Telemachus always wanted to be like his father, Odysseus, the man who won the Trojan war. But with his father fighting alongside the Greeks for ten long years, he had no central male figure to look upon to, so Telemachus had to rely on his mother, Penelope, for all the teachings.
She instilled the values of valour and bravery in him. Although she did not know how to handle the sword or the shield, she oversaw his schooling. Every week, a new tutor was brought in, usually a former general of Odysseus, who would teach Telemachus the different trades of being a ruler. This included sword fighting, horse riding, formations and tactics of war along with economics and law and order of the Ithacan kingdom. Penelope was an audience for every class of Telemachus'. This was her way of filling the void left behind by her husband.
Penelope was eighteen when she was married to Odysseus, who was a decade older to her. Telemachus was born a couple of years after her marriage. For a girl in her early twenties, looking after a kingdom along with bringing up her son was too much to ask for. Yet she was strong enough to handle both. Often in the stillness of the night, she prayed. The prayers were usually to protect her husband who had crossed the Aegean sea to fight the biggest war of the time. She prayed to Zeus and to Athena to grant her husband strength and wisdom. But over time, the prayers were less about her husband and more of herself. She prayed to the gods to give her strength and wisdom to run a kingdom on her own and bring up the future heir by herself.
Penelope was beautiful in her way. She did not possess the looks of a nymph that people would die for. Yet her features were sharp with a face of the shape of an inverted triangle along with sharp eyes and nose. Her lips were not too thick and the colour of her blonde hair complemented her chestnut eyes. The way she applied kohl gave a smoky effect to her eyes, which enhanced her beauty.
There wasn't a tinge of uncertainty in her eyes. For all their beauty, they were the eyes of steely determination. Everything Penelope said was the last word in Ithaca. No one dared question her decisions. This was what had helped her rule the kingdom even in the absence of her husband. And yet, her eyes were also the most trusty eyes in Ithaca. When she said something, everyone trusted her. She would lead them all with her steely-eyed approach and everyone would follow her with eyes shut, placing complete faith in her.
It was her eyes that Odysseus fell in love with when they first met, strolling in the lawns of the garden of the palace. When he first got news from Agamemnon about the impending war, he was still very much in the honeymoon phase with Penelope, making love to her twice a day. He wasn't too keen on the war. Not that he was afraid, but he wasn't an all-brawn-no-brain guy. Graced by the wisdom of goddess Athena, Odysseus always thought that outwitting opponents was better than overpowering them. He was in no rush to leave behind everything for the war, least of all his loving wife and their new-born son.
But the nature of war was such that to gain something, you had to give up something else. Thus Odysseus had to give up making love to the queen if the Greeks were to reign sovereign in the Aegean.
Penelope, on her part, could have strayed upon a whim. She could have slept with dozens of men and not a single word would have reached her husband, let alone the subjects who respected her so much. But she chose not to. All the love she had for her husband was now repositioned and equally divided between her son and the people of Ithaca. Hell, she did not even know if Odysseus would ever return. But she would wait for him, because something inside her always told her that he would surely come back.
It had been nearly two decades since Odysseus had sailed from Ithaca. The most beautiful girl in the kingdom was now a stunning woman. But it had also been almost two decades since Penelope had sex with anyone. The last time she had was with Odysseus on the night before he left. It felt like a lifetime ago. She had even forgotten what making love to someone felt like. She did not know if she would ever get to make love again. The Trojan war had ended more than ten years after Odysseus had left, yet another ten years later, there was still no word from him. Many claimed his ship had sunk while returning. She refused to give up on her hope though.
One such morning, Penelope was lazing around in her room that had large windows overlooking the palace. Her room was in the tallest tower of the palace, which gave her an aerial view of the island. Lying in her bed, she could see Telemachus approaching her room. She gazed at him as he walked. He had the same walk as his father, the same swagger and the same hair. Although his beard was not yet fully developed, she could imagine seeing Odysseus in him. She gazed at her son with affection mixed with a tinge for longing.
Telemachus waved aside the curtains of the door and entered his mother's room. He was the only person in the kingdom who did not need permission to enter Penelope's room. He stood at the entrance and stared for a few seconds at his mother. She was wearing a white chiton, the dress for both sexes in ancient Greece. Underneath she did not put on a stophian or perizoma, nor any other kind of underwear. As she did not intend to go to court any time soon nor meet anybody else, she had chosen these comfortable set of clothes.
Telemachus gazed at her from head to toe, spending a few seconds more on her eyes, chestnut in colour with the previous night's kohl spread all over her eyelids, which gave more fire to the smoky effect. She was now a lady, almost in her forties. She did not possess the same figure she had when she first came to Ithaca. The slim waist and petite figure had now blossomed. As she gave herself and her body as little time as possible, spending most of it on her son and administrating the kingdom, she now possessed a voluptuous figure with fuller breasts and bottom and a slightly increased girth, with a flat tummy nevertheless.
"Good morning, mother," Telemachus said, standing at the door.
Penelope gave him a warm smile and spread both her arms, asking her son to hug her.
Telemachus returned the smile with equal affection. For him, Penelope was the world. She had successfully filled in the duties of both mother and father. Telemachus had never known what it was like to have a father. For him, everything started and ended with his mother.
He walked towards her, his pace a little hurried so as not to keep her waiting with her arms outstretched in mid-air. Such was his concern for his mother.
He sat on his knees by the bed and embraced her tightly. He was a strong man now. Penelope did the same, although her tight hug was no match for that of her son's.
"Good morning, sweet love!" Penelope said in a tender voice, and gave a peck on his cheeks.
He returned the same, his kiss lingering slightly longer. Despite being a man, Telemachus had yet to be married. He decided it wouldn't be the right time until the return of his father. He had had his series of affairs in with the courtesans, both male and female. And yet, he was unabashed when it came to showing his affection for his mother. After exploring his sexuality, he settled for a long term affair with a girl from the village in the kingdom. This took up too much of his time and energy and Penelope expressed her displeasure of the relationship. Without a second thought, he stopped seeing the girl. After that, his only focus was on helping his mother handle the affairs of the kingdom.
The two broke the embrace, holding each other in their arms. Penelope rubbed Telemachus' cheeks with her soft hands slowly, "What is my young man up to so early in the morning?"
"I had gone hunting, mother." He held a braid of her hair hanging in front of her kohled eyes and moved it lightly to the back of her ears.
"Ohh, my prince must have had a tough time then?" She now rested her hands on the strong shoulders of her son.
"Not really, mother, I shot down two deers today. I have asked one of them to be cooked for you."
"Ohh, that is so thoughtful of you, my love." She sat straight on the bed with him kneeling between her legs. She held his face and kissed him on the forehead. She then moved his face to her bosom and held it tightly. Her lips turned into a pout, her cheeks red. She held the back of his hair with one hand and rubbed the other hand on his back. Telemachus, meanwhile, held his mother by her back.
"Have you eaten your breakfast already or will you be having it with me?" she asked.
"I haven't had it yet, mother. I'll have it with you." His voice was low as his mouth was smothered in his mother's chest.
Penelope pulled her son's hair and with that, his face came off her breasts. She tilted it slightly at the back and said in a hushed voice, "I love you so much. You are the only one who cares for me."
She then let go off his hair and her hug and looked away at the window, staring into nothingness.
Telemachus knew what she meant. It was his turn now.
He flicked a few of his mother's hair behind the ears and rubbed her cheeks. He then gently held her jaws and moved her head back in his direction.
"Look at me, mother. Look into my eyes." His eyes were dark brown, having inherited the chestnut colour from his mother and the jet black from his father. "I don't like it when you are sad. Everything that I do is to make you happy. It's been twenty years and a woman like you does not deserve this loneliness. You must know, whatever happens, I am always there by your side."
Penelope's lips now turned into a smile, yet the sadness in her eyes was not gone. She held his cheek with one hand and rested the other on his shoulder, all the while listening intently.
He went on, "You have done so much all your life... for me... for the people of Ithaca. Now I am man enough to handle the affairs of the kingdom. I want you to rest and spare some time for yourself."
She looked into his eyes, took a deep breath, and said, "I will... once he is back."
He instantly shoved away from the embrace of his mother and stood up. Penelope, shocked by the sudden movement, flicked her eyes rapidly and moved back.
Telemachus walked towards the window, stared outside at the hills and said in an enraged tone, "He is not going to come back! Don't you understand that? It's been twenty fucking years now! It's been a decade since the war was over. Everyone is either home or dead. And if he's not home, you know where he is!"
