#imagine odysseus and penelope realizing telemachus still didn't came home

[theangelcatalogue]

I'll explain in more details the dream I had about Telemachus in how to train your dragon (at least what i remember):

Telemachus was in a mission, he was in the ship with his crew, until a storm started to happen out of nowhere and a wave made the ship sink, and everyone drowned except Telemachus somehow

He woke up and realized he was on an island, but the structures were different of what he is accustomed to, and he realized he was far away from Ithaca or his objective, and Hiccup, Toothless and Astrid were there and Hiccup asked if Telemachus is alright, and Telemachus is just wondering wtf Toothless is

And that's what I remember

[fandomsandflyingstingrays]

Some arthritic Telemachus headcanons, because I love projecting

His first flare happened when he was two, and it scared the daylights out of Penelope. She spent hours poring over Polites's old medical texts and writings for any solution (because I'm definitely in the camp of him being a healer)

I know they didn't have immunosuppressants in Ancient Greece, but they also didn't have jetpacks, so let's say the combined brain trust of Polites and Penelope managed to figure something out. Telemachus's fevers came further and further apart, the aching in his joints became manageable, the fatigue no longer kept him bed- bound, but things were never the same again

For one thing, because of the aforementioned immunosuppressants, Telemachus got sick all the time. He felt increasingly guilty about it the older he got, fearing it was keeping him from being able to defend Penelope from the suitors. Penelope, however, just spread rumors that everything from a cold to an infected toenail was actually a deadly and very contagious illness that only she should take the risk of tending to, so those episodes actually ended up being a defense of their own

In addition, while Polites had notes on some things that helped with symptom management- stretch and strength exercises, warm blankets and baths- fatigue and pain were common enough in Telemachus's days that learning how to fight proved difficult

That is, until Athena showed up

Telemachus had absolutely no plans to tell her about his condition, having hidden it from the suitors his whole life, until he walked into his first day of training with her and she handed him a spear with a grip she'd designed specially to help his fingers

He'd fully assumed she wouldn't want him as her warrior if she knew. But she not only did she continue to train him, she put all her goddess-of-wisdom prowess into doing so in the most accommodating way possible. She hounded Apollo about what exercises Telemachus should be doing to warm up and cool down, always kept their sessions short, and crafted his Warrior of the Mind outfit with his joints in mind: boots with extra arch support, wrist and knee braces built in, gloves to protect his fingers, etc

That's how he became such a competent fighter so quickly between Little Wolf and Odysseus: for the first time, he had a teacher that knew how to work with his limitations

Training with Athena was a major confidence boost, but when Odysseus came home, Telemachus still begged Penelope not to tell him

Obviously she refused, never having lied to Odysseus and not about to start now, and never having seen arthritis as a weakness the way Telemachus had growing up trying to keep up with the suitors

But the argument was rendered moot when Telemachus got an infection from Melanthius's blade, because come on, the man definitely never cleaned that thing

Obviously, Odysseus freaked ("this is Poseidon's fault, I know it, he still hasn't gotten over the stabbing thing-") but Penelope was just like "don't worry this happens all the time"

"What do you mean this happens all the time"

Odysseus didn't leave Telemachus's bedside until his fever broke, lying next to him and singing the lullabies he used to sing to him when he was a baby. In his delirium, Telemachus just assumed he was dreaming Odysseus was there the way he often had in years past, and he cried with relief when he was well enough to remember that his father really had come home

Then he wiped his tears away and saw the way Odysseus was looking at him

"Mom told you, didn't she"

He waited for the disappointment that was surely coming, for the legendary hero to bend under the weight of realizing that it was impossible for his only son to ever measure up to his legacy

Instead, Odysseus took his face in his hands and said he couldn't believe how lucky he was to have a son stronger than he ever could have imagined

It still took a while for Telemachus to stop trying to perform around Ody, trying to be the son he thought he expected even though they both knew it was a struggle

But there came a day when they were at the base of one of the palace stairwells and Odysseus could just tell it was a bad enough day for Telemachus that they would cause him a lot of pain. He could also tell that Telemachus would insist no matter what that it was fine

So Ody just. Scooped him up and carried him up the stairs

When he set him down, Telemachus was blank-faced, and Odysseus began to worry he'd overstepped. He started to apologize, but Telemachus cut him off. "It's okay," he said, and then, "thanks, Dad."

It was the first time he'd ever called him dad. Odysseus cried for half an hour

After that, Odysseus became the first person that Telemachus was fully able to let take care of him. He'd grown up trying to protect Penelope, and he never totally stopped wanting to please Athena, but Odysseus was so genuinely delighted to be a caretaker that it was easiest for Telemachus to fully relax when he was with him

He knew he'd never be the warrior Odysseus had been, never be able to stand the relentlessness of war, but his parents and his patron were doing everything in their power to make sure he'd never have to. By the time he took the throne, he was the king the new world needed: able to lead with empathy and to keep his battles short

[nikoisme]

Do YOU have any headcanons about the Ithacan royal family that you'd be willing to share? >:D

SORRY IT TOOK ME SO LONG!! I was super busy and it took me a while to type everything out (as you'll see)

Here we go!

-Odysseus was a little shit as a kid. Causing trouble and headaches.

-He inherited most of his mischevious nature from his mom :D But she did NOT encourage it too much.

-But Autolycus did. His relationship with little Odysseus was the "do you see this shit odysseus??"

-Eurycleia is the one who kept him in check.

-"Odysseus DON'T do that." "gET BACK HERE YOU JUST BATHED-"

-He DID eventually calm down as he got older. But he is still a shit at heart.

-Also he absolutely BRAGGED about his big ass scar he got from a boar.

-But it causes him problems for the rest of his life. Lots of pain.

-He started with running to exercise and strengthen that leg (all that running came in handy when he had to win the hand of a certain Spartan princess)

-Ctimene is almost as mischevious as him, she's just more discreet about it.

But she's definitely more collected than him.

-Ctimene and Odysseus got along pretty well as kids. Bantering good-naturedly and often driving their parents insane.

-Laertes is so easily frightened and often gets light-headed when he gets startled.

This backfired really badly for mischief-loving-Odysseus several times.

-Laertes taught Odysseus everything about plants and stuff, and it always kind of stuck with Odysseus

-Odysseus is short. Ctimene? Even shorter.

Anticleia is the tallest of the four. No one inherited her height.

-Odysseus loved swimming as a kid! He longed for the feeling he had when he was swimming as a kid, but after he got home he developed a crippling fear of the ocean.

-Penelope and Odysseus didn't really fall in love at first. It was more vibing because they found someone on the same level. It's only later that they kind of thought "ah shit i think there's something else"

That feeling actually came to be when Penelope chose to go with Odysseus over staying in Sparta with her father. That's when Penelope realized that she actually loves him, and Odysseus too was like "ah shit."

-ANTICLEIA AND PENELOPE GOT ALONG WELL. Anticleia, who was also really clever, enjoyed Penelope's quiet intelligence and understood exactly why Odysseus loved her.

-I like to imagine that Ctimene married after Odysseus and Penelope got married, so she had the opportunity to meet Penelope

-Penelope loved Ctimene like a sister! It was almost like she was with Iphthime, and Ctimene definitely liked Penelope a lot as well

-Penelope is left-handed.

-Given that Penelope's mother is a naiad, she really likes water and often went swimming in the sea.

-While she can't breathe underwater, she can hold her breath for quite a while

-Odysseus sometimes accompanied her on her swims! Which is where she showed him how long she could stay underwater. The guy almost had a heart attack after not seeing her resurface for a while

-Odysseus got Argos some time before Telemachus was born.

-Odysseus was just walking around minding his business when a little puppy came up to him. He tried to shoo him away but the little thing was persistent. Odysseus thought of just ignoring him, but relented when the dog kept following him with no signs of stopping. He kind of admired the pup's determination and endurance, so he thought he'd make a fine hunting dog.

-Basically Odysseus and Argos are like the "Odysseus doesn't want a dog. Ends up with a dog anyway. Odysseus and the dog:" meme. You know it.

-Odysseus was always calm and calculating in any situation, but god fuck he was losing it while Penelope was giving birth. Just sitting in the courtyard and slowly losing his patience.

-He always wanted a son.

-He cried when Telemachus was born. That's a fact.

-Penelope got very sick after Telemachus was born and it took her a while to recover. Sickfic potential!

-Odysseus proudly presented his son to the owl that seemed to follow him everywhere. hmm.

-Said owl often sat on Telemachus crib and watched him closely

-Odysseus carved little toys for Telemachus, even before he was born

-Telemachus was a sickly kid

-And he gave Penelope too much worry after Odysseus left

-He was either sick or being a little mischevious playful toddler

-Someone constantly needed to watch Telemachus because he had a habit of slipping away quietly

-One time he left the palace as a kid without telling anybody and returned only when the sun started setting. He was somewhere doing kid shit.

-Penelope absolutely lost her mind in worry. Where is her son? What could have happened to him? Is he alright? What will her husband think if she loses their kid like this? She worried a lot about what Odysseus will think of Ithaca, her and Telemachus after he returns from the war. Does he still care? (little does she know Odysseus calls himself "Telemachus' loving father")

-She cried when Telemachus came back like nothing happened. His mother was sobbing and kissing him and holding him so tightly and he was like ":DD??? wha??"

-This was why Penelope was so worried when she couldn't find Telemachus that one time, and Eurycleia told her he left to find news of his father

-There were times where Penelope was.. not doing well. It often happened when there were no news from Troy. She'd hide away in her chambers and wouldn't see anyone. Only Telemachus, but even that was sometimes. But after the war ended and there were either absurd stories of Odysseus' travels or no news at all - she wouldn't see anyone.

-So Telemachus spent quite some time at Laertes'. But even Laertes was shrouded in grief, which was no comfort for the rather lonely Telemachus.

-Telemachus was constantly surrounded by sorrow and grief. This will come to shape him a lot.

-Telemachus has back problems. He slouches a lot.

-He is also really good with animals! Dogs especially love him!

-He grew up with Argos as a very young kid, but as he got older and suitors started arriving - Argos got neglected and Telemachus had no memories of him anymore since he was so young.

Part 2!