..It was him. After 20 years, it was actually him. Your husband, your beloved, he had returned. Your son had told you, and at first, you could hardly believe it, but when Odysseus walked into your room, your shared room, it suddenly felt oh so real. He was finally right there. Just a few steps away.

He looked... different, you could agree. His eyes were sunken with tiredness, his usually tame hair scruffy and full of knots you were sure to brush out after he cleared himself of the blood staining his skin and clothes. Yet, despite all the changes, all the years spent apart, it was still distinctly the man you fell in love with, your lovely Ody.

..And yet, your mind still thought it was playing tricks on itself. What if it was just a vivid dream? What if the man in front of you was a fake? A fraud? You couldn't help the thoughts, but you needed to prove that it truly was him, so what better way to than to test his reaction?

"..Can you do me a favor? Just a moment of labor, that would bring me some peace?" You kept a still, rested expression, not wanting to let him see that your words would be a bluff. "See that wedding bed? Could you carry it over, lift it up on your shoulders, and carry it far away from here?"

Odysseus freezes at the words, looking to you in shock, before he spoke, his voice just slightly shaky. "..How could you say this..? I had built that wedding bed with my blood and sweat. Carved it into the olive tree where we first met. A symbol of our love everlasting, do you realize what you have asked me?!" Your lover started to raise his voice, clearly upset at the thought of your request. "The only way to move it, is to cut it from its roots!"

You finally break the facade, a weak grin falling onto your expression as you proved that it truly was him, but you raise your voice with him, just in case he tried to speak more. "Only my husband knew that, so I guess that makes him you!"

"..Penelope..." He looks to you, surprised at your words, but a soft smile on his face.