#penelope of sparta the woman that you are

[stylinson-spagghetti]

"dont tell me you're not the same person. youre always my husband and ive been waiting.. waiting..." i sing, knowing full well that i have 0 love interests and an even lesser amount of patience

[adaedellta]

Epic the musical soulmate au

Where nothing changes but all the words make you a lot sadder

I’ve been on a soulmates AU kick recently and thinking about the Ithaca Saga so imagine a first words tattooed on your body trope with young Odysseus and Penelope and he’s a little intuitive having heard of Penelope and thinking she’s so cool then he sees her and gets this feeling she’s the one

Maybe it’s an Athena’s pupil thing maybe they’re such a perfect match for each other that he can feel it in his bones but he has this almost tangible cord pulling him towards her

But he’s there tryna wingman for Menelaus, talks to Tyndareus abt the oath idea and when the king responds well he maybe quietly implies he’s set his sights on Penelope, and maybe Helen and Penelope are somewhere nearby just close enough to hear Odysseus’ pitch but not so close they hear his goals(I can’t find a solid source online for their first meeting so I’m making stuff up) and after, penelope is intrigued by him and he’s somewhere close and she comments something like “he chooses his words well” to Helen. and he’s like stupid smart, trying to impress her, even his subconscious is focused on her and he hears and says something like “it’d take a fool to be insolent in your presence” to her

and it clicks in her head immediately that those are her words and without any shock or question she just says “you’re mine”

And they’re so sickeningly in love, they call back to their words often, he’ll say “I’d be a fool to___” and she’ll repeat “you’re mine” and almost never call him his name favoring lovey nicknames like “my love” and “my dear”

And when he goes off to war she says “you’ll come home to me, you’re mine” and he says “It’d take a fool not to return to your presence”

Then things go south, but through his journey it’s all he thinks, that he has a promise to keep. When he loses his crew, when he faces and befriends Circe, hears his fallen brethren and family in the underworld, the sirens song having an almost “I’m yours” tone as opposed to “you’re mine”, he evades Scylla, he makes Zeus’ choice, all thinking “it would take a fool not to return to your presence”

And calypso, she doesn’t have the words of a soulmate. it’s a fate confined to humanity, from when Zeus split mortals in two and forced their souls to be forever reaching to connect the puzzle til they finally unite. But she knows what they are. And just like her using his sleep-spoken trauma against him, calling back to his dead friends and family, she repeats “you’re mine” in love in paradise even dipping into “my dear” and “my love” despite his unending denial of her affections. It puts even more emphasis on his already rightful aggression and pain at what should only be said by Penelope

Then “I plan to put an end to all the foolishness” in dangerous he already wasn’t going to let anything stop him but now he’s willing to do straight up anything (and he does) to get home. He has a firm belief. he would rather be savage and merciless than be foolish because in his eyes there is nothing worse.

And when he becomes monstrous, how will he sleep at night??? “NEXT TO HIS WIFE” we all say in unison.

That’s not even mentioning Penelope, she spent 10 years pushing back the suitors, because Odysseus is coming home, she knows her husband, he is no fool. He will come back to her. She will not let anything go, and she will keep what is hers. The suitors all having an approach of having her turning their already flat chances into the negatives, especially Antinous’ threats in hold them down all having a message of taking from her where to be with Penelope is to give her all of yourself so she can do the same in turn.

And he absolutely fucks shit up, the suitors and their threats, the harm they’ve dealt to his family, the way they continue to try nothing but take what’s Penelope’s, what’s his. Their foolishness will not be tolerated. The actions they’ve taken to his wife, to his son, the greatest creation their love has ever made, they didn’t stand a chance against the guy who just fought god and won.

And then what everyone has been waiting on for the entire musical the absolute masterpiece that is would you fall in love with me again will never not be heart wrenching. He’s not just asking her if she could look past all he did, fall in love with the man he’s become. He doesn’t know if he still deserves her, if he’s too far gone to be worthy, He’s asking “am I still yours”

And she’s as cunning as ever, even after every year they spent apart she will always know exactly how to push his buttons, how to set him off, how to force him to convey his desperation for her, and hell she’s from Sparta of course she’s gonna be into him after all that. The second he turns his back in shame she’s probably twirling her hair and fanning her face knowing what he did all to keep his promise and return to her. And she gives him the reassurance that he needs, tricks him into proving that no measure of distance and time could ever take away or change what they have, and for the first time in 20 years he hears her say “you’re mine” and it shatters any apprehensions and self doubt because he’s still Penelopes.

And overall it changes literally nothing about the plot or the storyline and only serves to make things a hundred percent more sad and angsty

and I’ve had this eating away at my brain all through a piercing appointment and shopping with my mom and sibling all day I can finally rest now that it’s escaped my head

[p3achii-was-h3r3]

❝ Is it finally time for the challenge I arranged..? ❞

❝ And though I never thought that it would come to this, just know... I'll be here... ❞

❝ ...Buying you time! ❞

-

Have Penelope before she announces the challenge to the suitors, dreading doing so because she doesn't wanna have to deal with them again (same, girl,,, same,,,)

[kindred-spirit-93]

queen shit <3

I love how good the ithaca saga characterizes Penelope. And I'm not talking about her being super smart and disgusting loyal, I'm talking about her being so clearly SPARTAN.

Like this saga was so wild and Penelope the whole time was just like, "Oh.. anyways-". I genuinely never seen a character so unbothered by pure insanity in every song they are in (which was only two😭)

Penelope in the challenge: "A supernatural storm just appeared dangerously close to our kingdom in an instant and left just as fast.... My husband must be here!"

Odysseus in the final song: "I treated people as subhuman and murdered hundreds."

Penelope: "Can you pick up our wedding bed?"

Odysseus: "... did you not hea-"

Penelope: "No, I heard. Now pick up the bed."

Odysseus: "No! I worked so hard on that bed!"

Penelope: "Perfect! I still love you."

Odysseus: "I'm a mass murdere-"

Penelope: "And I breathe air. Who cares?"

(Bonus: Penelope was in her room listening to the dying screams of the suitors and was probably like, "Sounds like the boys are having fun😊.")

[howmanyholesinswisscheese]

God I love Penelope. Your husband comes home after 20 years and the first thing you do is tell him to rip your wedding bed out of the ground. Then you call him an idiot. That single handedly cures his identity crisis and he hugs you for ten million years. Penelope of Sparta the woman that you are

[oddyseye]

Can we get something straight here about Penelope and this whole “Spartan” thing?

Sure, we all know Penelope was from Sparta (well, technically), and we’ve all seen enough 300-inspired pop culture nonsense to think that every Spartan woman must be some spear-wielding, leather-clad, muscle-bound badass. So let’s clear that up once and for all: Penelope was absolutely not that type of Spartan. In fact, that vision of Spartan women is more of a modern fantasy than an actual reflection of Spartan society, and Penelope herself would probably laugh in your face if you tried to pin her down to that archetype.

First off, let’s talk about what it actually meant to be Spartan. Yes, Spartan women had a reputation for being strong, but we need to understand that strength wasn’t defined by throwing a spear or taking down enemies with a shield. Spartan women were celebrated for their physical health and were tasked with producing strong offspring to build the next generation of warriors. They were also responsible for the running of the household when their husbands were off fighting in wars, which meant managing estates, controlling property, and overseeing the everyday operations of Spartan life. So, while Spartan women were not helpless, they weren’t exactly wandering around with weapons, challenging every person who crossed them, either. Penelope’s version of Spartan strength was a little more intellectual, shall we say. For twenty years, while Odysseus was “getting lost” (as one does), Penelope faced down a horde of suitors who were camped out in her house, constantly pressuring her to choose a new husband. Did she pull out a spear and kill them all? No. That’s not what spartan women did. Did she start a war? Absolutely not. Instead, she employed the ultimate weapon: patience. She weaved and un-wove a shroud for years as a stalling tactic, keeping the suitors at bay. Sure, there’s no sword involved, but let’s be real: that takes more cunning than any weapon ever could. Spartan women are not known for fighting, but for surviving.

Penelope’s Spartan roots may have given her the ability to endure, to manage her household, and to outsmart the suitors who had overrun Ithaca, but we’re missing the point if we think that means she was out there battling it out like a heroine from some action flick. Her version of strength was mental, not physical. Instead of wielding a spear, Penelope wielded her intellect, her wit, and her ability to play the long game. If you’re expecting Penelope to start slaying suitors left and right, or charging into battle with a sword in hand, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment.

Pop culture would love to turn Penelope into a spear-wielding warrior queen, but the actual historical context is far more subtle and far more impressive. She was Spartan in the most meaningful sense of the word: resilient, strategic, and damn clever. Penelope did not need muscles at all. She had the power of endurance — something a spear can’t give you.

[gale-gentlepenguin]

The funniest thing about the Odyssey is when you learn that the main reason the Trojan war happened, it’s partially Odysseus fault.

Okay so the whole point of the Trojan war was to rescue one woman, Helen of Troy.

Now why would a bunch of kingdoms even care about one woman so badly?

Well a time before the Trojan war, Helen was basically the number one bachelorette in the ancient world. So she had a F*** ton of suitors. The father of Helen was legit nervous about having one actually marry his daughter, because whoever he picked would be happy, but the rest of the countries would be pissed. And he didn’t want war.

So in comes Odysseus, who was technically one of the suitors, but he actually wasn’t as interested in her. Nah, he had his sights on Penelope of Sparta, daughter of Icarius . So he goes to Helen’s dad. And tells the king he will solve the problem if he puts in a good word for him to Penelope’s dad about him courting his daughter. And the king agrees and asks for the solution.

“Hey King, why don’t you make all the men here swear an oath to protect the marriage of whoever is chosen. That way you don’t have to worry about war.”

Helen’s dad (human dad) king Tyndareus makes them all swear the oath to protect the marriage of Helen to who ever was chosen. Even if it meant war.

So the suitors agreed and the winner ended up being a guy named Menelaus. So Helen married Menelaus.

The king was happy with his son in law. No suitors revolted or started a war…

Until years later where Aphrodite promised a guy named Paris the hottest women in the world if he said he was the fairest compared to Athena and Hera. To which he agreed.

He stole Helen (who was kidnapped or went with him willingly because Aphrodite did some sneaky stuff.)

And because of the oath, EVERYONE of the suitors had to go fight for Helen, and they would bring their forces.

Funny enough Odysseus also had to go, even though he really didn’t want to, because he was after Penelope and got the woman he wanted. Dude already had a family and kid. Now he has to go to war.

Which shows how Odysseus life was ALWAYS shaped around Penelope. Even when he has to fight in a war for another woman

[protagaster]

Hi, I don’t know if someone has asked this already but I just wanted to know how everything started in you au?

Why is Penelope the one fighting in war while her husband is at home?

I know is a warrior!penelope au but i would like to know how that works in your story?

I also really like your take in the au it’s so cool!

Hello my friend! Thank you so much for taking the time to ask about the details regarding the AU :)! It makes me very happy to see you interested!

It's recounted with a bit more detail in the prequel (titled 'A King with no Queen') but here is the main gist of it.

Buckle up, it's gonna be quite a ride:

First things first, everything starts off exactly the same as it does in the Iliad. Paris chooses Aphrodite as the most beautiful of the Goddess', leading to Aphrodite taking Helen away from her home and husband (Menelaus) and forcing the mortal woman to be with Paris. From there, just as it goes in Homer's tale, Menelaus and Agamemnon force all of Helen's past suitors to fight with them in the war against Troy; this is because of an oath Odysseus himself proposed in order to keep the peace regardless of who Helen chose to be her husband, quote: "all the suitors should swear a most solemn oath to defend the chosen husband against whoever should quarrel with him".

Everything progresses as it does, with all of our favorite Greek heroes, including Odysseus, fighting in the war. This is where things begin to swerve for the AU.

That first year of war the men actually succeed in sneaking Helen out of Troy's palace thanks to their cunning and spies. They place her on a tiny ship that would sail her back to Sparta as quickly as possible and spend the night celebrating in their hidden camps without a care in the world. Unfortunately, the Trojans were quick to notice Helen's disappearance. While they were unable to keep her from leaving Troy, they decided to settle their seething anger with the next best thing. That night, while the Greek armies were full and drunk with merriment, the Trojans sneak into their camps thanks to the information provided by their [the Trojans] own spies. Right then and there the Trojans attacks.

This leads to the Greek men getting horribly injured, to the point where almost all of them are no longer fit for war. In exchange for Helen, the Trojan armies kidnap most of the Greek heroes (Menelaus, Agamemnon, Diomedes, just to name a few) and keep them alive as a warning and form of ransom against Greece and the Gods who support them. Odysseus, who was speared horribly in his shoulder, was spared from capture only thanks to the relentlessness of his Ithacan men.

Only a small handful of men are both spared from injury and allowed to continue to fight (Achilles and Patroclus to name a couple, that detail is just for you @somereaderinblue). The rest, by order of the Gods themselves, are forced to return home as they are no longer of use for combat.

Odysseus, Eurylochus, and the rest of the Ithacan army that was drafted return to Ithaca. Despite the damage they have received, things look hopeful and the future appears to be bright.

However, Greece still needs an army.

This is a timeline where, by Hera's orders, the Gods slowly work to give the women of Greece more autonomy by allowing them to partake in activities one thought to be only for men. Two of the Gods working hardest to meet this goal are Ares and Artemis, who have collaborated to teach women the art of combat and bearing arms.

Ares, who has never been in his parent's good graces, is in extra trouble now due to agreeing to support the Greeks on Hera's request but then turning around and supporting the Trojans upon Aphrodite's say. Hera declares that the only way to make it up to her is by drafting his eligible female warriors (those of age and with enough skill and experience to survive) to fight in the men's stead.

This includes Penelope, who had passed his trial back when she was still a young Spartan Princess and in turn became Ares' personal pupil (look at Warrior of the Heart if you would like more details). With a combination of Ares' order and Helen's plea, who feels the war is all her fault and wants to learn to fight in order to save her husband, Penelope is forced to leave behind Ody and Tele (a girl in mine and Blue's AU) in order to fulfill her duty.

That's how our version of the Warrior Penelope AU came to be! I'm sure you all know what happens from there ;)

P.S - Here are a few fun facts, not at all relevant to the AU, but still I wanna share em:

Hermione, Helen and Menelaus' daughter, actually snuck herself onto her mother's warship in order to join them in saving her father

The only reason Clytemnestra agrees to save Agamemnon is to kill him herself once they return home, since he still sacrificed their daughter before he and his men headed off for war

Patroclus was surprised when he saw Penelope for the first time. After how much Ody spoke of her, Patroclus had assumed for a time that she was a mere fiction of his imagination, a coping mechanism to keep himself sane (thank Blue for this one!)

On #3's note, Patroclus, Helen, Clytemnestra, and the rest of the Greek army immediately saw the similarities between Penny and Ody when Penny refused to shut up about how amazing her husband is and how much she longed to see him again

[somepsychopomp]

Well now you got me curious. What would Paris and Odysseus's relationship be like

Short answer: if Odysseus isn't trying to escape Troy, he's trying to assassinate Paris. If Paris isn't busy being a huge loser, he's dodging Odysseus' assassination attempts.

But to really answer this question, I'd much rather start at the very beginning of their "relationship" when Paris first abducts him. (Also sorry everyone for making my omegaverse AU needlessly complicated by adding more and more spin offs to it, but this ask is in reference to this post I had about omega Odysseus being kidnapped to Troy)

First off, I don't imagine that Paris picked Aphrodite to give the golden apple to and she immediately snapped her fingers to make Ody appear. For as little credit as people & gods alike give her, Aphrodite can be very good at pulling strings behind the curtain. So let's say that there's a big celebration across the pond from Troy & several high-profile Greek royals are all together in one place. In my mind, I imagine some kind of grand, royal wedding taking place in Sparta. Penelope, as a former Spartan princess, is of course invited to come, along with her omega mate.

And wouldn't you know it, the Spartan royal house has decided, somewhat abruptly, to invite a party from Troy! A wedding isn't just a family matter, after all- it's an opportunity to talk trade, strengthen old ties, or forge new ones. And oh, how unfortunate that at the time the delegation is set to sail, King Priam has fallen ill. Not enough to kill him, but enough that he is certainly not seaworthy. He was supposed to attend the wedding with his wife, but decides to send two of his sons in his stead. Hector will no doubt perform well and generate a good image for Troy, but this will also be a great learning opportunity for Paris to better familiarize himself with politics and sharpen his mind. Plus, what could go wrong when he has his elder brother to watch over him?

Well, Aphrodite so happens to be a little voice in Paris' ear, giving him all the sweet words that the Greek kings want to hear. He endears himself to them, acting as nothing more than one of countless young princes from around the Mediterranean. He has few feats to speak of, no grand stories of hunting huge game or the like, but he's got such a way with words.

Why, the kings say, they ought to pit this young Trojan prince against Odysseus' swift tongue and mind!

Odysseus? Paris thinks. Who's that?

He's led through the throngs of wedding guests, away from his elder brother, and to the very queen of Sparta herself.

There she is, Aphrodite whispers to him, She is to be your wife.

And yes, Helen is beautiful. More beautiful than any other woman Paris has ever seen. She smells of flower petals drifting on the surface of a river: sweet, but cold. And she's not alone. She's talking with what looks to be a mated couple. They're clearly royalty, their richly dyed clothes speak of some wealth, but the lack of intensely elaborate embroidery suggests they must be from a smaller or less well-off nation. There is a tall woman, an alpha, with her arm laced through that of a shorter but still very muscled and handsome man.

Aphrodite coaches Paris through his introduction, earning him a few pleasant smiles and warm welcomes from the Queen and her esteemed gusts: her cousin Penelope & her husband, King Odysseus of Ithaca.

Aphrodite is about to really get to work and use her power as the goddess of love, but Paris hesitates. He knows that he was promised the hand of the most beautiful woman, and that's exactly what Helen is, but... does he want her?

Both Spartan women are so tall, and they carry themselves with such an intense grace belied by a such a daunting quiet confidence. Helen's cool and distant demeanor makes her feel so intimidating. There is no gentleness to her that is common among omegas, either. She has the face of a woman who could watch a man die for her and not even blink.

Paris thinks he could easily fall in love with Helen, but would she love him back?

That's what I'm here for, sweetheart, Aphrodite reminds him.

Before he makes his choice, a few of the other guests interrupt and say that young Paris is quite the eloquent and sharp-tongued speaker. The King of Ithaca is immediately curious.

Be wary of him, Aphrodite warns, He is a student of Athena.

Athena? This king has the favor of a god like Paris does?

Odysseus, who really doesn't look to be much older than Paris himself, immediately starts playing games with him. What few Trojan riddles that Paris knows, Odysseus can solve them within minutes, answering each puzzle faster than the last. But when Paris struggles to answer one of Odysseus' own riddles, the king of Ithaca seems to goad him, "I didn't expect this one to stump you. It seems you are running out of time."

And Odysseus gives him a pointed look.

"A sundial!" Paris says. "The answer is a sundial."

Odysseus smiles, "Correct. Well done, Paris of Troy."

Though Paris clearly didn't know the answer, Odysseus is neither disappointed nor seemingly upset he had to give out an extra hint when he himself needed none.

A few spectators around them clap Paris on the back. They're all a lot more drunk than Paris is, having been too nervous to accept any wine. Odysseus, too, seems to be quite sober. He asks Paris to walk with him. Penelope has been away from her natal home for about a year now and wishes to reunite with some of her old friends, anyways.

"So, you've been married for a year?" Paris asks.

"Indeed." Odysseus gets this dreamy look on his face, "It's been the best time of my life."

They talk a little about their families. Odysseus mentions off-handedly that he just had his first child a few months ago and the ordeal was quite the memorable one. Paris nods along, trying and failing to imagine what his children with Helen might look like.

It wasn't until they were walking through a more secluded wing of the palace that Paris finally notices the sweet smell of an omega in the air.

He stares at Odysseus in shock. When they were in a crowd, it was nearly impossible to tell anyone's secondary gender. Helen only stood out because he was searching for her scent. But when they were together like this, Paris couldn't help but want to lean into Odysseus' soothing, sweet scent. He smelled of honey and a warm fire, like a warm embrace welcoming him home.

Odysseus is a remarkable omega, he's beginning to realize. Intelligent, but not to the point of cruelty. Strong, but not merciless. Handsome with thick, luscious hair, broad shoulders, strong thighs, and a noticeable swell to his chest, but not vain. And, apparently, more than able to bear a healthy child.

Paris swallows, desire curling in his gut. Helen might've been the most beautiful woman in the world, but somehow, here was another omega who enticed him even more so.

He could be yours, Aphrodite whispers, nearly causing him to jump. She'd been silent for the entire time he's spoken with Odysseus. The heart knows what it wants. All you have to do, young Paris, is say the word.

He came here for Helen. He came here for Helen.

Paris keeps telling himself that, but it's impossible to ignore reality. Helen was a beautiful woman, but distant and vain. Odysseus was far kinder and much warmer. Paris could easily imagine climbing into bed with this lovely omega.

He stops in his tracks, causing Odysseus to stop, too.

"I want you," Paris says.

Odysseus gives him a bewildered expression. "I beg your pardon?"

But a dense fog comes to life all around them, isolating them from the rest of the palace. Odysseus gasps and his hand flies for the hilt of his dagger as a flurry of rose petals swirls around him. Paris can hear Aphrodite laughing in his head as Odysseus stumbles and nearly falls. Paris moves to catch the omega, alarmed by the way Odysseus' eyes dart back and forth beneath his eyelids.

The petals vanish as the wind fades.

Slowly, Odysseus opens his eyes and begins to purr.

"Alpha..." he murmurs, nuzzling against Paris' throat. "...take me home."

Paris' whole body throbs with want. But he knows he must act swiftly. The fog doesn't abate as he guides Odysseus through the palace, his hand around the omega's wrist. Strangely enough, no one else notices the fog. But through it, Paris and Odysseus go undetected.

"We must leave. Now." Paris says to Hector, finding him in the fog. Hector seems confused at first, but a glaze washes over his eyes as he nods in agreement. Yes, they must go home now. Never mind that their delegation was invited to stay for a week. They must return home before their father begins to miss them.

In the dark of the night, the Trojans load their ship and sail away. As Sparta grows smaller and darker behind them, Paris sits below deck with his omega in his lap. Odysseus has wrapped his arms around Paris' shoulders, pressing kisses to his neck and face.

"Alpha, how much longer until we're home?"

"Just a little while, now," he says, unable to resist a smile.

Hector and the crew won't come to their senses until they've docked at Troy's port. Once they're safely within the palace, Hector snaps out of it and gawks at the omega king that his brother apparently kidnapped. As the elder brother, Priam will expect Hector to explain how in the world this could've possibly happened!

Though he is typically slow to anger, Hector can't help but explode at Paris. "You fool! What have you done? Do you not think the Achaeans will notice that a king of theirs has gone missing? And what will his people do once they find out that their king is with us?"

For once, Paris stands his ground. Odysseus is his god-given gift. He has earned this omega as his mate & husband!

All while Odysseus hangs on his arm and purrs at Paris with star-studded eyes, as if Paris himself was a god.

King Priam, who miraculously made an instant recovery from his illness as soon as his sons returned does not know what to do... other than to give Paris & Odysseus his blessing. If it was the will of the gods, then how can he protest?

But everyone's thinking it: Will war come?

Perhaps. The Greeks love to squabble amongst each other as much as they love to fight outsiders. There's a sizable chance that they might not band together to reclaim Odysseus. Aphrodite points out to Paris that Ithaca is indeed a small and modest island nation. The people don't live in squalor, but they're hardly the most affluent city-state around. They certainly don't have the man power to go to war with Troy on their own.

So Paris gets married. Everyone can tell that his new omega is clearly not of sound mind. He's not mad, no, but Odysseus is... well, there's something wrong with him. He is too in love with Paris, can hardly do anything but hang onto his new husband's every word. But his body isn't that of a soft, coddled pet. He is hardened and strong, and despite Hector's best efforts to coax Odysseus into sparring or hunting with him, the omega has no interest.

The days turn to weeks. The weeks to months.

The Trojans soon hear rumors that a Greek army has begun to amass, but that they're stuck on some faraway shore due to bad winds. Supposedly, they've angered one of the gods.

Meanwhile, Paris waits for Odysseus' heat, as that will be the best time to form their mating bond & will offer the best chance at impregnating his omega.

Some more time passes.

Paris thinks to himself that everything's fine. He's a married man now, he's gotten exactly what he wanted. Sure, his family is not too happy with his actions but they can hardly stop him.

That is, until one fateful dinner. The royal family all dine together, with most of them pointedly ignoring the way Odysseus seems to sustain himself more so on worshipping Paris than actually eating. He's softened up a bit, some of his muscle replaced by the lovely curves an omega is supposed to have. Paris is glad for it, Hector thinks its a waste of a warrior's build.

Then all curtains are seemingly ripped off the windows as a horrible gale sweeps through the room. Plates fly and shatter, guards cry out in alarm, and in one big gust, all the torches and candles go out.

A figure appears. A woman nearly twice as tall as a man, wearing golden armor that gives off a brilliant glow. She comes to them shrouded in a long cape, a shield on one arm and a massive spear in the other. The royals, guards, and servants alike all bow before her.

"There you are!" she says, her voice full of familiarity as she addresses the only person in the room not cowering before her.

"Athena!" Odysseus says, a smile upon his face, "Athena, look! I've gotten married!"

No one in the room moves or speaks, but they watch as Odysseus approaches Athena and shows her the gifts his dear spouse gave him. New clothes, a lavish circlet in his hair, and a golden ring studded with rubies upon his finger.

Athena stares at him, eyes narrowed. "Yes, I'm aware you've been married. I witnessed the birth of your son. But this is hardly Ithaca, Odysseus. What are you doing so far from home?"

"Ithaca?" Odysseus asks, his docile smile never leaving his face even as his voice laces with curiosity. "But this is my home. My alpha is here.”

Athena gives him a long, hard look and slowly, as if speaking to a child, asks Odysseus to point at the person he thinks he's married to.

He points at Paris.

In an instant, Athena understands what has happened. Aphrodite originally promised Paris the most beautiful woman in the world, but somewhere along the way, the idiot prince has managed to snag her student and ensnare him in Aphrodite's magic.

Athena thinks of many ways to break the spell over Odysseus, but none are as effective as raising her hand and striking him across the face. Everyone in the room freezes in horror as Odysseus staggers.

WIth reflexes faster than anything the Trojans have seen from him thus far, Odysseus catches himself and stands tall. He looks down at his hands, his fingers curling into fists before opening again.

"Athena..?" He asks. His voice is groggy, as if he's woken from a deep sleep, "Athena, where are we? Where am I? What is this place?"

He speaks to the goddess as if she were an old friend. Paris has never seen anything like it outside his secret bond with Aphrodite.

Athena turns Odysseus around to face the Trojan royal family. She levels her spear at Paris, saying, "You've been married off to this imbecile right here."

"Married?" Odysseus repeated, sounding as if he's never heard the word before.

He continues to stare at Paris in confusion, then disbelief, shock, and horror. Slowly, his expression turns to one of pure rage.

Athena raises her spear high above her head. It shrinks in her hand until it looks like nothing more than a toy. But it is the perfect size for a man.

Odysseus takes the spear and lets out the battle cry of a king, immediately aiming for Paris' head.

Paris only barely ducks out of the way. The spear lodges into the stone wall behind him.

From there, it's madness. Servants flee. The guards have no idea who to arrest or what to do. Hector is less interested in protecting Paris than he is in stopping Odysseus, because he can properly see that the person in the room being backed by a goddess is the most important one to calm down. But Athena keeps supplying Odysseus with new spears, not only glad to have found her missing student but more than happy to see him try to murder that little weevil, Paris. And Odysseus, in the struggle, ends up with several bruises and minor injuries, but he doesn't rest until he's gotten his hands wrapped around Paris' throat.

"You stole me from my wife! My alpha! My son!"

But Paris isn't alone, either. A new presence enters the room and Odysseus is thrown off of Paris.

Aphrodite appears in all her glory. She and Athena size each other up.

Aphrodite says, "Paris has won his hand, there's nothing for you to do here, Athena."

Athena scoffs. "We'll see about that."

But Aphrodite is technically right in that Athena can't simply pluck Odysseus out of Troy and drop him off at Ithaca. Paris and Odysseus are legally married despite Odysseus' previous union with Penelope. Athena can do whatever she can to tip the scales, but if Odysseus is to return home, it will largely have to be by his own hand.

To all the room, she announces that a terrible storm is coming to Troy. And that she will be watching.

(From then on, Odysseus is kept in a new bedroom far from Paris' own. That doesn't stop him from scaling the palace roof and sneaking into Paris' chambers that very night to try to kill him again. It doesn't work, but at least it was a little cathartic to try.)

[zarnzarn]

t4t nsft odypen silliness to make up for yesterday, here u go <3

_

"Lady Athena," Penelope says, as Odysseus finishes his prayers and they all rise to disperse. He looks over at her, inquisitive and amused, as she contemplates for a few moments, hands clasped. Then she bows her head and begs, rushed like it's bursting out of her, "Please let me fuck my husband today."

"PENELOPE!" Odysseus- well, shrieks. The other priestesses abruptly turn and file out of the room, led by Telemachus, at very high speeds. Odysseus is torn between making note of asking them to go compete in the races next year and putting his hands over the ears of the statue of Athena.

"Please," Penelope begs, eyes closed and ignoring him. "I never took the oath of celibacy, Lady Athena, why must I suffer this drought? This lack of my husband's beautiful thighs-"

Odysseus reaches over and shakes her, scandalised. "What are you doing, woman? In Athena's temple, have you gone mad-?"

"Athena," Penelope practically whines, letting herself be shaken. She looks crazy around the eyes, like she'll actually cry. "Please, please, if I don't get inside him I will die-"

"Did they not teach you about blasphemy in Sparta?" Odysseus yells, cheeks crimson.

"I unlearned it all when I spent twenty years without your cunt," Penelope moans pitifully. Odysseus wheezes ungracefully, mortified, tripping over his sandals as he gets to his feet to slap a hand over her mouth. Her shoulders are shaking, mischief in her eyes and lips twitching as he approaches, still pleading, "Please, Lady, suspend his vow for one day so that I may sheathe myself within his warm wetness and make him see stars in daylight for pleasure, I'll treat him well, please-"

"Hush!" Odysseus shouts at her, burning alive for the mortification. "Athena, I am so sorry-"

He closes his eyes in dread as the sound of loud cackling fades into existence. Athena stumbles out of the shadows, grin wide in a way that means she was drinking ambrosia, possibly at a party, cheeks bright with laughter. "What is-" She giggles. "What is this I hear about permission?"

"Nothing, Athena, extremely sorry for disturbing you, we- OW!"

"Please let me fuck him," Penelope begs, like she hadn't sunk her teeth into his flesh three seconds ago. "Let me have sex with my husband, I beg of you."

"She is not going to let you-"

"Sure."

"Athena!"

"What, she's asking so nicely." Athena shoots him a shit-eating grin, revenge in her eyes. "If you are alright with it, who am I to come in the way of a married couple?"

"Oh, so now you- what happened to celibacy is the highest form of clearing your mind-"

"Wait," Penelope cuts in, frowning. Athena's eyes slide to him slowly, glittering with laughter, before focusing back on Penelope with furrowed brows- she is drunk, definitely. "Wait, so you're- you are not the one who makes Odysseus not want to sleep with me?"

"What?" Odysseus demands, flabbergasted, as Athena bursts into loud peals of laughter overhead. "No, our agreement was the same as any of the other priestesses. That- that is just my own preference, some days."

"To be fair, we thought we were going to have to marry Odysseus off to some man back then," Athena grimaces, scratching at her feathers and squinting. "Ugh. But yes, you can do whatever you want, Queen of Ithaka. If Odysseus wants it, of course."

"You do want it, right?" Penelope says urgently, grabbing at his hands, eyes blazing and chest heaving. "Most of the time? Right now?"

"I-" Odysseus stutters, flustered in the face of her intensity and closeness. He feels unattractive still, even with the hair cut and change of clothes."I- Yes? Do you?"

Penelope's face spasms with rage. "ODYSSEUS!" She stamps a foot. "It's been an entire two days since you've returned! I'm burning alive with lust over here! How could you possibly not see, everyone in the palace can tell!"

"Okay- okay, hey, calm down-"

"-keep shifting about so people do not see me hard in my dresses, with every tantalizing move you make, every grin and giggle-"

"Wow," Athena takes a swig of a bottle. "Intense."

Odysseus exhales and shoots her a look, holding his hands out to placate a cursing Penelope. "Are- You're sure it's alright?"

"Yes!" She laughs, waving him off. "Your war is over, your glory is secure- go, have all the sex you want!"

"But-" Odysseus' next words are lost to a yelp as Penelope grabs him and manhandles him down to the ground. Athena whistles. He valiantly holds back the urge to snap at her that she needs to stop drinking if all it ever does is give her the personality of a teenage boy.

"I'll only fuck him in the temple," Penelope says, staring up at Athena determinedly and ignoring Odysseus' loud shout of distress at the scandal of it under her. "So that you may see that we are only trying for an heir, like the condition provides. Will that satisfy the oath?"

"That would," Athena agrees, almost leering as she lilts alarmingly to one side. "If that is all?"

"You-" Odysseus cuts himself off with a strangled scream as Penelope bites into his throat like a dog, sliding into him so abruptly it makes his vision go white. He's drenched still from her words earlier, but both the cocks at once, so suddenly inside-

Athena chuckles, and he feels a breeze across his face as she leans down to clumsily press a kiss to Penelope's forehead, then his. Penelope eagerly goes back for another kiss from Athena, thrusting sharply at the same time, making him moan so loud it echoes around the temple.

Athena snorts, and gathers her garments as she gets up to her feet and stumbles away. "Have fun!"

[kindred-spirit-93]

@dootznbootz come get yall juice :D

The Odyssey but Penelope has been slowly killing off suitors one by one via poisoning and staged accidents >>>

[xfilesinamajor]

AGAMEMNON: Hey bro, everything okay? You look like someone pissed in your cheerios.

MENELAUS: No, it's fucking not okay! Helen just ran off with some little man-whore from Troy! She can't do that to me! He can't do that to me! Who do they think they are? I'm a fucking king of Sparta! I'll rip his head off! I'll kill him! I'll kill his whole family!

AGAMEMNON: Whoa, whoa, take a chill pill! Yeah, that fucking sucks. Total bullshit, I hear you. I'd be mad, too. But dude...Troy? That's all the way across the ocean. It's not exactly a day trip.

MENELAUS: I don't care! He deserves to die for taking what is mine!

AGAMEMNON: And say you make the trip, then what? No one's going to let you in if you stand there at the gates screaming about ripping off heads.

MENELAUS: He took my wife! The most beautiful woman in the world!

AGAMEMNON: I know, I know, Helen's crazy hot. But there are lots of gorgeous women in Greece, and you're Menelaus of Fucking Sparta, bro. You've got girls falling all over themselves for you. Take your pick. Shit, take two or three!

MENELAUS: To wife?

AGAMEMNON: To bed, dude! Your wife ran off on you with little pissant? Her loss! This is your chance to go wild! Forget about fucking Helen.

MENELAUS: ...are you drunk?

AGAMEMNON: Oh, totally, for sure. It's this new stuff from Crete, you gotta try it.

MENELAUS: You're not even taking this seriously!

AGAMEMNON: I'm just saying. Would you rather spend the next couple years sailing and fighting and pitching some giant hissy fit, or would you rather stay here and have some fun?

MENELAUS: ....pass me the wine.

And they all lived happily ever after--Menelaus, Agamemnon, Helen, Paris, Achilles, Patroclus, Hector, Andromache, Astyanax, Odysseus, Penelope, Telemachus, Diomedes, Nestor, Ajax, Teucer, Neo, Cassandra, Iphigenia, Eurylochus, Ctimene, Anticlea, Polites, all the citizens of Troy, Odysseus' whole crew, the sirens, all Penelope's would-be suitors, Helios' cow, Polyphemus and his sheep, EVERYONE.

/FIN

[melodyartist-blog]

This may be me overeading it but I'm curious, in your art of Menalnus reuniting with Helen, Helen is in a pretty provocative outfit, is that something you imagine Paris put her into and when she's home she dressed more cashually?

Ok it's like 4 am right now and I've been thinking for this for almost an hour! I've been trying to gather some previous sketches and put them together so it might be easier to visualize.

So, Helen's clothing... Well since I rarely show full bodies or color my sketches it might be hard to see but her clothes are just inspired by traditional Mycenaean outfits nothing much or nothing less (it might be easier to see on the men I think).

Even during her youth she wore those kinds of clothes

So it's pretty much the contrary, Helen kept her heritage as a greek woman for years instead of completely adapting and complying to the Trojan's customs, something that probably Queen Hecuba hated.

Penelope and Clytemnestra too in some examples are seen with those outfits in a more formal setting (if we want to say it like that.)

But you raised another interesting point! The casual outfit when she gets home, well in my mind after the return everything pretty much changed, in these 10-20 years of absence (it's said in some version that Menelaus traveled for almost 8 years after the war before getting back to Sparta) The fashion went on, the new generation are wearing what we could consider more as the "Greek outfits"

So people like Hermione(on the left) , Telemachus and many others of the newer generations are wearing Chitons while their parents are still wearing some of the older stuff, or making a big ol' mashups :V

It started with a simple question and it escalated very quickly...

[iamnotshazam]

having a blorbo in greek mythology and epics is like the ancient world version of realizing the tv show had a different writer for the one episode your critter was wildly out of character and everyone is like "oh that's so them!" ??? did we watch the same show? helen of troy/sparta is a slut no wait she is a perfect woman no no she is a flawed human being no hold on she's a woman making her way in a man's world wait no she is the archetypal victim no wait-

not coincidentally i am reading madeline miller's the song of achilles for the first time and odysseus just showed up halfway through and odysseus'ed across the page so hard he made me fall in love with him all over again. achilles/patroclus is some foundational tragic queer romance, yeah i respect that, but odysseus. the laughing snake that tricks you into forgetting he is always ready to bite. my man

i bet he is a tricky character to write well but as long as he falls somewhere on the wile e. coyote <--> bugs bunny spectrum he is probably in character. because his character is to be tricksily varied. is he just a dude trying to get home? is he a larger than life hero? a rat bastard nobody can trust? the one male in hellas with a working brain who doesn't listen only to his dick or his overinflated ego? a wifeguy (positive)? a wifeguy (negative)? athena's special boy in this generation (telemachus and orestes wiping their noses on their blankets still)? or her latest mortal hackeysack, legs blurring in a looney tunes run between zany schemes, just a bit faster than the other doomed shmucks? all are intensely valid interpretations and go all the way back to homer 2800 years ago. incredible.

someone in the book is making fun of odysseus for bragging about how much he likes the ship, fresh from ithaca!! penelope modeled for the figurehead!!! he gets to see her while they're apart!!!! and that's why i set the book down for a minute. hgn. hdmahflshsk. odysseus sweetie pie i hope you still like it twenty years from now. the ghosts of my middle school english notes defining "dramatic irony" scream in ecstasy from the great beyond

[sarafangirlart]

Even if we didn't had no confirmation that Andromeda is in love, there is plenty of surviving evidence that the marriage was consented to by Andromeda, she chooses to go willingly with Perseus, even though in many versions her father objects, or sometimes her mother and father try to persuade her but she marries and travels with Perseus anyway.

It's like, there was no need for Phineus to fight for Andromeda or plan to kill Perseus, or Cepheus to plan to kill Perseus as well, if Andromeda hadn't wanted to marry him. Even in the versions where her parents agree to the marriage, they don't do it with much enthusiasm

Even in the texts/plays/sources there is never any indication of Andromeda's discontent, and whenever Andromeda is mentioned as returning to Perseus, it is said that she accompanied him instead of that he "took her away", even Eros is present in several sources and representations of them to highlight their mutual desire/loveIn the story there is not even an implied kidnapping/rape like in other myths, it seems strange to me why people want to entertain it as such.

Yes, Perseus was horny for Andromeda but genuinely loved her, all the sources tell you that he fell in love and the fact that he takes her as his wife proves it (instead of taking her as a slave even when Andromeda offered herself out of her desperation to live)

The fact that Andromeda decided to go with Perseus even though her parents didn't like the idea reminds me of how Penelope chose to go with Odysseus even though her father asked her to stay.

(Sorry if it's long and has mistakes, english isn't my first language)

Yes I agree!

I like that you point out the parallels with Penelope, sure Odysseus starts out as just lusting for her (I mean he literally just visited Sparta for the first time he did not know that woman lol) when he was making a deal with her uncle, but he didn’t want her to be a prize, he wanted her to be his wife, queen and companion. Ppl getting mad at Perseus for the same thing is ludicrous bc lust and attraction in of themselves aren’t bad, a man can start out attracted to a woman mainly bc of her beauty but that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t want to know and love her as a person, same with a woman being attracted to a man.

Which is another thing, ppl resent Perseus for rescuing Andromeda just bc she’s hot but who’s to say she wasn’t attracted to him as well?

[dootznbootz]

It's a bit surprising (in a good way) how much the Epic fandom loves Penelope. They even talk about her and Athena sometimes, which I totally dig.

My only tiny gripe is the whole spartan thing being kinda inaccurate because she definitely didn't get fight training, at least not a very intensive one. But otherwise, it's so good to see that.

Exactly, it's been amazing seeing so much Penny love 🥹

And while yes, the whole "She's buff because she's from Sparta" is annoying, (I write my Penelope buff and athletic too...But that's because I'm silly and I'm being self-indulgent, not because she's Spartan lol) I'm still like so happy with how much love she's getting :D (and yeah, I'm drooling over Buff Penny's lol)

Like I STILL think there should be a song between "Fight Little Wolf" and "We'll Be Fine" with Penelope being a mom for Telemachus, because we've seen her as the cunning woman she is in the Challenge, we see her as a wife in "Would you fall in love with me again", and neither of those songs talk about Telemachus really :( like... She also loves her son so so much. Plus she would absolutely HEAR the fight happening and be like "What the fuck are you doing to my son?!" Like... Pen wouldn't just hole herself up and cry while knowing Telemachus is getting beat up. :/ And at the very least, she'd patch him up afterward.

But in general I'm very happy about the silliness from the Epic fandom with Penelope <3 it's been so much fun