Page 52 of Elysium

ODYSSEUS HAD DISAPPEARED right after their midday meal, and typically she would question him. It wasn’t because she was distrustful; it was because she truly hated to be away from him.

But today, it was a blessing in disguise. Penelope had been trying to find time to steal away herself without alerting or worrying her husband.

She had to talk to Telemachus.

He didn’t deserve to stay in the dark. He had spent most of his childhood shielded from the bigger issues at play, from the work of man and gods alike. The very least she could do was to provide him with information that she had.

She found him in the open space of the courtyard, casually tossing a pomegranate into the air. “Son,” she called as she neared him.

He turned, offering his mother a lazy grin. Her heart lurched at the sight. So much of him came from his father. All of his best assets were Odysseus. “Mother!” He stood to hug her. He stood a head taller than her, dwarfing her as his arms wrapped around her shoulders. “Where’s Father?”

She didn’t miss that he smiled a little easier without his father nearby. She couldn’t fault him. Telemachus had held the entirety of her attention for twenty years, and having to suddenly share that affection with a ghost couldn’t be easy at all.

He didn’t put on airs when it was just the two of them. He didn’t have to be King Telemachus, or Telemachus, son of Odysseus, he could just be her son, her boy.

“He had to take care of business elsewhere.” She loved him, his amber eyes, the way he still carried youth in his smile. She had relied so fully on him during Odysseus’ absence, she would never know how to thank him. “Are you free, my son?”

“For you Mother, always.” He dropped the fruit onto the chaise he had been lounging on, a lopsided grin still present on his face. He offered his arm. “Shall we walk?”

She slipped her hand into the crook of her son’s arm as they left the courtyard. Telemachus led them down a path that led around the palace walls.

“Telemachus,” Penelope took a breath, closing her eyes momentarily as she leveled herself. “There is something you and I must discuss. Something you mustn’t share with your father.”

He tensed next to her, but nodded. “Alright… I trust you.” He said after a moment of quiet contemplation. He stopped right as they passed into the gardens, releasing her arm.

“Your father has made a deal with Hades,” she started, watching him for a reaction.

“Yes, I know.” His response was very matter-of-fact. “When Icarius was found dead, he told me of the deal.”

She shook her head. “That was too much to put on you, my son. I am so sorry.”

“I’m not a boy, Mother.” His voice was soft, but strong. “Father doesn’t treat me like a child. He is direct with me.”

Her heart ached almost instantly at his words, at the way he almost sounded reverent when talking about Odysseus. She was both overwhelmed with joy at their connection, and a little taken aback that Telemachus thought she spoke to him like he was young.

As if reading her mind, he smiled at her. “Mom, he doesn’t know how to speak to me any other way. I do not resent our relationship, or wish anything was different. You are my mother. It’s your sacred duty to dote on me.”

She blinked back the tears that quickly warmed her eyes. Offering her son a watery smile, she laid a hand on his cheek. “I will always dote on you, my sweet boy.”

The tips of his ears flushed red as he broke her gaze. “Is that all you wanted to tell me?” He asked, looking awkwardly at his feet.

“No, it’s not.” She was breathless now, anxiety catching up with her. “No, there’s more to the deal.”

“Whatever it is, we’ll handle it together.” He was so confident, so sure of himself and his parents.

“I wish we could, my son.” She said, biting the inside of her cheek as she framed her confession in her mind. “I wish we could… But I-” Her voice caught.

“Mom?”

“I made a deal too.”

He stood in front of her, mouth agape as he searched her face. Penelope’s heart raced, her pulse echoing in her ear as she waited for her son to say something.

“With Hades?” His voice was almost indiscernible from the breezes around them.

Her words stuck in her throat, so she just nodded. He turned his back to her, pulling his hand through his dark hair. “For what? What did you offer?” He kept his back to her, did not look as he asked.

“My life for his, with one condition.”

“Mother…” Telemachus was scolding her. She could hear both the hurt and the despair in his words as he spoke. “Why? What condition could you possibly think that you or Father could meet that would keep your life safe? Do you understand how foolish-”

“Yes, son, I do.” Leveled now, she stepped forward, gently laying a hand on his shoulder. “I trust your father without fail, without doubt. Beyond reason.”

“Then tell me what you bartered away for him.”

“When the time comes… when Hades returns to Ithaca for your father, I will go, too.” Telemachus opened his mouth to retort, but she held up her hand, “And no matter what, Odysseus gets to rest. He will spend his eternity in Elysium, his afterlife in rest.”

“And you?” His words were clipped, cold.

“If your father allows me to go with him, allow me to cross the Styx without a word of argument or dissent… I will spend my eternity in Tartarus.”

And Telemachus… laughed.

“You find this funny, son?” She scowled at him as he continued to chuckle.

“I find it hilarious , Mother. I am furious. Please don’t pretend any differently - I do not wish for both my Mother and my Father to disappear from my world in a single night.

But…” he turned, wiping at his misty eyes.

“The idea that a god would make a bet against your husband’s stubbornness is downright sinful.

Father would debate with this wall if he thought he stood a chance of outwitting it.

” She might have been mistaken, but Penelope would have sworn she heard a hint of awe in her son’s voice.

“Telemachus, please.” Penelope was reeling.

“And when he tries to keep you in Ithaca? What then?” He was challenging her, still. Even as she watched tears form in his eyes, he didn’t back down.

“I still follow him to the underworld, Telemachus. There is no me without him. It has always been your father. But if he tries to keep me here… we will both spend our days together in the Elysian lands, at rest.”

Her son nodded, running his hand down his face as he watched her closely. “So that’s it?” She couldn’t read his expression, couldn’t figure out what he was thinking. “Either way, you both leave me here, alone, in Ithaca.” His words stung, but they were not unjustified.

“I’m so sorry, Telemachus.” She was fighting back a sob as she tried to rationalize with him. “I… I don’t want to be selfish. I want to be the mother you deserve, but… I can’t be without him again. I can’t spend any more time without your father by my side.”

“It’s him.” He said after several beats of silence. “It’s always been him.”

Penelope brushed a tear off of her cheek. “What do you mean?”

“No one could ever hold a candle to him, could they?” He asked, stepping close to where she stood. “Not that I expected you to choose one of those awful men that destroyed our home, but even if someone kind and gentle had come along… they never would have stood a chance.”

She shook her head, trying to smile at him. “No, Telemachus. I have woven my entire life around him. I just got him back, I can’t-”

He pulled her into an embrace, his own shoulders shaking gently as his tears joined hers. “I hope one day, Mother, that I can experience a love as deep and true as yours and Father’s.”

“I pray you never settle for anything less.” She whispered into his shoulder, holding her son close.