#And Ody was just playing along

[xfilesinamajor]

SIREN: “Hi, I know you’re thousands of miles from home but it’s me, your wife, just hanging out in the middle of the ocean!”

ODYSSEUS: “Really? Penelope? My one true love, the mother of my child?”

SIREN: “…yep! Here I am right by your ship!”

ODYSSEUS: “WOW 😍😍😍 Penelope, how I’ve missed you!”

SIREN: “Holy shit that worked?!?”

ODYSSEUS: “What was that?”

SIREN: “I said, uh, come into the water!”

[hvhvmoc]

Francis Mosses NSFW A-Z ♡♡

I love him <33

Reader is gn but has female anatomy.

A-ftercare (What're they like after sex)♡

Very very tired. Everything he says afterwards is either slurred or murmured. Very cuddly tho. Will not let you go. Very sappy afterwards too; telling you he loves you and how pretty and perfect you were/are.

Takes him a second to do it but eventually gets up to get you some water while you go to the bathroom (always pee after sex!).

B-ody part (favorite body part on you & him)♡

On you, he loves your hands and lips. He holds your hand a lot during sex even if hes absolutely destroying you. And he loves your lips because he just likes kisses (and how they look wrapped around his dick). Between tits or ass tho, I think he'd prefer boobs (not pun intended). Even if their small, he looves them.

On him, he'd say his hands are his favorite. He likes the way the have so much effect on you. Like when he fingers you or grabs onto your hips or thighs or when he grabs your hand during sex.

C-um (anything to do w cum basically)♡

I think he'd prefer to cum on your stomach or ass. Though I do think he'd cum inside every once in a while. When you suck him off, he let's you take control of his dick tbh. If you want him to cum all over your face, then he will. If you want it in your mouth, then he will. If you want it on your boobs, he will. He just wants to please you fr.

D-irty secret ♡

I feel like he'd have plenty of them. A main one tho is that he's stolen one of your panties and jerked off with them before. He felt guilty afterwards so that was the only time he did that. The others are small enough for him to forget about it

E-xperience (his past experiences)

♡

I feel like he had NO BITCHES before you came (tee hee) along. He was a quiet kid and just focused on himself, maybe had a couple gfs and intimate moments but you're probably the first "real deal" to come into his life in terms of love.

F-avorite position ♡

He'd like the classics. Like missionary, cowgirl, doggie, etc etc. He'd probably like missionary and cowgirl most. Missionary because of the intimacy. Cowgirl bc sometimes he wants some but he's tired (and boobs).

G-oofy (how serious/unserious are they during sex)♡

He's pretty in the middle. Sometimes he likes to slowly fuck you while you two have a normal conversations so sometimes there's jokes thrown in there. But if it's rougher/faster, he's more serious.

H-air (what kind of hair they got down there)♡

I think he trims it. Keeps it tame. He doesn't shave it clean tho, unless you tell him to, then he might. For the rest of his body, he does have some hair but not a lot.

I-ntimacy ♡

Oh this boy is INTIMATE. The kind of mf that looks at sex like "love-making" instead of just "fuck". Loves praising and listening to what you say. You say harder and he goes harder, you say slower and he goes slower, etc etc. Most of the sex you two have will most likely be when he's tired/half awake so all the praise and such are slurred in such a beautiful way yk.

J-ack off (how often does he jack off)♡

Other than what I said in the dirty secret section, he doesn't really do it anymore. Why imagine you when he has you right there?

K-inks ♡

Praise - he likes receiving and giving praise. He likes talking you through it, telling you how good you feel and how much he loves you.

Marking - he'd like to leave hickeys on you, not for a way to "claim" you, but just because he wants to and he likes your reaction to it when I sucks on your sweet spots.

Overstimulation - he likes to BE overstimulated. Sometimes he wants to keep going but his body doesn't or he's too tired so he just begs you to just ride him til he cries or passes out.

Nipple play - he likes to pinch and massage your boobs a lot. Even if you're not having sex, his hand lives on your boob. Most of your foreplay is him sucking and nibbling on your nipple, pinching your other one while he fingers you.

L-ocation (their favorite locations to do it)♡

I feel like he'd only want to do it at home. He doesn't like public stuff. At home tho, he'd do it anywhere; on the dinner table, kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, living room, anywhere. He could do it in the car tho. Maybe if he gets too worked up after a date and your apartment is too far away.

M-otivation (what turns him on)♡

Tbh. Everything. Skin tight shirts, your sleepwear (no matter what it is), etc. He likes when you take care of him too, just loving him turns him on.

N-o (some turn offs)♡

I'm so sorry yall but I think he'd say no to bdsm. Like maybe SOME parts of it he can do but like hard-core bdsm is a no.

He wouldn't want to actually hurt you in any way. Spanking is ok if it's not full force but like actually causing you pain is a no.

And he wouldn't like shit with pee, poop, and vomit. Shits nasty.

O-ral ♡

Oh bro. He EATS. Man can eat you out for hourss if you let him. He was a little shit at eating pussy at first but with more practice, he gets better and better. Like I'm talking about EATING pussy. There's no kitten licking with him, he is in. There.

And he loves when you suck him off. He talks while you do but they're all murmurs so no one knows what he's saying. He fucks your face gently (unless you tell him you want it rough) everytime. Mutters praises all throughout it and let's out of raspy moan when he cums.

P-ace ♡

Unless he's dead tired, he goes at whatever pace you want. When he's dead tired he wants to go slow and sensual. But if he had energy, he'll go at whatever pace you want him to go at. He starts off slow but if you tell him to go harder and harder he will beat that pussy numb.

Q-uickie (opinions on quickies)♡

I think he'd want to take his time with you so quickies are eh to him. If you seriously cannot wait but you can't leave wherever you are for too long, he'll take you somewhere private to eat you out till you're satisfied (or suck him off until he's satisfied).

He will leave an event for the day to have sex with you tho. If it gets that bad.

R-isk♡

To keep it short, he'd be down for experimenting as long as it's not in his "no" list.

S-tamina ♡

Again, depends on you. If you wanna ride him till the sun comes up, he'll thug it out for you. He likes overstimulation anyway. But tbh he rlly only goes for 2 rounds until you have to take over.

T-toys (toys they own)♡

I don't think he has any toys for himself. And he wouldn't really care if you had your own toys. He's fucked you with your toys before; like a vibrator up to your clit while he fucks you or a dildo in you while he sucks on your clit.

U-nfair (do they tease? And how often)♡

He doesn't really edge or tease you, but when he does, it's on accident. Sometimes he pulls out to cum on your stomach and accidently edges you. He doesn't mind when you do it to him. Feels good.

V-olume (how loud are they during sex)♡

Loud asf. Like I said, he talks during it, like murmuring and slurring his words. He's a moaner and whimperer too. Occasionally groaning but not really.

He LOVES when you're loud tho. He encourages it actually. Turns him on more.

W-ild card ♡

To add onto "volume", he talks dirty so much, even if it's under his breath. Like omfg the filth that comes out of his mouth is so unexpected.

Also, the amount of times you two were getting rough with it and he got that phone call (ykwim), he doesn't stop. He slows down a bit but just continues while you struggle to not blow you're cover.

X-ray (what's in those pants)♡

He's pretty average. Long, kinda thin, a vein on the top of his shaft from the base to the middle of it. He's about 6-7 inches, and he knows how to use it. Tbh I can't decide whether he's circumcised or not so you can personally decide that.

Y-earning (how high/low is his sex drive)♡

Surprisingly high. He's down to fuck whenever. Unless he's literally about to knock out cold. But if he's awake then so is his dick. He barley asks for sex tho, he wants YOU to initiate it. He just gives hints.

Z-zz (how fast he goes to sleep)♡

Like I said before, he's literally so tired afterwards. Once he makes sure you're okay and comfy, he snuggles close to you and sleeps.

I love him your honor.

[extraterracetrial]

Personally I think Ody already knew Eury opened the wind bag, initially bc there's just something about his tone and the way Ody cut him off in the beginning of Puppeteer that felt... deliberate? But it's also mirrored in Scylla and Mutiny

It's just a little thing in Scylla but when Eury first tries to confess in Puppeteer Ody gives him a task instead "go check out the island" vs "light up six torches" instead of talking about it, like he's avoiding it

But more prominently is "whatever you have to say can wait some more of this I'm sure" sounds to me like "don't tell me. If you don't tell me we can pretend I don't know and I don't have to do anything about it. Lie to me (by omission)" vs Eury's "tell me you did not know that would happen" and "then you have forced my hand" while said in anger can also totally be ready similarly. I've already seen others talk about how he was basically begging Ody to lie to him so like, "lie to me so I don't have to do anything about it" again

(whether or not Eury would've been able to play along, assuming he did want that, I don't know, and ig we'll never know)

Also Ody's total lack of reaction. Sure Scylla had "leaving them feeling betrayed" but having it said out loud could still sting. It could also be a "I thought we had a deal to not talking about that" type betrayal.

Anyway many thoughts head full

[r4d0m-13]

Ranting about God Games (Specifically Apollo)

I’m so normal about this.

So the live stream just came out and AAAAAAAHDA TO ESTHFRR DE H

ok.

So a lot of people are talking about how Apollo really didn’t even have much of an argument and really didn’t want to be involved much. I raise you, he wanted to make it easier for Athena. Apollo and Athena are Knowledge and Wisdom, they get along well. They probably have tea and talk about what budding civilizations will grow into mighty empires. And they have probably broached the topic of Odysseus multiple times, once Apollo had gotten over the sacking of Troy. (enough for Apollo to be familiar enough with him to USE HIS NICKNAME)

So when Zeus chooses Apollo to be one of the Gods who needs to be convinced, he has no idea what to say AND wants to make it easy.

Another thing is the visuals, (THE ANIMATOR FOR HIM DID SUCH A GOOD JOB AAAAA) every other Deity shows Athena have to visually struggle even just a bit to convince the others.

Hephaestus was not that big of a struggle, Athena has to maneuver her way through his forge to get through to Hephaestus. He and Athena have a more passive relationship so she has to navigate more carefully than she would for someone like Artemis.

Athena and Aphrodite have a much more antagonistic relationship. Athena has no interest in love as an Eternal Maiden. Aphrodite has always had problems with that in myths. So they don’t like each other. Because of that, Athena has to stop her from dismissing the conversation and get her stop and think about it. Ares interrupts and he and Athena have that sibling rivalry as they are both war gods and Athena is more favored. They physically fight and argue and Athena has to win to convince Ares and Aphrodite in extension.

Hera and Athena could have varied relationships, but they seem somewhat cool with each other so it’s just a dance battle. All Athena needed was one good move but she didn’t know what was good enough for Hera, so she went for the “He respects the sanctity of his marriage” card.

However for Apollo, they were just in a pleasant spot with him playing his Lyre while they talked. He put up a small qualm he could reasonably have with Ody, and Athena responded in kind. It was a short exchange as they both agreed that he needed to be let go but they needed to put on a show of disagreement first. He didn’t want to waste time while Ody was wasting away on the island and sent Athena off fast as he could.

YOU SEEE AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Thank you for coming to my Ted talk.

[kindred-spirit-93]

SNAKKHDJSKAHSKWMSKSNWJ WHERE DOES ONE EVEN BEGIN TO START????

i kid you not the first thing i did after opening my eyes this morning was to reread ur post from start to finish (read it at like 2am last night lol) i have been rotating my new baby muffin in my head non stop im the one getting dizzy

ive known ur neo for a grand total of 10 hours (less bc i was asleep for 80% of that lmao) and if anything were to happen to him im going to put achilles' rage to shame. i want to give him head pats omg. maybe make him a flower crown too. the palms of his hands being scarred and never being given the chance to heal broke me i hope ur happy.

lil shit tele hallelujah amen. the apple doesnt fall very far from the tree. or in this case olive lmao.

AKLASDJKAJDH MOI?! hehe in that case pls do me the honour of accepting my humble tags as a gift for the emotional damage ill be braving for my bebehs. astyanax lives au but its neo deciding he will not be responsible for another war casualty and repeat the cycle of hatred and ruined childhoods. raises him w tele :3

aw ur the sweetest, i hope i can one day find the eloquence to do both the brilliance of ur work and the depths of my feelings for it justice

TIS MY HONOUR OMG GIMME EVERYTHING!!!! id love to read abt anything u want to share abt the darling bois. angst all the way >:')

I LOVE THAT SO MUCH OH MI GOD. BOTH OF THEM BEING LIKE WTF I NEED TO OBSERVE HIM UNDER A MICROSCOPE LMAO

this is my new favourite thing augh. them wanting to be like the other i might as well start digging my grave i will not be surviving this.

I DID SEE WHAT U DID THERE HEHE. also ur so real for starting another project while in the middle of one (or several) lol. im something of an insane expert myself dw

SITCOM NEOMACHUS TAKE MY MONEY MY WORLDY POSESSIONS AND MY SOUL AAAHHHH the day it drops will be the die i can die at peace lmao. dangit i wish i could draw

quaking with excitement waaah

talking about my neoptolemus/telemachus wip bc idk how to shut the fuck up!!!

SO the dynamic between neoptolemus and telemachus in my wip is essentially that neoptolemus is in love with telemachus from their first meeting, but he’s convinced that telemachus is too good for him and that he destroys everything he touches so he masks that with cruelty and pretends that he hates telemachus. telemachus is at first, drawn to neo and really likes him, but then neo starts being cruel in his attempts to push telemachus away and that gets telemachus to genuinely hate neo. it’s like a one-sided enemies to lovers. neo wants really badly to hate telemachus, but he can’t find it in him to not love this boy who he thinks shines like the sun. telemachus, on the other hand, just hates neo and he blames neo for ruining this friendship that they could have had.

their relationship basically flips back and forth between neo saying some unintentionally soft shit and when telemachus is like “what” neo just immediately says “but you’re also a weak dumbass so. fuck you.” neo is such a girlfailure in this fic he doesn’t know how to handle emotions AT ALL. he’s grown very special to me in the course of writing this fic which is very funny bc prior to starting this fic, i actually did not care for neo in the slightest before i started writing this fic. i only cared abt him as an extension to achilles bc achilles is my fav greek mythology figure ever. THEN AGAINST ALL ODDS, neo charmed me while writing this fic. like these are some tweets from my priv twt where you can see me progress from not caring at all abt neo to seeing him as my little babygirl son

so yes, i was charmed by my socially awkward son neoptolemus. he’s such a little freak. my favourite headcanon is that maybe in another less angsty fic than the one i��m writing rn, neo wants to flirt with telemachus and bc he’s emotionally inept like his father, he decides the best way to do that is to ask telemachus to spar with him and bc he hates losing, he goes all out and beats telemachus up. it’s like

neo, internally, after punching telemachus in the face: yes, our courtship is progressing magnificently

telemachus, clutching his bloody nose, trying to figure out why neo hates him:

LIKE THEYRE SO FUNNY TO ME!! i love them sm.

but anyways back to the specifics of my fic. they don’t get to be quite as silly in my fic. essentially what happens is that neo hears of odysseus returning to ithaca and decides to visit. there, he meets telemachus and is immediately charmed because he’s such a little loser. telemachus invites neo back to the palace for dinner and neo ends up getting in an argument with odysseus that ends with him going “I WILL TRAIN TELEMACHUS.” and odysseus does not want that to happen so ofc, telemachus says he wants neo to train him.

and the plotline is basically neo and telemachus’ relationship progressing as neo trains telemachus. it’s full of a lot of really sexually charged sparring and angry arguments.

some of you may be wondering why i refer to neoptolemus as neoptolemus always and not pyrrhus even though pyrrhus is his original name. well in my head, pyrrhus is the name that he’s given at birth by deidamia and neoptolemus is the name he takes up when he goes to war because he feels like he’s become a different person. neo struggling between his two names is actually going to be quite a plot point in this fic

because this fic is just as much a character study of neoptolemus as it is a ship fic between neo and telemachus. i spend a lot of time exploring his relationship with his parents and also his relationship with odysseus. it’s neo’s desire to piss off odysseus in the first place that gets him to stay in ithaca with telemachus. i really want to spend a lot of time exploring neo as a character bc so often, people write him as just being needlessly cruel, but i feel like it’s important to remember that he was just a kid when he was brought into war. he has this legacy from achilles that he needs to live up to, but he’s never even met achilles and how are you supposed to live up to the legacy of the greatest of the greeks? how would it ever be possible to make someone like achilles proud? neo’s grappling with his self-worth and identity a lot during this fic.

so far this fic is about 22k words and it’s very special to me. in the vision i’ve created in my head, we’re about 1/4 done but i make no promises because you all know me and how awful i am at sticking to the word counts that i imagine. it could be much shorter, it could be much longer. i don’t make plans. i just sit down in front of my google docs and bleed.

i’ve also been making plans for a little modern au neo/telemachus fic BECAUSEEE i really want to write that little neo and achilles exchange that i mentioned in my last post abt neomachus (teleneo? idk what their ship name is but i like calling them neomachus). my vice is creating wips and never finishing them tho so idk when (or if) i’ll write that modern au.

i guess i’ll end this little infodump off with some fun exchanges between neo and telemachus that i really like in this fic. they’re just so special to me <3

i will absolutely talk abt this fic more in the future as i continue writing bc im so obsessed with it rn. i will do my best to finish it asap but every time i think more about it, it gets longer.

(ALSO the title of the fic is “someday i know you’ll come to your senses” which comes from the song senses by mico who is, yes, the guy who plays telemachus in epic the musical. what can i say? i like it when things come full circle (it’s also a really fucking good song. everyone stream internet hometown hero by mico))

(none of these excerpts are edited or anything btw. if there are any typos please keep that to yourself or i might die of embarrassment)

[lotus-acid-trip]

hi! I hope you don’t mind me asking but may I request a Telemachus x fem reader where when ody returns and is being made fun of by the suitors while still in this begger disguise yn starts fighting off the suitors and yelling at them for being rude and maybe later joins ody while he is hunting them down and Telemachus has a love sick look while watching yn just like ody did for Penelope back when they were younger before he married her and after seeing how cool and awesome of a warrior yn is later ody turns to his son and says “I aprove of this one 😏” and poor Telemachus is just like 😳 all flustered and adorable what can I say Telemachus is a sweetie 🥰

feel free to ignore if you want to hope you have a good rest of your day thank you ☺️

“I approve of this one.”

Telemachus x Reader

[Epic The Musical]

oneshot

fluff

This is my first proper romantic reader insert fic, so I hope you enjoy!

Odysseus sat at the entrance of the courtyard under the shade of a large olive tree as he silently observed the numerous suitors scattered across the courtyard in idle chatter. Is this really what had become of his home while he was gone? It was baffling just how ungrateful and disrespectful all these guests were. He worried for the state of his palace after being infested with all these unwelcome guests for so many years. It must have been so difficult on Penelope and Telemachus to deal with all of them, having to feed and house them along with dealing with their pitiful attempts at courting his wife. It was a wonder why the suitors still haven’t been driven out by Telemachus yet.

His hand fiddled with the small wooden bowl in his hands. Odysseus was disguised as an old beggar, but as much as he wanted to reveal himself right then and there he needed to be patient and play it smart. He didn’t have anything other than an old knife hidden in his clothes to defend himself with and he was probably lacking a lot of proper nutrients and sustenance after being out at sea for so long with food of limited quality and quantity. If he were to fight all these suitors right now, he was sure to fail. Not only do they have an advantage in numbers, it was obvious they were well fed, and all the used training equipment seen around the palace was all he needed to know the suitors could fight. If Odysseus wanted to win, he needed to stick to the plan, which meant playing his part as an old beggar.

A suitor passed by him devouring a chicken leg and he held out his bowl to him. It would be a good opportunity to not only learn more about the state of his palace and family, but to also know just what his family has been up to in the past years. “Would you care to spare a bit of food for this old man?” The suitor tilted his head to look down at Odysseus for a moment before raising a brow. “And what exactly is this homeless old man doing in a palace like this? Surely your life hasn’t fallen so far into poverty that you’d go scrounging for scraps in the homes of royalty.” He leaned back against the tree, hands crossing over his legs. “Well, that wasn’t exactly my plan. I was just walking by but with the heat of the sun and with a body as frail and weak as mine, I just had to take a break under the shade of this mighty tree. I was always curious of what happened in the lives of royalty anyway.” He said as he looked up at the leaves and branches. He remembers planting it so many years ago to see how to take care of an olive tree as preparation for making his and Penelope’s marital bed. It's grown so much since then, and he wonders just how much Telemachus has as well. “Well, since you have so much spare time to just wander around doing nothing, why don’t you bring us all a meal or two, all the way from inside the palace’s pantry. You want some food? Work for it, old man.”

Odysseus raised a hand waving off the offer. “Ah, but there might be one small problem. I am just an old beggar, remember? I don’t know anything of the layout of the palace. I’m sorry, but I must decline. Can’t you just ask a servant to help you instead?” The suitor seemed to get irritated at his reply. “Ha! Yeah right, those servants can barely do anything right. They never bring the food on time and always seem to be short on stock. Not even their pathetic prince seems to know what he’s doing.” He stared at the suitor judgmentally. “ ‘Pathetic prince’ you say? Bold words for someone who’s staying in his palace.” The suitor looked at him as if he had just said something audacious instead of common sense. “Listen old man, we’re the guests here, not them. Do you not understand basic hospitality?” Odysseus narrowed his eyes at the suitor. He knew his palace, his servants and the workforce in it. They aren’t lazy or incompetent, if they were they wouldn’t be serving his family. Not to mention, if there wasn’t enough livestock there were plenty of skilled hunters and hunting dogs to accompany them. His memories of old hunts with Argos and others were more than enough proof of that.

“Of course I do. Perhaps instead of trying to defend your impudence against the prince, you could put away your prideful hurbis for a moment and just lend me even an inch of the food you already have on you. For someone relying on the shared hospitality of someone else for their own comfort, you sure don’t seem to be able to do the same.” The suitor’s bored annoyance quickly morphed into thinly veiled anger. “Listen you old derelict, need I remind you that this is not your courtyard you are resting in? This is not your abode and I do not tolerate your insults. For someone who seems to preach so strongly for returning hospitality, you don’t seem too keen on basic respect.” Odysseus hid his amusement at the irony with indifference. “Although that may be true, last I checked this isn’t your home either.” That statement alone seemed to be enough to push him over the edge into full blown rage. Odysseus jumped away from the suitor’s flying fist as it hit the trunk of the tree where his head used to be. “You know, for someone so insistent on how they have difficulty doing physical activities you’re awfully quick to move.” The suitor began to walk towards him, his larger form towering over him and casting a shadow that engulfed Odysseus’s entire form. “Listen here old man. If you think you can just run off after that impudence, your mind must be as deteriorated as your age.” Odysseus continued to back up, hand immediately searching for the knife he hid. A chill crept up his spine when his back hit something. Turning around, it was another suitor, the others beginning to close in on him. Fuck, he messed up. The suitor he first talked to grabbed the front of his shirt and lifted him up to his face so Odysseus could face him. “Now, I think it's time that you finally learned a long needed lesson on hospitality and what happens when you don’t respect your host-“

“Hey! What the hell is all this racket?” Odysseus never turned his head away from the suitor, but averted his gaze towards the newcomer. A woman emerged from inside the palace and stared at the scene before her in a moment of silence before her once confused gaze immediately morphed into an infuriated wrath that could rival the suitor’s own rage. “Antinous, what do you think you’re doing! Gods above and below, has no one ever taught you to respect your elders?” She marched on towards the both of them, unshaken by any visible fear at the obvious violent intent of the suitors. She gripped the suitor’s, now known as Antinous, wrist and forcefully yanked it away from him, letting Odysseus fall to the ground. Antinous opened his mouth, ready to yell at her but the woman cut him off as she glared coldly at him. “The queen is watching us.” She said as she stared into the suitors eyes as if daring him to try anything. The mention of Penelope is all he needed to whip his head towards the balcony he knows she always loved to use to watch the courtyard. And there she was, elegant and poised, watching with a composed face as she always does. He could see how she’s changed from when he last saw her, the small streaks of white in her hair that weren’t there before, the wrinkles and tired eyes. But he didn’t care, for it was his Penelope, and Odysseus felt like he was falling in love all over again.

Penelope observed them silently, looking at each person one by one before her eyes eventually met his. For a moment, it felt like time froze and they did nothing but stare at each other. It was like the world itself was holding its breath. It was the smallest difference in her eyes that made his chest swell with warmth. Those indifferent calculated eyes that always seemed to be studying every little detail softened for a moment, her composed face faltering for a split millisecond to look at him with the same eyes that looked at him with so much affection and appreciation when he told her how he’d tackle the challenge she gave him. The tension in the air was so thick, yet only he could feel it… and maybe she did as well. Logically, Odysseus knew that they had only been looking at each other for a mere few seconds, but it felt like he was staring for an eternity at something so close yet so far. And Penelope did nothing else but silently stare back. She shifted her position, pulling away from the scene and returning back inside. Odysseus let out a breath he didn’t even realize he was holding. It felt like time suddenly began moving once more when it had always been flowing, falling through his fingers like flowing water with no hope of holding on to it.

“Antinous, if you do not explain to me what exactly you were doing I can and will tell Penelope.” The woman said as she walked in front Odysseus, who’s gaze still lingered on the balcony for another moment before returning to look at the suitors and the new woman. Antinous sneered. “And why should I? Your family may be up there in terms of status, but you’re nowhere near close to me.” He sneered. “And? Do you think I care? You already showed just how petty you get because someone bruised your fragile ego. I still haven’t forgiven you for the fight with Telemachus.” The woman took a step forward towards the suitor, but he didn’t move. “And? The boy started it.” Another step forward and another rise in tension. “Who exactly called his mother a tramp? That’s right, you.” Another step forward until she was right in front of him. At this point even more suitors began to crowd around them to see what was happening, and Odysseus dreaded a physical fight would break out.

“Well then, since you seem so keen on berating me for teaching the little wolf a lesson, why don’t I give you an opportunity to even out the scales?” Antinous’s fist met the woman’s face, sending her stumbling back. She regained her balance before gently touching her face, a bruise forming on her right cheek. Whispers and murmurs emanated from the crows as it grew larger, more suitors joining the audience and a few servants discreetly watching from the sidelines. She looked at her own blood smeared against her fingers before turning her attention towards Antinous. “I gladly accept.” She ran forward, fist aimed at Antinous’s face. The suitor held his forearm up to block it, only for her to twist her foot, turning around to kick him from behind without her fist ever making contact with him. Antinous was pushed forward a step from the force of the kick, but quickly recovered, turning around to grab her by the leg she used to kick him. The crowd around them began cheering as he pulled her forward into another punch, which was blocked by her own forearms, now also bruised. He grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her into a headbutt, unable to dodge or move away because of their position.

The sound of a wooden bowl hitting Antinous’s head caused all sound to cease, the silence deafening as everyone’s heads turned to look at the source of the bowl. Antinous glared at Odysseus, who was hiding his grip on his knife in his oversized clothes. Antinous let go of the woman who fell on the floor, wincing at her bruises. Odysseus’s grip on his knife tightened as he took a step forward towards him. He opened his mouth to say something before he was cut off by a young voice. “Stop! What’s going on he- [NAME]!” A young boy shoved his way through the crowd and into the clearing that formed around the olive tree, rushing towards the side of the young woman. He kneeled beside her as he assessed her wounds. Antinous crossed his arms in annoyance as the young boy began to ceaselessly fuss over her. Odysseus stared at the boy, he could recognize those eyes from anywhere. “[name], are you okay? What happened?”

“Tele, I’m fine. It's just a few bruises, I’m not an old frail man.” She said as she sharply turned to look at Antinous. “Unlike the person a certain someone was harassing.” Odysseus stared at the young man- no, his son. No wonder he looked so familiar. He had his mother’s eyes and the same fair skin as her, but the face and hair of his own. His head was reeling, it had been so long since he’d seen his young boy. He was all grown up now, grown through all those special moments in his life Odysseus would never be able to experience. Gods, he missed his first hunt, his first training session, he missed being able to teach his son all the things he promised he’d pass on from his mentorship under Athena. But now Telemachus was right there, but he still couldn’t teach him all the things he wasn’t able to.

Antinous looked at all three of them one by one, from Odysseus to Telemachus in increasing disgust. “I’ve had enough of this, the way both of you act around each other is nauseating.” He said as he left the courtyard and into the building. Telemachus helped [name] up and she turned to look at Odysseus. “I am so sorry for all this. My intent was only to help you get that pig off your back,” She said as she looked at the direction Antinous left in with so much disgust it almost gave Odysseus whiplash from her original apologetic tone. “but it seems my impulsiveness got the better of me. Usually I try not to cause fights but I’m not exactly the best at not doing that.” She said shamefully. “Oh please, it's quite alright. I understand what it’s like. Sometimes, when you’re in the heat of the moment, your emotions cloud your judgement and you’re so focused on doing what you think’s right that… you don’t realize the consequences that might follow.” He said with a wistful smile. “I really have no idea what happened, but I apologize either way. Please, have this for your troubles.” Telemachus said as he handed him money, before cutting through the crowd to probably lead [name] to get healed. Odysseus stared at the coins placed in his hand, it was enough to buy him a whole house.

……………………………………………………

……………………………………………………

The metallic stench of blood filled your nose as you walked across the wet floor, the red liquid staining your sandals. The faint light of the torches could barely illuminate the dark room, the moon’s light nowhere to be seen through the windows. What little the light did show was nothing but puddles of blood and the faint outline of bodies. Right there, at the end of the room were twelve axes that were originally supposed to be used for the challenge queen Penelope made for her suitors. It didn’t take long for you to hear about what went wrong, and it took even shorter for you to make your way here. You grabbed one of the axes, testing its weight as you gave it a few experimental swings. The silence of the challenge room was so quiet you could hear your own wet footsteps echo as you tested the axe. You internally facepalmed as you looked down at your weapon, realizing just how little you thought this through. You had no plan in mind, you just heard that Telemachus was also fighting and just had to join. The idea of fighting alongside him was exhilarating, and meeting his father, king Odysseus and master tactician that won the war? You didn’t really think too hard on your decision to join. As much as you hated to admit it, Telemachus and your father were right. You really needed to think things through more. 

Your body tensed when you heard the sound of heavy footsteps approaching the room, your grip on your axe tightening. Well, if you were good at one thing, it was brazenly charging into battle. You readied your stance, prepared for a fight. Since you weren’t able to kill Antinous, you’ll have to settle for killing the suitor first. The moment the bright light of a torch rounded the corner of the entryway, you charged forward, swinging your axe towards their head. Being on the other side of the room, they had plenty of time to jump out of your way. Now, you were at the entrance and they were trapped inside the room. Their torch illuminated their face and you took a moment to look at them. Eurymachus, the cowardly one. “Hey, [name], let us talk about this! I never once went out of my way to hurt you nor Telemachus, I always payed my due respects to her majesty. It was Antinous that-“

“Lead you and your fellow scum in the plan to execute my betrothed in secret.” You said with a sneer, throwing the axe at his head. It flew past the torch, the push of wind blowing it out as the man in front of you fell to the floor. He met the floor with a loud thump, his remains now nothing but another body in the landscape of corpses in the room. You moved to pull the axe out of his head with more aggression than needed before leaving. His words irritated you to no end, the man was nothing but an idle fool who made the choice of inaction. Never once did he try to stop his fellow suitors from tormenting Telemachus, never once has he tried to lessen all the resources they waste, never once did he leave when Telemachus ordered them. None of them did.

You let out a sigh as you walked through the hallways. Where exactly was Telemachus? And where was Odysseus? They most likely passed through this area already, if the bodies everywhere said anything. The father son duo was probably closer to the courtyards of the palace outside where the suitors must have fled towards. Either that or the pack of meatheads ran towards their weapon supply. You guessed it was the latter and promptly made your way through the familiar halls, passing by familiar faces on the floor that will never be missed. Surprisingly enough you couldn’t find any signs of struggle during battle. Nothing but the light of torches fallen on the floor could light up the scene, the moon and stars never daring to gaze upon the massacre. Bodies upon bodies were piled up in a gruesome display of vengeance with a vile stench that made your nose wrinkle in disgust, and yet each and every one of them only had an arrow to the head or chest to blame for their demise. No bruising nor cuts of a blade, only a lone arrow on each suitor. It was only after a long time of walking did the bodies slowly lessen in numbers, but still remained ever present. A silent reminder of the ruthless monster that lurked in these dark halls.

Your head turned towards the sound of metal blade against metal blade just to your right. Carefully peeking over the edge, your eyes widened at the sight of Telemachus fighting a suitor on his own. The light of a fallen torch reflected the glint of a knife in the darkness. Your grip on your axe tightened and you swung at the knife wielder without hesitation. The suitor’s screams were drowned by his own blood pouring out of his mouth, your axe lodged into his throat. Looking behind you, a surprised suitor was stabbed from behind, his blood coating the rest of the blade that pierced through him. The sword was pulled out and the suitor fell to the floor, revealing Telemachus behind him. “[name]? What are you doing here?” He asked as he looked around as if worried anyone might be eavesdropping. “Did you really think word of your suitor hunt wouldn’t get out? Tele, the entire palace could hear the screams of terror.” You replied as you rested your axe on your shoulder. “Of course I didn’t think we’d be able to hide a mass genocide! What I’m asking is why you came here after learning about a giant fight-“ He paused mid sentence, and you didn’t need to see his face to know he was staring at you with the most unimpressed expression you’ll ever see. You barely tried to hide your amused snickering as he rolled his eyes at you. “You know what? I retract my statement. The fight was all the reason you needed to come here, wasn’t it.” It was less of a question and more of a statement.

“Actually, not really. At least, it wasn’t the only reason.” You said you stared directly into his eyes that reflected the ever dancing light of the torch. The flame flickered, going from bright to dark and back within seconds. You could barely see Telemachus, but you poured every bit of attention you had into listening to Telemachus go from unamused to curious. “Really? Then what was it?” He asked as you smiled. “I’m looking right at it.” Telemachus looked around once more, but this time to find what you were staring directly at rather than look for hidden dangers. “Wha? But the only thing you’re looking at is… Oh.” You didn’t even try to hide your amusement this time, bursting out into a fit of howling laughter at his flushed face. “Really? Do you have to tease me even in the middle of battle?” You shoved your face right in front of his, mere inches away. “Yeah, cause you haven’t told me to stop yet.”

“Euryalus, he locked the rest of our weapons in one of the rooms! These are the only ones we have, none of us could open it up-“ Telemachus looked towards the group of new suitors, who immediately drew their weapons at the sight of the both of you. “Shit.” You cursed under your breath, you were kinda having a moment here. With much annoyance your stance changed from relaxed and playful with your axe on your shoulder, to a defensive battle stance with your weapon at the ready. Even with Telemachus, you could only handle so many suitors. “Hey Tele, remember what I told you about hunting wild hogs?” You asked as he looked at you incredulously. “Aim for the area around the shoulder or the head? [name], what does this have to do with anything-“ You cut him off with a mischievous grin barely lit by the torch. “Exactly. I suggest you aim for the chest since you’re too short for their heads.” You could practically see the gears turning in his head before he opened his mouth in a baffled offense.

You charged forwards to the four suitors, stepping on the torch and putting it out as you ran. You moved to the side of the group and swung your axe at the outermost member. He blocked your axe, and at the same time you heard the clash of metal from the other side of the group. You could barely see anything, but you recognized the silhouette of Telemachus fighting off the other two suitors. Another suitor came up from behind the one in front of you to aim his sword at your side. You pushed the sword blocking your axe downwards to block the other suitor’s sword, before pushing both of them off. Spinning around, you hit the head of the first suitor you attacked with your axe, killing them. The sight of another sword in the corner of your eye made your breath hitch, it was far too close for you to move away and turn around to block. You still tried to pull up your axe to block it, and a spray of blood passed by your view. By the time you were fully turned around to face your attacker, they were clutching their hand in pain. Or more like their lack of one. In front of you stood Telemachus, sword in hand as he charged forward, stabbing the suitor in their chest while they were writhing in pain. “[name], what did I say about minding your surroundings!” Telemachus said concerned as the suitor died and joined the rest of them on the floor. “Hey, it turned out okay in the end. He’s dead and I’m alive, I’ll be fine-“

A large thud behind you made you jump, and you slowly turned around with your axe held up. “You know, my son is right. If neither of us were here, you’d be another body on the floor.” You blinked and stared at the man before you. “Father!” Telemachus gasped from behind you. Oh. OH. “Odysseus?” You asked bewildered. He was a lot shorter than you expected. Now you know why Telemachus was shorter than all the men his age and you while his mother still towered over everyone in the room. He nodded with a gentle smile. “And you’re the [name] my son has so fondly told me about.” He said as he drew back his bow. You looked back at Telemachus and you both made eye contact, before you looked at Odysseus. “Wait, what? He talks about me? Wait, what did he say? Tele, you better not have told your father about the sand incident.” You heard him stifle a small chuckle, and you whipped around to gasp at him with all the exasperation you could manage. “You did not!”

“I did.” He said unapologetically. You stared at him in betrayal, jaw dropped before turning back to Odysseus. “Hey, your majesty, did you know that before I got with your son he trained Argos to run at me so he could pretend like he accidentally let him loose to make an opportunity to talk with mMMFFF!” Telemachus slapped his hand onto your mouth as you struggled against his arm. “I did not do that, she’s lying.” He said indignantly as Odysseus stared at the two of you amused. You shoved at Telemachus’s wrist while you both physically struggled against each other. You saw him eyeing your hand on his wrist and you looked at him sternly. “Don’t you even dare- OW!” The madlad bit your hand and you pulled away from him, your bodies detaching from one another. “You menace.” You said as he shoved his face into yours, mere inches away like you were mere moments ago. For a moment, he just stared at you and you stared back at him. It was like all the emotional intensity that was interrupted before was returning full force, a shameless rush of affection like a raging river. You’ve always been told by Penelope that there were moments between her and Odysseus that felt like time stopped, when they looked into their eyes and saw love for eternity in each other. But right now, you felt nothing close to that. It was like time was rushing past you with no end, quick and intense. Every small detail blurred together into Telemachus, and in his eyes you saw the life you have right now.

“Telemachus, I know little to nothing about you, and even less about [name], but I see the same love I have for your mother in you, and I see the same love Penelope has for me in [name].” You both stared at him, hands that had intertwined subconsciously squeezing tightly. Telemachus looked over to you, and once again you saw not just your life in his eyes, but yours and his. “I approve of this one.” Your lover blinked in sync with you. “Besides, weren’t you the one who said how much you loved it when she stood up for you before you got the courage to fight Antinous?” Telemachus stared at his father and after a beat of silence, screeched with embarrassment. “FATHER, DON’T-“ You looked at Odysseus with a devious grin, and began to explain every single Argos incident while Telemachus hid his face in your neck.

[dkmbookworm]

Odysseus’s Mistake w/ Open Arms

After listening to a podcast featuring Jorge Rivera-Herrans. I am so fascinated by his explanation for why Odysseus revealed his name in his version of the story.

Obviously one of the elements at play is the fact he just witnessed the death of a friend so there’s a lot of rage and pain involved for why he wants to taunt the cyclops as they leave. And we all know that hubris was the other factor especially when he dips down into lines like “I am neither man nor mythical”. And Jay further went into this point by saying

“Odysseus in this moment is riding this high of thinking ‘I am so smart, that I don’t have to depend on brutality to solve my problems. I am so clever that I alone can carry along this philosophy of Open Arms because I can always find a different solution’”

That is such a fascinating display of his hubris while simultaneously trying to hold onto the memory of a dead friend. It shows just how flawed this interpretation of it at that moment, and how that carried forward for him. Because Odysseus was just introduced to this philosophy, one that he could have used to go forward. But the literal representation of it is killed in front of him so all he has to go off of are these vague concepts on top of his own problems muddying the waters

The biggest example of this to me, is how he approaches speaking with Eurylochus. Open arms or mercy, is not something that can only exist in terms of not slaying your enemy. It requires a lot of emotional intelligence that Ody does not really have. When eurylochus questions him on his plan with Aeolus, his fears and concerns are not being addressed. Sure yes, bad idea to do this in front of the crew and sow seeds of doubt in them. But if ody is going to dedicate himself to this ideology he has to go the full way and learn to communicate with people.

When Polites reached out to ody, he recognized that he felt troubled. That he was carrying s lot of guilt and was trying to ease his mind. Odysseus felt heard and understood, and he was willing to listen to his friend. By comparison he does none of this with eurylochus. He shuts him down and tells him to be devout. All that he’s accomplished is to shut him up and keep things to himself, which only makes things worse and leaves his doubt to fester

It represents such a tragic element in this story because Odysseus is trying to fulfill this wish from his friend while having a broken version of it he never got to fully learn or understand. That Polites could have potentially helped him make the journey into leading a kinder life. But the consequences of his actions came knocking on his door and it became this nonstop effort of drilling ruthlessness into his head as the only option of survival.

The podcast in question if any of you would like to check it out

[shinedoitsulikeabright]

So, about God Games...

I know I recently made a similar post in regards to 600 strike, but I can't stop thinking about what this song could've looked like if we had all 12 Olympians taking part.

So, this is what I've managed to come up with thus far. It ain't much, but it's honest work.

(I won't be going in any particular order. This is going to be a long post so brace yourselves.)

Dionysus: His whole argument is that Odysseus never lets loose and parties. Instead, he's spent these 20 years being all miserable and serious.

Athena's rebuttal: Sure, he never lets loose, but how could he? He's been continuously going through nightmare after nightmare. If Dionysus agrees to let him go, he'd return to his usual whimsical, silly guy self and party for days to come, celebrating the reunion with his family.

Hermes: Although Hermes wants to let Ody go, he still chooses to tease Athena because he's a troublemaker like that. He would say something obviously wrong, just so Zeus can't say that he didn't participate. He'd probably say something dumb like "had Ody been smart, he would've entered Circe's palace and simply stolen the piggies when she wasn't looking".

Athena's rebuttal: She'd roll her eyes but play along. Her response would basically be no, he couldn't have done that because Circe would've known. And even if he succeeded what would he do with a dozen pigs on board? She'd then point out how similar the two are: both very cunning, manipulative and skilled with words.

Demeter: Her argument could be that while Odysseus was away, he failed to take care of his land and people, leading to the agriculture suffering (because I honestly doubt that Penelope had the mental capacity to attend to all that the way she normally would with everything on her plate).

Athena's rebuttal: She'd try to draw the parallel between the relationship between Demeter and Persephone and Odysseus and Telemachus. She could point out how heartbroken Demeter felt when she couldn't see her beloved daughter, tugging on her heartstrings and convincing her that Odysseus was going through the exact same agony.

Artemis: I honestly think she wouldn't care about Ody. The only reason why she'd participate is to appease Zeus. Anyway, I think she could do the Hera bit where she's like "gimme one good reason why I should help".

Athena's rebuttal: Athena could try to recount the boar encounter to show how great of a hunter Odysseus is. Plus, she could add that Ody's weapon of choice is the bow aka something that Artemis also uses.

Apollo: Since we're doing Artemis, might as well do her twin next. Apollo, as the patron god of Troy, could point out that Odysseus destroyed the walls he helped build. Then, he could also add that argument about the sirens.

Athena's rebuttal: Here, Athena could say that it wasn't Ody who destroyed the walls, but the Trojans who demolished them in order to let the wooden horse in. As for the sirens, she can repeat that argument she used in the official song. Or, better yet, say that if Odysseus returned home, his journey would inspire countless songs and works of art.

Hephaestus: I think his entire bit is perfectly fine (both in terms of the argument, as well as the rebuttal). Either way, I doubt Hephaestus really cares and it shows. He just wants to get back to work... And Athena wants to be out of there asap considering their history.

Aphrodite: I think her argument is good, although I do find it a bit strange since she is most typically associated with romantic/sexual love. Hera or Hestia would've been better picks for familial love imo. Anyway, if I were to rewrite her argument, I'd make her be petty and say something like "he hasn't bed his wife in 2 decades!". Overall, she really couldn't care less, she just wants to mess with Athena.

Athena's rebuttal: I think she'd snap and be petty back, saying something like "well, who's fault is that?" (considering it was Aphrodite who basically started the Trojan War). Then, she'd recompose herself and say that if Aphrodite agreed to free Odysseus, he'd return to his wife and make up for all the lost passion.

Ares: Great argument imo, no notes. Sidenote, but I love Ares so much. In fact, I named my first dog after him.

Athena's rebuttal: Her canon rebuttal needs work, I think. After all, it wasn't the lack of bloodshed Ares had a problem with, but cowardice. If I were to rewrite it, I'd make Athena defend Ody's actions by pointing out that what Ares sees as "cowardice" was simply strategy. As for the Telemachus call-out, she could point out Ares' hypocrisy. On one hand, he insults the kid for being pathetic and on the other, he prevents his father from returning home, thus not allowing him to teach the necessary skills he needs in order to be a warrior. Additionally, she could appeal to Ares' softer side. He's one of the few gods who actually loves and cares about his kids, so she could appeal to that.

Poseidon: Yes, the big, bad man himself. At first, Athena is a bit worried about her ability to convince him (I mean, in the original Odyssey it says that he was one of the few gods she feared opposing directly + they already have a strained relationship due to the Athens rivalry). However, Poseidon is so done with this mortal that he just lets him go before his niece even gets the chance to open her mouth. In reality, he wants Ody to be set free just so he could kill him with his own hands. He's way too invested in this, dammit.

Hera: As the goddess of marriage and family, Hera could argue that Odysseus had been a bad husband and father. I mean, he spent 20 years pissing off gods and monsters instead of focusing on returning to his wife and child.

Athena's rebuttal: Athena could argue that he's actually been an exceptional family man considering how much he was willing to sacrifice just to return to those he loved. Then, just to put the nail in the coffin, she'd repeat the whole "never once has he cheated on his wife" slam dunk.

Zeus: Our thunder bringer isn't exactly pleased that his daughter beat the game. In fact, he's pissed because she not only humiliated him by winning, but she also won by humiliating him (with the whole not cheating argument). Anyway, the canon event happens where he strikes her with lightning and she begs for Ody to be set free.

[anerdquemoraaolado]

Okay, my mind couldn't stop thinking about the Epic prequel animated series with young Odysseus and co, so this is how I would divide the entire show.

It starts with Antylochus telling his grandson about gods and monsters (that's how Ody knows a lot of the monsters he meets by the sea)

He meets Polites, who just arrived from another town, Ody introduces him to Eury and they become a trio, they have their reservations about Odysseus' shenanigans, but always end up playing along with him

There's an episode to introduce Penelope and how their friendship develops

Ody is always messing around with Euryclea, giving her mini heart attacks

An episode about Athena, how Ithaca's people perceives her and then her boar challenge

Season 1 would end with Odysseus winning the challenge and becoming her student

Season 2 would be about Ody becoming a warrior of the mind, while he takes more on his responsabilities

Season finale would be him taking his place as king

Season 3 would be the final one, when things would be set up for the Illiad. Odysseus would visit Sparta as one of Helen's suitors, he would propose for Penelope and episodes would explore their married life together, while Polites and Eurylochus would be around of all it

We would see Telemachus' birth and Odysseus trying to avoid going to war.

Series finale would be Ody saying goodbye to his family and going to Troy to fight

(Also, we could have an episode to explore Eurylochus' background as Jorge mentioned once)

[amazingmsme]

Do you have any Penelope Headcanons?

OUR BEAUTIFUL QUEEN! Yes I do!

I think she has a very sweet & bubbly personality & that’s what sealed the deal for Odysseus. They are silly4silly. Her looks are what caught his eye, but it’s the personality that has him down so bad

You think that Odysseus was the one who fell in love first, but no. She noticed the way he was staring at her & blew a kiss at him & watched as he walked straight into a tree & that sealed the deal

She’s taller than Odysseus by a few inches & would tease him by catching him off guard & bending down to kiss him & tease him about how red he is

One time he knew it was coming so he waited til she was about to kiss his cheek & turned his head so they’d actually be kissing. She was so flustered she could barely speak & then Odysseus literally swept her off her feet & carried her to their room

Speaking of tall Penelope tho, she would love nothing more than to hold things out of his reach & every single time Odysseus would have to tickle her to make her give it back. It’s a well practiced song & dance & he knows that she’s just doing it to provoke him & be silly & he goes along with it & only calls her out when he’s feeling mean

She & Ody are the sweetest, lovey dovey couple ever & it’s honestly borderline disgusting for everyone else. Just hanging all over each other, nuzzling into necks, kissing, & touching foreheads & cooing the stupidest pet names for each other I’m talkin’ high school band couple levels of pda

I’m so sick & fucking tired of how this community constantly makes girl characters barely ticklish or not ticklish at all so she is absolutely the more ticklish one in the relationship, but she just has fun with it & doesn’t fight back very much so you just assume it’s Odysseus

She has a very high pitched & bubbly laugh that can light up a room. It’s just such a beautifully happy sound, you can’t help but smile when you hear it

It’s literally Odysseus’s favorite sound in the whole wide world

She’s so silly & goofy, especially with Telemachus. She wants to keep her son happy & entertained & she doesn’t care if she has to act a fucking fool & embarrass him to do it

Now that he’s older & more moody, she reserves tickling as a last ditch effort to cheer him up, but when he was younger, she used to do it all the time, & he’d even ask for it

He’d ask her to “play tickle monster” & she just sighs like “I’m not as good as your father, but I’ll try” just so that he can know a lil more about Odysseus & how he would’ve loved to play games like this with him

She’s barely been tickled since Odysseus left, & she really misses it. She’s played around with some friends, but it just isn’t the same. It used to be their thing, & now even their son has “grown out of it” (not really, he just thinks he’s too old for such “childish games”)

Once Ody came back, she had to be patient for him to be comfortable & more like himself. She didn’t push him & waited for him to make the first move, or grant her permission. She can tell he’s changed almost completely, & she knows he just needs time to heal

But she’d still try to subtly provoke him by stretching right next to him, reaching for things on tall shelves, & laying on in increasingly vulnerable positions. She was over the moon when about a month after he got home, he gave a shy squeeze to her side, & that was all she needed to know that her Ody is still in there

As a ler, she loves to tease about how fun they are to tickle or how cute their laugh is. & Odysseus taught her to master the art of fake nonchalance, & paired with her long nails, it makes for a killer combo

She was so excited once her sweet husband came home because now they can finally be a family together, & she absolutely goads Ody into going after Telemachus cause she can sense the distance between them & wants them to be closer

Like out of nowhere she just brings up the whole tickle monster game & Telemachus is blushing so much like MOM WTF?! But Odysseus is nervous about overstepping, he’s basically a stranger to his own son & doesn’t wanna make him uncomfortable, but he’s dying to have some fun with him & goof off. He missed the most vital years of playing & getting close with Telemachus, & now he worries that it’s “too late” so they’re both sitting awkwardly far apart & not really making eye contact

& Penelope’s like oh no did I just make it worse? I have to fix this! So she just huffs like “well if you won’t, I will” & then starts tickling their son & calling Odysseus for help because Telemachus is “too strong now” & she needs back up, but once Odysseus joined the fray, she slowly backed out so that she could watch her boys roughhouse & laugh freely

Her worst spots are her neck/ears, tummy, thighs, feet & arms (I’m a SUCKER for ticklish biceps & forearms, so she has both)

I JUST LOVE HER SO MUCH I NEED THEM ALL TO BE A BIG HAPPY FAMILY

[mer-acle]

EPIC Tier List

(yes the tiers are sorted within)

Some explanation on the lower tiers:

The middle one is not bad at all, it's the songs I only rarely get the urge to play on their own, but when they're on? Singing along.

"Eh" are songs that I just don't vibe with that much, for no particular reason. "Love in Paradise" is literally on there bc it's right before God Games and so I skip it regularly to get there faster XD

The two "Potential" songs are those that I'd make changes to, 600 Strike is an absolute banger but I struggle with its story, and "Not sorry for loving you" I would honestly have cut entirely, it doesn't have enough narrative necessity for me, and I'd rather have had a full Ody&Athena reunion song that probably won't happen... So that's why I feel a little apprehensive about it.

Anyway, obv this is completely subjective hehe

[gareleia]

THE KNITTING SAGA BUT ODY PULLS A BRUCE WAYNE

update: my co-writer friend FINALLY got a tumblr account, so I can tag them now!!

previously: part 1 part 2 part 3 part 4

okay, bear with me for a moment. odysseus' perspective in all of this would be fascinating. and you know what is also fascinating? the way we can do whatever we want in this AU. so we can and will keep baby Astyanax alive.

to start with, Ody doesn't kill the baby. obviously. the reason is that, while he's having his fascinating little soliloquy about the morality of child murder in JAM, some terrified nursemaid that had been hiding somewhere in the room (I imagine her behind a conveniently shaped vase) picks up a dagger and stabs him in the shoulder from behind.

obviously she fails to do the deed, and he quickly and almost automatically kills her. but he's still stabbed. non-lethally, but enough to greatly hinder him.

Ody decides to go back to his people to get first aid. he can't bring himself to kill the baby, but he also can't just leave it there for others to find, because there's no telling if the remaining Trojans would rescue the boy, or if the Greeks would take him as a prisoner/slave or adopt/lose him somewhere where Odysseus can't ensure Zeus' prophecy won't come true. so Ody takes the baby with him.

the soldiers are,,, not impressed.

Eurylochus, looking at the infant: so, uh. what do you have here, captain? Odysseus, avoiding eye contact at all costs: a smoothie-

Eurylochus in particular is beside himself thinking about the implications. but overall people are too happy about finally going back home to really make much of a fuss about it, so it's fine (for now).

anyways Odysseus is still on edge about the baby's (and everyone else's) safety, so at first he tries to bring the boy with him everywhere. but his injured shoulder doesn't allow him to actually carry the kid too much. so that job falls to Eurylochus.

Eurylochus is soooo enthusiastic about the prospect, especially when the infant starts biting his chest, trying to nurse.

the baby: h o n g r y eurylochus: ARGH! GET YOUR GODS' DAMNED KID, BRO! odysseus: it don't bite eurylochus: YES IT DO

Odysseus prohibits everyone from using the baby's real name, both to keep its origins a secret from potential enemies, and to avoid getting attached to it (in case he actually decides he wants to kill it). so Eurylochus nicknames the baby Aphe, from greek "αφαιμάσσω", which means "to leech". because the damn brat keeps biting him.

eventually he and Poletes get into a heavy debate about whether or not it's mean to call a baby a bloodsucker, and Ody, who'd been having a crisis of faith, steps in and settles it for good.

from this point on, Astyanax the Prince of Troy is officially dead. and Odysseus is bringing home his infant son Aphemachus the Prince of Ithaca. etymology is somewhere along the lines of: afaimasso (to leech) + machos (war) = Aphemachus (the blood-sucking war; the war that sucked our blood)

Eurylochus is the one who Aphemachus had gotten attached to the most, due to all the carrying (and the biggest boo). He cries all the time when they're apart, and only Poletes seems to somehow be able to distract the boy, so they end up watching him in shifts.

aphemachus: *wailing in the dead of night* eurylochus, groaning: poletes, your leech is awake. poletes, also groaning: until the sun is up it's your leech.

Odysseus at the same time is still having doubts, so he doesn't trust himself to be too close to the baby.

those thoughts will haunt him for years, and will eventually play a huge role in their relationship, even after Ody starts forcing himself to spend time with his new son to forge a bond that would hopefully stop Aphemachus from destroying Ithaca.

Aphemachus indirectly saves Poletes' life. because when they reach the cyclops' island, Poletes stays behind with the majority of the soldiers to look after the baby. as a result Polyphemus doesn't kill him.

the downside is, Polyphemus almost gets a drop on Odysseus, and in an effort to push him away from danger Eurylochus gets severely injured. his right shoulder never quite recovers, and very deep down he blames Odysseus for needing help in the first place, because not freezing up in battle is the first and most important lesson they were taught as children, and then Ody went and froze up anyway.

sidenote, in Mutiny later on Odysseus will intentionally aim for said shoulder, exploiting the weakness that Eurylochus will have been very put out by and insecure about. just to add to the overall drama.

what none of them know yet, is that Odysseus had royally pissed off Zeus by ignoring his 'friendly advice' of infanticide. so much so, in fact, that Zeus tasks Ares with ensuring that Aphemachus grows up to destroy Ithaca.

as a result, poor kid grows up with the voice of bloodthirsty God of War in his head, constantly trying to convince him that everyone secretly hates and wants to kill him, that he's been stolen from Troy for nefarious purposes, and that it's his duty to avenge his REAL family. so, basically, your standard run-of-the-mill gods-induced paranoid schizophrenia.

odysseus: so, what do you want for dinner? ares: YOUR HEAD ON A SPIKE aphemachus: a bagel ares: NOOO aphemachus: two bagels

as you can guess, the poor boy's mental health is... Not Great™. he grows up a difficult kid, sensitive, too smart for his own god, prone to angry outbursts. think a cross between Damian Wayne and Jason Todd. he's also very paranoid, and remember that Odysseus still has doubts? Aphemachus can sense that, and that scares and angers him more, which makes him lash out, to which Odysseus also tries to keep his distance even more. he doesn't have much experience at actual hands-on parenting, and it doesn't help that he's not sure if he has a right to act as a father to the boy he had indirectly orphaned and directly almost killed.

poletes, exasperated: aphe, dear, we've talked about this. you know violence is never the answer, right? aphemachus: right. aphemachus: violence is the question, and the answer is YES-

so the most consistent positive influence Aphemachus has in his life are Eurylochus, Polites, Perimedes and Elpenor - until the latter dies and Perimedes decides to stay away.

Eurylochus is the stone-faced stern mother hen. he's the one that makes lists upon lists in his head of what the baby, and later toddler, needs. he enforces bed time, makes him eat as healthy as possible on the ship, etc. as such, his status as 'favorite' is quickly revoked once the kid grows old enough to complain.

the new favorite is Poletes, who spoils Aphe rotten and has a hard time saying no to anything. he's the fun uncle who's always down to play games.

Perimedes and Elpenor are like semi-responsible older brothers, who teach him about all kinds of stuff. Perimedes is the type to give Aphe lots of different chores to keep him occupied, and Elpenor, in contrast, tends to whisk the kid away to get him to relax and unwind. he also likes to teach Aphe about stars and constellations. meanwhile Peri 100% had handed toddler Aphe a knife as a prank to test everyone's situational awareness (think Stabby the Roomba), and got shit from everyone.

eurylochus: let me see what you have! aphe: a knife! ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ eurylochus, going through all stages of grief simultaneously: NO!

Ares, while he detests lying and 'cheating', doesn't want to wait until Aphe grows up to make him wreak havoc. so instead he starts trying to trick the kid into accidentally causing bloodshed. and most of the time he targets Polites, because the peace-loving fool is an affront to everything Ares stands for.

this results in Aphe often running in between someone's legs at most unfortunate times, spilling liquid where people walk frequently, hiding fish hooks in food as a 'joke'…

it comes to a head with a contraption born out of every inch of cunning Ares possesses (not much), all Aphe's wild child imagination and many of Perimedes' trap-making lessions. it's a glorious thing, straight out of something between Home Alone and the Final Destination series.

Nobody ever really catches him, blaming the near-accidents on pure bad luck. Poletes never once notices that something is amiss, thinking he's just clumsy. the only reason he's still alive is because Elpenor is somehow always there to run interference.

Elpenor is the only one to suspect Aphe, but, since he's a dumbass alcoholic, nobody believes him, even his boyfriend Perimedes. Ares gets fed up with this and starts making Aphe target Eple instead, but before anything could really be done Ruthlessness happens, and they come to stay with Circe.

elpenor: I fear no man aphe: (✿◠‿◠) elpenor: but this thing… this thing scares me

it's only after Elpenor's untimely death that Perimedes starts to take his concerns seriously, but it's too little, too late. it's actually an honest to gods accident that Aphe has nothing to do with, but Peri had sat through so much paranoid, drunken rambling from Elpe that it just clicks to him. he blames Aphe, and, despite not voicing his concerns (because nobody would believe him either), he makes it abundantly clear that he doesn't want anything to do with Aphe anymore, to the boy's dismay.

finally, a few important notes on continuity:

in this AU the journey is a bit slower-paced than in canon, so instead of Act 1 happening almost at once after they left Troy, in the Knitting Saga after the Polyhemus fiasco, pissed off Poseidon decides to torture them first before the execution, so they are lost at sea for a couple years in between Remember Them and Storm, before Poseidon gets bored and decides to kill them for good. then they spend a year with Circe as she cooks up a way to send them into the Underworld, in the meantime hoping that Poseidon cools down somehow. then the Underworld and the Thunder Sagas happen a couple months apart, and then Ody (and Aphemachus, who is kept alive by the gods purposefully, so he has a chance to grow up and destroy Ithaca) spend 5 years with Calypso, and then another year trying to get to Ithaca.

Telegonus still exists in this AU, despite not being the son of Odysseus and Circe. instead, he is the unwanted son of Circe and some unnamed sailor from that first batch that she had taken pity upon and let her guard around. because of being born a demigod and living on a magical island his aging is a bit wonky, but he appears to be around 12-15 years old. he's a charming, confident, precocious child, who takes after his mother in personality and approaches. him and Odysseus get really close in the time that the crew stays on Aeaea, because Telegonus is not (as far as Ody knows, at least) prophecized to harm Ithaca and Odysseus desperately misses Telemachus; while Telegonus just imprints on the first dad-shaped adult he sees. Aphe is sad and desperately jealous.

aphemachus: d-daddy??|･ω･) odysseus: do I look like- ಠ益ಠ telegonus: you are my dad! you're my dad! boogie-woogie-woogie! (~˘▾˘)~ odysseus: awww!! yes!! what a good boy!!(✿◠‿◠) aphemachus: ಠ_ಠ

fun fact, Ody considers leaving Aphe on Calypso's island. Aphe, who's like 8-9 at the time, almost expects him to do so. only on the morning of their departure do they have a heart-to-heart about how Ody was a shitty, emotionally unavailable father, and how Aphe only ever wanted to be loved.

fun fact 2, telegonus will make another appearance later ٩(๑･ิᴗ･ิ)۶

[ender-cloud]

Epic the Musical Vengeance Saga just dropped so heres my thoughts on it!!

Overall thoughts: A lot shorter than I thought it was going to be BUT, THAT MAY BE BECAUSE OF THE ITHICA SAGA HAVING SO MANY LONG SONGS

Wait nevermind, it’s the next day and I just realized how long the Vengeance saga is I think I was just tired and it just seemed like it was fast

Also very Nerve racking, and I literally sat there eyes wide and mouth agape almost the entire time oh my god it was so fucking cool, the animation??? Like huh???

Now onto the songs before I start getting into specifics!

Song 31: Not Sorry for Loving you

I am not a Calypso fan, normally I don’t like her in any adaptation or original version, but, with that said, this is the first song that really made me re think that. (Still hate her though, but I tried to put in two perspectives)

The way that Jorge made it so you can really see how tragic Calypso is and really feel for her, is it definitely not ok that she kept Odysseus trapped against his will: yes, but really being alone for so long it makes sense.

Wangui really out did herself, the way you can tell the voice change from Love in paradise which is more upbeat and energetic, to this sad, distant voice in Not sorry for loving you, showing just how much she doesn’t want to let Odysseus go but knows its for the best, no matter how much it hurts her to

I feel like Calypso admitted that she did something wrong but yet still saying shea not sorry for loving Odysseus makes the song more in character and more realistic for her

On the other side; her words are trying to make Odysseus stay. She thinks if she can make Odysseus feel bad for her by telling her all this he will stay with her, but Odysseus is tired of this, it probably isn’t the first time where Calypso tried to convince him not to leave with her words. Despite being tired of the island, he still has his wits and knows better to fall for it

Saying “I’m not sorry for loving you” is completely getting rid of the “apologies” she said before. All of the things that she said was done out of her “love” so saying she’s not sorry for loving ody is saying to ignore everything she said before “I’m sorry for making YOU feel bad but I’m not sorry for doing it”

I can talk line by line when it cuts to the animatic but its getting late so I’ll just skip to the one that really stuck out to me which was Ody’s “I love you! but not in the way that you want me to…”

At first, it threw me old guard, odysseus, the biggest simp ever, in love with another woman! Impossible! But than the second part really made me think about how close they might have grown in the last 7 years

Even if it wasnt how Calypso wanted it to go and how Ody didn’t always have the best times on that island; Calypso still took care of him and they were each other’s only company for years, they would grow close as friends and it all makes sense put into that perspective

And Calypso hating that she fell in love with ody also makes sense in this perspective, if she didn’t love him the two had the opportunity to become great friends, truly all calypso wanted was company, and she knows that if she had stopped herself she would have had that company in a friend. Maybe the two could’ve gotten along better than they could’ve ever imagined just as friends, and maybe, this departure would be more sad on Odysseus side and less rageful on Calypso’s side.

Also Gigis animatic for it was just ahshajbshshs god, it was so good

Anyway, with all of that said this song can also be seen as emotional manipulation:D depends on how you look at it because it can be seen as Calypso playing the victim to make Odysseus feel bad and stay with her, It was most likely the intention but I tried to give both perspectives on the situation

Song 32: Dangerous

HERMES HAHAHAH OH I LOVE HEREMS SO MUCH!! FAVORITE CHARACTER RIGHT THERE!!

Something I really enjoyed about dangerous is what it brought back from past songs, the wind bag, the 600 men lines coming back but this time without the crew to back it up, instead theres just silence

And then of course Hermes is there too so thats by itself is bringing back Wouldn’t you like.

Troy’s voice is just so intresting to me and scratches my brain in all of the right places

To be honest hearing Troy sing the plan of the part made me let out a sigh of relief because all I could’ve heard until then was the Carl wheezer version and I’ve now been cleansed by Troys amazing voice

The whole Hermes dancing part while Odysseus fought off monsters was definitely a lighter thing to laugh at after Not sorry for loving you, ALSO THE TWERKING??? I CANT JUST NOT TALK ABOUT THAT, so now, the question everyones all been wondering, is Hermes giving the Winions twerking lessons? Because I mean the man flys and got the wind bag so must be relatively close with Aeolus (they match each others energy) and there for the Wininons in relation also they were his backup singers so!!? Twerking lessons

Anyways back to the song; odysseus part is so good, I don’t know what else to say about except for that but I truly do like it I swear!!

The fact that Athena didn’t even seem to cross Odys mind at the end was shocking to me, yes they had their falling out but Athena was the first person he called out to in Love in Paradise

The fact that he thinks he was ignored and pushes aside by her is heart renching, i do hope they have a reconnection in the Ithca saga (Because Athena is not dead, I refuse it Jorge, your video was a Lie, she is not dead, Apollo healed her, she is ok!)

Song 33: Charybdis

I dont have much to say about this one Annalyzing wise so instead I will say that It’s very Catchy and will be stuck in my head for all time.

I love Jorges voice in it chat its so good, It always is but like the Vocals on this one in particular I cant explain it

Also the animation is really cool.

God I dont know why, I knew Get in the water was coming but I really was happy for Odysseus to make it home, I think it’s how he sounded so desperate and so close and I just wanted to give him a hug, the past two somgs kept my mind off of what was to come and it really came to stab me in the back

Song 34: Get in the water

All I can think of is my friend going “Oh no he’s hot!” To poseidon when he arose from the water to start off the song, it was a little bit of light before the storm that was to come

I’ve been meaning to say this for a few of the songs now but Get in the water has such a different feeling and tone than any other song in the musical, normally Jorge brings melodies back but hearing a completely different sound that hadn’t been in the musical earlier almost breaks this invisible rule in place and its nerve racking

It dosent start with the normal boss music but instead its own original thing because this isn’t just a boss, this is the Boss that is the biggest turning point in Odysseus, this time we truly see Odysseus become the monster, a monster that scares not only mortals, but gods and other monsters as well, he will never let anyone defy him again

Poseidon’s threats to raise the tide were so nerve racking, god Steven Rodriguez’s voice is so calm yet so filled with rage at the same time, so steady but so ready to break the dam down, and the way it escalates to where the anger is more ahown but its not quite screaming, not just yet has Posedion reached the peak of his Anger

Odysseus still trying to reason with Poseidon, one of the last times this reasoning part of him will show as he tries to convince Posedion to give up after the 10 years this has been going on for

The reasoning turns into a faint version of ruthlessnesses melody, the melody playing in the background, not only to lead into Poseidons lines from it, but also knowing just how Ruthless both Poseidon and Odysseus are soon to become

Poseidon powering up WAS SO SICK MAN! LIKE OH MY GOD!!! It was absolutely amazing, my mouth dropped when I saw it and it reminded me of circe and her monster yet this isn’t a monster but an extension of poseidon (Who can count as a monster depending on who you ask)

This is where we can see Poseidon reach the peak of his anger where his power is the strongest and his boss move is set in place, the animation, again, absolutely fantastic. The ocean breaking is so satisfying, and yet the entire time I was terrified of it

JORGE STOP BRINGING BACK OPEN ARMS OH MY GOD I CANT TAKE IT ANYMORE, I couldn’t tell if they were pulling Odysseus to his death or empowering him, because Polites just put his hand on Odys shoulder, an encouraging powerful gesture. While his mother is dragging him down and down into the sea and Eurylochus is on his arm

It’s the same thing from love in paradise, the memories make him want to die but then he remembers that; they would want him to live on and fight, to not let them die for nothing, and to make it out alive so he could make sure they were all remembered, every 601 of them (or 602 if you count the baby)

But it could have also been that they knew what Odysseus was going to become and wanted him to just rest and let himself go once and for all, Polites looking at him, knowing that Odysseus cant do that, knowing Odysseus would never just leave his wife like that.

Instead of using this new found encouragement and power in his body to reason with Poseidon he becomes a monster to him instead, the monster thats always been within him but just hidden because of him leading with his heart

Song 35: Six Hundred strike

I forgot who the animator was because it’s the next day but it looked so much like a video game and was so impressive, all of the animatics in this one were just absolutely terrifying, with Odysseus red eyes being like him powering up is so interesting to see

Now remember what I said earlier during Dangerous about the crew not backing Odysseus up because they were gone; this song brings them back after Odysseus saw their spirits, like he had remembered and now the voices may not actually be there but in Ody’s head as a form of motivation for the fight

It’s been a while since we’ve heard Odysseus so angry (Because he’s to busy gentle parenting and reasoning with every monster he finds) but now seeing it against poseidon was such a shift and Ody shifted with it.

Just awesome animation and the instrumental in the back is so cool and high stake. “Almost all of whom were slaughtered by your hand!” Sososo good because when it wasn’t Poseidon it his son and the last part of the crew died under Odysseus’s choice but instead of focusing on this he focused on how he only caused 42 deaths (Elpenor i love you but your death was your fault) and how Poseidon caused more that 500 instead.

In that Light it made what Odysseus would do next more reasonable for him, more justified in his mind

The animation turn where all you could see was the red glowing eyes of Odysseus staring at you before he picks up the trident and starts torturing Poseidon.

Old Odysseus after he defeated Poseidon would once again try and reason with him to stop the storm, but this is a new odysseus, a different beast so to say, he no longer cares about the nice way out, Ruthlessness will become far from Merciful if it means he can finally see his family again.

“You didn’t stop when I begged you! Told me to close up my heart!” I am very much obsessed with the lines in this saga they are so good and just so powerful as well in the moments, its an action jammed pack saga because it has to be the entire journey back but it’s done so well.

Hearing an actual god Call odysseus a Monster is different from anything else that might’ve been scared of him before because Gods are all powerful, they don’t have time to fear mortals, But Odysseus is different, more power in just a mortal than they have ever seen before, Odysseus doesn’t have any godly power except for his wit and brute strength to win his battles and thats absolutely terrifying to see how powerful he is with just being a mortal man

“How will you sleep at night?” “Next to my wife.”

GOD, I dont know what to say about this line except for it is absolutely amazing and delivered so well and is just all in all very resinate of what Odysseus’s goal has been since he started this journey

This saga was all in all very cool! It’s not up in my top 3 but its very very close

[quinxlt]

i’ll post art soon… BUT but.. i was listening to the epic playlist on shuffle right and just a man started playing

i was singing along and allat but then the first time ody goes “when does a ripple become a tidal wave?” this melody starts playing on some sort of string instrument and i couldn’t help but realise how familiar it sounded??

and then i remembered that ITS THE SAME MELODY AT THE START OF MUTINY??? WHAT.

AND THE PLACE WHERE IT STARTS IN JUST A MAN IS WHEN ODY BEGINS TO QUESTION HIMSELF???? LIKE HOW EURY WAS THE FIRST TO QUESTION HIM??????? (it also shows eury as being the embodiment of the truth to ody AGAIN.)

the melody only shows up right after scylla, after he’s finally accepted that he’s the man who has become a monster… UGHSHSJSJSHHHHHH

[the-silver-sparrow]

A personal review on Calypso's character

I've seen a lot of people with very mixed takes on Calypso's character, ranging from calling her horrible to calling her "not as bad as you think"

I think there's a way to adopt both of those views.

DISCLAIMER: I will NOT be taking the original Odyssey into account because 1: I haven't read it, 2: This is a review on Calypso from the musical alone, and 3: Jay has said many times before that the musical isn't supposed to be exactly like the books, so, I wanted to keep it separated.

Without further ado I gotta YAP

An argument I see used many times to demonize Calypso's character, is the comparison to her book version, when they say "she sexually assaulted him." However, EPIC's Calypso, as far as the lyrics go, wasn't exactly implied to have "done anything" to Ody (I'll get to that in a minnie), I say this because, if Jay had really wanted to emphasize or even imply that at all, he would've. Take it from one of Antinuous' lines, "why don't you open her room so we can have fun with her?" (Plus another line of his in the Ithaca saga, but that's spoilers, iykyk), here we see that Jay wanted it to be ABUNDANTLY CLEAR that Antinuous is a horrible, horrible man

And yes, I know there's the "Soon into bed we'll climb and spend our time" line, BUT, that feels more like wishful thinking from her delusion than a proper threat like Antinuous' line was. Whether or not it implies she tried anything with Ody is, lyrically, REALLY up in the air.

All we got from Ody's time in Calypso's island is that he was trapped there for a whole 7 years, possibly being babied by her and not getting any moment of peace away from her clingy ass. This is further reinforced by the scene by the end of Love In Paradise, not once does Ody seem to hold any kind of hatred or resentment towards Calypso specifically, he's STILL just reminiscing on the people who died because of him. The way he talks to her, "you don't know what I've gone through, you don't know what I've sacrificed", the way he kinda snaps at her feels more like he's *scolding* her for being so immature and obsessed about him (and she is).

All that being said... her behavior isn't unprompted at all. OBVIOUSLY she's not gonna understand basic human decency. Not only is she a goddess - which is already as "not human" as you can get, further disconnecting her from Ody's struggles and feelings- She's been trapped in that island, without any kind of contact with other people, for 100 YEARS. She was a CHILD when she was first sent and trapped there, like she said, it's all she's ever known.

Now, obviously, that doesn't excuse her behavior. I'm not saying she's a saint; She kept Ody as her prisoner for 7 years, was probably always trying to earn his love and replace his wife, which must've been EXHAUSTING to Ody. Yes, she's still abusive (even if she probably doesn't fully realize it). Yes, she's weird as fuck. Yes, she's CRAZY.

While I'm not excusing her actions, it kind of feels unfair to expect her to know any better when she had nobody to teach her to begin with. Not even Odysseus. 100 years is 100 years too late to learn to be decent. No, she's not innocent, but she's not the devil incarnate either (AGAIN. IN THE MUSICAL).

The way I interpret "Not Sorry For Loving You" is not that she necessarily loved him... I feel like she was more in love with the IDEA of being in love. She finally had some company and thought it would just play out like a fairytale from here on out. You expect me to believe this abandonment issues-coated deity can at all grasp the concept of genuine love? It's not genuine. She's delusional. But that's no thanks to her isolation.

Her emotions, her sorrow, her anguish are genuine, but her love is not. And Not Sorry For Loving You does an AMAZING job at showcasing all of that.

Speaking of... I really don't agree with people saying NSFLY was "trying to paint her in a nicer light" or "a bad apology" or anything along those lines, NSFLY does not read like an apology at all. That's the whole POINT of the chorus. It's a lament. It's Calypso still living in the delusion that she loves Ody and lamenting that Ody could never reciprocate and/or entertain the fantasy. It's SUPPOSED to be emotional and sad, because she IS sad. She's DEVASTATED, even when she doesn't realize how much she's been hurting Ody up to this point.

Anyway... I just wanted to share my two cents because I can tell she's a very controversial character just in general. But in EPIC, I personally just feel sadness/pity for her. Though, I think her being such a complex character makes her one of my favorites. Her song is so emotionally charged (and god Wangui's voice is ANGELIC. WHAT THE FUCK.) it makes me want to tear up every time I listen to it. Every single time.

I could've said a little more but I'm late to class now </3

TL;DR: Calypso is weird as fuck but you know what I kinda like her for it

[beawake]

The song suffering hurts me so much cause like yes, Ody knows that it's a Siren, but he still sees his wife.

And the animatics don't make it better! Ody Always seems so smitten with Penelope Siren, cause of course, that's his wife. And missing her so much, trying to outwit the sirens, making up a plan to get past Poseidon and he has to stare at this imperfect vision of his wife while playing along, taking in everything he can (cause he hasn't seen her in like 12 years!) probably trying not to get lost in memories. And also reading the sirens lips, he has to stare at her. And the song is so playfull and nonchalant!

And then siren penelope drops the Scylla bomb and Ody realises he'll have to sacrifice six men and can't even properly process that cause the siren is still there in the vision of his wife and he still has to play along as long as possible for his men to do the rest.

And then he sighs and says "the things i'll do for you" and I always imagine that is while said to the siren, also said to the real Penelope, cause yes, for Penelope and Telemachus and his home he will sacrifice six men, he will become a monster. And then the shift, the things he'll do for Penelope and different beast starts and the song is very different and highlights Monster Odysseus the most out of all of them in my opinion. Brutally murdering the sirens. Scylla is horrible because of what happens to his men, and thunderbringer of course has his own problems in Ody being very clear in his goal and sacrificing people, but they could have probably left the sirens, having already outsmarted them. But it shows for the first time that Ody will show no mercy anymore to get home.

So yeah, while in Monster maybe Odysseus made the decision, I feel like suffering and the siren showing his wife, really showed it together with different beast. And "The things I'll do for you" really cemented the decision. And the song hurts a lot cause he's going through a lot of having to quickly process stuff while seeing his not really wife. And it that song he realises he cannot just be a monster to everyone but his crew if he wants to get home, he might have to be a monster to everyone but his family.