#iason

There Ithacans <3 (previous here)

"Come, my heart, put on your armour" - Euripides' Medea

Medea sits on the porch of her house in Corinth after killing her children, in a short moment of contemplation, waiting for the arrival of Iason and her final triumph over him. She is the Deus ex Machina in her own play. She doesn't need a god to intervene on her behalf, she is half-god herself.

I went looking for Dardanus in tags and got to the bottom and half of them weren’t even about him, just mentioning lineage, and like 2 posts (other than mine) finding him interesting

I got to the bottom and immediately said I need to fix that lol

Like Hippodamia is gaining more attention, Iasion I feel like is weird because he’s definitely seen (when with Demeter) but also isn’t talked about? Like people forget like with Amphitrite.

Then again, I never go through this because I don’t check tags lol I just post

🏛️Elpis of Ithaca — Backstory

TW: MENTION OF CHILD EXPLOITATION / IMPLIED SA / IMPLIED ED

Origin: From the region near Ephyra, now a palace servant in Ithaca

⸻

Elpis was born into a simple but warm household. Her father, a kind-hearted weaver with rough hands and a quiet laugh, loved her dearly. He called her “my little star” and always sang to her while working.

Until she was twelve, he was her entire world.

Then—illness.

A slow death.

Too slow for peace. Too fast for a child to prepare.

After his funeral, a bitter feud broke out between her mother and her father’s family—accusations of infidelity, shame, inheritance disputes. Her mother, enraged and scared, grabbed Elpis and fled.

But she left behind Elpis’s little brother—six years old.

Elpis screamed, begged to stay with him. Her mother refused.

She never saw him again.

⸻

Fleeing her in-laws with no coin, no shelter, and no plan, Elpis’s mother turned desperate—and then calculating.

She realized what Elpis could earn.

At 13, Elpis was sold to a brothel. Not once, not twice. Over and over.

Not just her body—her voice, her kindness, her innocence.

Everything was bartered. Everything had a price.

And the woman who bore her took the cut.

Elpis forgot what love felt like. But she never forgot her brother’s face.

⸻

When she was 20, a wealthy noblewoman visiting the brothel noticed her gentleness—not as a seductress, but as a girl with soft hands and quiet eyes. The woman pulled strings, paid high, and purchased her not as a concubine—but as a servant for Queen Penelope in Ithaca.

To Elpis, it felt like another sale. But what waited for her was not chains.

It was Galene.

⸻

Galene was 18 then—already training as Penelope’s second hand. She met Elpis the moment she arrived: a gaunt, long-haired girl with bruises under her skin and silence in her bones.

Galene gave her food, blankets, rules and advice.

Then, a pair of shears.

.

.

.

“Do you want to cut it off?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s do it.”

Elpis’s hair fell away. A piece of her old life went with it.

Over the next four years, Galene helped her regain strength—fed her well, got her working in the palace laundry and herb room, taught her how to walk without shrinking.

She grew fuller, sturdier, like the other palace women.

By 25, she became a picture of beauty by Ithacan standards—round cheeks, strong hips, kind hands.

But her eyes stayed soft, as if she’s always remembering something far away.

⸻

The Olive Branch Tattoo

• Location: Her collarbones, etched like gentle vines curling along the bone.

• Design: A simple olive branch—hand-drawn, imperfect, alive.

• Meaning: Safety. Growth. Home.

“When I got here, I saw olive trees everywhere.

They looked like they could survive anything.

I wanted one on me.”

She did most of the tattoo herself, using soot and careful cuts.

Lysandra helped steady her hand. It was the first time she’d chosen what to mark her body with.

⸻

Hidden Marks

She has other tattoos—older ones.

Placed behind her left thigh, low enough to hide under tunics.

They were not her choice.

“Unless we’re in the common baths… you might see them.

But I won’t explain.”

⸻

Character mentioned in the story:

⸻

since Iasion (Karmanor) is the wife (consort) of Demeter, and mortals can become Gods by proxy of marriage, that’d be the easiest way to make him a God. However, since Iasion always dies (electrocution or age) but Karmanor’s death isn’t stated to happen, I’m going to make the assumption that Karmanor isn’t a demi-god mortal like Iasion (I think that’s safe to conclude—) and is just a full demi-god with immortality. So this is where my brain makes the disconnect of the two of em

So in my interpretation, I made it like this: Iasion, instead of being married to Demeter, is her consort up until he dies (regardless of which version I use). Upon his revival as a gift from Persephone to her mother, the two get married, and Iasion is lifted up to Godhood; therefore, all the children Karmanor has with Demeter are born from Iasion and Demeter upon his revival

Me: -Does a quick google search-

Google:

Me: Bindweed? Lets search that!

Me: Oh my fucking god, Wheat is one of Demeter's sacred crops don't do this to me, no, no. WHAT DO YOU MEAN BINDWEED GROWS ALONG SIDE WITH WHEAT, NO!