Ariana Moore (startmeup) wrote in nevermore_logs, @ 2012-07-25 01:24:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | achilles, thetis |
Who: Achilles and Thetis
What: Achilles comes to spend time with mom, and for some reconciliation.
When: Mother's Day
Where: Thetis' apartment
There was a lot that had been kept unsaid while Thetis had spent time away. Achilles had hurt her deeply, and her affliction to his actions ate away at him the most. He needed that reconciliation because of all figures in his life, his mother was his constant. Even in times where he'd only felt her presence in a memory or a fleeting breeze, he needed her. He'd always need her. She was where his strength came from, as he would do anything to achieve his goals. They didnt give up.
Achilles also did not do well up against failure, and in his eyes to let in such greed from Hybris he'd broken trust. While she'd forgiven him already he needed to say it face to face. He'd not seen her since he'd recovered from the events. While months passed, it wasn't enough when it was her forgiveness he needed the most.
Achilles knocked awaiting her open door. His mother was different than others, she deserved his respect. She had brought him up in that way. With a small bouquet of lilies and a ring, he hoped to make amends with the most important figure in his life. She had needed time, he understood that, but he'd missed her and that much was evident in his gray-green eyes.
argyropeza
2011-05-07 09:11 pm (local) (link)
Thetis was rather pleased and excited that her son was coming over for dinner. She'd meant everything she had told him on the journals, she wanted to help her son forgive himself, to make things right and start fresh. And there really was no better days for that than Mother's Day.
She was dressed rather simply, but pretty enough for dinner, she thought. Dinner was simmering on the stove, a lamb recipe she'd been meaning to try for awhile, and there was fresh bread, and baklava and coffee for desert.
When she heard the knock, she rose to answer the door, smiling at seeing her son on the other side. "Achilles, welcome. Please come in," she said warmly.
(Reply to this)(Thread)
chink_in_armor
2011-05-07 09:49 pm (local) (link)
He stepped inside wearing a soft gray jacket, a black tank underneath and his hair slicked back. He may not look like the warrior of days passed but he looked like the star he was.
He handed Thetis the flowers, this meeting not nearly as harsh as the first, but there was some tension there on his part. He embraced her then without a word, just needing to feel her comfort as it had been missing for so long. He was angry that she'd been gone so long but more upset with himself for feeling he'd pushed her away.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
argyropeza
2011-05-07 10:04 pm (local) (link)
She stepped back to look into his eyes. "My big handsome son," she said, smiling softly.
She took the flowers, inhaling their scent. "They're beautiful," she said. She wrapped her arms around him as he embraced her, laying her head on his shoulder. Yes, time away was nice, but she really had missed seeing her son and being around him. She stood there, enjoying the quiet moment between them, hoping it would be the first of many more.
"Let me put these in some water," she said, after another few long, peaceful moments. "Please, make yourself comfortable. Would you like something to drink? Dinner needs just a few more minutes to cook."
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
chink_in_armor
2011-05-07 10:19 pm (local) (link)
At times she could still make him feel like a little boy who defied and courageously fought her on being given to Lycomdes to hide. He hadn't wanted to hide, he wanted to use what Chiron had taught him, what he had taught himself and be a man. His mother would always be looming over to protect him. The only thing she couldn't protect him from was his own heart.
He didnt smile as she glanced at him. Their features were very striking, as Achilles had obviously taken the image of his mother and her softer features.
"I am fine," he insisted hanging on to the jewelry box and stepping around her home slowly. It had been a while since he'd seen it.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
argyropeza
2011-05-07 10:37 pm (local) (link)
She remembered giving him to Lycomedes. It was a mother's fear of losing her child that drove her to do that, and she would do it again in a heartbeat. Watching Achilles sail for Troy had felt like someone had ripped out her heart, because she knew he was never coming home alive.
They really did look alike, especially in the eyes, the way they held themselves. Even when he was a child, she knew he was going to grow up to be very handsome, very striking. And while he was angular, and she was softer, they were definitely cast from the same mold.
"I'm glad to hear it," she said. "You can look around, if you'd like, my home is your home." Thetis had a lot of little decorative things around her apartment, most of them involved shells and/or sand, or had a beach theme. They reminded her of home, made her miss the sea less in this foreign land that would never really be home. She slipped into the kitchen and took the lamb off the stove, dishing it onto plates. She put them on the table, going back for the bread.
"Dinner's ready," she announced.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
chink_in_armor
2011-05-07 10:48 pm (local) (link)
He watched her gingerly as she fixed the rest of the meal and set up accordingly. Just as she'd settled to sit down he set the jewelry box on the table, his hand slipping over it. "I left the wine in the car. I shall return," he announced and slipped out the door leaving the little blue papered box for her to unwrap.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
argyropeza
2011-05-07 10:57 pm (local) (link)
She nodded. "Alright," she replied. As he left the apartment, she noticed the small wrapped box. She rose and picked it up, sliding her finger along the paper's seam. Opening the box, she saw the beautiful ring inside. "Oh, Achilles," she breathed.
She took it out and slid it on her hand. The black pearl winked at her as it caught the light, surrounded by the beautiful gold shells. A little tear of emotion slipped down her face.
When she heard him coming back, she turned around, a smile almost splitting her face. "Achilles, I love it! Thank you so much, it's beautiful."
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
chink_in_armor
2011-05-07 11:11 pm (local) (link)
He returned with the wine and dessert he'd promised her he'd bring just days before, setting them on the table. He kissed her on the cheek looking over what he'd picked for her. "It is simple, as I thought you would appreciate more." His mother was not elaborate or fancy, she deserved something that would accentuate who she was, not overtake her finger or seem garish.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
argyropeza
2011-05-08 02:53 am (local) (link)
She accepted the kiss with a smile, beaming at him. "You chose well. It's beautiful, I will treasure it always." It was true, Thetis liked simple, elegant things, heavy jewelry or makeup was not her way.
She stepped into the kitchen and retrieved a pair of glasses and a corkscrew, setting the glasses down and picking up the bottle. She poured a glass for each of them and handed him one. "And now we dine," she said.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
chink_in_armor
2011-05-09 01:00 am (local) (link)
Achilles took the wine silently, tasting it and giving her a nod. "You needn't do all this, mother. It's your day." He would give her the best he could offer.
Yet, more importantly he needed to say what was bothering him though before it could be like pulling teeth. Thetis had a way over him. A way to calm him, a way to make him speak when he didn't wish to.
He took a seat. "Mother," he started with a heavy laden sigh.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
argyropeza
2011-05-09 09:29 pm (local) (link)
"Exactly, it's my day, and I don't mind at all," she said brightly, circling the table and making sure everything was laid out nicely.
She picked up the bread knife, hovering it over the loaf. "Bread?" she asked. "I made it myself, the cookbook said it'd be good for clearing up the juice left from the stew."
She knew that tone. So she put the knife down and slid back into her chair, giving him her undivided attention. "Yes?" she asked softly.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
chink_in_armor
2011-05-09 10:21 pm (local) (link)
"You should sit," he instructed wanting to do more than have her coddle over him. Though, he supposed she missed that.
Achilles shook his head turning away the offer, he wasn't concerned about his plate right now. He took hold of her hand, his head already starting to hang low as if he'd been a scolded child. His throat felt tight.
"What happened back a few months ago, with Hybris. I was foolish to let down my guard, to let greed in. I was angry, frustrated and alone." Three things which made Achilles more vulnerable than his own heel.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
argyropeza
2011-05-09 10:52 pm (local) (link)
This scene flashed Thetis back to when Achilles was small enough to fit in her lap, when he was still her little boy that she could protect and care for with everything she had.
But he quite clearly had something he wanted to say, so she squeezed his hand, as if to say, 'Whenever you're ready', and settled in to listen.
"Oh, Achilles," she said. "Hybris is insolence, that is what she does, that is literally what she was born to do. And yes, perhaps you were a little foolish. But you're only human. And you are not alone any longer, you have me, and Patroclus, and Briseis, and we will always be there for you." She pulled him into a hug. "You are my son," she said in his ear. "There is nothing you could do that would cause me to stop loving you."
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread)
chink_in_armor
2011-05-09 11:08 pm (local) (link)
He was back at Troy again when on his knees and needing his mother's comfort when what meant most to him had been taken. The only thing that had been taken this time was the damage he may have caused to those closest to him.
"Do I?" he repeated. He was at a distance with his cousin and Briseis still. "Do I still have them after what I've put them through." He looked as if he could fall into her embrace, one in which she caught just in time as those tears stung his eyes.