His eyes turned intense at the remark she spoke if only to provoke him. "I am no less strong than you admire, mother," he declared. Even the bravest of men had a moment of defeat, the difference was that Achilles would not accept it. Defeat was not a option.
"I cannot cease from her presence, mother. I have attempted and the outcome was one with grave consequence." Why Briseis had such a strong hold on him, he had wished was never so, just as he had in the time before. Yet, she did, and what he felt was as deep as the vast ocean his mother was tied to.
His arms wrapped around her again, tightly and even eager. "If you feel it the right solution, I will make it so." What Thetis asked of him, he would do as commanded. Though he may have defied her reasons and always let his glory shine over his choices, he had learned then and now that what she sacrificed and gave him was with best interests. He had listened to her before, and he would not doubt her now. Not when he had been absent from her for so long. She was needed.