Who: Achilles and Briseis When: Saturday night Where: Achilles' apartment Warnings: sex
Achilles had kept out of the press for weeks. The paparazzi had nothing on him when they couldn't catch a glimpse of him. Kenneth had taken the time to put his sources elsewhere while Achilles had time to cool. After his outburst weeks ago, the agent took no chances of being around Achilles until he shaped up. Theseus was even at a distance. Right now it was as if the golden warrior was lost on his own island. He kept Polyxena close (as close as they could call it right now, disfunctional relationship that it was), meanwhile pushing Briseis further from his thoughts. He loved that girl like no one else, but he couldn't keep grasping at what he could never have. It made him pathetic, and Achilles was starting to realize that he possibly had given Briseis everything he could have already. She was simply a girl now that kept his heart but wouldn't give it back. She, like Patroclus were pushed further and further away as Achilles took matters into his own hands. Making his own fate without the likes of prescription drugs. It was an ongoing battle, throwing himself back and forth. They medicated the images and the anger, but they couldn't get rid of it. He was constantly on a slipping slope backwards.
That's where Polyxena came in. Somewhere between that love/hate relationshipship it made him focus somewhere else. She asked him no more questions, there was an unspoken understanding between them. They used each other physically, and yet it didn't feel like being taken advantage of. Right now it put Achilles in his own world when she was around.
The giant doberman stood at the end of the couch like a statue as he watched his master put tea on the stove. It had been another sleepless night, and it still smelled of Polyxena when she'd been there nights before. She laid with Achilles often, but not always as just a warm body for him to have for his own pleasures, she was something to hold at night.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-16 12:11 am (local) (link) Track This Briseis couldn't deny she was worried about Achilles. She felt a little ashamed of how long it had taken her to notice, caught up in her own problems as she was. She felt like she hadn't slept well for months. (No, that wasn't quite true. There had been a blissful week not long ago where she had slept soundly and dreamlessly every night. But whatever strange fluke that had been had passed again now.)
So it took Kenneth writing about it for Briseis to realise she should go see her friend. She knocked at the door and thought it said, "Achilles? It's me, are you home?"
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-16 05:57 pm (local) (link) Track This Achilles took this time to ignore the rest of the world when he wanted to pout. Even when he wasn't physically pouting about anything, the fact that he could seclude himself from what was going on in front of him proved that at times he was extremely selfish.
The doberman perked up, standing and making one single bark toward the door for Achilles' attention. Achilles sat the tea on the stove and waited a moment before opening the door. It was painful for her to be around him, but he couldn't let her stand out there.
When he opened the door he didn't give his usual greeting where he enveloped her into his arms. "Briseis, are you well?" she looked tired.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-17 03:57 am (local) (link) Track This Briseis looked at him carefully and then nodded. "I was worried about you, actually," she told him and then asked, "can I come in?"
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-19 10:47 am (local) (link) Track This He waved his arm out, giving her the invite inside. He wouldn't cast her away. He never would when she asked so politely. "You mustn't worry over me." He looked her over, his concern kicking in with his heartbeat. "But you, my dearest Briseis, how are you?" His hand cupped her face lovingly. There was no helping it.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-22 05:09 am (local) (link) Track This Briseis' smile was gentle and for a moment she closed her eyes against that soft touch of his. A warrior's hands but she had never seen them that way. "Sleeping poorly," she admitted, "but it'll pass."
She drew away then to enter the apartment properly, going to sit down on the couch and watching him. "I've been hearing concerning things about you," she frowned.
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-23 12:28 am (local) (link) Track This He kissed her on the forehead before she drew away. Concerned still for her safety and well-being. Briseis would always need his protection even though he'd spent his time lately trying to forget her.
"Concerning things by who?" his voice defensive. He didn't like when others meddled into his business.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-23 12:48 am (local) (link) Track This "Don't be like that," Briseis said gently at his tone. She hadn't come here to make him angry, just to check in. "Kenneth told me he was worried about you. He's a good guy, so don't get angry at him for that." She reached out for his hand from where she sat. "Tell me what's on your mind." She'd been his confidante once, and in the middle of a bloody war he'd been able to whisper secrets against her skin that she would never share beyond that tent. (Not that she had anyone to tell those secrets to back then. Other than Patroclus, Achilles had been the only person who actually existed in her world- a whole life narrowed and lived within the spaces of a camp tent.)
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-23 01:08 am (local) (link) Track This "Kenneth meddles when he shouldn't." He had confided in her before, but that was before he had set out to keep her from his thoughts. It was painful otherwise.
He took her hand, seated up beside her. There was a distance now that he'd placed his time and confident words to Polyxena.
Achilles could tell Briseis what she wanted to hear, but she could call his bluff. He just didn't want to talk about it. "He worries because I've refused to take medication for months now," and it was starting to take its toll, pushing his nightmares to daymares.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-23 11:21 am (local) (link) Track This Briseis squeezed his hand as he took hers, a show that she was there with him (and for him) before listening to what he had to say. She wished she could get him to trust modern medicine, at least a little, at least to give it a real try. But she knew it was a lost cause. So instead she frowned and asked, "how are the nightmares? Are you sleeping?"
She found herself reaching out to brush his cheek with the hand that didn't hold his. She hated thinking of the way he suffered. Briseis wished so much that she could just fix everything for Achilles.
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-23 11:43 am (local) (link) Track This When she didn't say what he knew she was thinking he closed his eyes, throwing his head back on the back of the couch. "Still there, constantly." He pinched the bridge of his nose, massaging the throbbing temples. "Even some mornings I wake without relief." Her touch was gentle. He hadn't felt her touch in a long time.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-23 11:52 am (local) (link) Track This While his head was back, Briseis gently stroked his forehead to try and soothe his thoughts. She could definitely relate to his bad sleeping at the moment as she wasn't doing well on that front either. But his was so often and hers was only temporary. (Even though it had been months, Briseis hadn't even considered the possibility that what was happening to her wasn't entirely her own brain at work. That it could be the cruel games of gods had somehow not even crossed her mind.)
"I'm sorry," she told him sympathetically. "I wish there was something I could do. Have you tried occasional sleeping pills? It wouldn't be medicating yourself, really, but it might help the dreams."
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-23 03:23 pm (local) (link) Track This Her touch was soothing. Calming. As it had always been. A comfort within war. His mind was his own war. He liked just having her here, with him.
"That I have not," he said in a whisper. He'd not always been alone at night. When Polyxena stayed he could rest. When he was alone the real test began. He had not expressed to Briseis that he had been sleeping with the Trojan princess.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-25 10:36 pm (local) (link) Track This "Give them a go." Her voice was soft and quiet, her hand still gently stroking as she watched his face. "If you don't like the way they make you feel you can stop."
It made Briseis ache inside to see Achilles in pain. In some ways she was still that young girl he'd once know, the one who'd seen past the murderer and kidnapper to the caring protector beneath. To see Achilles weakened made her feel helpless, and although it wasn't rational she still tied her own safety to his strength.
"I want nothing more in this world," she whispered, "than for you to have peace."
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-26 11:32 pm (local) (link) Track This When he was weakened, his whole structure came tumbling down. The mind was a far greater enemy than any man or war could ever be. War had broken down his walls, made him incomplete. He was looking for any way to build back that warrior he'd once been. He wasn't afraid of man's futile attempts to keep him at bay, but it always felt like he was being restrained. War was what felt natural now, in this state of mind. Everything else was just a blur.
With Briseis near, it spiraled more downhill. His brows creased, looking at her with worn eyes. She'd seen him so stripped down before, and right now all he wished to do was let her hold him and release his demons. He could cry in her presence and she would not judge him for it.
"I know," he whispered back.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-27 01:03 am (local) (link) Track This Briseis wanted so much just to hold him close to her, but she didn't know anymore where the line sat between them, where friends was or lovers lay. In ancient times he could use her body to hide within, and Briseis could use her lips to blur the memories outside of the two of them. But that sort of physical comfort was out of her reach to give now, not without it making everything more complicated.
Because although Achilles may have believed otherwise, Briseis still did love him. She knew that there would never come a time in her life when she wasn't in love with Achilles, when she didn't think such thoughts about him, when she didn't imagine the two of them entwined and desire his touch on her skin. It was who she was. She was Achilles' concubine, the great hero's lover.
"Oh Achilles," she just sighed sadly, leaning forward to lay a kiss upon his forehead. There was nothing she could do to repair all this damage in his head.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread) Omg they make me so sad! [info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-27 01:18 am (local) (link) Track This He had done this before, let himself become tempted by her softness when he shouldn't. She had once had her own mortal who played a threat against him. Now, he had a woman in his bed that wasn't her. He'd pines for her, lamented over her to Patroclus. But his duty as friend, lover and protector had become lost to them in his time away. He couldn't do this to himself.
His eyes glistened with water, fighting to keep those tests back, but her kiss encouraged them to fall.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread) I knooooow. I love theeeeeem. [info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-27 01:53 am (local) (link) Track This Now Briseis wrapped her arms around him gently, drawing him close to her. She'd felt sometimes like the protector during the Trojan War, but not in a way that anyone else could see. She would wrap her arms around him and use them as walls against the outside world, keeping him safe within her. "It's alright," she whispered into his hair. "It's alright."
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread) They just always break my heart! And autocorreft so f-ed up that last post of mine! Grrr [info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-27 02:12 am (local) (link) Track This She was so tiny, like most women he chose to protect. But inside those tiny arms he breathed a heavy sigh. His chin tucked against her shoulder, arms circling her. For a moment he let himself stay trapped in her embrace. Those tears fell without anger, just remorse.
She kept his heartbeat steady, his thoughts clear while he held her. He whispered the softest words of love that he ever had against her ear.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread) I didn't even notice until you pointed it out ;) [info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-27 02:17 am (local) (link) Track This She stroked Achilles' hair as she held him, and her gentle kiss fell against his temple. Her own words were soft whispers as well - It's alright, I'm here, everything is okay now, I love you. - her eyes closed and her expression twisted in sadness.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread) They are killing me! [info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-27 02:36 am (local) (link) Track This He knew then she still loved him, content with that. For a long time now he'd longed for her, never forcing, but perhaps pushing even without words what he wanted. Briseis had been a voice of reason, comforting. Her importance in his life could never be replaced. Not by anyone, even if he had become wrapped up with Polyxena---who wasn't on his mind at the moment. He wasn't dishonest about it, but it didn't seem the time to broached the subject until Briseis found that evidence laying around his apartment.
Right now it was about Briseis and how much she meant to him. He stroked her back with a soft hand. "Thank you." He had needed to know she still adored him, still needed him as much as he did her at times.
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread) ajhsdkdgfgLOVE. [info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-27 02:40 am (local) (link) Track This "I'm always here," she promised him, drawing back now only enough so that he could read the honesty in her expression as she met his eyes. "Always. You know that, don't you?" she asked him, a hand on his cheek. "All you ever have to do is call and I'll be with you. Don't ever think that you're alone, Achilles."
(Reply to this)(Parent) (Thread) They've been greatly missed. oh they awesome *falls over* [info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-27 02:57 am (local) (link) Track This He often holed himself away from the rest of the world, even when he put himself on a pedestal for them to worship. Right then she pulled him out and into reality. She showed him her concern without reprimand. He could see her sincerity. His hand clutched hers on his cheek, softly threading his fingers into hers.
"I am sure of it now." He hadn't before, he hadn't wanted to imagine her ever shunning him. Instead he'd shielded himself to protect his heart from such heartache. Whenever he pushed her away, she still stayed. She was hurting too, but she put him before herself like she always had.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-27 03:43 am (local) (link) Track This Briseis leaned in and kissed the cheek her hand didn't rest upon. She squeezed his hand in hers and smiled softly to him. "Do you want me to stay with you tonight?" In truth, it was as much for her own comfort as his.
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-27 06:59 pm (local) (link) Track This He should have said no being how involved he was with someone else, but this wasn't about being physical. He held her close again, emotion just pouring out in a way he wasn't usually comfortable with with other people. "I can't live like this. Forever trapped with past decisions." Men had made a case of him and it seemed as if what little peace he'd ever had would just be a memory.
"Stay, please."
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-28 01:42 pm (local) (link) Track This Briseis nodded and kissed his forehead again. "Then I stay," Briseis promised him, her thumb gently brushing away a tear from beneath his eye. "I'll stay for as long as you want me here."
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-28 03:11 pm (local) (link) Track This He couldn't turn her away. Not now, now when she was giving so much of herself to console him. It had been so long since he had even seen her, to have her admit her feelings so earnestly, he wasn't able to push her away. His strength was broken as it was and Briseis was a love he would always have.
When she kissed his forehead he leaned down, turning his head for a gentle kiss on her lips.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-28 03:28 pm (local) (link) Track This Briseis couldn't deny that his lips sent shivers through her body. He was Achilles and even if she knew being with him was no good for her, he still made her feel more than almost any man could ever do. Which was why when Achilles kissed her, Briseis kissed him back. It felt right and in that moment all suggestions of why it was a terrible idea that would hurt them both... well, Briseis couldn't remember why she'd thought any of that anymore.
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-28 04:23 pm (local) (link) Track This It hurt to be with her, more than he would admit right now. Her acceptance was all he needed to cup her face and prolong that kiss. It was all wrong but felt completelty right. Her name was soft pressed against her lips, a gentle plead for her to not push him away now.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-28 04:52 pm (local) (link) Track This He was familiar to Briseis in some many ways and she deepened the kiss with the smallest of moans, her hands running though his hair, over those strong arms. And then she was moving, shifting to straddle his lap without breaking the kiss.
When Briseis did break the kiss she didn't go far, instead keeping her cheek pressed to his as she took a couple of deep breaths. "This is a bad idea," she whispered, but she hadn't stopped touching him, hadn't stopped pressing herself against him. Maybe it was simply that Briseis felt one of them needed to say it out loud.
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-28 05:14 pm (local) (link) Track This He grazed her arms with the softest touch, moving with her and her kisses. "I know," he said in a broken voice, still asking her to not deny him this. Not now. He was too fragile. He stroked his fingers through her hair, a soft brush to her neck. This wasn't rash and quick, it was exploring what was already so familiar again.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-28 05:25 pm (local) (link) Track This That was all Briseis needed to hear from him and she knew now that she wouldn't stop, that she didn't want to stop. She'd slept with Achilles only once since they'd found each other again. She'd been with David then but had followed Achilles to his movie set. It had been in his caravan there that they'd had each other again, too caught up in the moment to stop themselves.
It felt a little like that again, although this time there was no tearing off of clothes, no obvious desperation. This was a quiet sort of desperation that grew inside them tonight.
Briseis kissed him again, the hand not cupping his cheek slowly sliding beneath his shirt and over the warmth skin of his chest.
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-28 06:10 pm (local) (link) Track This They had kept themselves at a physical distance ever since that one night on his movie set. Briseis hadn't been the same since David's death and even when struck with the love arrow by Eros, Achilles had not broken that invisible wall.
The line now was completely gone because it was as if she were begging for him as much as he had. She was so beautiful in more than just her delicate face and body. She had always been beautiful to him. Nothing at all was on his mind but how he could cast aside everything for her.
He pulled his shirt up, giving her fingers access to his toned muscles, while he broke their kiss to glide his lips down her shoulder. A woman that had been through what she had, he had opened her eyes and her heart to what love could be like between a man and a woman. She could have fought him off then and he would have never laid a heavy finger on her.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-28 06:23 pm (local) (link) Track This Briseis unbuttoned her shirt, watching him with a hunger she didn't try to hide as she let the top slip off. In Greece her body had been soft and thin, Briseis a wartime concubine who was underfed and underworked, but she had come a long way since then. Short and thin she still was, but there was strength on Briseis' frame now, firm muscles beneath the flesh from the years of fighting classes she had taught.
She leaned in again, her lips moving down across his chest.
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-28 06:45 pm (local) (link) Track This Achilles too had changed in his appearance since Greek days. He was still toned, but his skin was pale, not having spent days upon days in the sun. He was thinner, but still with brute strength befitting of a warrior.
He kneeded her flesh between his fingers, pressing soft welts as they massaged her toned body, down her back, against her sides and arms. He was easily pliable against her caressing kisses to his skin. Their most intimate moments had always been uncharacteristic from a man of his time. A soft shudder escaped, a hand sliding down that perfect back and back up to unfasten her bra and feel more of her curves between his fingers.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-28 06:57 pm (local) (link) Track This The part of her brain that wanted to Briseis to remember that this was a terrible idea had been completely silenced by now. They could deal with repercussions later. All that mattered now was that he kept touching her and that this didn't stop. She couldn't stop herself from touching him, either, and each brush of her hands over his body felt electric.
Briseis slipped her arms free of the bra after he'd unclipped it and then she kissed him again, pressing her chest to his, wanting to feel their skin together free of all the usual clothing barriers. Her hips rolled against his as they kissed, her breathing heavy.
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-28 07:14 pm (local) (link) Track This The layers were easily stripped away the closer they got. She felt so perfect pressed against him, radiating the same warmth. Every touch sent a tingling sensation from his head to his toes. He unbuckled his belt, sliding out of his jeans with her still straddled. He kissed her neck, her collarbone with soft, sucking motions, his hands rolling down her hips, slipping her out of everything until she was completely open for his touch. He wanted this slow, to enjoy every second so that it would last.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-28 07:21 pm (local) (link) Track This There was a part of Briseis that was internally demanding him now now now but she knew that she shouldn't take control here, even though she had become used to doing so. She'd let Achilles lead - just like he always had between them in the past - because, maybe, with his life feelings so out of control this small piece of control over anything would help.
Briseis arched against him, her lips finding his throat as her hand reached down between his legs.
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-28 07:42 pm (local) (link) Track This Her name sat on his tongue, hardly whispered at her touch. It was lost in a pleased moan, flipping her on her back with a hungry kiss. It was a greedy one. He stopped long enough, looking at her sweet face with her hair splashed out around it.
He fingered her flushed cheek with his thumb, lowering himself between her legs and completely losing himself.
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[info]spoil_of_war 2012-04-28 07:48 pm (local) (link) Track This Briseis' eyes closed as she drew a shuddering breath, her head tipping back. And then she was kissing him again, pushing herself towards him to remove all possible space. Space was not an option, even an inch of untouched flesh between them might kill her. She wrapped her arms around Achilles, trying not to force control of him with the movements of her hips.
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[info]chink_in_armor 2012-04-28 08:02 pm (local) (link) Track This This was torture, blissful torture as their bodies rocked with each other rhythmically. He wrapped her legs around him, feeling her thighs clench, losing all thought, only how complete this felt. Achilles had taught her lovemaking, not greedy, emotionless desire that so many men had taken from her.
His cheek pressed against hers, breathing as rapid as hers as this electricity rattled through them. As emotionally closed off as a warrior could be he couldn't hide it from her. Nothing could ever be hidden from her. Fears, regrets, happiness, and more tears. In that moment he wanted nothing else but her.