Who: Achilles and Polyxena What: Reunions of sorts, accidental and on edge. (Originally posted by Achilles) Where: Widowed woman's home/Achilles' apartment When: Wednesday night, December 7th
He'd worked on his script the entire day, he needed some fresh air and keep his head cool. The idea of sleep was already escaping him most nights, he stayed up long hours that left dark circles under his beautiful gray-green eyes. Setting his coat collar against his neck he took the offering of an old woman, the wife of his lost soldier from the year before to pay a visit. She knew from what her husband had told her many years ago that the pretty youth was not just a face for billboards and movies, he was someone much different. She didn't quite understand it, but the young man had always brought her a comfort by visiting since her husband had died. She could tell by his voice (it was the same way her husband sounded many times when he was engulfed in memories of Vietnam) that he was off kilter. He needed someone, they all did.
Achilles' knock came lightly with an open invitation from the little old lady on the other side. She ushered him inside, offering him a cup of tea and a warm seat while they talked.
Polyxena visited many army-wives, be they current or past. She knew the pain of war and of loss. She ran a group for young widows and a group for spouses who missed their loved ones. And, occasionally, she made a trip out to the houses of her wives to check up on them.
Polyxena had known this woman for a long time, and the woman was well aware Polyxena was special. She looked the same as she had in the 70s. Polyxena always brought her doughnuts and they sat and talked about silly things for hours on end.
She knocked, her box of doughnuts resting on her hip as she waited.
The woman patted Achilles on the knee, excusing herself from him for a moment to answer her door. Achilles sat on the couch, setting his tea aside not expecting to have that strange feeling raise from another immortal. He did not get up to look, he was a guest, but he was strangely curious at the presence and to whom it belonged.
The little old lady smiled patting Polyxena on the cheeks softly. "Hello dearie," she let her in. She wasn't going to send her away even with Achilles there, maybe the young girl would do the boy some good. He needed to see more smiling faces around, people that understood. She didn't like seeing his face so hardened and depressed.
"Come in, you'll excuse me I have company already. Join us," she smiled again.
Polyxena grinned and she stepped inside, holding up the doughnuts. "I spoiled you today, I hope you don't mind!" At the sudden feeling of another immortal, she glanced into the other room and her eyes narrowed as they fell on-
Her heart skipped a beat.
Achilles.
"O- Oh."
"Not at all," she pressed a soft hand against Polyxena's back making her welcome. She ushered her towards the couch where Achilles sat. "Come. Have a seat."
He stood at the presence, still the tall, beautiful blonde he'd been in his glory days. Just, a tired one. His eyes fixed on hers. She favored her sister Cassandra, the youngest princess of Troy.
Polyxena.
"Evening," he responded with the most heartfelt reply. There was a weight pressing on him now. A very uncomfortable one.
Polyxena stared at him, her emotions conflicting. She wanted to run up and hug him while jamming her fist into his face at the same time.
She nodded her head to him and then sat where the woman indicated. "We know each other," she informed the woman so that the tension was a little broken.
He would not sit until she seated herself first, glancing down out of the corner of his eye. He cleared his throat before giving a nod of agreement.
"We do." She was as intriguing as ever. He wasn't sure whether to be humbled by her appearance or angry. His jaw tightened.
The little old lady hadn't put the two and two together yet, she just felt comfortable with the two of them, not at all as tense, though she could feel it. She hurried into the kitchen to give Polyxena some tea, hoping it would warm her up.
"I know Adrianus has his face everywhere these days," she said, which he kindly took as an honest gesture, not as the usual arrogant hero he was.
"It's been a long time," he said, keeping his gaze forward. "We didn't part on such pleasant terms." It depended on how the story ended. Either way, she betrayed him and he was as equally vindictive.
Polyxena was glad for the tea and she sat with it, warming her hands. Either way she betrayed him certainly was vindictive, but calling for her death was pretty vindictive as well.
"Still. It's been a while." Polyxena shrugged and she smiled at the woman who's house they were having this reunion in. "I apologise that this has caught me off guard."
"It is quite alright," the woman said, "are you alright?" She attempted to serve the golden warrior another cup of tea which he apologetically pushed away, pouring it for her cup instead. It was the small things he did that proved he'd been conditioned with a group of teenage girls before found for the Trojan war. There was a softness beneath that hard warrior that had been very uncustomary at the time. It was in fact what made him stand out, even if now he felt very lost to that side of himself.
The woman smiled patting him on the leg. "My husband knew him too." She teared up a little just thinking about it. It was still fresh even if a year had passed since his death. "In Vietnam, when you were Leon Kalivas. You saved him, and many others." She removed her hand waving off her emotional state.
She was aware that Polyxena was like him, but she knew little of the girl's story to know how her and Achilles were connected.
"I knew him from wars long before then," Polyxena said quietly. "But I find myself unsurprised that he knew your husband. And was blessed to do so," she added, with a smile to the darling woman.
Achilles found himself with very little to say. In Polyxena's compliment it felt very double edged. Both in high regard the the man they spoke of, and the dislike she held for Achilles. He'd spared her once, perhaps from her intrigue or he respected her strength and did not wish the other Greek soldiers to make her a prize.
"Your husband was a hero of his own time," he squeezed the woman's hand, but was not so sure he was able to stick around like this any longer. The glances he gave Polyxena were mixed with interest and desire. It stirred up all their past transgressions with little room to discuss them here.
"He truly was," Polyxena echoed. "I'm sorry, but I think Adrianus and I have some catching up to do. But I'm definitely going to drop by tomorrow and eat some of those doughnuts!" To Achilles, she inclined her head towards the door.
The woman, Lillian smiled. "Yes, dearie. I'll be sure to save you the glazed ones."
Achilles stood first giving Lillian a soft nod. "I will visit again." She grabbed his hand gingerly as he walked to the door. "Please do. Sometimes its just good to talk." She glided a soft hand against his strong features. "Such a handsome young man." She let him leave then, her attention going back to Polyxena as she too started toward the door.
"Watch him," she said, not expecting her words to carry any weight to the girl, but she hoped. "Such a tired soul that one, a lonely one," she held Polyxena's hand, "just watch him."
Achilles had started up a few steps, pulling on his coat, waiting for Polyxena to join him once the door was shut behind them.
Polyxena nodded, patting Lillian's hand. "I'll certainly watch him," she said softly, and then she pulled her coat tight and joined Achilles outside.
She gave him a sideways look and said quietly, "nice of you to visit her."
He started the pace of a slow walk once she was beside him.
"She deserves the company. She misses her her husband." He paused turning to look at her.
Polyxena held his pace, keeping silent for a moment. Inside she was at war. She wanted to scream at him but the woman was right. He did look strange. Lonely.
"Mm. Saw your movie. It was good."
Part of him felt the need to apologize, the other part refused to give her that just yet. The look in his eyes was miserable, lonely. It was the same look he'd given her the night he'd confessed his weakness. He wasnt sure why, but at that point he was almost desperate inside to lose his pain.
"You've been following me?" He asked with the tiniest of smirked, his head tilted to the side.
"Oh don't flatter yourself," Polyxena told him flat out. "I was interested to see if you were as good a writer as you were a warrior. I wasn't disappointed."
He started the pace again, walking toward his apartment. He gave a soft chuckle.
"Of course you weren't. I don't disappoint."
Polyxena arched her eyebrow at Achilles as the walked, but she didn't refute his statement simply out of spite. "We'll see," she said quietly. "It's been a long time."
"Yes it has." He stopped just in front of his apartment, glancing down at her with a tight jaw. He offered a hand as he started up the steps. His invitation for her to follow.
"Join me."
Polyxena wanted to refuse and walk away on principle, but she found herself hesitate.
She arched her eyebrow and then she asked, "is this a trap?"
"What would be the gain in entrapping you?" He asked her with an honest smile. He was as intrigued as ever by her. Wondering himself what would be gained in having her over other than cohercing her into bed. He could see that interest peeking through her eyes.
"You fan leave at any time." He wouldn't imprison her.
Polyxena hesitated and then she nodded. "Alright," she finally agreed. She didn't know why she was agreeing, but she might as well see where he lived these days.
He led her upstairs, the sleek apartment showcasing those few artifacts that reminded him of the wars he'd fought, the men he'd been. There was a lot less than before, it help to let go of some of his past, but Achilles was too engrained with it.
He shut the door behind her, taking her coat off her shoulders. His hands lingered there, slightly massaging hands against her neck.
Polyxena let him take her coat and she let his hands linger for a few moments before turning around.
This was Achilles. What was she doing!? She cleared her throat and then said, "want to show me around?"
She'd been a virgin when she was sprawled across his tomb as a sacrifice. He wasn't sure what kind of young woman she'd become. He was curious.
He showed her around, though it was obvious he wasn't in the mood for that. The apartment was nice in size, that giant doberman of his standing upright as they approached the bedroom, where he was laying in front of.
She had been, though her time in the underworld had changed all that.
"You have a dog," Polyxena said, grinning for the first time. She loved animals. "What is his name? Is he friendly?"
That tense mood changed at the sight of the dog. "He was a gift," Achilles said allowing the dog to greet her. Usually, the dog was a mere guard dog, but these days he had mellowed, being a comfort to his master.
"His name is Maximus."
Polyxena grinned and she leaned down to hold her hand out for the dog to sniff. "Hello, Maximus! You're gorgeous."
When given the order that it was okay, the dog's ears slid back, his tail wagging in acceptance. There was a time Achilles had needed him to protect someone, now it was just the two of them.
Achilles left them for a moment, his hand gliding against the uniform jacket he'd pulled out earlier that day that lay on the couch. His computer was still on, where he'd last left it. When he took a seat the couch, it was as if time repeated itself on that last line. He closed the laptop screen.
"Is there anything you'd like to drink?" he asked after a while, finding himself looking her over as he turned with his arm hoisted on the back of the couch, eyes cast over his shoulder.
Petting Maximus, Polyxena finally seemed to relax, at least more than she had been.
She turned and smiled at him, considering. "Just water. I don't need anything fancy."
He didn't give her any reply as he stood to retrieve the water. His hand brushed her shoulder offering her the water she'd requested. A small consolation to what they both deserved of one another. An apology.
It was clear however, what Achilles didn't say weighed heavy inside. That loneliness was hard to miss even to one who hadn't seen him in centuries.
She took the water and then stood to face him. "What have you been doing lately?" she asked before taking a sip.
"Haven't you been watching?" He gave an honest smile. "Directing, producing and writing films. Finishing a project I've been working on for years now. It's proving to be a trial." It was taking too much out of him, forcing him to relive the last war he'd ever been in that he couldn't let go of.
"Since Sabine," Polyxena explained, since she had already told him she'd been watching. "What is the project about?" Despite herself, there was worry in her eyes as she relocated to sit nearer to him.
He felt the shift in the couch at her move but he did not lift his eyes to acknowledge it. He sat his own glass on the table, leaning his head back to talk. It was nice to feel another body near.
It was strange her presence, comforting and hurtful at the same time.
"Vietnam." His eyes closed once his head hit the back of the couch. "It's the reason I went to visit Lillian. It trudges up old memories."
It had been years since Polyxena had seen Achilles, and she wasn't entirely filled in on his time in Vietnam. "But it's been a trial remembering it?"
"That's the last war I fought. The last war to bring me to my knees," which was not an easy thing to admit to. "Psychologists determined my biggest weakness and labeled it. Through the soldiers that returned home. I came back with them." It was through him that doctors could explain the nature of PTSD within soldiers by diagnosing Achilles through reading his symptoms given by Homer. It was part of the link that kept Achilles alive. Now without war at his feet it was as if a part of him had died then, forever crippling him from his past.
Polyxena nodded slowly, her hands held tightly around her water glass. "I see." It didn't sound like a good idea to rehash it in that case, but she knew Achilles would hardly welcome an argument about it. "Must be tough."
"It has never come easily. The memories. The nightmares. Things I cannot take back." He seems honest there with the revelation. War drained so much out of a man that anything in between was lost.
"Does writing it out help, or does it bring things back you would rather forget?" she asked softly.
"It's a comfort to release those thoughts." He held so much anger, hurt and resentment. "But is also my curse, it breeds more complications and thoughts. It makes me tired."
Polyxena raised her eyebrows, unsure as to why she cared. Still, she said, "and do you talk to anyone about it? I think you probably should."
"I did for some time, but that is difficult being who we really are," he said turning his head to look at her. "I'm not easily trusting. The man who helped also believed me mad."
"There has to be someone who understands about all this and also does that kind of work," Polyxena mused. "You're not mad. Just sad."
He relaxed a little then, feeling as if he could just let someone in. She may abuse it later, but his infatuation with her from old days let him give in. He was tired, he was sad.
"No doubt there is such a person, but what help could it be to one who never lived such a life."
Polyxena had always had the ability to relax him, and perhaps once she had used that knowledge to betray him. She had no inclination of doing so now. Still half of her brain was screaming at her to leave before he demanded another sacrifice of her. But the part that was so connected to him was what kept her there.
"Then talk to me, Achilles. I don't have to be anywhere or do anything. I know you, warrior. Talk to me."
There was a wayward past between them but he was still attracted to it. His intentions were different now, times were different now. He may be stunted in some ways, but in others he'd grown.
Sinking into the couch, Achilles closed his eyes. "Part of me can't let go of the fight even if I know this time is best for me without the blood on my hands. I want to be a soldier, but that ability may be beyond me." He propped his leg up then on the table, the one with his weak heel.
Polyxena put her glass of water aside and she inched closer to him. "I don't think anything is beyond you, Achilles. But do you really want your continued existence to revolve around slaughtering people? Trust me, I know that's not all being a soldier is. But you know it can be part of it. You can reach people differently. You can touch people who have been through what you have, and help them get through it. I think that's far more heroic."
She was close enough now to feel his heart slow down in repetitive beats against his chest. She could reach out and touch him. She did not speak to him as a scorned woman with a vengeance to let him drown in this misery, and she had every right to feel that way. He would never fault her for it if she did.
She was good at deceiving him, only he felt right now she had no use for deceit. It didn't serve any purpose, she could leave him as he was or stay to be the comfort he felt he deserved. He was relieved in the fact she chose the second option.
"I do not wish to slaughter. I never even went to Troy to slaughter. But at times that monster inside doesn't let go, it wishes to claw it's way out when I know myself not that man anymore." His voice played softly as his eyes danced against hers, searching them for comfort.
She reached out for his hand and held it tightly. "Then you have to find a new path, Achilles. And I believe you already have. At least it seems so."
"I have, to an extent I have, but it is a daily struggle to remind myself that this is a better path this time." He was being so open with her, very few had that right. Her hand reached out and that warmth shot through his arm. He leaned over giving her a kiss on the cheek. An open invitation and a thank you.
"Then surround yourself with people who will remind you," Polyxena suggested as Achilles kissed her cheek. For a moment she nearly leaned in and kissed him more deeply, but she stopped herself. Not right now.
She cleared her throat and smiled at her. "Sharing the load will help. I can remind you."
"Sometimes its those you care for the most that make this uneasy. The ones you love, the ones far from reach." He shook his head, keeping her hand tied with his own.
He wanted her to be more intimate, but when she accepted only this kiss with no return he would not press her. He'd taken enough from her. Her confession was warming. He wondered now, since his heart always ached for Briseis, what could have been for he or Polyxena.