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'You look good, Lester.' Meg observed the morning he turned up for piano lessons.
That was a lie. The god did not look like his usual self. In fact, he looked even worse than his Lester Papadopoulos form.
His eyes were sunken and dull, hair frayed with split ends (a nightmare with curly hair like his). He was muttering something under his breath and kept glancing around them. Worst of all...
Apollo, the god of music, was NOT keen on playing music.
'Hello to you too, Meg,' he sighed distractedly, allowing himself in despite the Meliai's protests. Meg waved her hand to dismiss them, telling them to continue their duties.
The duo was quiet for a bit before curiosity overtook Meg. She turned to the bedraggled god and asked what was happening with him. He sniffed, not wanting to disclose the details.
'God stuff.'
That made her even more curious, and Meg knew what kept the deity talking. She poked him in the stomach, scowling at him as she did so.
'Ow! Why did you do that?' Apollo frowned, hands instinctively rubbing the spot where her finger made contact.
'Lesterrrr…' Her voice took on a sing-songy tone the longer she rolled her r's.
'Meggg…' He retorted, glaring at her. They continued their staring contest until he sighed and muttered under his breath, something about demigods.
'You gotta tell me stuff.' Meg's voice took on a tone of concern for her friend. 'Is it big daddy Zeus again?'
'Please don't call him that. But yeah. Well, kinda. Most of the time it is his fault. Today is just an off day.'
Meg took an educated guess. 'Your boyfriend, Hyacinth? Hyacinthus?'
'Today was supposed to be his birthday,' he grumpily agreed, running his hand through his head. Meg glanced at him before making up her mind.
'Okay,' she decided. 'Teach me some scales. That is bound to keep you busy.'
~~~
It didn't keep him busy.
Apollo taught her the G major scale before he got distracted and stared off into the distance again.
'Apollo?' She questioned, noticing the quiet demeanour of her companion. Meg waved her grubby fingers in front of him, and called him names. With no other choice, she resorted to the Poke.
'Hyacinthus?' He murmured, staring but not staring into Meg's eyes. She shifted uncomfortably. Those blue eyes were unnerving, especially on Lester's face.
'Nope,' she popped the 'p', preparing for the second Poke. 'Just me, Meg McCaffrey.'
The god looked puzzled for a few seconds, before focusing on her. 'Oh, it's you. Meg.'
He looked disappointed for some reason. Meg took offence.
'You sound like you're a disappointed dad,' she accused him, her finger frozen in the air. 'I don't like that.'
'Nah, I am not disappointed.' But his voice warbled a bit.
'You are, Mr God of Truth.'
Apollo held his hands up in surrender, his eyes looking sad. Despite that, he forced a grin.
'Sorry,' he chuckled, 'got too engrossed in the memories. That's all. Do you want to continue?'
'Look, if you want to come outside and plant hyacinths, you should have told me.' Meg interjected.
Apollo's smile dropped. He spluttered an indignant 'what?', but the demigod simply rolled her eyes.
'I mean if it makes you feel better. I have to call Luguselwa later and get some seeds.'
He opened his mouth to protest but thought better of it. The sun god slumped forward as if the millennia were catching upon him.
'I would appreciate that.' He confirmed in a tiny voice.
~~~
Lu came around midday with the seeds that they had requested. She looked at Apollo quizzingly, before dropping them off. Meg wanted her to stay, but the Gaul laughed it off and mentioned that she needed to attend to Meg's siblings, leaving the two alone in the dining area.
Apollo whistled under his breath, impressed with the number of packets strewn on the table. The god picked up a packet and shook it gently, his eyes forlorn but determined.
'Okay,' Meg decided, 'let's go.'
They made it to the greenhouses, inhaling the sweet scent of passing rain on barren soil. Overhead, the sun blazed brightly, though not too harshly. Apollo looked a bit better and was carrying himself straighter. Meg supposed it was because he was in his element now, as the sun god.
'Where do you want to plant them?' They asked at the same time. Apollo's face was gold, whereas Meg cackled at his expense.
'Uh,' he stammered, seemingly forgetting how words work. He shook his head and grinned wider.
'That part over there. I think it gets the most sunlight each day,' he pointed to a nearby spot. Meg raised an eyebrow but did not question his decision.
'Sure,' she agreed, and they made their way towards the spot. Meg readied her trowel and gloves, and Apollo followed suit. She gestured to her, indicating her ideal layout.
The god hummed apprehensively, and he, too, decided that he liked the idea.
They worked in silence for the next few hours, with each one focusing on the task at hand. Thanks to Apollo's godly powers with the sun and a bit of her own Demeter powers, they increased the rate the flowers grew.
The result looked good, to be honest.
~~~
Before they went for dinner, Meg used the last bit of her strength, causing the flowers to bloom. Apollo got misty-eyed as a carpet of purple flowers bloomed, releasing a scent he had lost for thousands of years.
‘Come on, dummy. We need to go for dinner. Also here.’
She passed him a bouquet of spare hyacinth flowers that did not fit their layout, plus some extra seeds for his garden.
Apollo looked surprised at first, his face glowing a deep yellow. ‘H-how? Where did you find the time to do this?’
The demigod shrugged, ‘Dunno.’
They left it at that, but Meg could have sworn the god was skipping every step before stumbling and nearly faceplanting.
She fought off a smile and stuck her tongue out.
‘Idiot.’
Apollo just laughed.