The Unexpected Surprise

When we were both awake to perform our duties, Apollo was already dressed for the festival. He wore a beautiful knee-length white tunic which had embroidery of golden, silver and bronze threads and a golden silk belt around his waist. He draped a chlamys of sheer and shimmering golden silk on his shoulders, with a silver fibula to pin it together, and wore leather sandals threaded with gold silk. Adorning his head of short, wavy and luscious golden hair was a shining gold laurel wreath.

As we prepared our chariots, I complimented him on his outfit, to which he graciously thanked me. And when we were back on Olympus after I had set the moon and he had raised the sun, he instructed me to 'pretty myself up' for the festival. He also told me that there was a change of timing and that I was to meet him at his temple about an hour or two past midday. When I assured him that I would do so, he left for Delphi.

To pass the time, I read scrolls and parchments in the grand library, played petteia with Athena in her room (with her winning as usual) and drank ice cold nectar and snacked on cold sweet fruits with Mother and Hestia in a wooden gazebo in the garden.

Finally, when it was an just past noon, I made my way back to my room to prepare.

I had some nymphs to help me draw my bath and prepare the outfit that I had picked out, which I had sent for some mending that morning. When their tasks were done, I dismissed them and set to prepare myself.

The waters in my bathing pool were warm and had the scent of sea salts, which the nymphs had poured. As I indulged in the silkiness of the oils of the now-dissolved salt in the waters, I scrubbed at my body gently with a bar of goat's milk soap before rinsing it and my hair in ambrosia. The aromas that wafted in the air of my bathroom smelled so divine that I wouldn't have mind just staying here and inhaling the sweet air.

But I got out soon after and the waters dissolved. I donned my silk bathrobe and dried my hair with a towel as I made my way to my bedroom, where my outfit was laid atop the dark violet silk sheets of my bed. When my hair was completely towel-dried and combed, I carefully put dress on and then examined myself in my full-length mirror.

The dress was made of dark gold silk, but it looked nearly like molten gold cascading down my slim and slender figure to my ankles. It was a fitting off-shoulder piece with loose shimmery silver gossamer sleeves that reached my wrists, darker gold trimmings and a silver sash at my waist. I had chosen this dress to pair with Apollo's attire.

I was just about to tie a ribbon behind me when there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," I called out as I summoned the doors to open.

I was absolutely surprised that it was Aphrodite that came into my room. She was just about halfway to me and looked as though she was about to say something when she stopped suddenly. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was slightly open as she stared at me.

"By the Gods, Artemis, you look stunning!" she exclaimed with a smile as she made her way towards me. "The dress is absolutely gorgeous! Gold silk really suits you. And the silver touches just make it all better!"

I only stared back at her with a raised eyebrow. Usually, I would never expect to receive compliments from Aphrodite, the vain Goddess of Beauty. It only made me suspicious to her true motives. That, and I did not know why exactly she was here in my room in the first place.

"Uhmm…. thank you…." I replied, still confused by her presence in my room.

She only nodded her head with a smile before taking a step closer to me. "Here, let me help you with that," she said as she took the two ends of the silver sash in her hands. I did not protest and allowed her to help me as I continued gazing at my reflection in the mirror.

Aphrodite did not take her hands off me even after she had already tied the sash into a pretty bow. She went on to brush away invisible dust from my dress, smooth away any crease on the golden silk and arrange my long, wavy and luscious bistre tresses so that it framed my face perfectly. All while I looked at her with a weirded and confused look in my eyes.

"This is suitable for the Delphi music festival," she complimented gleefully. "You certainly made a right choice."

"How did you know about the music festival?" I inquired curiously.

Aphrodite rolled her icy blue eyes at my question. "I'm not clueless as to what's happening on the mortal realms, Artemis. I've had some women from Delphi who prayed to me to help them look beautiful for the festival."

I felt irritation growing in me slowly because I wasn't fond of being told off like some sort of stupid child, but I kept my cool and just calmly said, "Oh, I see. By the way, was there a reason why you came into my room?"

She then made a face to show that she had realized what the reason was. "Oh, yes! I came here to apologize."

I became even more confused. "Apologize? For what?" I questioned.

"For bringing that topic up last night," she explained. "It wasn't right to just do so."

"Oh, that. Well, it's-"

But I halted my words and my eyes widened in realization and horror as his name popped up into my mind.

"OH, NO! ORION!" I exclaimed in panic.

Aphrodite yelped in shock and fell onto the edge of my bed. "What? What?" she asked in shock. "What happened to him?"

As I threw open my wardrobe doors and searched for a pair of shoes, I hurriedly replied, "I forgot to tell him that I wasn't available today! He must be waiting for me! Oh Tartarus, I'll have to hurry and tell him that I can't spend the day with him!"

I grabbed a pair of white silk slippers and slipped them on as Aphrodite exclaimed, "Well, you better hurry! He's sure to wonder why you didn't go to Crete to see him!"

I nodded my head quickly before running out of my room. I rushed past everyone that stood in my direction, not even giving them a short second glance. I ran to the courtyard and immediately prepared my two winged horses to my moonstone chariot. When the reins were tied and secured, I jumped onto the chariot and commanded my steeds to hurry to Crete. They obeyed immediately and flew off into the air.

When my chariot landed onto Crete, I've already caught sight of him sitting on the beach, gazing at the emerald sea before his attentions were caught by me and he immediately stood up and made his way in my direction.

I practically jumped out of my chariot and rushed to him, saying, "Orion. I'm so sorry, I'm late. It's just-"

Orion held up a hand to stop my words and simply replied with a smirk, "It's alright, Artemis. No harm done. But let me just tell you that you look absolutely gorgeous in that dress." His teal green eyes gazed at my golden dress and he commented, "It seems that you might be wearing dresses in front of me to somehow gain my attentions. Trust me, you are successful."

I rolled my eyes and gave him a soft friendly shove to his shoulder. "You flatter yourself, son of Poseidon," I replied with a smile. "But thank you for the compliment. Very much appreciated."

He bowed his head as a show of appreciation before he reached out and gently grasped my hand. "Now that you've finally arrived, follow me. I wish to show you something."

My mind was instructing me to tell him that I could not spend the day with him because I still had the music festival to go to later on. But when I saw the look of eagerness and excitement in his bright teal green eyes, I decided to put aside those instructions for just a little while and let him show me what he wished to show me. Then, after that, I would go.

"Alright then. Show me what you wish for me to see."

Orion's smile turned brighter and he nodded eagerly. Then, he led me closer and closer to the seashore. I halted my steps before the crashing waves could even touch the tips of my silk slippers.

"What are you doing, Orion?" I questioned in confusion. "Why are you leading me to the sea?"

He turned his head to look at me, and I could see that there was still a smile on his face. Then he raised a hand and pointed at something ahead and asked, "Do you see that small island over there?"

My eyes followed the direction of where he was pointing and indeed I saw the blurry image of a small island up ahead. I had actually noticed that small island every time I came to Crete, but had never really thought much of it.

"Yes. That's the Islet of Leon. What about it?"

With the smile still on his lips, he told me, "It is there where I have a surprise for you."

I quirked a brow in curiosity. A surprise? I thought to myself. Orion planned a surprise for me? On the Islet of Leon? I wonder what it is.

"Okay….. So how do you suppose we get there?" I inquired cluelessly. "I think my chariot will do the job."

My questioned seemed to make his smile wider and his eyes twinkle. He took a step closer to me while I stayed still, wondering what exactly was he planning.

As he looked between me and the islet that was a few hundred meters away from where we stood, Orion said, "There is no need of use for your chariot when we can get there simply. But in order to get there, I need you to trust me and allow me to carry you. Do you think you can do that?"

I looked at him in confusion. The trusting part I could do, for I already trusted him. But it was the part about him carrying me. I was absolutely confused about that part.

But because I was very curious as to what he had in mind, I simply answered with a shrug, "Okay. But you better not drop me. I don't want to dirty my dress."

"Wouldn't dream of it," he said with a wolfish grin. What he did next completely took me by surprise.

In a flash, he swept down and hit and grabbed the back of my knees with one hand, causing me to fall backwards and let out a yelp of shock. Luckily, his other hand was already prepared to catch my back before my head could hit the sand. Before I knew it, I was being carried bridal style in his arms.

"Orion! What the-" I cried out in a mixture of shock and surprise, but was stopped short when he suddenly started walking towards the salty green waters. "What are you trying to do?!" I exclaimed in panic, fussing about in his arms. "Are you going to swim there?! Don't do that! I'm wearing a dress!"

Orion laughed heartily and shook his head in mirth. "Of course, I'm not going to swim there, Artemis! And of course I won't try to ruin your very lovely dress," he assured me with a laugh. "You seem to have forgotten about my special talent."

"What special talent?" I asked him.

He did not reply. He just gave me a mischievous smirk before walking quickly up ahead. I yelped in shock when I heard the splashing of water underneath me and shut my eyes, waiting for the feel of wet silk sticking to my body.

But as the seconds passed, I realized that the splashing continued to sound below me, I was still dry and I wasn't actually in the water. I slowly slid open my eyes to meet the mirthful gaze of Orion. I studied the amused expression on his face before I turned my head to look down below us. What I saw completely amazed me.

I realized now that he was actually barefoot, and that his feet were actually walking on the ocean waters. It was as though he was just merely walking on the ground or on a smooth floor. Below his feet, I could see small and colorful fishes swimming around, some fleeing at the sight of him above.

"Gods above!" I muttered in amazement. "How are you doing that?!"

Orion's grin now turned into one of pride as he answered, "Remember what I said about inheriting a special talent from my father? Well, this is it."

Realization hit me immediately afterwards. "Oh, yes! The ability to walk on water," I realized. "It's so…. amazing."

Truly, it was amazing. Yes, I know that quite a lot of Poseidon's semi-divine illegitimate children would inherit this very special trait of his, like how they would inherit from him the green hue in their eyes. But this was the first time I've ever seen anyone perform that ability up close and it was very entertaining to watch.

Suddenly, while I was still staring in awe at the ocean below Orion's feet, he did a spin, which made me shriek in shock and instinctively throw my arms around his neck out of fear that I might slip out of his arms and into the water.

"Orion! That isn't funny!" I chastised him, but was surprised when I felt my lips tingling into a giggling smile. "If you do anything like that again, I swear I'll… I'll…."

Orion quirked an eyebrow curiously. "You'll?" he inquired with a cocky smile.

No words came to mind and I sighed in defeat. "I've got nothing," I admitted in a mutter. "But seriously, just don't do that again without warning me first-hand. I might fall into the water."

He nodded his head in reply. "Of course, Artemis. I'll not do it by surprise any more. Though I don't think that's a problem, considering how tightly wrapped your arms are around my neck."

I immediately realized that I did in fact have my arms wrapped tightly around his neck. I saw his cocky and amused expression and I turned my head, seemingly to look away into the distance when actually I was just trying to hide the blush that was threatening to bloom on my cheeks.

We got closer to Leon with each step on water that Orion took. By now we must be about a hundred meters away from the main island of Crete, because it was blurring behind us already while Leon was becoming clearer in view.

"Your perfume is exquisite."

I looked back at his face with a raised eyebrow. "Care to repeat that?" I asked.

"The aroma radiating from you is fragrant," he said. "I can tell that you used sea salts because I can smell the freshness of an ocean breeze radiating from you. It's more concentrated from you than the air around us."

Well, that seemed quite…. intimate. But nonetheless I was flattered that he complimented me once again. "As always, thank you for your compliment, Orion. It is very much appreciated," I told him with a small smile.

Orion smiled in return before he turned his head away to look ahead. Suddenly, I felt him step on something more solid and could no longer hear the splashing of water. I looked down and saw his bare feet walking out of the waters and onto soft-looking yellow sand. I trailed my eyes up higher and saw that there were palm trees nearly everywhere. That already told me that we had reached the Islet of Leon. Funny, I didn't know we were that close.

Finally, Orion gently set me down on my feet and I could feel how exactly soft the yellow sand was underneath the soles of my silk slippers. As I began to stand upright, the skirt of my dress cascaded smoothly down back to my ankles. I unwound my arms from his neck and turned to look around my surroundings.

The island was inhabited, so there were no sounds other than the crashing of the waves, the cawing of the seagulls that flew high above and the voices of me and Orion.

Orion took my hand once again and simply said, "Follow me." I followed him willingly and without question as he walked to the east.

We only walked for about a few minutes until I saw something that completely left me breathless.

Some of the palm trees were bunched together, forming their leaves into some sort of canopy and leaving a reasonable amount of space between them. The space was occupied by a brown mat that had platters of fruits, nuts, bread and sweet meats atop of it, with two wooden cups and a pitcher full of some chalky white liquid.

"Orion…." I began, but was too taken aback to complete my sentence.

"Do you like it?" he asked curiously. "I enjoyed the picnic that we had yesterday, especially when we talked. I thought that maybe we could do it again today. Only this time I'm the one doing everything. And for you."

"You did all this…. for me?" I asked in astonishment, turning to meet his eyes.

He seemed proud of that fact and nodded his head. "Yes," he said. "Only the best for a great mentor and friend."

That instantly made me feel touched on the spot. I knew that Orion was, despite his flaws, a kind soul on the inside, but I didn't know that he would be nice enough to set up a picnic just for me. Who knew what he had to do to get all those delicious platters of goodies, especially the breads and the meats. And to think that he had carried all of that with him from Crete to Leon.

I was at such a loss for words that I had to just say the first thing that popped into my mind. "That's so sweet of you," I told him with a grateful smile. "I…. Thank you…. So much."

"It's no problem," he replied. "Now let's sit down and eat."

Suddenly, my mind was suddenly thinking about Apollo and I wanted to smack myself on the forehead when I realized that I had the music festival to go to and the reason why I came to Crete in the first place was to inform Orion that I could not spend the day with him. But just when I was finally about to, he led me to the picnic mat.

And for some reason, seeing the eagerness and happiness in his teal green eyes and the smile that graced his masculine lips made my heart swell with emotion that I don't think I would even have the heart to make him disappointed by telling him that I could not spend time with him. What's more he had taken the time and effort to set it up especially for me and if I were to deny it, it was sure to make him feel as though all his efforts was for nothing and had gone to waste.

So I said nothing and just willingly followed him to the picnic mat. When I sat down and he sat down next to me, I thought to myself, Maybe just a little while. And then I'll go to Delphi. But right now, I should enjoy my time with him.

A young man with auburn hair and green eyes was walking through a small Delphi village. All around him, music was playing loudly and people were singing and dancing and drinking and smiling and laughing, with some were even staring in awe and jealousy at the rich and exquisite garments that he donned.

But the young man did not concentrate on what was around him. He was wondering to himself where she could be. It was past midday, and she had still not arrived. Not even when he had left his temple just an hour ago.

Where are you, Artemis? mortal-disguised Apollo wondered. Where could she be?

Author's Note:

Why can't I meet guys like Orion who would tell me how nice my perfume was or how gorgeous was my outfit and surprise me with a picnic on an islet? (T~T) Eh, maybe in the future!

And yet again, the tension arose slightly with Apollo wondering where in the world was Artemis! But Artemis now was too busy enjoying Orion's company! Things are going to get seriously messy soon!

Muse of Fanfiction