Odysseus stood on the balcony, leaning against the intricately designed railing. He gazed down at the garden below, and the brown haired girl calmly exploring the grounds of the palace.
Penelope of Sparta, Daughter of Icarius. Witty and smart, with a mind sharper than most.
Out of his league, as his sister Ctimene had teasingly said- no, out of this world.
He knew that Tyndareus, another Spartan king would be holding a contest for his own daughter, Helen's hand in marriage. But he wasn't interested as most of his friends were.
And so, young Odysseus stood there, hand on his chin, gazing down at Penelope longingly. Waiting, as Icarius and his own parents, Anticlea and Laertes were discussing their responsibilities and duties, and all the things adults had to do. It all went through one ear and out the other for him- he was only sixteen, going on seventeen, yet he was preparing to be king as his fathers sanity was declining. So he needed a queen, right? That was an obvious.
"Hey!" Penelope called up to him.
He looked down at her, snapping out of his space-out. "Hi!" As much as Lady Athena's training helped him in more dire straits-like things then this, admittedly, Ody didn't really think this far. "So... what's up?"
"Nothin much.. You?" She leaned against the olive tree, hands behind her back as she looked up at him. "You look like you're thinking hard." Observant, sage, Penelope.
"Aha, just... just the usual, yeah. Been thinking a lot, almost too much." That at least was true. Too much had been on his mind lately.
"I can get behind that." Penelope grinned. "Life can be really weird, yaknow? I mean, we just came into existence a few moments ago and now we're waiting around whilst our parents chat about political disputes. It's quite odd to me, really."
"Philisophical." Odysseus looked into her smiling eyes. Dazzling eyes, really. Hazel-brown, almost an amber-ish color. Almond shaped, round and sparkling as she stared up at him and he stared right back.
Then she giggled, and tacticious Odysseus fell out of his love-struck gaze. "Hm?"
Gods, she was so pretty when she laughed.
She looked up at him, the smile crlnkling her almond brown eyes. The shade of the olive trees leaves casted an almost angelic lighting on her brown curly hair, he noted.
Penelope laughed again, this time more strong. "You're staring."
"Well, you're pretty." He retorted, playfully rolling his eyes. It had seemed so obvious to him. Why didn't she know that?
Oh my gods.
Did he just say that?
Just as his face turned crimson, and his footware seemed a lot more interesting to his eyes, his name was called.
"Ody!" His sister called to him from a few halls away. Oh, saved by the bell. Thank you, Ctimene.
"There's an owl lurking in the window!" That must be Athena.
"I- I'll be there in a minute!" He yelled back out.
"Jeez..." Odysseus locked eyes with Penelope again, the sheepish expression still leaving a bit of a pink tinge to his face. "Sorry, I gotta go."
"Hey, no problem." Cunning Penelope gave him a knowing look, reaching up for a branch. "Hold on a moment, though."
He watched quizzically as she began to climb, pulling herself up by each knot and distortion in the wood. "Hm?"
Penelope climbed the tree until she was high enough to reach Odysseus, stretching the palm of her hand out to him. "Here ya go."
He pensively took the object from her hand.
A fruit. Round, shiny with morning dew, with a poignant dip.
An olive.
He smiled, dark eyes looking back to her face. "Thanks."
The walk back to his room wasn't too bad after that.
Odysseus popped the olive in his mouth, savoring the bitter-sour taste that spread as he bit into it. He coughed a bit as he swallowed it down- but he still enjoyed it, somehow. A gift from his crush.
Love?
Girl-crush.
Political acquaintance.
With all his knowledge, the man of action didn't know what to make of his feelings.
He opened the door to his bedroom, finding an "owl" perched on his windowsill.
Grey-eyed Athena sat there in all her glory, wispy chin-length hair pinned out of her face. Her hand absentmindedly fiddled with the ends of her toga.
Even with how much times Odysseus had met her, he still felt the same intimidation god-like Athena showed all mortals in her presence.
"Hey. Thena." Though they were still on a casual basis anyways. As casual as a a mortal and his celestially wise friend slash mentor could be.
"Odysseus." She regarded him with those intense gray eyes. "It's been a while since we caught up."
"Yeah..." He lied down on his bed, staring at the ceiling. "I've been busy."
"Understandable. I've expected it." Athena rested her hand on her chin, sighing as if she had to deal with all the political drama he had. "What with the courting of Helen."
Odysseus looked up at her, dumbfounded. "How did you know about that?!"
"Word gets around Olympus easily." Her gaze held the exhaustion of years. Her epithet, "tireless one" seemed almost ironic.
"Especially since she's a demigod, a child of Zeus nonetheless." The name of Athena's father sounded bitter on her own tongue.
Huh, so she did have to deal with all the political drama he had.
"That makes her your half-sister then?" Odysseus pondered the question. "Huh, that's odd to think about." Helen of Sparta, and third-born of the gods Athena, being born of the same father.
"Tell that to his 51 other demigod children." She grimaced, rolling her eyes. "Who knows- maybe another one's coming soon. Bet he's having the time of his life with another mortal right now." Athena quipped, moving to rest her ever-fiddling hands on her knees.
The two warriors of the mind laughed at the offending joke, before they heard a thunder strike in the distance, as if dark-clouded Zeus himself were saying "I heard that."
"Ugh. Now THAT probably knocked a tree over." Athena said, looking back at Odysseus.
"Yeah." His thoughts were on the olive tree below the balcony.
Sure, it hadn't knocked down... right? The thunder sounded like it was far away, but the gods were known to be petty. And this was the olympian king, father of gods and men they were making a fool out of.
"Hey." Athena leaned over, snapping a finger in front of his face. "Earth to Odysseus." She kneeled over at the foot of his bed, right in front of him so he couldn't look away.
"What's got you so distracted lately?"
"It's a girl...." Odysseus turned over to her, hugging his pillow. "I just can't get over her."
At least he wasn't lying.
"Oh, you've gotta be kidding me-" Athena deadpanned.
"It's not Helen!" Odysseus tossed his pillow at her out of embarrassment.
"I mean- of course i'm kind of interested in Helen, but literally everyone my age is interested in Helen. Besides, Menelaus is my friend- i'm not gonna just steal his crush." He already knew how hard spear-famed Menelaus was gunning for her.
"Do tell, do tell." Athena nodded out of respect. "Who's this girl anyways?"
"Penelope's her name. A spartan princess, the daughter of Periboea and Icarius. She's really good at weaving, I know you like that- and she's Helen's cousin, actually! She's the smartest girl ever, and we're quite like-minded." Odysseus rambled on about Penelope, paying attention to detail.
"Oho, King Icarius's kid." Athena put her hand on her chin, contemplating what to do with the information.
"If you really need help with wooing a partner, why don't you pray to Aphrodite or Eros? Heck, I bet even Ares could help you- love and war go hand in hand, you know. The spartans love him."
"Athena! C'mon, you're like- the wisest person, er... goddess I know." He clasped his hands together, looking up at her with a pleading face. "And you know what'll happen with my luck."
"You gotta help me meet her. She's the girl of my dreams! I want, no- need her to be mine."
With all his "luck", as he put it, resourceful Odysseus was one of Athena's most endeared pupils.
And despite love being “not her style,” she begrudgingly sighed, giving in.
"Alright, let's see what we got to work with..."