"Hercules," Iolaus stated the name in a matter-of-factly manner.
Nothing but a mumble came from the near by figure.
"Hercules," Iolaus repeated himself.
The figure mumbled something again.
"Hercules," Iolaus repeated for the third time, and reached out to shake his friend.
Hercules had no choice. Growling, for he was on the verge of sleep, he opened his eyes, and turned to his side, so he can face his friend.
The fire had burned itself out during the passing hour, and now, darkness dominated the camp. Hercules could only see his friend’s sillouhette marking against the sky.
Iolaus, Hercules said, when Iolaus made no sign of talking, "Come on, what’s going on?"
"Huh?" Iolaus turned surprised face at Hercules.
"Oh, great," the Son of Zeus sighed. "Iolaus, why did you wake me? It’s past midnight, for goodness’ sake!"
"I know, Herc, I’m sorry."
"Well—" Hercules encouraged his friend.
"Herc, could you light the fire back, please?" Iolaus asked quietly.
Hercules sighed, "Iolaus, can’t we have this conversation in the dark? I’m not really in the mood for gathering fire wood right now."
"It’s okay, Herc. I already did. Just start the fire."
Concern showing on his features, Hercules bent down and did as his friend had asked. When the fire was burning brightly, he moved over and sat by Iolaus.
"You wanna talk about it?" He asked Iolaus carefully.
Iolaus raised his gaze. The fire’s glow echoed in his eyes, and caught in his blonde curls.
He sighed. A long sigh, which tore Hercules’ heart more than any word the hunter could have pronounced.
The two sat in silence for a while. Finally, when dawn started coloring the skies pink, Iolaus turned his eyes to the man sitting next to him.
"Hercules," he pleaded,"Let’s go home."
"Home?"
"Yes, home."
Hercules didn’t know what to think. Something was on Iolaus’ mind, but his sidekick had no apparent intentions on letting Hercules in on his thought.
"Fine, we’ll go home, Iolaus. We’ll head for Thebes as soon as we pick up the camp, okay?"
Iolaus smiled gratefully, and Hercules’ heart rejoiced in the relief he saw in his friend’s eyes. "Thanks, Herc," He simply said.
Alcemene hummed about her kitchen, steaming water and preparing tasty dishes, when Jason walked in, sniffing the air appreciatively .
Pulling her into his embrace he asked, smiling, "What is this? Are we having guests you’re not telling me about?"
"No!" Alcemene laughed and broke his embrace to save her bread loaves from burning. "I woke up this morning and just knew Hercules is coming home."
"Ah, so you’re making his favorite meals?"
Alcemene added some herbs to the boiling stew, before answering. "Yes, Jason, I am. It will be so nice to have him around the house again. It’s been ages since I’ve seen him!"
"Do you think you can keep him here for long?" Jason asked.
"I don’t know. I hope so," she sighed. "He’s always happy to see us, but after a few days, even if no one calls for him, he becomes restless again. As if he can’t wait to leave here."
"I can’t blame him, he lost too much here." Jason added his own sigh.
"Well, let’s hope he’ll stay. Iolaus is coming with him, and maybe he can cheer him up a bit. If anyone can, it will be Iolaus," Alcemene said cheerfully.
Jason stared at her with amazement, "How do you know that?"
"A mother knows!" she laughed, and threw her kitchen towel at him.
"Iolaus! Slow down a bit, nothing will happen if we get there tomorrow !" Hercules found an unusual difficulty to keep up with his friend. Though he was the son of a God, and possessed strength and speed beyond any mortal’s reach, Iolaus could fly like the wind, when he had his mind set to it, and today, he strode forward with a determinate face and a quick stride.
"I know, Herc, I know," he called impatiently to his trudging best friend, "but your mother probably has some good, home-cooked meal boiling and—" He stopped in mid-sentence when he saw Hercules’ reluctant face.
"What is it, Herc? By the look on your face, I would think you don’t want to go home."
"Don’t be ridiculous!" Hercules dismissed Iolaus’ words. "I just don’t understand what the sudden rush to get there!"
Iolaus halted and turned to fully face Hercules. "I miss being home." He said simply. "I miss Thebes’ rolling hills, the excitement of old friends, of seeing all those places we used to play in when we were kids. Your mother’s cooking," he grinned impishly.
"But you always miss that, don’t you?"
"Yes," the blonde hunter smiled. "But this time it’s different. I simply need a refill, Herc. I’m tired of it all. Tired of fighting, of traveling. I just want to go back to being a child. Having your mother pampering us, cooking for us, putting us to work. I need the peace and quiet only home can offer me."
"Fine!" Hercules knew when he was loosing the battle, "But I still don’t get why we should be in such a hurry!" he finished, trying to hide the cloud in his eyes with a joyful smile.
Iolaus didn’t fall for that, however. Walking closer to Hercules, Iolaus locked his gaze with the demigod’. "You don’t want to go." He finally stated.
Hercules sat heavily on a large bolder at the road side. "Iolaus, it’s not that I don’t want to go home, I’m just...sacred, I guess."
"Of what, Herc? You haven’t seen your mother in ages! And neither one of us has been to Thebes in over a year!"
"I know, I know! Iolaus, I haven’t been at home, since, since—"
"The Enforcer. I know." Iolaus joined his friend on the rock.
"It just seems like every time I go home, bad things happen. To you, to my mother, to my family." Hercules’ voice broke as he said those last words.
Iolaus placed a strong hand on Hercules’ shoulder, "It wasn’t your fault."
"Come on, Iolaus. We’ve been down that road before. It all comes down to the same thing. Everything I touch, everything I care about, becomes an instant target."
"I didn’t, Hercules. Your mother didn’t."
"Yes, you did, Iolaus. And you know it. You've died 3 times."
"You brought me back each time."
"Demetrius would never have hurt Alcemene if she wasn’t my mother."
"You saved her. Even though you were hurt."
Hercules raised his blue eyes to Iolaus’. "The only woman I have ever really loved is dead. Her only sin was loving me."
Iolaus couldn’t find the right words to ease the clear pain in Hercules’ eyes.
"Iolaus," the demigod carried on, "I know you need to go home. I don’t blame you. Believe me, there’s nothing I’d rather do, but – I can’t. I just can’t."
"Hercules," Iolaus pleaded.
"Send my love to mother, would you?"
Iolaus couldn’t believe his eyes, as he saw Hercules rising from his seat, and heading the other way, the path leading away from Thebes.
"So, that’s it, Herc?" he shouted after his friend. "You’re just going to let her win?"
Hercules froze. Slowly he turned around to face Iolaus. The two stood for long minutes, regarding each other silently.
Finally, Iolaus broke the silence. "Can’t you see, Herc? By walking away from everything you love, Hera wins."
"No!", Hercules said, talking to himself more than to Iolaus.
"Yes! She wants you to lead a lonely, miserable life. If turn back on your home, you might as well be handing yourself to her on a silver plate!"
"No!" Hercules’ strong shoulders began to shiver as emotions threatened to grasp him.
Iolaus hurried to his friend’s side, and put a soothing arm on his shoulder again. "Hercules, I know it hurts. To be there, to remember. It hurts me too."
Hercules gazed at him with tear stained eyes. "So why do you ask me to go?"
"Because off all the wonderful moments we had together. Hercules, you may have lost the ones you love in Thebes, and both of us experienced pain there, but remember all the happy moments we had there, too. Remember the two of us as children? We used to run on those hills, and laugh all day. We were the two happiest kids around. And then, when we grew up. Remember the happy times you had here with your family, with your friends." Iolaus squeezed his friend’s arm slightly. "There’s more to Thebes than pain and loss, Herc."
"Like what, Iolaus? When did I ever bring joy to Thebes?"
"When? On one calm summer day, when a small, scrappy boy trudged his way to school, and met a gangly lad on the way."
Hercules couldn’t help a smile as the memory of their first meeting came back to life in his mind.
"We did have some great times together, back home, didn’t we?" he whispered.
Yes, we did. Iolaus smiled. "Let’s go home, Herc."
Jason was working in the gardens when he saw two familiar figures racing up the path.
"Jason!" the shorter one greeted him, "Where’s your lovely wife? I can smell her cooking all the way down here!"
Laughing heartily, Jason called back, "Iolaus! Hercules! So good to see the two of you again!"
The two reached him, and stood breathing heavily. Hercules’ eyes searched the area, "Where’s mother?" he asked, seconds after he greeted Jason with the warrior’s shake.
"Inside, can’t you smell the cooking?" Jason answered smiling.
"Which reminds me," Iolaus grinned, "I’m starved!"
"When aren’t you?" A feminine voice rang, and both men turned to greet the beautiful Alcemene.
Iolaus pushed his plate away and sighed with pleasure. "Alcemene, your cooking only gets better and better!"
"Thank you!" she laughed, and rose to her feet. "Now, if you two," she gestured towards Jason and Iolaus, "will shoosh out of my kitchen, I think Hercules and I can beat the awful dishes monster, don’t you think, son?"
"I live to serve, mom!" Hercules announced.
About an hour later, the kitchen was clean, the dishes were drying by the window, and Alcemene had her eldest son standing in front of her, his eyes two deep lakes in the moonlight.
"Something is bothering you, Hercules," She said it as a statement, not as a question. It didn’t surprise Hercules much, his mother always read him like an open book.
"Yeah, mom. Something is, actually, something did."
"You want to tell me what it was?", she used the tone that always relaxed his fears when he woke up from a nightmare as a child.
"I was afraid to come back home, mom. But it’s okay now."
Alcemene pulled her son to a warm, motherly embrace. "I’m glad it is, son." She broke the embrace and held him at arm’s length. "This is your home now, Hercules, just as it always has been. Come by more often, son. "
Hercules smiled down on his mother, and pulled her back into his arms. "I will, mother, I will."
Later that night, Iolaus and Hercules were deep into their beds. Hercules closed his eyes, and allowed the warmth of the blankets and the sweet scent of the flowers engulf him.
"Iolaus," he mumbled, with half closed eyes, "you were right."
"About what?" Iolaus’ sleepy voice came from the other bed.
"There’s no place like home."
The moon beams slid through the open window to caress the sleeping hunter’s face. Laughing softly, Hercules sank down in his own soft bed.
"There’s no place like home." He whispered once again, and fell into the arms of Morpheus.
The End
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