some are my friends. And sometimes I don't even know the difference."
"Sounds confusing," the prince sympathized with me.
"You don't know the half of it-" I began.
Just then the door opened and Paris and I turned to see an elderly man wearing elegant robes in a rich blue. His face was careworn and he looked as if he would never be happy again. Paris stood up and bowed and I slowly mimicked him.
"Father," Paris said.
I thought things through at lightning speed. Or at least as the closest thing to lightning that my brain could manage. Paris was the prince so his father was the king.
"King Prian," I was trying to look smart but it back fired.
"Priam," Paris coughed, "not Prian, King Priam."
"I knew that." Neither of them were convinced but they were to gentlemanly or something to say anything about it.
"Father this is Maggie," Paris introduced me. The king looked as if he had something on his mind.
"Miss did you fight under Achilles?" Ha! Like I was going to say yes to that, Achilles had just killed this king's son. If I said that Achilles was my boss he would have my head off before I could say 'just kidding I've never met the evil killer who killed your son.' Or even the first three words of that.
"No," I said confidently. As soon as I said that king Priam's face fell.
"But you have to at least know where his tent is? I need to find him!"
"You want to kill him, don't you?" I asked softly. For some insane reason I didn't want Achilles to die. He had killed Hector, hell he had killed a lot of people, but he was still… he wasn't my friend for sure, but at least my leader.
"No," Priam told me.
"You don't want to kill the man who killed your son?" Now I was incredulous. There was no way that this man was that noble.
"He took my son's body and I want to ask him for it back," the king explained patiently.
"Good luck," I snorted. But the king looked so hopeful that I sighed. "I'll take you to Achilles." He grabbed my hand and brought it to his lips in the style of a true nobleman.
"And once you lead me to his tent I swear to the gods that I will let you go free," he vowed.
"So you really are that noble," I murmured before raising my voice, "thank you your majesty. I will surely owe you now."
"Are you ready to leave now?" He asked hopefully.
"Well," I answered, "I'm out of wine so I'm ready to leave when you are."
The king might have been old and noble but he was pretty darn good at sneaking. Better then me at the very least. He had to glare at me in a very, 'I'm a king and don't you forget it,' expression. He was wearing a heavy cloak. I had gotten one too, it was very warm. When we got to where all of the Greek tents were I showed him where Achilles' was.
I agreed to wait outside while King Priam went to talk to Achilles. But I didn't agree not to eavesdrop. For a minute there was nothing. Then I heard Achilles speak.
"Who are you?" he sounded confused. It was probably confusion that had stopped him from running Priam through with a sharp sword immediately for interrupting him.
"I have endured what no one on earth had endured before," the king of Troy said in a slow but determined voice, "I kissed the hands of the man who killed my son." I wrinkled my nose a little, who knew where Achilles' hands had been! I heard Achilles stand up.
"Priam?" he asked cautiously. There was a beat then Achilles asked another question. "How did you get in here?"
"I know my own country better then the Greeks, I think." Priam answered in a noble voice. "And I had help finding your tent from a prisoner."
"You're a brave man," Achilles told him.
For once he didn't sound spiteful or scornful in the face of authority. Imagine that? Then he kept talking.
"I could have your head on a spit in the blink of an eye." Ah, there was the Achilles I knew!
"Do you really think death frightens me now?" Priam asked in a bitter voice. "I watched my eldest son die," he continued, "watched you drag his body behind your chariot."
Great Zeus, it was a wonder I hadn't been killed in revenge after all that.
"Give him back to me," Priam begged, "he deserves the honor of a proper burial. You know that. Give him to me." By the end King Priam sounded much more… well kingly.
"He killed my cousin," Achilles argued.
"He thought it was you," Priam shot back, "How many cousins have you killed? How many sons and fathers and brother and husbands? How many, brave Achilles?"
The answer to that would of course be a very large number and I was sure that Achilles would think of that. I just hoped that the stubborn pig head would do the right thing.
"I knew your father," Priam told him, "he died before his time. But he was lucky not to live long enough to see his son fall. You have taken everything from me. My eldest son, heir to my throne, defender of my kingdom."
I hated to say it, because Paris really was a good guy, but Priam had every right to be worried now that Hector was gone. I'd bet money, despite my ban on betting, that Paris would never be a great warrior, he could certainly never defeat someone like Achilles, that I was certain of. While I had been zoned out Priam had finished speaking.
"If I let you walk out of here," Achilles was saying, "if I let you take him, it doesn't change anything. You're still my enemy in the morning."
"You're still my enemy tonight," Priam countered, "but even enemies can show respect."
"I admire your courage," Achilles told the king, "meet me outside in a moment." And then Achilles walked outside…
… and right into me.
"I should have known we wouldn't be rid of you that easily," he groaned though his eyes were joking.
"I'm going to choose to ignore that comment," I sniffed, "as you're obviously out of your mind with joy at finding me alive. I made him swear he wasn't going to hurt or kill you before I brought him here," I assured him. Achilles nodded and clapped my shoulder.
"Wait here," he ordered. I sat down as he went off around to the other side of his tent. I had only been sitting a minute when a familiar face walked over.
"Eudorus!" I cried happily giving him a hug. He was too shocked to push me off despite the fact that I knew he wanted to. Too bad for him though, as he was my only friend left so he would have to bear the brunt of my craziness.
"You're supposed to be dead!"
"Am I not?" I asked for some odd reason. He rolled his eyes. "Don't worry," I laughed, "I was only mostly dead."
"You'll have to tell me how you survived," he said sternly. Just then Achilles came back.
"Help me with this body," he said.
"He means you," I said poking Eudorus, "he ordered me to sit here."
"Both of you," Achilles called in a no nonsense voice. I groaned and followed Eudorus. Between the three of us we got the body of Hector wrapped in a blanket and attached to a chariot for Priam to bring back to Troy. Once we were finished Achilles went over to speak to Priam.
"Your son was the best I've fought," he told the King of Troy, "in my country the funeral games last for twelve days."
"It is the same in my country," Priam answered.
"Then the Prince will have that honor," Achilles promised, "no Greek will attack Troy for twelve days." Just then the prisoner girl who I remembered Achilles saving came over Priam took one look at her and his mouth fell open.
"Briseis?" The two went to each other and hugged warmly. "I thought you were dead," the king managed.
"Everybody's coming back to life tonight," I observed. Briseis stepped away from the king to look at Achilles.
"You are free," he told her. She walked over to him and looked into his eyes. "If I hurt you," the great warrior said, "it's not what I wanted." He handed her a necklace. "Go. No one will stop you. You have my word."
"Come my girl," Priam urged.
"Your highness," I said hesitantly. Priam looked over at me and I gave a small bow. "Thank you for giving me my freedom." He nodded back to me with a solemn grin.
"You're a far better king then the one leading this army," Achilles told Priam. And with that King Priam and his niece Briseis rode off into the darkness. Several Myrmidons escorted them to the edges of the camp. I turned to Achilles.
"That was a noble thing you did," he merely shrugged.
"Agamemnon will hate it," he answered flippantly as he walked away. Eudorus and I watched until he was back in his own tent.
"He loves the girl," Eudorus told me softly. I turned to the man in surprise.
"Loves her loves her," I asked incredulous, "or horny loves her?"
"If it were the latter I wouldn't be so worried," he sighed. I sighed too.
"Gods why does the world have to be so messed up?" I asked. Eudorus didn't have an answer.
