Chapter Text
Antinous sat up with a soft groan falling from his lips, his head pounding as if he'd just drunk himself into a stupor.
He was confused, blinking as he looked about the darkened hall of the suitors quarters, not understanding how he got there.
It was less of a moral or existential crisis question and more of a ‘I didn't fall asleep here last night’ kind of question.
Though redundant as there was currently no one around to even ask the question too.
He stood, worry growing as he investigated the chest at the foot of the bed he'd been sleeping in, most of his belongings residing inside.
Though a slight bit of panic started to claw its way up his throat, noting a few very important pieces of jewelry were missing, and also not on his person as they usually were.
He was decidedly done with whatever was going on, figuring Eurymachus likely had something to do with it all.
After all, the two of them usually pranked one another often enough that while this was annoying it wasn't anything Antinous was going to get angry over.
Maybe he would playfully toss his dear friend down the stairs for removing him from his warm cozy bed and placing him back in this dank room, but Antinous would have to admit he was absolutely impressed at how stealthy everyone had been when moving him.
He hadn't even stirred a bit.
Nevertheless, he was on a mission to reclaim his missing jewelry, knowing Eurymachus had taken it, and setting his items back in their proper room.
Heading out from the suitors quarters, Antinous was met with another strange sight.
The whole palace was… Dull, for lack of a better word.
It honestly seemed even the colours were dull, looking around the usually lively and bright palace, everyone was moving like they were waiting for the other shoe to drop, things were still moving and people were still working, but it was very off.
Antinous approached Melantho, stopping her as she seemed to be heading deeper into the palace
“Where is your useless Fiancé, Mel? He's taken my ring again, and I'm not entirely in the mood to be playing this game with him today.”
Melantho shot him such a venomous look that Antinous was taken aback quite a bit, blinking at the lady who stared at him like he'd just kicked two babies and a puppy off a cliff.
“Uh… Mel? Who pissed in your pomegranate?”
He teased, but if anything it just made the woman angrier, and he just stood there as she snapped at him.
“Leave me alone Antinous, I am not interested in your convoluted games to get me alone with you of all people.”
She shoved his hand off her arm like she was physically repulsed by his being.
She'd started to walk off again, leaving Antinous blinking in shock and confusion at what just occurred, lost as to why Melantho was so… Angry.
He let her go, not wanting to incur more wrath, deciding to just find Eurymachus himself instead, perhaps the bastard was in the main hall, snacking on food and being lazy.
Heading towards the main hall, Antinous looked more at the palace and decor.
Truly, it was all very strange looking.
He'd admit, it was exactly the same as it was before it only felt off.
He had no valid basis for why he felt that way, but he did.
The palace was hand made, each wall, each decoration had a touch of emotion tied to it.
Antinous had learned that the hard way, though his years of hard work to get to the position he was in now.
He didn't know each item's origin of craft, but he had been told each part's history and the time that went into it all.
Who it had all been for, and why.
Even as each piece sat exactly where it was supposed to, Antinous couldn't help but notice the physical objects seemed to lack the spark Antinous was used to seeing.
But perhaps it was all in his head, he rationed, as he was clouded by the continued worry of not finding Eurymachus and also not locating his rings.
Finally entering the main hall, Antinous sighed in slight relief at seeing the slimy bastard that had started his worry in the first place.
He approached Eurymachus, grabbing his shoulder tightly
“Ahhh, my dear friend. Finally found you.”
Antinous noticed a few of the suitors jump as his voice carried across the table, even Eurymachus jumped under his touch.
That was fine by him, his friend should be a little spooked, as Antinous was quite peeved with him.
“It's one thing to pull a prank, Eury, but another to take a man's ring, the very promise he made to another, slipped from his hand in the middle of the night,”
Antinous spoke, gripping the little snakes shoulders to stop him from running off
“After all, how would your precious fiance feel if I stole your ring? Hm? She'd be rather devastated Eury-”
Antinous jerked as Eurymachus quickly shoved him back, looking at him with a mixture of terror and confusion, before he covered it with a boisterous laugh
“Fiance? What a joke Anti! I don't have a fiance. I'm a suitor to the queen! Having a fiance would completely ruin my chances for the throne! Why would I toss that away?”
Antinous blinked at Eurymachus as some of the others looked to them both in confusion at the sudden outbursts
“Eury, what are you talking about? We haven't been suitors for three-”
Eurymachus laughed again, though this one bordered on unhinged as he grabbed Antinous
“Oh! You must still be so hung over Antinous! Why don't we get you some water to clear your head!”
Eurymachus dragged Antinous away, the other suitors watching them go before turning to their own conversations.
Eurymachus dragged Antinous out of the palace and far into the gardens, before nearly shoving him into one of the fountains.
Antinous caught himself on the edge, whirling around to look at Eurymachus who still displayed that mix of confusion, anger, and terror
“How did you find out?”
He snapped, pointing an accusatory finger at Antinous.
“Find out what? That you stole my ring? Its obvious-”
“No! That Im engaged you dolt!”
Antinous blinked, giving Eurymachus an exasperated look
“What are you talking about? I helped you plan the proposal, you idiot!”
“No you didn't! It was a secret-”
“Maybe you thought it was but whole damned palace could tell you were one sweet look away from blabbing the whole thing to Melantho, had to keep you two away from each other for weeks!”
They stared at each other, both more confused then they had been coming into the conversation, Antinous wondering if Eurymachus had hit his head, and Eurymachus wondering what Antinous had to get so drunk as to imagine an entire proposal that he didn't assist with.
“I proposed to Mel in secret in her home… You were not there.”
“You proposed to her on the beach, we were all there.”
Antinous insisted, each man sporting their own looks of confused desperation to be right.
“All who?”
Eurymachus finally asked, voice cautious and slightly wary.
“Me, Melanthius, Amphinomus, Telemach-”
“Ok, no, stop. Clearly you've hit your head, or had some weird dream or whatever… but something is so wrong with your head, to even think the little prince woul-”
“You asked us to be there! Besides, why wouldn't my fiance an-”
“Fiance? What are you talking about Antinous? Do you hear yourself? Are you trying to tell me you're marrying the Prince?”
Eurymachus nearly shouted, genuine confusion and slight anger appearing on his face, making Antinous pause in his own confusion at why his best friend didn't seem to recall any of this.
“... Yes. I am.”
They both stared at each other for a long moment, Eurymachus shaking his head before laughing
“No. No, this is clearly some sort of mental break for you, and since you've forgotten, I'll remind you; you and the prince hate each other. Just yesterday you beat the shit out of him! He landed a hit or two, and clearly they've done more damage than we thought!”
Antinous looked taken aback and confused, he didn't understand, he wouldn't attack Telemachus for no reason, or well, any reason really
“I didn't fight him yesterday, we haven't had an argument in weeks let alone a physical fight.”
He said, the two of them staring at one another incredibly lost.
Eurymachus slowly took hold of Antinous’ arm, as if afraid of spooking him, and started to carefully guide him back to the palace
“Ok Anti, come on, let's get you to a healer, they can take a look at your head, and we will commend the Prince for knocking your head so hard you are imagining things.”
He said, patting his dear friend's arm as Antinous dumbly went along for a few steps.
“Wh- no! I'm not imagining anything Eurymachus! Listen, if we just go find Tele then he can also explain how deluded you are for forgetting all this.”
Antinous snapped, pulling his arm from his friend, and jabbing a finger to his chest as Eurymachus looked to him in pity.
They stared one another down for another moment before Eurymachus just laughed
“Alright, you know what? Fine. Let's go find the Prince. I can't wait to see this blow up in your face Anti.”
Antinous scoffed at Eurymachus, who just chuckled and followed behind Antinous who set off in search of Telemachus.
This would all make sense once his little wolf was in his arms, and then together they would make fun of Eurymachus for misremembering so badly.
As well for taking and hiding Antinous’ engagement ring, which he reminded himself to make certain he saw returned.
He kept walking, eyes looking all over the palace for his prince, and a growing sense of worry the more and more Antinous could not locate him.
He was nearly about to start shouting his name, when Eurymachus cleared his throat, looking at Antinous with a half amused and half smug expression
“Well?”
Antinous blinked, looking at Eurymachus in confusion, wondering what he was referring too.
He hadn't found Telemachus so the expectant sound coming from the other was not something Antinous had anticipated
“Well what?”
He asked, huffing at Eurymachus shaking his head
“I haven't found Tele yet, he could be anywhere in the palace, just… Give me a second.”
Eurymachus blinked, and Antinous took his silence as the apology he deserved, until genuine concern flooded Eurymachus’ features
“Nous… The Prince is… Right here.”
He said, motioning to a young man whose expression seemed to mirror Eurymachus’ though with much more contempt than anything else.
It seemed as though the young man had been trying to slip away from them undetected, but the attention Eurymachus brought to him stopped that entirely.
Antinous blinked, looking at the man.
He was pretty, albeit rather rough looking at the moment, like someone had just shoved him around.
As well, he looked nothing like the Prince, short curled brown hair with warm brown eyes and the complexion of someone who spent their days locked in their room.
Nearly the opposite of the prince.
Antinous crossed his arms, throwing Eurymachus a scornful look
“Thats not the prince.”
The hall seemed to freeze, and now both sets of eyes were looking at him in concern
“Uh… Yes? He is?”
Eurymachus insisted.
“No, it isn't.”
Antinous countered, motioning to the boy
“He looks nothing like the prince! Except for his eye colour, but even then my little wolf has one blue eye as well! I'd know! I stare at them a lot.”
He said, shaking his head
“Youre just pissed cause-”
“I am the Prince.”
The young man cut Antinous off, looking at him
“Is this some new sick kind of game you're playing? Trying to rile me up over disparaging my looks?”
He scoffed, shoving past Antinous and Eurymachus
“Pathetic.”
Eurymachus looked smug, but the face quickly dropped as he noticed how panic stricken Antinous looked, watching the prince run off
“Eury…”
He finally whispered, looking to the man
“Dont… Dont lie… Was he… Really…”
Eurymachus nodded wordlessly, frowning slightly
“Yeah…”
Antinous took a shuddering breath, looking at the other man in the hall
“Something… Something is wrong… That's not my pup, he's…”
He shook his head, looking off to where Telemachus ran off too
“Listen, Telemachus has long black hair, just like the queen, one blue eye and one brown, and-and he's… He…”
His eyes searched out for the young man, even though he'd long since left
“... He doesn't look so… Broken…”
The hall was quiet for a moment, before Antinous started off towards where the Prince ran off too.
Eurymachus grabbed his arm, stopping him from following Telemachus
“Wait. Nous… I don't know what's going on but… I didn't lie. You did beat the shit out of him yesterday… he… Likely doesn't want to talk to you. Not yet at least…”
Antinous frowned deeply, realizing the cause of the clear mistreatment he'd seen on the young man was his doing.
Even if he had no idea how he ended up in such a clearly messed up spot, Eurymachus was right.
He needed to keep a level head if he had any way of figuring out what was going on.
An idea popped into his head, and he turned from Eurymachus in the opposite way the Prince ran
“Youre right, and I know just who to ask for that!”
Antinous took off, Eurymachus throwing his arms up exasperatedly and followed after the ‘not’ Antinous.
They rushed about the palace for a little bit before Antinous turned to Eurymachus
“It has occurred to me that this palace and the one I know are very different… Where is the temple of Ares and Athena? Or Hermes’ shrine? They usually hang out there…”
He said, groaning at the look Eurymachus gave him
“Dont tell me-”
“The only temple in the palace is for Athena, and its in the private wing… You'll have to go out to the city. Why the temple? You going to speak with the priestess?”
Eurymachus explained, watching as Antinous paced about.
Antinous grimaced, Eurymachus mirroring the look to brace himself for whatever his friend was about to reveal.
“Im going to speak with Athena.”