Iolaus and Hercules awoke to a day a beautiful as they come. Two days earlier, they had hurried to this cave for cover when a sudden, violent storm swept through. Two days of continuous rain and thunderstorms had left everything wet, muddy and cold, but now the clouds broke and the sun made a welcome appearance.
Early this morning, Iolaus exited the cave and nodded toward the water. "Look, we can finally see the lake," he pointed. "Right over there is where we hid from the bandits at the end of that dock. Then I dove back in to save Lydia from a large eel."
"You're quite the hero," Hercules smiled.
A brilliant rainbow appeared and they watched it in silence until it disappeared. They strolled into the freezing lake, hoping to catch some fish. Their campfire burned inside the cave, waiting to warm them and cook a welcome meal they both looked forward to. During the past two days they had lived on a small amount of fruit and nuts they had gathered quickly before the storm hit, and both were very hungry.
"Hercules, do you mind if we stay here a while longer?"
Hercules shrugged, "No, I don't mind."
"Good."
"We've been here two days. Aren't you ready for some new adventure, maybe find a festival?"
Iolaus thought a few seconds. "I dunno, I just feel like staying here."
Hercules said nothing as he grabbed a fish from the water. Then he said, "You're not getting tired of festivals are you?"
Iolaus laughed. "You kidding? Never. It's just that...I like it here."
"Well, so do I. We can stay as long as you like."
"Great," Iolaus said, "There's a festival in Thrace soon. Maybe we can go."
"Sure Iolaus, I wouldn't want you to miss it."
Iolaus put a small fish he had caught back into the water, then gathered up the two larger ones and went into the cave. Hercules followed in a few minutes with two more fish that he had caught. They cleaned the fish, then wrapped them in large leaves and placed them in the fire.
"I'm gonna go wash my hands," Iolaus said softly. He walked into the lake again and bent down to give his hands a good cleaning. All of a sudden something grabbed his left shoulder and side. The wind knocked out of him, he was instantly pulled off balance face down into the water. The creature was relentless, keeping a strong hold on him. Iolaus struggled to go up for air, throwing his right arm in the direction he thought was up, but he was not strong enough against this thing. He could not get a foothold to brace himself. He kicked and twisted, but it was no use. The creature had a firm grip on him and was holding him under water. Iolaus struggled to find the sandy bottom of the lake to have some leverage against whatever had him in its grasp, but realized the lake had a sudden drop-off, and the creature had dragged him to where the water was deeper than he was tall.
Having had no warning or chance to take a deep breath before being pulled under water, he swallowed a mouthful of water and knew he needed to surface immediately. He swung at the creature with his free right arm, and tried to find its eyes, a throat, anything that would cause it to let him go. The effort caused him enormous pain as he tried to pull free from the creature's unrelenting grip. He was losing consciousness and was taking in too much water. He slowly felt himself losing the ability to fight. 'You've really done it this time,' he thought as he lost all trace of his being.
Hercules emerged from the cave to see what was taking Iolaus so long. He called to him, but received no response. He walked a few steps to the water and called again. Looking at the muddy beach, he saw that their earlier footprints were still there, along with Iolaus' newest ones going into the lake, but there were no new ones leading from the lake and there was no sign of his friend. He looked out over the water, made somewhat muddier than usual by the recent rain, and called to Iolaus again.
At that moment something came bobbing to the surface of the lake. "Iolaus!" Hercules exclaimed. He ran into the water, rolled Iolaus over face up and pulled him ashore by his vest. He placed his friend on his back on the beach and called to him. Iolaus was completely motionless. "Iolaus!" Hercules repeated.
He turned Iolaus onto his right side, then face down. Pushing on his back, he forced water up from Iolaus' lungs. When water came out of Iolaus' mouth, Hercules cont inued pushing. Iolaus suddenly coughed as Hercules kept forcing water out of his chest. Iolaus coughed some more. "Come on, Iolaus, breathe!"
Iolaus stopped coughing and was still. Hercules kept pushing on his back, forcing out as much water as he could. He had another idea and rolled Iolaus onto his back. He pushed gently on his chest as a little water ran out of the corner of Iolaus' mouth. He turned his friend's head to the right and kept pushing. Suddenly, water gushed out and he coughed again. Hercules turned Iolaus onto his right side again, allowing him to cough and catch his breath .
While he waited, he noticed bite marks on his left arm and shoulder, and bruises forming on his entire left side.
He scooped up his friend and carried him into the cave where he laid him on the ground next to the fire. As he added wood to the fire with one hand, he moved aside the leaves that held their lunch with his other hand. The dwindling fire needed to burn with much more intensity so Iolaus would warm up. Hercules then unfolded Iolaus' blanket and spread it out to put Iolaus on. He was careful not to let dirt from the cave floor get into Iolaus' wounds.
Picking Iolaus up once again, Hercules carefully sat him on the blanket as close to the fire as he could safely put him. He supported his back while he peeled off his wet vest. Then he removed his saturated boots, poured the water out of them, and placed them and the vest next to the fire to dry.
"Iolaus, what in the world happened to you?" he asked. Iolaus started to choke and Hercules rolled him onto his side in an effort to help him breathe better. "Come on, Buddy, you'll be okay." Hercules only hoped he was right.
Iolaus sat up and threw his arms at Hercules, thinking the monster still had him. Hercules grabbed his arms and tried to calm him down. "Iolaus," he pleaded, "You're okay, stop fighting. It's me. It's Hercules." Iolaus continued to fight in his delirium, his eyes wide open in the effort, but not focusing on anything. "Iolaus, stop it." Hercules saw that Iolaus' bruised side was turning a dark, bluish-purple. He held onto Iolaus' shoulders. "Wake up, Iolaus."
Iolaus' head flopped forward and he relaxed. Hercules hugged his friend to himself and repeated, "You'll be okay, Buddy," sounding more confident than he felt. He took a deep breath and held Iolaus reassuringly. Iolaus was breathing more normally now, but he had a raspy wheeze with water still in his lungs. Hercules laid him face down again and gently pushed on his back to see if anymore water would emerge. When it seemed that he had done all he could do, Hercules sat back, legs crossed, and relaxed a minute while staring at his friend. "Don't ever do that again, Iolaus." Iolaus was at least breathing, but he was not completely out of the woods.
Hercules returned the fish to the fire, hoping Iolaus would wake up soon and be able to eat some, since they had eaten so little for so many days. Actually, it was just something he did to busy himself with while he hoped Iolaus would recover from this latest incident. He thought about how Iolaus was forever getting himself into the worst imaginable predicaments.
Iolaus moved a little and Hercules kept talking to him. "You'll be fine, Iolaus." He continued to sit with him while wondering what happened. He finally walked over to the cave entrance and looked out at the lake, wondering if there was another monster out there, but knowing that must be the case. From the ugly marks on Iolaus' entire left side, it was the most logical explanation.
Iolaus was waking up and trying to turn himself over. "Hercules?" he whispered.
Turning from the cave entrance, Hercules walked back to where Iolaus lay. "I'm right here, Buddy."
"Monster..."
Hercules nodded. "Yeah, I sorta figured." He lent a supporting hand to Iolaus' back as his friend tried to sit up. "Just take it easy, Iolaus, you've had quite an ordeal."
"I couldn't get it off me," Iolaus said, then coughed as he tried to get the remaining water out of his lungs. "It had my shoulder." Iolaus looked down at his torn up left side.
"You scared me half to death. Don't ever do that again."
"Don't worry, I won't."
"So are you okay?"
Iolaus rubbed his chest and took a deep, wheezing breath. "I swallowed half the lake."
"I know," Hercules said. "I forced the water out of your lungs and got all I could."
"Thanks, you saved my life."
"Well, what are friends for?" Hercules smiled, not feeling any particular joy at this moment. He came too close to losing Iolaus and was not going to forget it anytime soon. "I'll get some herbs to treat those wounds. The fish is ready. Do you feel like eating?"
"Sure, maybe just a little." Hercules handed Iolaus one of the leaves that held some fish. Iolaus opened the leaf, ate a small bite and said, "There must've been more than one of those monsters I killed."
Hercules nodded. "Do you still want to stay here?"
"Well...yeah, but I won't be going in the water again. I can go hunting instead. Hopefully there won't be any monsters in the forest." He coughed some more, still trying to get rid of the wheezing breaths.
"Well, if there are, you'll be the one they find."
"Yeah," Iolaus laughed.
They ate their fish in silence, although Iolaus pulled his portion into tiny pieces and played with it more than ate any, until Hercules said, "Iolaus, do you remember that day we went to Thrace, and we bet each other who would get there first?"
"Sure I do. That was the day that all the stuff happened in this lake."
"Yeah, being in this area again, plus the monster and all, reminded me of it." Hercules paused and then said, "I wasn't going to tell you this, but I didn't arrive in Thrace hours before you did. I got there just a few minutes before you."
"I was so mad at you that day. You kept annoying me and interfering with my fights. You told me not to leave my bow laying around. What was I supposed to do with it, hold it while I fought? I was already feeling lousy after I shot an arrow in front of all those guys and missed the target. Then you told me to 91look out' on that bridge and laughed at me when I turned around."
"You didn't have to fight those barbarians. We could've just left them and gone on our way , but no, you had to take them on." Hercules stared into the fire.
"And we got across the bridge, didn't we?"
"Well yeah, but..."
"Well yeah, but it saved us a lot of time we would've spent crossing the river somewhere else, and it showed them they can't just block the bridge to travelers."
"Okay, okay."
"Besides, you got to ride to Thrace in a boat."
Hercules suddenly looked up at Iolaus. "How do you know that?"
"Lydia told me the road you took went to a ferry crossing." Iolaus thought a minute then said, "So why did it take you so long to get there if you took a boat but arrived just before me? It took me forever because I kept running into...obstacles."
Hercules remained silent.
"Hercules?"
"I'd rather not say. Here have some more fish."
"Hercules?"
"You're not going to let up, are you?"
Iolaus smiled. "Nope."
"I...sort of...followed you."
"You what?" Iolaus was suddenly furious.
"To make sure you were okay. Nemesis..."
"Why would you have to make sure I was okay? Don't you think I can take care of myself?"
"Of course I do."
"But you didn't."
Hercules opened his mouth, but was at a loss for words. He could see that Iolaus was getting mad and wanted to choose his words carefully.
"Come on, admit it, you didn't think I could manage to get to Thrace without you tagging along after me."
"Okay, I guess I was a little concerned when you came face-to-face with the hydra in the cave."
"YOU WERE THERE?" Iolaus stood up, anger boiling over. He started pacing.
"Iolaus..."
"Why were you following me?"
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have."
"No, you shouldn't have! Boy, I can't believe you did that!"
"Iolaus, calm down. I never should have brought this up."
Iolaus stopped pacing and looked at Hercules. "Don't tell me to calm down."
"You're getting yourself all worked up over nothing."
"Is that what it is to you? Nothing?"
"Iolaus, why are you getting so upset? It happened a long time ago."
Iolaus was beside himself. "It doesn't matter when it happened. Don't you get it? In all the years we've been together, the monsters we've fought, the bandits we've put in their place, you still think I can't fight my own battles. How can you think that? I don't have your strength, but I've always been able to hold my own in a fight." He continued pacing and looked outside. "You think you have to follow me, like I need a babysitter or something. Maybe you've been trying to get rid of me."
Hercules was exasperated. "Iolaus, what are you talking about? You're delirious and you're babbling, now sit down and calm down."
Iolaus turned and looked directly at Hercules. "You don't think I'm pulling my weight, you don't think I can take care of myself and you don't want me around anymore, but you're too nice to tell me. Well, I can take a hint!" He grabbed his sword, vest and boots and stormed out of the cave.
"Iolaus!" Hercules yelled after him. Then he mumbled, "Great," as he stood to go after his friend. Iolaus could be hard-headed and stubborn, but Hercules would always love him as a brother, no matter what. With that in mind, off he went in the direction Iolaus took, to try to talk some sense into him.
Iolaus stomped off, having worked himself into a frenzy. "He never wanted me around. I've always been a thorn in his side, but he couldn't get rid of me. I was too stupid to see the signs and leave." Iolaus walked at a fast pace for several minutes, ignoring the pain that should have warned him to rest. He walked angrily for several minutes through the forest and away from the lake, away from the one person he thought was the friend and brother he could always count on. He did not remember ever being this mad at Hercules over anything.
Suddenly, Hercules stepped into the path ahead of Iolaus, causing the smaller man to stop dead in his tracks. "Iolaus stop, you're not making sense."
"Oh, so you not only don't want me around, but you're calling me stupid too."
Iolaus threw down the items he was still carrying with such a force that Hercules was sincerely worried about him. "What is wrong with you? That's not what I said. You're blowing this way out of proportion."
"Am I? Am I, Hercules? Come on, I'll show you I can fight as good as you." He took a stance, arms out in front of his chest, that challenged Hercules to attack him.
"Iolaus, I'm not going to fight you. Look at you. You're bleeding and bruised. You're a mess." Hercules put his arms up in a gesture of surrender that showed he had no intention of fighting his friend, but Iolaus, still in a frenzy, grabbed Hercules' right arm and flipped him onto his back.
"Still think I can't fight my own battles?"
Hercules employed the same technique he had used in his barn a long time before, and grabbed Iolaus' legs with his own legs, sending Iolaus falling flat on his face. He hated having to hurt Iolaus, but had to get him to stop this nonsense. Then in less time than it took to take a breath, he realized he had overreacted and may have caused further injury to his friend when he heard Iolaus say a painfully soft, "Ow."
Iolaus gasped at the pain to his left side while Hercules quickly moved toward him, put his hands on Iolaus' back and kept him from moving. I'm sorry, Iolaus. I don't want to hurt you. Come back with me and let's sort this out."
"Sort what out? Don't you get it? I guess you've always thought you had to jump in to save me in a fight. Well, you never had to...Buddy. The way he said 'Buddy,' as if it was suddenly a disgusting word, hurt Hercules deeply. Iolaus was still lying face down, with Hercules' strong hands holding him still so he would not get up and attack the bigger man, hurting himself further.
"Iolaus, where is this coming from? I never had to do that. I did at that bridge because you were getting beaten up. We've always covered each other's backs, Iolaus. You've jumped in when I needed help and I never got mad at you over it. We help each other, Iolaus, we always have. I will never stand by and watch you get hurt." He chose his words carefully .
"You can only take on so many guys at a time before they're going to overpower you and beat the stuffing out of you. I'm not going to stand there and let them, so if you want to be mad at me for that, then fine. Go on your way and we don't have to see each other again." Hercules stood, looked down momentarily at this man he had always called his best friend, then very sadly walked away, back in the direction of the cave. He could only hope Iolaus would come to his senses soon.
Iolaus remained where he was, listening to Hercules' footsteps fade into the distance. Face down and motionless, he was breathing hard from anger. His heart was pounding furiously in his chest and he felt like he had been kicked in the gut. He felt like any energy he had ever had was suddenly drained out of him, and he was fuming! "Okay, fine!" he yelled toward the direction Hercules had gone. He slowly sat up, every muscle in his body rebelling against moving around. His left side was a bruised mess, along with the teeth marks surrounded by swelling redness that were becoming uglier by the minute. Blood flowed freely down his arm, but he did not care.
He slid over and plopped at an awkward angle against a tree where he tried to calm down and do some serious thinking. The idea of never seeing Hercules again was something he did not, could not even consider, but he suddenly realized he was at a major crossroads in his life. He could go on his way to a different life without Hercules, or he could go back to the cave. Hercules had saved his life this morning, as he had done on so many other occasions. Iolaus loved Hercules as a brother, but he could not go around believing that Hercules did not think he could manage in a fight, or get himself from one place to the next without hovering over him. "Who does he think he is, anyway?" he said angrily.
"When did I ever not hold my own in a fight?" he continued mumbling to himself. He wrapped his right arm around himself and hugged his left side as the pain became more intense. It hurt to breathe, it hurt to think, it just plain hurt. He thought about the time in that tavern when he let his guard down and someone had knocked him out cold with a chair. Hercules had carried him to a room to sleep it off. Then there was the time when he and Hercules fought the Amazons and he went off alone instead of covering Hercules' back. Hercules had even yelled at him not to go, but his pleas were ignored. Iolaus let his guard down for just a moment that time as well and was stabbed with a knife.
As painful as it was, he took a very deep and still wheezing breath and let it out slowly. Maybe Hercules was right afterall. Maybe he wasn't capable of fighting his own battles. Sometimes he was so full of self-doubt about trying to live up to what Hercules could do that he could not do himself, that he drove himself crazy thinking about it. Still, he knew that he was a very capable warrior when he needed to be, and only wanted Hercules to believe that of him.
He put his hand to his throbbing forehead, feeling like he was going to be sick. He looked around and took note of where he was, the effort making him feel even worse. He listened carefully for the sound of water, feeling an urgent need to get to a lake, a river, anyplace where he could splash some water on his face. He stood and staggered painfully to a nearby stream that he could just hear in the distance. Once there, he knelt at the stream's edge, splashed water on his face, drank some water from cupped hands and ran his hands through his hair. He was a mess, both physically and emotionally, but he was calmer than he had been just a short while ago, and his racing heartbeat was slowing down.
The bruised and battered man sat down next to the stream and realized that the two occasions he had recalled were just that, two occasions. He thought about all the other times when he had fought monsters or bandits and had come out fine. He picked up a stone and threw it into the stream. Then he picked up another, and another, subconsciously and uncaringly throwing them into the swiftly running water. He was somewhat aware of the soothing sound of the stream and the plopping of the stones, and further relaxed as he allowed his emotions to stop running rampant.
Iolaus glanced across the stream, then upstream and down, desperately not wanting to feel as miserable as he felt. He stopped tossing stones and just sat, legs crossed and hands resting on his knees. He really could not imagine never seeing Hercules again, and made up his mind to go back to the cave. If Hercules could forgive him, maybe they could chalk this up to a big misunderstanding. He was not sure Hercules would be very willing to forgive him, however, much less want him around anymore.
He decided to start by forgiving Hercules, if Hercules would let him. He was still mad at him, but now that he had calmed down, knew Hercules had meant no harm the day he pursued him on the road to Thrace. Besides, he hoped that Hercules had gotten the message about how much that day had upset him, and that it would not happen again. In spite of all of his self-doubts, he knew he deserved better treatment from his best friend.
There was also the dawning realization that he was suddenly too sick to care.He leaned over the stream and became violently ill. There was nothing on his stomach, just a couple bites of fish, so he just heaved painfully and relentlessly for what seemed like an eternity, trying to catch his breath. He thought his sides were going to explode. Then he had a startling revelation that he did not want to be alone in the wilderness, sick and without anyone even knowing the condition he was in. He had come to his crossroads and knew then and there which path he would follow.
Somewhat bent over from both pain and sorrow, Iolaus staggered back to where his things were. He sat on the ground and put his boots on, angrily fastening them. He stood up and put on his vest, then slowly bent over and picked up his sword. Still in a great deal of pain, he took a breath and started walking very slowly back to the lake where he and Hercules were staying. It took him about twenty agonizing minutes to get there, his head hanging as low as he felt.
Just outside the cave entrance, Iolaus stopped and stared at it. He was prepared for Hercules to tell him to get lost. If Hercules was truly trying to get rid of him, this would be the perfect opportunity. He braced himself, ready for any outburst from his friend. "Just tell me to get out of here and I'll go," he muttered to himself. Just then, Hercules stepped outside and the two men were surprised to be face-to-face.
"Hercules, I...uh..."
Hercules was not sure what Iolaus was going to say. "Are you leaving? Iolaus, I don't want you to go, but if you feel you have to, then I won't stand in your way."
"No Hercules, I don't want to go. I...uh...just..."
"Come inside, Iolaus, it's too cold to stand out here." Hercules saw that Iolaus was on the verge of collapsing. He looked dreadfully pale, was hunched over, his bruised and torn left arm needed attention, and that was just his exterior. He was probably faring even worse on the inside. He desperately wanted to reach out and help his friend get into the warmth of the cave, but wasn't sure Iolaus would let him. He took a chance, however, and put a supporting arm around Iolaus' shoulders and helped him. Iolaus did not resist.
Barely able to walk, Iolaus shuffled along at Hercules' side into the cave and sat down on his blanket close to the fire, thankful for its warming glow. He felt awful. He was freezing, his left side hurt worse with each passing minute and his head was still throbbing. "Look, Hercules," he finally said, "Do you still want me hanging around with you? If not, it's okay and I understand, but just be honest with me."
"Iolaus, I never wanted you to leave. I'm sorry if you got that impression. I'm not even sure what happened. One minute we're best friends and the next we're at each other's throats."
"Well, just promise that you'll let me fight my own battles." His vest and boots were still wet, so he slowly removed them and put them next to the fire, the effort exhausting him.
"Okay, Iolaus, that's not a problem, but I still refuse to stand by if I see ten bad guys beating you to a pulp. If I think you need help, I'm going to be there for you."
Iolaus thought and finally said, "Okay, deal, but only if I'm completely overrun by bad guys."
"Okay, Iolaus."
"Only if there's no chance at all that I can beat them."
"Okay, Iolaus."
"Only if I'm two seconds from being unconscious."
"Okay, Iolaus."
"Only if..."
"Iolaus, I get the point! You can hold your own in a fight better than anyone I know. You've saved my neck on more than one occasion and I wouldn't want anyone else traveling with me or at my back in a fight."
"Are you sure?"
"Iolaus, stop it."
"Okay, okay." He thought a few seconds. "And no more tagging along after me to make sure I can find my way somewhere. I have a better sense of direction than you could ever hope to have. And no more lying to me. Boy, I can't believe you lied and told me you were in Thrace way before I got there."
"Well, I didn't lie to you exactly. I was just joking around. Besides I still beat you fair and square, and you never gave me the one hundred dinars."
"Yeah, well..."
"Yeah, well..." Hercules repeated, mocking his friend.
"I'm sorry I got so mad."
"It's okay. I'm sorry I knocked you down. I didn't mean to do that, I just reacted when you flipped me over and I didn't mean to hurt you. We all have to let off steam now and then. I didn't know you would be so mad that I followed you."
"That's not what I was mad about. I was mad that you thought you HAD to, like I was a little kid who might get lost or something."
"No, Iolaus, it was never like that. I guess I was being overprotective of you and I was wrong. You did so much that day. I saw the bandits you left in your wake. Then the eel and the hydra. There's no way you needed me or anyone else to help you."
"I would've been in Thrace before you if not for all that stuff."
"Yes, you would have."
"So maybe you owe ME a hundred dinars."
"I don't think so, my friend."
Iolaus smiled and reached over with his good right arm to the pile of wood next to the fire to add more to it, but the effort was painful. Then he had one more question. " So, before...you were going to say something about Nemesis. What did she have to do with you following me?"
Hercules paused and took a deep breath, not wanting to explain. "Iolaus, there are some things you don't need to know."
"Great!" Iolaus exclaimed. "Why do you feel you have to keep things from me? All I ever ask from you is to respect me enough to be honest with me."
Hercules hoped Iolaus was not going to go flying out of the cave again, partly because the way Iolaus looked, he would probably collapse just outside, and partly because he did not want to chase after him again if he somehow managed to go any distance. "Iolaus I DO respect you, and I have always been honest with you. It's just that..."
"Then tell me, Hercules, what did Nemesis have to do with it?"
"Okay. Hera sent her here. I met up with Nemesis on the boat ride to Thrace and found out she was here to kill someone named Iolaus. She had no idea that you're my best friend."
"So what happened?"
"I talked her out of it. I told her to go home and tell Hera she couldn't find you, or anything to leave you alone."
"Why didn't you tell me this before?"
"It never came up."
Iolaus thought a minute. "It was Nemesis you were talking to in Thrace, wasn't it? I heard you talking to someone, but no one was there."
"Yeah, that was Nemesis."
"So why didn't she do me in?"
"Well, she was going to kill you because Hera thought you possessed too much pride. After Nemesis saw all the good things you did that day, on your own without any help from me, she decided you had redeemed yourself. I desperately wanted to step in and help you, especially with the hydra, but Nemesis told me I couldn't. Looking back, I guess it's a good thing I didn't, because like you said, you need to fight your own battles, although it was not easy to know you were in that cave with a hydra and not want to run in to help you."
Iolaus nodded, and even that small action made him feel even more nauseated than he already felt. He hugged his left side with his right arm, as he had been doing since he sat down. "And since I'm being so honest and forthcoming with information here, I also know you weren't going to shoot me with your arrow in Thrace."
"How do you know that? Maybe I was," Iolaus said teasingly.
"Uh uh, not while you were blindfolded."
"Yeah...well, I guess you're right," Iolaus smiled. "Boy, I was exhausted by the time we settled in that night."
"I know," Hercules laughed. "You collapsed and then slept half the next day while I caught fish, got more wood, cooked breakfast..."
"So I'm lazy too."
"Iolaus, don't start."
"Okay, okay, I'm just kidding. I don't need anymore days like that one."
"Or like today," Hercules added.
By now it was late evening and the sun was setting in a magnificent display of color outside the shelter these two brothers shared. "Hercules, you were going to get some herbs...you know, for my wounds?"
"Yes I was, wasn't I?" Hercules smiled at his friend and reached into a nearby bowl. "I got them when you were out...there," he motioned outside with his hand. He put the herbs into the fresh bucket of water that had been heating over the fire.
"You knew I'd be back?"
"I hoped you would be."
Iolaus breathed deeply, and laid down on his blanket as he said, "I'll put that herbal water on my wounds in a minute." He felt so miserable and so desperately wanted to put this day behind him, that he fell sound asleep next to the fire within seconds.
Hercules looked at this man who had been his best friend for most of their lives, this friend who was sometimes quick to anger, but also quick to forgive. Iolaus really had scared Hercules to death this morning, and Hercules could not even imagine living a life without him. Even the thought that Iolaus might not have come back from his earlier outburst gave Hercules cause for alarm. Not having this friend around, this friend who meant more to Hercules than anyone else, was something he could not comprehend.
Now he was glad they had gotten through this latest chapter in their lives. He hoped Iolaus understood how much Hercules needed him, and that following him that day was for his own safety. He had watched from a distance, but was ready to step in, Nemesis or no Nemesis, if Iolaus' life had in any way been in danger. He would do it again in a heartbeat, and knew that Iolaus would do the same for him.
The herbal water was sufficiently heated, so Hercules poured some into a bowl, put a cloth in the solution, wrung it out and began tending to Iolaus' wounds. He was sorry to see scratches and swelling on the right side of Iolaus' face where Hercules had caused him to fall earlier. He put the soothing cloth on that area first, then said aloud, "I'm sorry, Iolaus. Welcome back."
The End
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