Alexander was as happy as he could be. Lysimachus was reading to them from the Iliad, his favorite! He so admired Achilles, and he like to think of himself as being just like his hero. They had come to the part where Patroclus put on Achilles armor and went to fight Hector.

Alexander was enthralled, but by the time they came to the scene of Patroclus' death, he was weeping silently.

Hephaestion noticed the tears streaming down his friend's face, and reached over and took his hand.

Alexander choked back a sob and mouthed the words "thank you" to Hephaestion.

When their lesson was finished, Lysimachus dismissed them. "Do not forget, you have mathematics lessons with Leonidas after your lunch. Do not be late!"

All the boys groaned. They were not looking forward to that at all.

Hephaestion packed a basket of fruit, bread and some sweet honey cakes for their lunch. They returned to the olive grove to sit in what they considered by now to be "their spot". Alexander had been unusually quiet since their morning lesson, and Hephaestion was hoping a picnic would lighten his mood a little.

Alexander sat back against his favorite tree, deep in thought. His eyebrows creased as a slight frown tugged at his lips. He picked at a honey cake, but was not really eating.

Hephaestion munched on an apple and watched him thoughtfully. He suspected he knew what was bothering his friend and sincerely wished to cheer him up. He reached over and brushed a stray golden curl away from Alexander's eyes. A startled Alexander jumped, having been lost in his thoughts.

"I am sorry, Alexander. I did not mean to startle you. You need to eat something."

Alexander's dark eyes shimmered with unshed tears as he gazed into the brilliant blue eyes of his friend. He chewed his lower lip and shook his head. "I am not hungry."

Hephaestion scooted back to sit beside Alexander and put an arm around his shoulders. "What is it that troubles you, Alexander?"

"Achilles. Why would he allow such a thing?"

"What do you mean, Alexander?"

Alexander sighed. "Why would he have allowed Patroclus to wear his armor into battle like that? Why would he not just return to the fight himself? Was he truly so stubborn?"

Hephaestion nodded. "It would appear so, but Patroclus was at fault as well. He was told to stop fighting once he had saved the ships from the fire. The Trojans had fled before him, and yet he chose to pursue them anyway…against what Achilles had commanded of him. He was warned by Apollo that he was not to take the city, yet he continued. It was his own stubbornness that led to his death."

"I agree, Hephaestion, but if I were Achilles I would never allowed it in the first place. If I were Achilles and you were Patroclus, I would never have sent you into battle alone. I would have gone with you and fought at your side. The battle would have been won, and Patroclus would not have died."

"That may be, Alexander. But Achilles avenged his death, at the cost of his own life. Thetis warned him that he would die if he did so, yet he chose to do it anyway. He loved Patroclus more than life, that much is clear."

"Aye, that he did. It was his own grief and guilt that lead to his death. He chose that over having to live with what he had done. He was the one truly responsible for Patroclus' death. He could not live without him."

Hephaestion studied Alexander's face a moment, as he was lost in his thoughts again. "Would you have done that for me, Alexander? If I were Patroclus, would you have avenged me at the cost of your own life?"

Alexander grasped Hephaestion's shoulders and held his gaze firmly. "Yes. Without question. I would not have had to think twice about it. I would not wish to live without you, knowing I was at fault for your death. And even if that were not so, I would still not wish to live without you."

Hephaestion was stunned at passion in Alexander's answer. "Truly? You would not want to live without me?"

Alexander shook his head quickly, and then looked down shyly. "Truly. You are my dearest friend, and I do not think I would do well without you beside me. I love you, Phai. Please do not ever leave me." He sniffed, and a single tear ran down his cheek.

Hephaestion felt tears well up in his own eyes. He brushed the tear from Alexander's cheek with his thumb and cupped his face in his hand. "I will not leave you, Alexander. Ever. I love you as my own life." He leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to Alexander's lips.

He leaned back, startled to hear Alexander chuckle softly. "Alexander?"

Alexander smiled through his tears. "It is nothing Phai. Look at us, weeping like a couple of girls! Let us stop this. Neither of us is going to die, and we will never be apart. End of discussion. Why don't we relax and eat our lunch now."

Hephaestion nodded his head in agreement. Neither of them wanted to think of such things any longer. They spent the rest of their lunch talking about nothing of consequence and merely enjoying each others company.