That night, Penelope and myself both have trouble sleeping. As I am sleeping outside on the ground, I worry that Telemakhos and I will never be able to fight off the many, dangerous suitors. Then Athena reassures me that through the gods anything is possible. Torn apart by the loss of me as a husband and her commitment to be remarried, Penelope wakes and preys for Artemis to kill her. This made me feel terrible and I didn't know what would happen if I didn't get rid of the suitors quickly. It was only a matter of time until something drastic would happen. This shows that sometimes in life, one must act quickly in order to solve or eliminate their problems. Of course, this distress wakens me, and I ask Zeus for a good omen. He responds with a clap of thunder and all of the sudden a maid in another room starts yelling at the suitors. The next day, the palace springs to life. Telelmakhos and I meet in succession while the suitors are in the hall feasting. Eumaeus, Melanthius and Philoetius meet and Philotius, a kind and loyal herdsman, says that he has not given up hope of Odysseus's return. Then those pitiful suitors entered, once again plotting Telemakhos's murder. Amphinomus convinces them to call off the killing, however a doomsayer appears in the form of an eagle carrying a dove in its feet. While this happens, my good, loyal friend Athena keeps the suitors occupied all throughout dinner to prevent me from loosing my edge. What a clever idea! Then Ctesippus, a wealthy and arrogant suitor, has the nerve to throw a cow hoof at me! Of course he does this because my son threatened to stab him with his sword. Then the suitors laugh and laugh, but they fail to notice that the walls of the room are covered in blood and that their faces have assumed a strange, ghostly look. Theoclymenus interprets this as portents of doom that cannot be escaped from.
