"Hercules, wake up! You'll be late."
"Just five more minutes, mom," Hercules mumbled and turned away.
"Not even one more minute! You have to be at Ceridian's cave in an hour. It's your last day and you know how he doesn't like you being late. Now wake up!!" She pulled the covers off him, "You know, you are just like Iolaus. The two of you can drive any mother insane. You're 17, for goodness sake, don't you think you can wake up on your own by now? You still act like little boys, the both of you!"
"Okay, okay, I'm up," Hercules sat up front in his bed, "See?? I'm up."
"Good," Alcmene smiled at her son, "Now get ready to go, I'll fix you some breakfast."
Hercules pulled on his clothes, and followed his mother to the kitchen. As he started to bite at the loaf of bread she placed before him, he heard a familiar voice calling his name.
"Herc, Herc, are you ready to go yet??"
Alcmene turned her eyes to her son, "See?? I told you you'd be late."
Then, she stuck her head through the open window, and called, "He'll be ready in a minute, Iolaus, why won't you come in and grab a bite in the meantime??"
Iolaus rushed in the house, and was welcomed by a warm hug by Alcmene and a sleepy nod by Hercules, who was still battling the huge amounts of food on his plate.
"Good morning, Iolaus." Alcmene greeted the boy.
"Morning, Ma'am," he offered her a huge smile, "Now what was it you said about grabbing a bite??"
Moments later, the boys were walking through the countryside towards Ceridian's cave. Ceridian had agreed to tutor Iolaus as well a few years ago, seeing how inseparable the two boys were. Now, they were 17 years old.
Old enough to leave school and start helping their families in the fields.
Ceridian's cave was an hour's walk away from Thebes, and the distance always gave the two boys a chance to discuss their plans for the day. They were discussing a two day fishing trip to one of Iolaus' favorite ponds, when Hercules noticed his friend's mind was a thousand leagues away.
"Iolaus. Iolaus!!" Hercules tried to gain back his friend's attention.
"Huh?? Oh sorry, Herc, I got a bit distracted."
"Iolaus, are you okay?? It's not like you to wander off in thoughts like that, especially when fishing is on the line."
"Sorry, I had something else on my mind. Now, fishing you were saying?"
The boys continued their way to the cave, both now concentrated on the afternoon fishing plans.
Helios' chariot's route across the sky was coming to its end. Near a large pond, the two boys sat, their fishing poles thrown on the ground beside them. A large fish was cooking, and the boys sat near the fire, warming themselves up, in the still chilly nights of Thebes.
"Herc," Iolaus' voice broke the silence around them, "now what??"
"Well, we wait for the fish to be cooked and then we eat it." Hercules tried to understand his friend's question.
Iolaus rose to his feet and started walking around the fire, "Not that, Herc! I meant, what are we going to do with ourselves now? We're grown ups now, or at least, so people think of us."
"I don't know, Iolaus. We'll wake up in the morning, work in the fields and try our bests to help our families make a decent living," Hercules looked up to his friend's eyes, "but you didn't need me to tell you that, Iolaus. What's bothering you?"
"It's exactly that which is bothering me, Herc. All those things. Working in the fields, earning a living, having our families depend on us. It's all adult stuff, Herc." Iolaus tried hard to explain to his friend the thing that has been bothering him for the entire day.
"Well, Iolaus, as hard as it is to believe, you are an adult. You're 17, you learned all you needed to learn, and you..." Hercules was interrupted by his companion.
"I'm not, Herc, I'm not!! For the Gods' sake, I'm not an adult. Not yet, anyway!" Iolaus sat back down. "Look, I may be 17, but I still feel like I'm a 10 years old. I still want to run in the fields, not work in them. I still want to tease and play tricks on the girls. Not think of them as potential wives. Don't you see, Herc??" Iolaus' frustrated voice fell silent.
"Iolaus, you make it sound like it's the end of the world. Not every thing is going to be all hard work and no fun from now on."
"I know, but, from now on, when I mess up, nobody is going to help me clean it. When I'll want to go on one of our trips together, I won't be able to, because now, now, I have to be responsible, I have to stay home and give my share of the work." He stopped for a second, then went on, "Hercules, everyone is going to look at me like an adult, and think of me as one, and judge me as one. And nobody will care if I still want to be a little boy and play out in the sun all day. They'll say that I'm an adult, and that I have responsibilities, and that I have to live up to what Ceridian has taught me, and most of all, they'll expect me to live up to their ideas of me. " Iolaus' clear eyes indicated his worries.
"I think you make it look worse than it is, Iolaus," Hercules tried to reassure him, "it's not that you've been a complete outlaw all these years."
"Well, I wasn't Mr. Perfect either. Look, Herc, you saw how people looked at us this morning when we walked to Ceridian's cave. Like two little boys. When we get back to Thebes tomorrow night, they are going to look at us, and treat us in a completely different way."
"I don't know, Iolaus. I still feel the same, I still look the same, I don't see a reason for people to look at me any differently. And besides, I think you are over doing it a bit, Iolaus, people are not going to think of you in a completely different way over night."
"Okay, so I may be exaggerating a bit. But, still, Herc, if they won't tomorrow, they will in a week's time, or a month, or a year. One way or the other, Herc, things are going to change for us. It will start with little things, like more chores, and having to be more responsible, and before we'll know it, Herc, we'll be settled down with a wife, 3 kids and a dog. I'm not ready for that yet!" Iolaus tried to make Hercules realize things.
Hercules stared at the starry skies for a moment before answering, "But what will happen if they won't Iolaus?? What will happen if things don't change for us??"
"I don't know, Herc. I just don't want them to change now," Iolaus answered Hercules' question.
"I don't want them to change either, Iolaus. But they will, regardless to your feelings about it. Look, Iolaus, things aren't going to change completely for us over night. People know that we are still only a couple of boys with an amazing talent for getting into trouble. They'll go easy on us at the beginning, and you'll get used to it." He smiled at his friend.
"Yeah, but it's just so weird. The last years were the best in my life. What if we'll never have so much fun ever again??" Iolaus' blue eyes reflected his emotions.
Hercules couldn't help a chuckle, "We will, Iolaus, we always do. And with your gift for getting us both into trouble, this is one thing you don't have to worry about."
Iolaus sighed, "It's more than being worried, Herc. It's growing up, it's leaving everything I was used to, everything I grew to love behind me, little by little, and it's," his voice broke, "it's painful."
"I know, Iolaus. Growing is painful. In case you haven't noticed, you are not the only one growing up around here. I know what you mean, and Iolaus, neither of us can do anything to help it. That's the way things are, and that's the way they'll always be. That's what growing up is all about, becoming a man is painful, Iolaus, growing is painful. But what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. And I'll be going through the same thing with you, Iolaus. We'll go through it together."
Iolaus didn't say a word, but his eyes spoke volumes. The two were silent for a while, and then, as if on a divine cue, both reached out their hands. They met in a strong hand shake.
"We'll go through this together, Herc, together always." Iolaus took his oath under the starry night.
"Always together, Iolaus. Always." Hercules took his own.
Under Thebes' starry skies, they were two young men. Neither one of them knew what the future held for him, but they both knew, that what ever life will throw at their path, the other will always be there. To help through the hard times, to join in laughter through the good times, and always ready to reach out and give everything he got, if it could prevent the other from stumbling.
Under Thebes' starry skies, that was what growing up was all about.
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