before odysseus left for troy, the man was scarcely seen without his infant son in his arms. telemachus fit perfectly against his chest, nestled close to the king's heart. the gleam in odysseus' eyes couldn't be mistaken for anything but pure adoration, and he wore his love for all the world to see.
twenty years later, when the king finally returns to his island, his son is no longer an infant. the suitor's blood smears every surface of their home, and pallas athena's presence lurks just beyond, but the world fades away entirely as they take each other in.
one thing is clear as day: the prince is too big for odysseus' arms to hold comfortably– too tall to rest neatly against him.
when telemachus' knees give out from beneath him, strength leaving with a strangled cry, odysseus stumbles forward and tucks him into his chest anyway.
the prince rests his cheek near his father's heart in a gesture impossible for the boy to remember but one the king recalls with perfect clarity. many nights, he lost himself to tears, pressing his hands to the same place. twenty years of pain, of longing to feel the warmth of his only child.
odysseus threads his fingers into his son's curls, strands as soft as a bird's downy feathers. "my boy," he whispers reverently. "my dearest telemachus."
the sob his son chokes out sends a wave of agony through him, more painful than any wound. every shake of the boy's shoulders stabs directly into his heart and every stifled wail twists the knife. the king can only hold him tighter as they cry, twenty years of grief falling through their bodies and shattering all at once.