The Moon Is Definitely a Fool (8)
The meeting between Artemis and Apollo only became possible once dawn had arrived and the festival was entirely over. The attendants were still bustling about even at that hour, cleaning up after the celebration, so as recompense I planned to close the temple the next day and let them rest in peace.
"A fine place. Even in the age of myth there was no temple of this caliber — you may well hold your head high."
"Is that so? My shoulders are swelling with pride."
"There are a great many objects here that look familiar. Did you bring them over from elsewhere?"
"Yes. When the temples of each city were shut down, the priests who lost their posts brought them. Moving everything this far was no small labor, and some risked their lives to do it, so I put every last piece on display without exception. As a result some of the works feel a little crude when set side by side, but that has also drawn people who come simply to look around, the way one would a museum — so we've begun operating it in that direction."
"There will be priests who came from my own temples among them, so it is no wonder if some of the objects look familiar."
"As it happens, there is something I wished to ask of you, Lord Apollo. Might I impose on you for a moment of help?"
"Something other than Artemis?"
"Yes. Nothing especially difficult."
When he agreed, I summoned the priests who had come from Apollo's temples and had them face him and exchange greetings. Many of those priests had guarded Apollo's sanctuaries for generations; they apologized again and again for failing to protect those lands, and Apollo, as if gathering them into his arms, told them the age had simply come to this and offered words of forgiveness.
Once their conversation was finished, I called the two of them over and we set to work sorting the genuine articles from the fakes among the things brought from Apollo's temples. Apollo's priests were not merely one or two — they had come from every region — and so there were many objects with stories attached. Delos, Xanthos, Corinth; the most famous of all would have been Delphi, but that place had not yet fallen, so no priests had drifted in from there. Likewise the temple of Athena raised in Athens still stood, and so no one from that quarter had come to bow their head to me…
"Hmm. This one is a fake. But the one opposite is genuine. I recall once sharing a blessing with someone of your bloodline."
In any case, he went about the work with great good cheer.
"Thank you!"
"Might I ask you to appraise this one as well? My father held it until the day he died, insisting it was something of Lord Apollo's. If it should prove false…"
"Do not worry, child of the lower world. This too is authentic. Your father left you something truly fine — of that there is no doubt."
"Oh… Father! Your efforts were not in vain!"
"Th-this one is for the same reason! Is this truly something Lord Apollo gave to our father…?"
"Were you a priest of Delos?"
"Yes! B-but how did you—?"
"I once had a string of my lyre snap, and I gave it to the priest who stood there. Since he served in my temple, I told him to use it as a charm and had it bound to a great branch — and to think it has survived all this time."
"Aaaah! So it was true after all! Wh-when I was little I was certain Father was only lying to make me into a priest—! How could I have been so foolish! I was an idiot!"
"Hahaha~! There are a great many who have done splendid work. Even I, the sun god Apollo who always looks brightly down upon the earth, find my heart warmed."
The sorting proceeded very smoothly. The fakes were set aside to be dealt with later; for the ones he could not quite recall, we recited the anecdotes and asked whether they had truly happened, and if Apollo's memory stirred, we classed them as genuine. Even so, for those that still eluded him he vowed to take them himself and inquire directly of the gods connected to the tales. When the work was done, no one could hide their joy.
"A rare experience, and an honorable one. Who would have thought one would recall one's own past in such a fashion?"
"I am glad you seem pleased. I worried that asking a god of your stature to handle such menial work might anger you."
"Hardly. Though there were many who grieved over having treated carelessly the anecdotes and objects the previous generation of priests had taught them as children. They wish to apologize for what they did when they were young, yet cannot, and so suffer all the more."
"You're saying there is nothing to be done about it."
"For those who repent of the past… and for those who labored for me, Apollo… how could I treat such devotees harshly…?"
In other words: Isn't there something we can do somehow?
"This is sudden, but the number of objects coming into this place is growing. Not only what they brought, but the belongings of others as well. Displaying them in the temple is fine, yet if we leave things as they are, some incident is bound to occur sooner or later — so I am thinking of building a mythology museum without delay."
"A museum… gathering the belongings of the gods, you mean…?"
"Old heirlooms would be welcome. Or things connected to the heroes. Gathering such things in one place and impressing the greatness of the old age upon others would be truly fine."
"What do you want of me?"
"Today the citizens of Argos saw with their own eyes that Lord Apollo had descended. Therefore I wish to name this museum the Phoebus Museum. It will be a building where important objects are gathered in one place, and I hope that you, the sun god Apollo, will watch over it so that no fire ever consumes the relics and makes them vanish."
"Ohh~! You think deeply~! That is not the end of it, I trust?"
"Yes. From now on this temple will grow still larger, and relics from every region will gather here of their own accord. Heroes who have inherited a famous name will also visit the Phoebus Museum seeking the arms of the hero who first bore that name. We will duly explain Lord Apollo's grace and hand over the heirlooms and relics to them, and they in turn will call upon the epithet of Lord Apollo carved into the museum and praise the greatness of the god."
"Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Hahahaha! Excellent! Then what of my request?"
"I can descend into the underworld, so I will go myself and deliver the devotees' words of apology. I will convey their repentance to the dead, hear the response, and return — and then they too will rejoice and set their worries aside, and that as well will be said to be thanks to Lord Apollo's grace."
"Exactly so! You choose only the things that will make you beloved!"
Apollo radiated light from behind his back, gathered it in his hands, and shaped it into a single sphere. It was a most beautiful light, yet not hot, and even when it rose onto my palm it did not vanish, but hovered at my side.
"What is this?"
"A flame of my power, shared. If you set this at the center of the building you raise, it will swallow any fire and leave the relics unharmed. It is so conspicuous a miracle that I will surely be scolded by Father — but this affair benefits all the gods, so I will not be rebuked as harshly as Artemis was."
"To go so far as to accept a scolding for this…"
"In the long view it is a profitable tale, so it was hard to refuse your request. Well, do not worry. Being scolded by Father is a familiar business. Even so, I am not quite on the level of your sworn brother Hermes! Hahahaha!"
Apollo was a rather refreshing young man. After entrusting me with the flame, he even pressed into my hands a bow he produced from somewhere — so large that even I, fully grown, found it burdensome to handle.
"Ah, yes! If one is going to display such things under a name taken from my epithet, the first courtesy is to offer something oneself, is it not?"
"Whose bow is this? Surely not Lord Apollo's own…?"
"As if~! No matter how fond I am of you, I cannot go that far. But it is something closely connected to Artemis, so it should not be hard to guess."
At those words, sweat beaded on my brow.
A bow connected to Artemis — only one person came to mind at once.
"Orion…?"
"Exactly that! Originally it was something Artemis kept, but when she was driven out she seems to have left it behind. I know well how dearly she cherished that bow, so I had meant to return it on this occasion — but tch, even if there was a misunderstanding, to kick me in the face right off the bat! How did she turn into such a tomboy, I ask you!"
The sly grin he wore while rubbing the jaw she had struck earlier looked rather like Hermes. For all the bickering, they were family, and the way he looked after what needed looking after had a ring of reality to it.
"From the look of it, you came down with your mind already made up. Otherwise there would be no reason to bring a bow as well…"
"Shh! Do not tell Artemis. If she hears, she will certainly come to mock me."
"Of course."
Apparently embarrassed at having his consideration discovered, he put on a prim face and then hurried me along, saying we should go meet Artemis. The festival had only just ended, and already he was trying to help that child — whatever anyone said, the bond between them was strong.
Looking at how the twins both took Troy's side simply because Leto had, they do join forces when it truly matters.
If I said as much, I would only earn a glare, so I tucked their family affection carefully away in my heart and headed for the place where Artemis was waiting. Her form was not visible, but she had surely gone to Atalante — so that was the direction to take.