Here are a bunch of epic tkl HCs that literally no one asked for, but I just have so many LMAOO
… I’m serious there are a lot more than I thought …
Anywho let’s get to it!
Odysseus has a ridiculously ticklish back, but only certain people know (Polites, Penelope, Athena and Eurylochus)
Instead of tickle monster Polites says “I am the God of tickles!” And everyone just thinks it’s dumb /pos instead of it actually making them flustered
Polites and Ody got into a lot of tkl fights when they were younger
It used to be one sided (Polites constantly winning against Ody) but one day, Ody thought of a whole strategy to take Polites down (maybe even asked Athena for help) and it worked
The tkl fights between those two were never one sided again after that lol
Ody gets super flustered and embarrassed, but he never stops digging his own grave by constantly teasing his ler with witty comments (maybe he does it on purpose WHATWHOSAIDTHAT)
Hermes is the BIGGEST switch known to mankind, along with Polites
Hermes and Apollo get into a lot of tickle fights (almost like how Polites and Ody did), and love to bring other people into them
“Ahahahahathehehena! Hehehelp me gehehet Hehehermehehes!” “Um… I’m good…” “oh, come on, Athena! Try and get me! Betcha you can’t~” “oh my goodness- FINE.”
(Athena is really often the one who ends up getting caught in it all)
Athena never loses tickle fights
No matter if she gets gained up on or if it’s one-on-one, she always somehow manages to come out on top
(That’s the main reason Hermes and Apollo call on her the most WHATTTTT)
Going back to Hermes, his wings are EXTREMELY sensitive, probably his most ticklish spot
I’ll talk for days about how much Hermes enjoys being tkled and tkling other people (cough cough Apollo) (not like he dislikes it either tho)
That brings us to where I think the characters are the most ticklish!
Odysseus: thighs (we all agree on this LMAOO), back, ribs (back of ribs are KILLER)
Polites: Stomach, knees, hips, ribs
Eurylochus: Ribs, underarms, sides
Hermes: wings, knees, underarms, neck
Athena: ribs, back/wings, stomach
Telemachus: hips, thighs, ribs, knees
Penelope: Sides, neck/ears, knees
Apollo: knees, neck, sides, stomach
That’s about all the characters I write for LMAOO (don’t ask why it’s all the main characters… and Apollo, bc idk I just really liked him…)
I really need to talk abt Telemachus because OH BOY HES SO ALSNEOEKKSKE /pos
He liked being tickled until one of the Suitors found out he was ticklish, and now he’s just like extremely embarrassed by it and sees himself as pathetic for having an odd weakness
But slowly, after Athena takes him under her wing (literally and metaphorically) she starts doing her “stamina exercises” she used to do with Odysseus, and she calls him out that he seems to be enjoying himself (I WILL G L A D L Y WRITE A FIC ABT THIS BTW)
Once Odysseus gets back to Ithaca, he slowly starts warming back up to his son, and that eventually leads to tickle fights
In Ody’s mind, Telemachus is still little, so he always uses “the tickle monster” tease and Telem thinks it’s so embarrassing (but not necessarily bad)
Now I wanna go back to Hermes bc this man is SO SILLY
He is constantly paying little visits to Odysseus and his crew and just messing with everyone
One time he visited the crew and he just kept on tickling everyone else but not Odysseus, and eventually everyone was like “Ody, man, you need to talk to him” and their “talk” ends up being Hermes wrecking his ass /silly
Athena taught Ody how to fight back though because she has experience from Hermes, so Odysseus know how to flip the tables on the God if nessesary
Whoever on the crew tickles Odysseus, he will waste NO TIME in getting them back, he won’t even wait for them to be in private
He says that he “needs to set an example”
It’s mainly Polites who dares to tickle him in front of the crew
About Polites, I’m a firm believer that his main love language is physical touch and friendly banter, which makes tickle fights between him and Odysseus (who is famously witty and known for digging his own grave) extremely entertaining to watch
Polites won’t confirm or deny if he likes being tickled, but he just gets so embarrassed when someone asks that he just can’t stop giggling (so it’s obvious that he does)
Eurylochus, Apollo, and Polites are the only people who get flustered by the word “tickle” (for Polites and Apollo it’s only in the context of someone teasing him by saying it, for Eury he just gets so awkward if it’s bought up)
You can’t really tell if Eurylochus likes it, he's almost never on the receiving end, and whoever tries is only really able to get one or two pokes in before he brings their hands away
I’m reality, Eury doesn’t like HATE it, but he’d much rather be on the giving side because he just finds it so embarrassing (/neg) when people tickle him
This goes without saying, but Odysseus is like a master teaser
That’s partly because of all the tickle fights he had when he was younger (thank you Polites) so he just knows what gets to people all. the. damn. time.
Ody will deny he giggles until the day he dies
Herme’s favourite tease is saying “tickle” over and over again
Everyone teases that Hermes should be the God of tickles because of how often he messes with people using tickles, but he’s not embarrassed in the slightest at that tease
Speaking of, Hermes is really hard to tease because he literally is so open about liking it, and takes everything that you would think embarrassing as a compliment
While on the ship, Odysseus threw his back out trying to move their food supply, and Eury offered a back massage, and that’s when he found out how ticklish Ody’s back is LMAOO
Hermes eventually finds out, but it takes him a while, and when he does he teases Ody about how he’s been hiding such valuable information for such a long time
Polites always drags his finger down Odyseus’ spine in passing
Omg I can make a whole post abt Odysseus having a ticklish back you don’t understand how cannon this is for me
Athena tries to tease Hermes about how Odysseus constantly gets him back and that because Hermes is a God he should just be able to get out, but Hermes just giggles and goes “That’s because I like it, darling, and I wanted him to feel strong for defeating me in a battle” like he is SO UNBOTHERED
Eurylochus has been able to get Polites and Odysseus at the same time and he will never shut up about it
He also does it a lot more than you would think, like it’s so easy for him to tickle both of them and they don’t know how he does it
Eurylochus only doesn’t mind it if it’s with Poli or Ody, so he doesn’t get mad when they team up and get him (he admits that he deserves it LMAOO)
Penelope tickles Odysseus when he returns because she misses his laugh
Tickling became such a big this with Polites that now whenever Odysseus even sees someone getting tickled it reminds him of Poli (/pos I promise he like smiles)
Odysseus doesn’t usually play dumb while tickling people, he likes to show them that he knows how to get to them
That being said, he knows that Polites gets EXTREMELY flustered when people tease him by playing dumb, so he makes an acception for him
“Aww! What’s wrong, Polites? Is this a bad spot or something?” “SHUHUHUT UHUP YOHOHOU KNOHOHOHOHOW IHIHIHIT IHIHIHIHIHIS” “Yeahh but your face gets all red when I remind you, it’s so cute” “HOHOHOLY SHIHIHIT- I SAHAHAHAID SHUHUHUT IT”
Polites has literally the cutest giggles, they’re like squeaky and hiccupy, and he always goes “ehehehahaha!” Iykwim
Odysseus laughs with a lot of big gasps in between them, and if you get him for long they slowly turn squeaky and into snorts
Eurylicus has these like boomy laughter, and rarely giggles like the other two, they’re just loud and deep chuckles kinda
Sometimes if anyone gets the three of them them all together (i.e. Athena or Hermes, or honestly maybe a few crew members) a common tease is that they sound like they’re trying to harmonize their laughter
Hermes has the most high pitch laughter, but he doesn’t make any other notable sounds, mostly just giggles or hysterical cackles if you hit a good spot
Athena has the most majestic laughter literally ever, like they sound so… pretty in a way? No one really knows how, but that’s the main reason she would get tickled (again mainly by Hermes’ and Apollo, but sometimes other gods or even Odysseus)
Similarly, Penelope has very cute but also majestic giggles, and Odysseus says it’s his favourite feature of her, on top of her beauty, wits, Humor, etc etc.
Telemachus has his fathers laugh, and that’s why Penelope loves it so much, however he has picked up his giggles from his mother, they’re very cute
Apollo’s laugh is kinda generic, they’re very stereotypically “hahahaha!” (Idk how to describe it LMAOO) but they are SOOO bright and happy literally everytime
Also Polites swears the most out of all of them when he’s being tickled, and everyone is always shocked
If I say anymore I don’t think I would be able to stop LMAOO I hope you all enjoyed <3
(alt plot to "open arms") polites getting tickled by the lotus eaters?
Fuzzy little fellas
🎂: Epic: the musical
🧁: Polites
🍫:Lotus eaters (ft. Ody)
Summary: The Lotus eaters have taken quite a liking to Polites. Unfortunately for him, their affection has quite the effect on him.
A/N: I GASPED in joy when I saw this request. I absolutely love this idea thank you so much for requesting it. It’s a little shorter than I would like but oh well. Also I haven’t been doing it recently, but I finally got to end the fic with its title again! (I used to do that with all my fics for those unaware.) huzzah! But without further ado, Enjooyyyyyy :3
Fuzzy little fellas
“Thank you!”
“Welcome!”
Polites and Odysseus had just finished getting information on food from the Lotus eaters, on their island.
They were just about to head back through the forest towards their ship.
However; the little fuzzy creatures didn’t want Polites to go.
“Stay! Nice man stay!” One spoke, latching onto his leg.
“I’m sorry little guy, but I can’t stay. I have to get to my home.”
“Awwwww” “boooo!” The voices of the creatures echoed around them. It seems they had grown quite an attachment to the sunshiny man.
Odysseus smiled fondly and gave an amused huff.
“We have time until sunrise. We can stay for a while.”
“Really?”
“Yes, really. Go ahead and spend some time with the lotus eaters.”
Polites smiles, and the lotus eaters cheer.
“Yay!” “Nice man stay!” “Friend!”
Polites laughs a bit and sits on the forest floor, allowing the small creatures to come up to him.
They swarm around him, snuggling into his lap and hands, asking for pets. He happily obliges.
“You little guys are so cute..” he whispers a bit.
As much as he was enjoying the affection, there was a slight problem. It tickles. Badly.
The small creatures were nuzzling their fuzzy selves into his side and legs and neck, and he was trying not to squirm too much but… man that fucking tickles.
He was trying to suppress his laughter, both in hopes that the little creatures wouldn’t get upset and that they wouldn’t notice how ridiculously ticklish he was.
He was doing.. okay-ish. For a while. Small giggles and snickers leaving him, as well as wearing a wide, wobbly smile, but managing to suppress the majority of his reactions.
Until one of the Lotus eaters got into his shirt, and it all went out the window.
Odysseus looked on in amusement. He knew exactly what was happening as soon as Polites’ smile got wobbly. And he knew it was only a matter of time until his friend broke into giggles.
“Gehehehet ohohout ohof thehere! Ehehehe!”
The lotus eaters seemed confused, but also excited. They liked Polites’ giggles, even if they weren’t sure what was causing it.
“Why laugh?” “Yeah, yeah, why you laugh?!” They asked and chittered excitedly.
“He’s ticklish, that’s why.” Odysseus chimes from the sidelines, watching with an amused grin as he leaned against a tree.
“Trahahahaitor! Ehahahaha!” Polites accused, although it lost all bite behind his wide smile, shining eyes and adorable giggles.
The Lotus eaters tilted their heads, not understanding.
“It means when you touch him in specific spots or ways, he laughs. And one of you found his weak spot.”
“Oo! Where?” They chittered excitedly at the prospect. They loved his laughter, and if there was a way to get more of it they were certainly down.
“Ohohody dohont yohou dahahare!”
“His stomach, extra ticklish.” Odysseus ignores the protest and nods towards Polites’ tummy, where one of the Lotus eaters was still nuzzling and scurrying around.
“Oo!” “Yay!” “Laugh more!” The lotus eaters chittered again, and then started to intentionally tickle him, especially on his tummy.
“Eee! Nohohoho! Ohoho gohohods- thahat thihihickles!” Polites squirmed around, trying not to fall backwards so he doesn’t crush the small creatures. Their fuzzy little bodies and paws tickled so bad! He couldn’t stop himself from giggling and squirming, fighting his instincts to double over and curl in on himself with all his might.
“Yay!” “Tickle nice man!” “Yeah, yeah! Make nice man laugh!”
Odysseus still watched, smiling. As much as his friend protested, Odysseus knew he loved it. His smile was genuine and he wasn’t really trying to make the creatures stop.
Eventually Polites lost the battle and fell into his back, which only put him into a more vulnerable position as the Lotus eaters swarmed around him, scratching lightly along his ribs, sides and oh so ticklish tummy. He was lost to happy giggles, covering his flushing face with his hands as he squirmed and giggled.
The Lotus waters seemed to be drinking up his giggles, wide, excited smiles adorning their adorable little faces. Their small tails wagging behind them, some of them even brushing along Polites’ knees which made him laugh even more.
He was having quite a bit of fun, as embarrassing as this was. Not only did he get to have a good giggle and just not worry for a while, but also he was being cuddled by adorable fuzzy creatures! What’s there not to like?
As he squirmed on the ground his bandana shifted, his hair became a mess and his glasses went askew, and eventually he squealed when one of the small creatures worked their little fangs onto his tummy, and around his navel.
“EEE- ohohoho nohoho-! Nohohot thahahat ohoho GOhODs-!” His laughter grew squeakier and high pitched, it tickled so much and he couldn’t do anything about it! Well, not anything that would risk hurting the small creatures and he wasn’t going to do that!
But as much fun as it was, it was getting kind of overwhelming and the Lotus Eaters didn’t seem to understand when he actually wanted them to stop.
Seeing the signs of his friend being done, Odysseus walked up and picked up the Lotus eater on his tummy. “Alright guys, he’s had enough.”
“Awwww!” “But he happy!” “Yeah, he laugh!”
Odysseus chuckled a bit. “Let this be an excellent learning opportunity for ya little fuzz balls.” He spoke informatively, almost like a teacher during lecture and set down the Lotus Eater gently on the forest floor. “The laughing is a reflex, and doesn’t necessarily mean that someone is happy in this case. It can be enjoyable, but after a while it can get to be too much, you get it?”
There were mutters of agreement echoed around the Lotus Eaters, and they got some final head pats from Polites before backing off and allowing him to stand.
“Alright, we gotta go now.” Odysseus spoke, a hint of empathy in his voice.
Another saddened echo, just like before.
“But it was great meeting you! Maybe we’ll come back to visit, yeah?” Polites replied, ever the optimist, trying to lighten the mood a bit.
“Oo, yeah!” “Yay!” The small creatures cheered in agreement.
Then the two men left, both feeling in significantly higher spirits. All thanks to those fuzzy little fellas.
A/n: Hii! This took me so long to write 😭 I honestly don't even know what the plot of this is. It's just a bunch of whatever came to mind that fit in. Anywhos, hope yall enjoy!!
Lee: Odysseus, Polites, Eurylochus and a special guest ;)
Ler: Odysseus, Polites, Eurylochus, and two special guests!!
Word count: 6555 (how the heck did I manage this 😭) btw this is 15 pages on docs 😃
Warnings: Tickles! Theres also descriptions of panic attacks! Let me know I need to add anything <3
☆~~~☆~~~☆
This was it. The last day of not having the responsibility of being a king. Odysseus was terrified.
So, one last time, he was spending the day with his best friends, Polites and Eurylochus. And… well… They were trying their best to have it be a happy day, stress free and all. However, the soon-to-be thirteen-year-old king was making it nearly impossible with the amount of brooding and anxiety he brought along with him.
* I mean, it makes sense. Of course it does. But, relaxing wouldn’t hurt him, and he was acting like he was going to implode if he stopped thinking about tomorrow.
“Look, Ody, I completely understand that you’re stressed, really I do,” Polites finally said after catching his attention for the first time in the past 30 minutes.
“But if you keep stressing yourself out like this, you definitely won’t be ready for tomorrow,” Eurylochus finished, patting Ody’s shoulder endearingly but sternly.
That only seemed to make him worry even more; he began sputtering unintelligible whispers. Polites reached out to grab his arm, but he yanked away and curled into a ball.
“What if I’m not ready? What if I mess everything up? What if I-”
“Ody!” Polites yelled, grabbing his face and forcing him to look at the smaller. “Deep breaths, okay? You’ll make it through this.”
His breathing stayed frantic and hiccuping, but he kept his eyes on his friend, trying his best to copy what he was saying, but he was struggling on staying focused. His vision kept fading in and out. And when it was even somewhat working, it was blurred with tears.
“It’s okay, Odysseus. Just try to copy me. Breathe in, and then out. You got this,” he said, rubbing his thumb on the prince’s cheek comfortingly. He took in shaky breaths, tears still rolling down his face and still hiccuping.
When he calmed down some more, to the point where he stopped hiccuping, they both went through a couple breathing exercises before anyone tried to speak again. Once Ody’s breathing became somewhat normal, Eurylochus spoke.
“Is there anything we can do for you, my friend?”
“I… I don’t know,” he cried, wiping the tears welling in his eyes. “I just wanna feel…happy? Or anything other than anxiety.”
He buried his face into Polites’ shoulder, who happily wrapped his arms around his friend. Ody was only thirteen, and yet he was becoming king. There was so much stress weighing on his shoulder, he didn’t think there would ever be a time when this stress would recede. He sobbed into his friend’s shoulder, and while his only thought was how pathetic the soon-to-be king must look crying his eyes out, he couldn’t bring himself to stop. It was possibly the last day he could ever get away with crying, ever.
All he wanted was a bit of relief, but he couldn’t find any of that, no matter how hard he sobbed, how much he breathed, how many times he told himself he’d be fine. There was nothing that was helping, and it hurt. A lot. And as much as it hurt him, it hurt his friends too. They hated to see him like this. But there was nothing they could think of that would help.
“I don’t know what to do!” Odysseus cried, shoving himself further into Polites’ embrace.
Polites rubbed his back soothingly. “I know, Ody.”
Eurylochus knelt down next to the other two. “Ody-”
He didn’t get to finish whatever reassurance he was about to give because of Odysseus throwing himself on top of the larger boy to hug him. Polites joined and they ended up creating a small dogpile of sobs. They stayed there for awhile, crying and hugging and reassuring.
“I’m…” Ody started once he calmed down, “terrified.”
“We know,” Eurylochus said. “And we’re here for you when you need us.”
“I just…” Odysseus tried, “I just feel like I’m not allowed to act my age. Everyone is telling me that I need to be more mature. That I’m not allowed to be a kid. Maybe they’re right…” He finished, looking away sadly.
“Sure, you’re not a kid anymore. But you are a teenager. You're still allowed to have fun, even if you have big responsibilities coming up.” Eurylochus said. Ody looked ashamed as he stared at the floor. “I know tomorrow is stressful for you. But you’ll be okay. And you’re going to have fun tonight, because… because tonight is about you being carefree, even if it’s the last time. So, could you trust us? Would you let us make tonight better? More fun than just stressing over everything? Please?”
Odysseus looked up and smiled warmly at his friends. “Okay. Can you work your crazy friendship magic? And maybe cheer me up?” he said weakly, laughing a hoarse and dry laugh.
“Y’know what? I think we can figure something out,” Polites said, winking. “Let the council decide how to cure the sadness!”
Ody shook his head lightheartedly. “Okay, ‘council’ let me know what you decide.”
The two stepped aside for a moment, making sure they were out of earshot. With them still being young and silly teens, their ideas were sure to be…something.
“What can we do?” Eurylochus asked, clearly lacking ideas.
“I have an idea, but you can’t tell me not to do it or that it’s a silly idea. It’ll be good to remind him that he still has us, especially when he wants to relax from being king for a minute.”
“What do you have in mind?”
“He’s ticklish, right?” Polites grinned evilly, turning to look at the teen in distress.
Eurylochus caught on quickly, also sparing a glance towards him. “Yes, he is.”
Odysseus suddenly became more squirmy with the sets of eyes on him. “What did the council say?” He asked as they walked towards him again.
“We’ve found a solution to your problem!” Polites exclaimed, sitting down next to the prince.
“And that is?” he asked again, now a little worried.
Eurylochus joined the two. “You’ll see. Will you lay down?”
“Uhh, okay?”
When he did lay down, Eurylochus pounced to grab his arms and Polites immediately
clambered onto his waist. With their combined efforts, they effectively had him pinned.
“Hey wait! What are you doing??” He yelped, struggling against both of his friends.
“Exactly what we said we’d do!” Polites smiled, resting his hands on the soon-to-be king’s sides.
“Cheering you up,” Eurylochus finished.
Odysseus had a puzzled look on his face, staring up at Eurylochus with furrowed brows.
Polites snickered at the innocence of his friend. He began to tap teasingly on his sides, which seemed to get the point across. Ody’s eyes widened quickly and he started to squirm intensely. He hid his face in his arm, eyes squeezed shut and his jaw clenched.
“There we go!” Polites said, taking one finger and scritching it on Odysseus’ neck. He scrunched his shoulders up and made a strangled noise in his throat. “Took you a minute to catch on, huh?”
Odysseus shook his head frantically.
Eurylochus grinned and leaned over Ody’s face to tease him. “What are you saying ‘no’ to?”
He only got more frantic shaking in response. Eurylochus chuckled before pinning his arms under his knees.
Since Odysseus’ eyes were still closed, he couldn’t see anything they were doing. What kind of friends would they be if they didn’t take advantage of that?
Polites held a finger up to his mouth in an attempt to tell Eurylochus to be quiet. He then mouthed some words to the other.
Don’t touch him until he opens his eyes!
Once he was sure the other understood, the three of them stayed in silence. Polites even took the extra step to remove his hands from Ody’s sides, hovering them over his stomach.
After a couple more minutes of silence, the pinned teen peeked one eye open. He made direct eye-contact with Polites, who smirked before dropping his hands to claw at his stomach. He yelped and slammed his mouth shut, gritting his teeth to prevent any giggles slipping.
“Awe, don’t fight it, Odysseus!” Polites pouted. “Just laugh. It’ll be good for you.”
With that, he moved to his ribs. He scribbled into his lower ribs, making him squeak and thrash. Eurylochus joined in by pinching his top rib.
“Come on, Ody, it won’t kill you to just be happy,” Eurylochus said, digging into his underarms.
Odysseus made a very un-king-like noise before bursting into little giggles. “Ihit mihight!”
Polites rolled his eyes. “Drama king.”
“Shuhut uhup!”
“That’s not any way to treat your best friends, Ody,” Polites teased, stopping his tickling. “I wonder if your attitude could benefit from a visit? Perhaps from your old friend~?”
“NO! Nohonono!” Odysseus yelled, eyes going wide and thrashing getting worse. “Ihi’m nohot a kihid! Don’t threheaten mehe with something soho.. Chihildish!”
“You’re not in a position to boss anyone around,” Eurylochus reminded, ending his tickles and poking his cheek. “I think you could do well with some attitude adjustment by the monster.”
“I thought we stopped using ‘the monster’ when we were eleven,” Ody sassed, glancing to the side.
“What? You literally used it on me last week!” Polites yelled.
Odysseus cheekily laughed. “You screeched so loud.”
Polites’ jaw dropped, his face turning red and his eye twitching. Eurylochus held back a laugh, coughing to cover it up and accidentally freeing Odysseus’ arms.
“Okay, that’s it!” he yelled, flipping his friend onto his stomach, to which he let out a groan of surprise.
“What are you-?” Ody began, turning his head as much as he could to look at his friend, who was now sitting on his back.
Eurylochus looked at the pair stunned.
Odysseus got his answer when Polites traced one finger up his spine. He squealed, flushing a deep red shade. “Wait, Poli-”
“Ohoh, did you think I forgot about this spot?” he teased.
“Ihi- I’d hoped you did…” Ody muttered.
Eurylochus laughed. “Speaking of spots you hoped we’d forget about…”
He walked to sit next to his friend’s legs. He experimentally wiggled a finger on the back of his knee.
“NOHOHO!” Odysseus screeched.
“Ohoh my gohosh! I forgot how ticklish your legs are!” Polites said, poking his back playfully.
“Shuhut uhup!”
“Hey! What did we say about bossing us around?” Eurylochus tsked, scribbling into the back of his thighs. Odysseus snorted loudly then screeched before falling into steady, boyish laughter.
“Dihid you juhust snort?” Polites giggled, tracing little shapes on the prince’s back.
“Behe QUIHIEHET! POLI!” he tried to shush them, but was interrupted by Polites clawing into his shoulder blades..
“Yes, dear friend? What’s the matter?”
“NOHOT THEHERE!!”
“Why not?” he smirked, leaning down to whisper in his ear. “Too ticklish?”
“Noho! IHI’M nohOT!”
“Oh, well, if you’re not ticklish, why are you laughing so hard?” he said, digging into the back of his ribs. The only answer he got was screaming laughter and a couple snorts.
“And why are you snorting so much? Are you a little piglet now?” Eurylochus said flatly, spidering across his thighs, which elicited even more snorts.
“SHUHUSH! PLEHEAHASE!”
“Well, since you said please,” Polites teased, just before he went silent. Well, maybe not silent, but he did stop talking. Instead, he started to blow raspberries on his neck, making little growling noises.
“POHOLIHI!!” Odysseus yelled, trying to push himself off the ground. Everytime he got close, though, Polites would scribble under his arm or on his ribs, making his arms fail and him plop back down.
“Polites isn’t here anymore,” he threatened, “Only the tickle monster!”
Eurylochus chuckled deeply. He then pinched lightly up and down his thighs and knees.
“AHH! PLEHEAHASE!” He begged, kicking his legs violently, almost whacking Eurylochus a couple times.
“Can you not?” Eurylochus complained, removing his hands from Ody and dodging yet another flailing leg.
“I CAHAN’T COHONTROHOL IHIT!”
He sighed, “Fine, I’ll help you.”
“Whahat ihis thahat suhupohosed to mehean?”
His answer came quickly when there was a sudden weight on his ankles, revoking his ability to kick his legs. The pinching also returned.
“NOHO! NOHOT FAHAIR!” Odysseus whined, trying once again to push himself off the ground, but failing thanks to Polites. Speaking of, how on Earth has he not run out of air yet?
“You complain and complain and complain, and yet you haven’t tapped out.”
“SHUHUHUSH!!”
“No, I don’t think I will. I think I’m gonna mention how you haven’t said stop once,” Eurylochus said, noticing how Odysseus got more red and more shy in his actions. “I’m not saying this to embarrass you. Just know that it’s okay to want to laugh. We won’t judge you, right, Poli?”
Polites answered with a thumbs up, still blowing raspberries all over his neck and shoulders.
“See? Don’t be embarrassed,” he reassured, lightly scratching the back of his knee. “Just remember that we will use this against you whenever you get too stressed,” he finished while winking at the prince.
To really rub in his annoyance, Eurylochus reached forward to squeeze his hip bone. He jumped with so much power that he almost launched Polites across the room. The only reason he didn’t go flying into a wall was because Eurylochus caught his arm and pulled him back towards himself.
“Thanks, Eury,” He said, laying down in a dramatic heap. Said man gave him a nod while Odysseus caught his breath.
“You still alive, Ody?” Eurylochus asked, climbing off of him and rolling him onto his back again. He only provided a weak thumbs up.
Polites adjusted his head to rest on Odysseus’ stomach. “Have you had enough yet? Are you done stressing over everything?”
Ody looked away shyly. “I…don’t know.”
“Awwwee!! Ody~!” Polites said, pushing himself towards the prince’s face and trying to hug him.
“Oh shove ohoff!” He laughed while hitting at the optimist’s shoulders.
Polites gasped dramatically. “How rude! I think you deserve to be punished for that.”
Almost immediately, Polites was on his waist, pinching lightly at his ribs. He grappled with his hands, but wasn’t doing much to stop him.
“Noho!”
Eurylochus rolled his eyes. “If you really disliked it as much as you’re pretending to, there’s a lot you could do to stop it.”
Odysseus flushed and shut his eyes tight.
“But we all know you don’t want that, right?” Polites finished.
“Stohop teheasing mehe!”
“Stop teasing you?” Eurylochus asked, taking a seat right next to Ody’s head.
“Yehes!”
Polites paused to think, hand on his chin. “Hmm…No! I quite enjoy teasing you. Especially on how adorable your laugh is!”
Odysseus notably got redder, his boyish laughter getting more loud.
“Ooo! Or how cute your smile is!” Eurylochus added.
“Or-!”
“SHUHUT UHUP!” he yelped. “IHIHI”M NOHOT CUHUTE!”
“Oh, of course you are, Ody!” Polites teased. “You’re our adorably cute friend! With super cute reactions and giggles and-”
Odysseus shoved a hand over Polites’ mouth. Polites blinked, dumbfounded, before licking his hand in an attempt to get him to move it.
“Eugh! Dohon’t lick me!” Ody complained, wiping his hand on the other’s shirt.
“Ugh, ‘don’t lick’ and ‘don’t tease’, is there anything we can do?” Eurylochus joked. He then also began to trace his collarbone.
“Nohoho!”
“No we can’t?” Polites said. “What a shame. ‘Cause we’re still gonna tease and tickle you!”
“Pohohlihi! Eheuhury!”
“Yes?” the two replied in sync.
“Ihi dohon’t knohow!”
Eurylochus laughed and ruffled Odysseus’ hair, stopping his tracing on his collarbones.
“Hehey!” he whined, batting at the taller’s hand.
“Whahat?” Polites snickered, moving to rest his hands on his sides again. This seemed to send him into a giggle fit.
“Poholitehes!”
“Ohodysseus!” Polites mimicked. “I’m not even doing anything!”
“I knohow!” he groaned. “It stihill tihickles!”
Eurylochus held in a laugh. “You’re that ticklish?”
Odysseus glared at his friend. “Shuhut uhup!”
“You really haven’t learned your lesson, have you?” Polites said with faux disappointment. He looked to Eurylochus before saying; “Grab his arms.”
He obeyed, having little trouble pulling them above Ody’s head.
“Noho! Ihi’m sohorry!” he pleaded, tugging on his arms.
“You know what to say when you’ve had enough~” Polites teased. He then began to slowly rake his nails up and down the length of Odysseus’ torso.
He yelped and started to squirm intensely.
“Oh my, this is getting in the way, isn’t it?” Polites pondered, talking about Ody’s shirt. “Oh well. I’ll just move it!”
With that, he pushed his shirt up to his top rib.
Polites faked a growl. “Ooooh, you know what, Ody? I’m really hungry.”
Odysseus went wide-eyed. “Nohot ahagain!”
“And I must admit, raspberries are sounding really good right now!" He sucked in a breath and blew a raspberry just below his ribs.
Odysseus screamed before falling into shrieky laughter.
After a couple more raspberries, he finally attempted to speak. “STOHOP PLEHEASE!”
Polites listened immediately, switching to hugging the future king instead. Eurylochus also released his arms, allowing him to hug the other back. At some point, Eurylochus was dragged into the pile too.
“Sorry, did we overstep?” Eury asked the second that the trio sat up.
Odysseus looked at them both darkly.
Polites paused for a second. “...Ody?”
Suddenly, Odysseus jumped at Polites with intent to pin him.
Eurylochus jumped back with a gasp, ready to stop a fight before he noticed the mischievous grin on the prince’s face. He stepped over to grab Polites’s arms the same way he did with Ody. Ody quickly sat on Polites’ waist.
“What kind of king would I be if I didn’t punish an assault on the crown?” Odysseus said. He then looked at Eurylochus. “Don’t think that just because you’re helping me now means you won’t get your punishment.”
“I figured as much,” he blushed.
“Wahait! Why me fihirst?” Polites asked, wriggling within his pin.
“You’re easier to take down.”
“Whahat ihis thahat suhupohosed to me-AHAN? OHODY!”
Odysseus had begun to claw his stomach, the same Polites had done to him just a little bit ago. “Poli!”
“Wehe weherehe ohonly cheheheering yohouhu uhup!” he defended. “Juhust lihike you ahasked uhus toho!”
“As true as that may be,” Ody started, a slight blush dusting his face and ears, “you still planned and launched an attack on royalty. The Prince of Ithaca, at that.”
Against his better judgement and any survival skills he had, Eurylochus nodded in agreement with Polites. “That is true.”
“You’re both awfully sassy for your positions, even you Eury.”
Eurylochus shrugged. “Just telling the truth.”
Odysseus stared in shock at his friend before playfully threatening him. “The more you back-talk me, the worse you’ll get it.”
His eyes widened and he puffed out his cheeks slightly, apparently not catching the teasing lilt to his voice. “Yessir.”
“Oh lighten up, will you?” he said, reaching to poke his side with one hand while moving the other to squeeze Polites’ ribs. “I’m only joking. I mean, you are still gonna get tickled, but I won’t kill you! You both should know more than anyone that I won't tickle you if I’m actually mad at you.”
Eurylochus jumped, looking away shyly but with a grin on his face. “Of course, piglet.”
The prince gasped. “Polites, I’ll finish with you later.”
In less than a second, Odysseus had Eurylochus on the ground, both wrestling for an upper hand. Eventually, Odysseus was able to take a seat on the taller’s thighs, pinning him down.
Eurylochus yelped, trying to shove him off. “I was joking! Ody!”
“Eury!” he repeated, grappling with his wrists. “Just- stop fighting me-! Eury, you’re making this a lot more difficult than it needs to be!”
“That’s the goal!” the other said, still pushing at Odysseus.
“Why? So you can delay the inevitable?”
“Or is it ‘cause you want to provoke him more?” Polites chimed in after catching his breath. He started to walk towards the pair. “Need some help, Ody?”
“Sure. Remember, the same thing goes for you that went for Eury.”
Polites scoffed, grabbing his friend's arms and hoisting them above his head. “He was so quick to turn on me, what I get out of helping you is the least of my worries.”
Eurylochus bit his lip and shrugged.
“Valid reasoning,” Odysseus agreed, starting to skitter his nails on Eury’s sides. When he didn’t give a reaction, both of the other boys frowned.
“Are you allergic to laughing when it’s not at our expense?” Polites pouted.
Eurylochus smirked before nodding.
Polites’ eye twitched. “You’re so mean!”
“Careful, I think that’s a compliment to him,” Ody joked while moving his hands to his ribs. That caused Eurylochus to snort and clench his jaw. “There’s some progress!”
A sparkle appeared in Polites’ eyes. “Come on, Eury! It’s easier to just laugh than hold it in!”
He only shook his head.
“Eury~!” Ody continued.
Another shake.
“I’m gonna move to a better spot if you don’t give up in three seconds.”
Eurylochus didn’t budge.
“Three,” Odysseus started.
“Two,” Polites added.
“One,” the prince finished.
Still nothing from the other.
Odysseus shot his hands to Eurylochus’ underarms. “What a shame.”
“NO! Ohody!” the teen gently pulled on his arms, clearly not trying to go anywhere.
“You’re so dramatic!”
Polites snickered and pinned the taller’s hands under his knees. He then started to lightly trace shapes on his arms. This managed to draw out a snort.
“Oho? Ahand I’m the piglet?” Odysseus teased, drilling into his hollows.
Eurylochus kicked his legs out, his chuckles consistent, save for a snort every now and again. “Shh!”
“I know you did not just tell me to ‘shh’!” the prince pulled his hands away and leaned over the other threateningly. “For one, you cannot be talking. You are the loudest one here right now. Second, I am your superior, in case you’ve forgotten, Eury.”
Eurylochus looked at him with fake concern. “Ohody-!”
Odysseus covered his friend’s mouth with his hand. Small giggles still escaped thanks to Polites’ tracing. “Nope. I don’t wanna hear it.”
I bet you can guess what happened next. (this is a very common theme)
“EUGH! Did you lick me?? What is with you two and licking me?” He yelped, yanking his hand back to his chest. Polites choked on a gasp, went into a coughing fit, and then started laughing like a hyena.
A small grin of triumph crept onto Eury’s face.
“Oh and you look so proud. Smug jerk!” he said with no malice behind his words. “Polites, will you let go of his arms?”
Through his giggles, he nodded and released the other. He brought his arms down quickly.
Ody laid on top of his friend and got his hands under his arms.
“Whahat are you dohoing?” Eurylochus asked, holding the prince’s wrists lightly.
He responded by sucking in a breath and blowing a raspberry on his neck while scribbling into his underarms. The taller shook his head and pushed on his friends shoulders.
“Ohody! Pleheahase!”
“I’m guessing he won’t stop unless you apologize,’ Polites said. Odysseus answered by shaking his head yes. “There.”
Eurylochus lasted less than a minute before a steady stream of apologies could be heard from the teen.
The prince let up almost immediately, still laying on the boy. “You okay?”
“Yeheah.”
He whispered so Polites couldn’t hear, “Good, ‘cause we still gotta get Poli.”
They both smirked, Ody climbing off so they could both sit up.
Polites glanced at the two suspiciously. When Odysseus stood up, he started backing away in a way that he thought was discrete.
“Where ya going, Polites?” Eurylochus asked, following in suit of the future king.
“Oh, y’know, away from you,” he said, finally turning and booking it through the doorway.
“Poli!” Ody yelled, chasing after him immediately with Eury tailing him.
“No!” he responded, rounding a corner and shoving past a girl with pretty blonde hair. “Sorry!”
The girl looked taken aback, noticing the other two boys running towards her just in time to step out of the way.
“Sorry!” The two got out as they followed the other. She shook her head in response.
After a couple more minutes of running, Polites found himself headed to a dead end. He muttered a curse under his breath and stopped right in front of a wall. When Eurylochus and Odysseus caught up to him, he spun around and covered his torso.
“Hey guys…!”
“You ran,” Odysseus started, stepping closer to the cornered teen, “halfway around the palace, and all you have to say is ‘Hey guys’?”
“Uh, well,” he nervously laughed, backing into the wall. “It’s a survival instinct?”
“Polites, oh my gosh,” Odysseus fought a snicker, “You’re acting like we’re gonna hurt you. It won’t kill you to laugh a bit.”
He shook his head. “It might.”
Without warning, Ody launched himself at his friend and tried to take him to the ground. “Let’s find out then, yeah?”
“No!” He yelped, shoving at the other. “No no no! I don’t agree with this!”
“Relax, will you?” He rolled his eyes, finally getting Polites pinned.
Eurylochus walked over as well. “It’s only fair.”
“You already got me!”
Odysseus scoffed. “‘You already got me’” he mimicked in a high-pitched voice. “Don’t even start with that.”
There was a small giggle that he assumed came from Polites.
“Shut up!”
“You just don’t learn, do you?” the prince sighed, picking up where he left off on his ribs. The smaller immediately fell into frantic giggles.
He shook his head and grabbed the others wrists.
“No? You don’t learn?” he teased, attempting to shake off his wrists while still scribbling on his ribs. “At least you’re honest.”
Not letting go of his wrists, he called out; “Ohohdy!”
“Poli!” he mocked. “Will you let go of my wrists?”
Polites thought for a second before letting go and grabbing his sides. Odysseus yelped and switched to grabbing his friends wrists. Polites quickly began to squeeze, causing the teen to fall to the side and onto his back.
“Poli- noho!”
He tried to climb onto Ody’s waist to pin him, but Eurylochus grabbed him and pulled him back to the ground.
“Yeah, no. Doing that will only make this worse for you.” Eurylochus said, sitting on Polites’ thighs. Once Odysseus caught his breath, he crawled to his friends.
“That, my friend, was not smart at all.” he laughed, grabbing his arms and pulling them above his head.
“Ihi’m sorry!” He yelped when Eurylochus pinched his side. Said boy grinned and continued to pinched and prod at his sides.
“No you’re not! Lying deserves to be punished, y’know,” Ody said, skittering his nails on the smaller’s neck. His head, in turn, shook side to side as he twisted and turned in their hold.
“It wahas aha reheflehex!”
Odysseus rolled his eyes and switched to raking his nails up and down his arms teasingly. “Uh-huh.”
Polites tugged on his arms half-heartedly. His giggles went softer and he turned his head to hide in his shoulder.
“Awe, don’t hide from us, Poli!” Eurylochus sing-songed. “Don’t be shy!”
“Ihihit tihickles!” he said, shutting his eyes.
“Oh really? I never would’ve guessed!” Odysseus cooed sarcastically.
“Especially with how much you’re laughing,” Eurylochus joined.
Polites shook his head even more. There was another, higher-pitched giggle that did not sound like Polites.
Odysseus immediately paused his attack, his heart dropping. Eurylochus followed in suit.
“Who’s there?” He called out, standing up and grabbing a practice sword from the nearby shelf. Polites propped himself up on his elbows, still giddy, while Eurylochus climbed off.
The blonde girl from earlier stepped into view from around the corner. “My apologies. I didn’t mean to spy.”
Polites flushed, realizing that she had been watching that whole interaction.
Odysseus tossed the wooden sword aside, sighing in relief. He softened his tone before saying; “What were you doing, then?
The girl looked at the ground bashfully. “I heard a yell and came to make sure everything was okay. Then I saw you three roughhousing and… I guess it was just intriguing. I’m really sorry.”
“That’s alright,” Eurylochus answered quickly. Out of nowhere, a brunette girl came running around the corner.
Odysseus, who had turned to face Eurylochus, didn’t notice her. She jumped on his back and wrapped her arms around his neck.
He yelped before catching her legs so they were in a piggy-back position. “Gosh, Ctimene! You can’t scare me like that.” He said, dropping her gently.
“Sorry! I see you met Penelope,” she grinned, poking his spine.
“Penelope, huh?” Odysseus smiled.
Penelope nodded.
“Well, it was lovely to meet you, even if you - both of you -” He cut in, poking his sister’s side, “scared me half to death. However, this rascal still needs to be punished, so I need to get back to that.”
Ctimene’s eyes lit up. “Two questions; Can we help? And why does he need to be punished?”
The prince flushed. “I suppose you can. And he helped to plan and carry out an attack on royalty.”
The younger furrowed her brows before smirking evilly. She pulled on his arm repeatedly. “What did they do, Ooody~?”
He shoved her away playfully. “Ctimene!”
“Whahat? It’s an innocent question!”
Eurylochus, who apparently loved to embarrass his friend, chimed in. “In case it isn’t obvious by the means of retribution he’s using, we tickled him.”
“Eury!” He yelped, face growing red.
Both girls giggled, Ctimene reaching forward to tweak his ribs. He grabbed her wrist, making a strangled noise.
Polites cleared his throat. “So… uh, are we done here?”
Odysseus, grateful for the distraction, jumped at him. This sent them into a wrestling match for the upper hand.
The other three watched them while trying not to laugh.
Suddenly there was a yelp from both teens at the same time. They were two different pitches, as if they were trying to harmonize. Why, you ask? Eurylochus and Ctimene separated the two after a silent agreement, Ctimene grabbing her brother and Eurylochus grabbing Polites. They both sat on their captive waists.
Penelope giggled, still keeping her distance out of nervousness.
Odysseus’ eyes went wide, fighting against his sister. “No- Not again!” Ctimene laughed at his panic, though it was obvious she was struggling to keep him down.
“Penelope, will you help me?”
Penelope tilted her head before nodding timidly. She moved to sit by his torso. As soon as she grabbed his arms to pull them up, he didn’t tug on them out of fear of hurting or scaring her. He still tried to buck Ctimene off though.
Polites, on the other hand, didn’t get any chance to fight thanks to Eurylochus immediately digging into his stomach. He barked out a laugh and tried to push his hands away, failing miserably.
“EUHUREHEY!” he screamed.
“There’s no need to yell, I’m right here.”
Polites groaned through his cackles, throwing his head back.
Penelope grouped his wrists together gently, holding them in one hand above his chest. Ctimene rolled her eyes at her brother not fighting Penelope.
She placed her hands on his ribs, not doing anything yet. He clenched his jaw, refusing to let any noises escape.
“Ody~ I’m not gonna do anything until you tell me to.”
This was a common thing that happened between the two. Both of them used this trick whenever they got the upper hand in their sibling squabbles. They wouldn’t tickle the other until they told them to. Sometimes they would make the other tell them where to tickle them too. Normally, Odysseus would’ve told her to “get it over with already”, but he seemed adamant on not saying a word.
“Odysseus. You can’t stay silent forever~”
He shook his head, squirming under the two girls’ gaze.
“Ody, come on. If you don’t tell me when, I’m gonna make you say where too.”
Penelope shot her a quizzical look. Ctimene smirked, more than happy to fluster her brother.
“This is normal, don’t worry. Usually, he tells me to start pretty quickly, even if he has to choose where. I guess he’s embarrassed ‘cause he wants to look cool in front of you.”
Odysseus made a strangled noise in his throat. His face began to look like a tomato with how much he was blushing. Penelope laughed sweetly.
Polites threw his body from side to side, trying to get Eurylochus’ hand off of him. Although, he didn’t really want it to stop.
“Eheuhurehehy!” He giggled out, kicking his legs lightly to release some energy.
“Yes, Poli?”
“Ihit tihickles!”
“Oh yeah? That’s insane Polites.”
“Ihihi’m gohonnaha dihie!” he groaned, pushing on Euryochus’ shoulders.
Eurylochus rolled his eyes. “You won’t die. But… if you’re feeling that way, maybe some medicine would help?”
Polites glanced up at him skeptically. “Whahat kihihind ohof mehedihicihine?”
“Raspberry?”
Polites gasped. “Wahait! Ihi neheehed a breheahatheher!!”
Eurylochus immediately backed off. “Are you okay?”
“Yehes,” he looked at the ground shyly. “Yohou cahan start again ihin a minute…”
The other smiled warmly, excited that Polites trusted him enough to say that. He was still gonna tease him though. “Awe, Poli! Do you like this?”
“Shuhut uhup!” He said with exasperation. He was pretty worried that Eury was judging him for not disliking it.
“Relax. I think it’s cute!” He leaned in closer to whisper to his friend. “You’re not the only one, by the way. Ody obviously likes it too.”
Polites laughed at that remark. “Do you?”
Eurylochus chuckled nervously. “Uhh…-maybe-. Have you caught your breath yet?”
“What was that? I couldn’t hear you,” he teased.
“So you have. Good!” He rushed out, avoiding the question. He lifted the other’s shirt and sucked in a breath dramatically before blowing a raspberry on his stomach.
Polites yelled out a giggly “no!”, shoving Eurylochus’ head lightly.
Eurylochus kept blowing more and more raspberries, placing them in different spots around his stomach. This elicited cackles from the near-sighted teen.
“Ody, I’m gonna give you three seconds to tell me to start. If you don’t, you’re choosing the spot, and it has to be a bad one.” Ctimene said, getting tired of the silent treatment.
Odysseus shook his head.
“Three… two…O-”’
She was interrupted by a rushed out, “Just start!”
“Finally.”
With that, she dug into his ribs, drawing out a short yelp and some chuckles. The longer she had kept this up, the harder it was getting to not fight Penelope for his arms’ freedom.
“Pehen-Pehenelohope!” he began, fighting every instinct to yank his arms down.
She jumped at hearing her name. “Yes?”
He racked his brain to find a way to explain without seeming pathetic. He ended up just saying; “Aharms!”
She got confused before realizing that he was starting to pull more on her hold. “Oh!” She laughed a bit, pushing his arms to the floor above his head. She then crawled to be above his head as well, pinning his arms under her knees, and in turn, his head ending up in her lap.
He blushed profusely, turning his face away. Penelope thought it was cute, noticing how his nose scrunched up and his eyes were shut tight. She idly traced shapes on his shoulders, which, much to the prince’s dismay, caused him to snort.
Ctimene cackled. “I forgot you snorted! Yohou’re like a pihiglet!”
Eurylochus paused his raspberries to agree. “That’s what I said!” He went back to his previous action right after speaking.
Odysseus winced. “Yohouhu cahanohot be tahalking! Bohoth ohof yohouhu!”
Ctimene glanced at Eury. “You snort?”
He went red, ignoring the question and therefore making the answer obvious.
“Good to know…”
After a couple more minutes of the light-ish tickles, Ctimene stopped abruptly.
“Do you wanna see something really funny?”
“Sure!” Penelope answered, also relenting.
“Okay! Will you let his arms go for a second?”
Odysseus knew immediately what was coming. “NO! No! Ctimene, you know I love you rihight?”
Ctimene smirked. “Of course I do. You’re not getting out of this, though.”
“Buhut- But ihi’ve ahalreheady had to suhuffer this today! Please!”
She pretended to consider, but seeing the giddy smile on his face, she decided she didn’t care. “Nope. You’re going through this again.”
Penelope released his arms and Ctimene rolled him over, which was much easier than she thought it would be. She sat on the backs of his thighs, taking notice of how his shirt had ridden up.
“Ready?” She asked both Penelope and Odysseus. Penelope nodded and Odysseus groaned loudly, shoving his face into his arms, which were folded above his head. He was too tired to bring them down.
Polites frantically slapped the floor, hysterical laughter still pouring from his lips. He couldn’t get words out and his cackles were getting wheezy.
Eurylochus stopped, switching to lightly rubbing his stomach in hopes of helping. “Sorry, you okay?”
Polites was still giggling, the rubbing was not helping. “Yehes.”
“Did I overstep?”
Of course he’d ask that first thing. Ever the worrier. “Noho, you’re ohokay.”
Eurylochus looked unsure, studying the teen. “Are you sure? You’re still giggling an awful lot.”
“Yohour hahand,” he managed, not pushing him away or trying to stop him.
“You’re actually adorable,” he teased without meaning to. (Platonic!!!)
“Behe quiehet!”
Eurylochus laughed at the weak shout. “Whatever.”
Ctimene spidered across his back with both hands, grinning triumphantly when he wheezed and fell into boyish laughter. He didn’t have the energy to fight back, so he just laid there. He could feel eyes on him, but had no clue who the eyes belonged to.
“Ctihimehene!” He protested weakly, turning his face towards Penelope without realizing.
“Don’t even, we can all tell you don’t mind that much.” She started. “Plus, I have one more thing to do, then I’ll be done, okay?”
She pushed his shirt up and blew three or four raspberries on his spine before letting up.
“Did I kill you?” She asked, flipping him onto his back, his head landing in Penelope’s lap again.
In response, he stuck his tongue out and made a little blegh noise. Playing dead for his little sister, forgetting completely about Penelope.
“Ohody! Yohou’re so stuhupid!” Ctimene giggled, lightly punching his stomach.
When he opened his eyes to retort, all he saw was Penelope leaning over him with a wide smile and beautiful eyes. Any words he was about to say turned to mush as he stared at her.
“Eww stop looking at each other like that!” Ctimene said, pulling her brother’s legs to yank him off of Penelope. He sat up and shoved her over onto her back.
“For one, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Second, you’re going to pay for that, sis,” he explained, scribbling over top of her sides and rib cage. She bursted into giggles.
Polites, who finally told Eurylochus to stop, sat up and laughed at the siblings.
“You two are so childish!” he cooed.
Odysseus shot him a glare. “Don’t forget that you started this! If anything, you’re the childish one.”
Penelope and Eurylochus laughed at the pair.
And the best part? Odysseus was no longer stressing about becoming king the next day. All he could focus on was laughter, no matter who’s it was.
I'm bored and unmotivated, so I'm just gonna drop some Epic the Musical tkl prompts for fics/art, feel free to use them (with or without credit, idm)
1. Lee!Hermes, ler!Apollo: Both of them are having an argument, which happens frequently, and just as Hermes is winning, he somehow accidentally reminds Apollo of the time when Hermes stole his cattle as a baby. Apollo then uses that reminder to finally dish up some revenge for it.
2. Did this in an earlier post, but lee!Zeus, ler!clouds(?): In Neal Illustrator's 'God Games' animatic, the opening scene for Zeus shows him surrounded by cloud women. This triggered an idea, what if, on a random day, Zeus is doing exactly the same thing, but one of the other gods (maybe Hera or Hermes) is feeling cheeky, and discreetly commands the cloud women to start tkling him.
3. Lee!Odysseus, ler!Polyphemus: After killing off his favourite sheep (R.I.S Bill/ref), Polyphemus goes to lift Odysseus up in the air and have a bit of a rant about how it's time to 'drink his blood' or whatever, but Ody is persistent in getting out of the cyclops' hold. Whilst trying to recapture him, Polyphemus inadvertently grazes against a sensitive spot and Ody lets out a stupid squeaky noise. Being a younger cyclops with child-like ideals, Polyphemus gets *very* interested.
4. Switch!Hermes, switch!Tiresias: With a little bit of free time to spare, Hermes decides to visit a certain blind prophet in the Underworld. Tiresias, on the other hand, is not currently using his gift of foresight, and gets quite surprised when a stranger suddenly pinches at his sides from behind, revealing an embarrassing secret by accident. A secret that Hermes wishes to explore, even if it comes with the price of an unexpectedly playful prophet.
5. Lee!Polites, lers!Odysseus and Eurylochus: Shockingly, Polites isn't exactly as much of a morning person as one might expect, and the poor soldier ends up oversleeping one morning on the ship. Will the Captain let this slide? No, of course not, so Odysseus invites his second in command to both help wake their dear friend up, and offer a lesson in getting out of bed when he's supposed to.
6. Lee!Eurylochus, ler!Odysseus (and Polites iyw): Eurylochus worries a lot, that's an objective fact. Not just in necessary situations either, he would sometimes get concerned over the tiniest of issues, such as a soldier eating something that was slightly out of date. Sure, his care was appreciated, but it did get in the way of genuine fun occasionally. Luckily, Captain Odysseus is here to cure him of his worries, just for the next day or so. Plus, it had been getting annoying.
7. Lee!Odysseus, ler!Aeolus: Upon the top of Aeolus' sky island, Odysseus asks desperately for their aid in passing through a hefty storm. Of course, the mischievous wind spirit is happy to play along, conjuring up a wind bag for the man. Although, Aeolus doesn't really feel like passing down such a gift for *free*, no. To get what he wants, Odysseus needs to earn their favour through a small trial. Unfortunately, that trial just so happens to trick him into revealing a very silly weakness, which Aeolus all but lights up at.
8. Lee!Antinous, ler!Telemarketing: During the 'Little Wolf' fight, Athena grants Telemachus the gift of Quick Thought, so that he has a better chance of winning against Antinous. However, she cannot do much more than that, as he needs to be the one who stands up for himself. Although, with his sped up mindset, Telemachus can't help but try and think outside the box a bit. If Antinous was dead set on violence, then maybe the Prince could find a more surprising way around it, so that his opponent would get caught off guard. Of course, silliness and Antinous' public humiliation ensues.
9. Switch!Zeus, switch!Poseidon: Zeus, being the annoying little brother he is, pesters the hell out of Poseidon for losing against a mortal and getting beaten up. Eventually, the sea god can't take it anymore, lashing out against him. Obviously, they couldn't kill each other, but Poseidon had learnt another way to shut him up through the years. Unfortunately, the thunder god had also caught onto those little tricks.
10. Lees!Eurylochus and Odysseus, lers!Penelope and Ctimene: (either pre-war or an AU where Eury comes home alive) Not much to summarise, just two sisters in law attacking their husbands with tkly affection, may both women have mercy upon their giggly souls <3
11. Lee!Odysseus, ler!Penelope: After 20 long years of being apart, Ody develops major separation anxiety and practically clings to Penelope wherever she goes, or is at least in the same room. One night, our poor King is having difficulty sleeping, waking up every now and then just because he's afraid that his wife will somehow disappear between each short interval. Unable to sleep herself, because of his jolts, Penelope tries an old tactic to make him feel safer.
I think that's all I've got for now lmao, if anyone wants to use these but wishes to modify them a little, go right ahead. 🤗
Hey Candy! Is it okay if I request some EuryPoli tickles? Like Lee!Poli and Ler!Eury where Polites loves messing around with Eurylochus at the wrong times (and saying the most outrageous things since ik we love Freaky!Polites) and then Eurylochus just gets “tired” of it and has to teach Polites a lesson?
Thank you so much!!! I love your art!!
here you go! I have never drawn tickles before because until a short time ago they made me uncomfy so idk if it turned out good, but I hope you like it! :D
+ and extra doodle
if anyone else has more drawing requests feel free to ask! I'm finally done with high school so now I have time to finish them :)
It’s been a few weeks since the Trojan War ended and Odysseus and his 600 men were still sailing aimlessly but with hope to Ithaca. Odysseus was in a bad mood. He wanted to go home and see his wife and son so badly, but he was still out here with no signs of his beloved island.
Polites had just been done with his work and he was also feeling awfully bored. He tried making himself busy so he could do anything besides walk around the ship so he went to ask Odysseus if there was anything else he could help with or any task he had to complete.
Odysseus was so worn out from the ongoing ten year war, he heard footsteps behind him and immediately brought his sword out and pointed it at whoever was there.
Polites who was very close to him was shocked and stumbled back, putting his hand on his neck. “Relax, Ody, it's just me, damn.” Polites tried not to roll his eyes. This is not the first time something like this has happened. Odysseus would pull his sword out at almost anyone because he was just that traumatized from the Trojan War. Sure he won, but that also came with lasting effects like instincts that could be harmful.
Odysseus realized who he had pointed his sword at and slightly softened but immediately got defensive again from the tone he was being spoken to with. “Watch who you're talking to.” He said, bringing his sword back to the belt on his waist and turning back around. He knew how Polites could be sometimes, and yes, it was funny whenever his best friend got sassy, but now? No.
Polites, feeling a mix of hurt and annoyance at Odysseus' words, then replied. “Oh, I’ll be careful next time, your majesty.” He then added, “It’s just that, last time I checked, the war was over and we can just sail home with nothing to worry about. It took about a week to get here, it should take another week or two to get back.” Polites really wasn't 100% trying to be rude, just mostly wanted to get his friend to be careful of what's around yes, but relax. He's already been through enough stress of being captain of 600 men and having the responsibility of taking them all back.
Odysseus turned around saying, “Well, someone said once that being in a war for so long does things to your brain and changes you. Remember that time Polites? When you did the same thing to Leanor, who just tried to check up on you? You almost killed him!” That was true, and not true. Yes, Polites said that word for word, but he definitely did not almost kill Leanor. Leanor and Polites have gotten closer over the war, so of course Polites would never deliberately do that! Polites responded “Well yea, I was in the war when I said that. The war is over now–” Before Polites could say anymore, Eurylochus walked in. He had overheard and stopped this from escalating. This was such a dumb argument anyway.
“Hey, hey, what's going on? Whatever it is, you guys don't need to argue in front of a few people like this. Captain sir, may I ask what's happening?” Eurylochus being the problem solver and tension easer that Polites is usually known to be. Odysseus responded to him dismissively, “It’s fine Eurylochus, just… it's getting late, I think you two should probably head to bed. Polites heard the tiredness in his best friend's voice and started to feel a little guilty, but followed Eurylochus into his room anyway when he saw Eurylochus gesture him to follow him. He made a mental note to himself to apologize later…
Once Eurylochus and Polites get to the room, they both sit on the bed and Eurylochus can see in Polites’ eyes that he’s guilty and angry and a mix of many emotions. “Do you wanna tell me what happened up there?” He asks quietly, trying to calm Polites down. Polites starts talking about it which starts ending up as a mini rant or venting session and Eurylochus was content to listen to his best friend. However there was one thing. Eurulochus couldn't focus at all… he stared into Polites’ eyes and felt like he couldn't look away if he wanted to, which he really didn't anyway. He swore that Polites looked so cute when he was mad and ranting and getting out of his usual character, kind, unproblematic, friendly, funny, and sometimes charismatic. He found himself getting lost and not paying attention just by staring at Polites’ face. Polites didn't start to notice until he said Eurylochus’ name in the middle of his sentence like, “And that's when you showed up, thank the gods, to stop-... Why are you looking at me like that?...” Polites asks, blushing madly to his utter dismay. Eurylochus answered, realizing he’s been caught, “Uhh, nothing! Just really invested in what you're saying… You can continue, Poli.” Polites looked away still blushing but continued, “But yeah, I get how war does that to people, sticking a sword up at everybody you think is an enemy, but I’m his best friend. His best friend! I mean, what, do I look like Cerberus to you or something? Or a chimera?” Eurylochus, only paying attention to that single rhetorical question, answers “No, you look gorgeous…”
Polites literally stopped breathing for a second and stared at Eurylochus. He felt like his heart had skipped too many beats and he got even redder if that was possible. “w-What?...” He stuttered out, as that was the only thing he could say. Eurylochus, knowing exactly what he was doing, smirked and added “I think you look absolutely handsome in everything you do.” He said it so smoothly, which made Polites turn away, forcing his damn smile down. But nooo, Eurylochus had to tease him more. “And gods, don't even get me started on your smile, ‘cause I won't finish!” At this point, Polites was already on his last straw and fell back on Eurylochus’ bed, covering his face with his hands. Eurylochus takes the opportunity to start tickling Polites’ stomach since his hands are out of the way, covering his face. “EURY!! Cuhuhut thahat ouhahahahout!!” Polites is surprised and a mix of something else while he starts giggling, but Eurylochus only blushes at the nickname a little and switches to his sides and hips. “Nah, I think you need something to cheer you up after that little fight you two had.” He replies. “Okahahay!!! Euhurehehehey!!! Plehehease!!!” Eurylochus stopped, but not without teasing Polites about his cute smile and laugh. After they both had calmed down, Polites spoke first, asking “Did you-um… did you really mean that..?” Eurylochus answered, “That your smile is adorable or when I said you looked gorgeous?” They both blushed at the second question, Polites nodding shyly.
Eurylochus answered, “Yea, I did. And… I kind of have to tell you something… it's completely okay if you don't feel the same way but I love you. Have been in love with you since we were in Ithaca before the war. I’ve gotten jealous when seeing you get close with people that weren't me. We’ve watched each other grow up, and I've seen how far you've come as a person. I'm not trying to get together with you just because I can. You were 18 going into war where you've spent most of your young adulthood. I love you for you. For the person you are, and nobody's ever had me going on a full rant like this…” Polites stared at the man he's admired and adored for the longest time ever. He felt like he might cry… Eurylochus saying all these things about him and to him, especially when Polites knew he felt the same way. He finally said something back. “The feeling’s mutual Eury. I’m in love with you too… and maybe more than you are with me.” He whispered the last part, but not quiet enough. “You’re not as quiet as you think you are, you know… and… I hope you never have to question your self worth ever again… I know you used to do it a lot at Troy, but…” “Yea, I know, please don’t remind me!… so, uhh…. is this the part where…?” Eurylochus answered him with a fond smile, “Shut up.” He said as he leaned into Polites’ face, holding his neck while his other hand was at the side of him. They kissed for like a few seconds and then Polites with a surprising amount of strength pushed Eurylochus down so they were both laid down on the bed.
“Okay woah, Poli, I know you said you feel the same way, but damn, this early?” Eurylochus was referring to the idea of them two smashing, grabbing, and banging. “What?! Who said anything about that? I’m just playing with you.” Polites said as he started giggling and continued, “And you said I’m the dirty minded one!” He said as he fondly and playfully rolled his eyes. “Poli, you LITERALLY tried to demonstrate to a baby under the age of one year how he was made… In front of Penelope too!” Eurylochus barked out a laugh as he spoke, since hey both remembered that day completely. Polites blushed and slapped the older’s chest. “Well, I explained it to him, not necessarily demonstrating..” “You look so cute when you’re flustered.” Eurylochus really just couldn’t stop teasing him tonight! “Shut up. And also, Penelope said I did better than Ody, so ha!” “Well you and your sibling-like relationship gets too funny sometimes. Remember that time when she was giving birth to Tele and she only trusted you for a midwife?” “Yea, I remember having to keep that old man out of the room during her labor. The least I let him do was pull the head out.” Polites referring to Odysseus as an old man made Eurylochus chuckle.
The two just talked, teased, and laughed for most of the evening until Eurylochus remembered why they were in his room in the first place. “Do you um.. need me to talk to the Captain for you?” Polites then remembered the whole, not so good, interaction he had with Odysseus earlier that day. “I’ll talk to him myself, thank you though.” He replied…
