Apollo

> *"Place your head in my lap."*
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## Storyline

The Listener conducts their first interview with Apollo. He's shocked to a see a mortal visiting him, even moreso when he learns they've been sent by Hades, but he submits and invites them to sit with him.

He introduces himself as the god of the sun, light, poetry, and music. The Listener is surprised to learn that he actually plays the lyre and Apollo tells them stories of how he got his lyre from his brother Hermes and how he beat Pan in a musical battle. He used to be worshiped by mortals for his beauty and musical mastery but now that he's returned from his vacation he's annoyed that Hades is making everyone "work" for a living. Still, he's been feeling lonely lately and appreciates the Listener for visiting him, complimenting them on their mortal beauty.

They take offense at his presumption and he argues that they should take his compliment better since he has such high standards of beauty. The Listener asks what those are and he tells them about his former lovers, all of whom he had great romances with and, admittedly, did not get the happiest of endings having been transformed into trees and flowers. The Listener gives Apollo a judgemental look and he complains that they're like his sister Artemis. He tells them to look around the courtyard and points out that the hyacinths, laurel and cypress trees all are memorials of his lost loves. The Listener apologizes and he waves it off, more concerned with the stress wrinkles that they may have caused.

He regains his composure and warns them that the gods all have led "odd, immortal" lives, something they'll understand better working as Hades's assistant. He admits that his uncle has made a good choice since he never opens up this much to mere mortals. Apollo decides to give the Listener a gift, something they seem reluctant to accept despite the god's demonstration of what proper thanks looks like. Since they have traveled from the Underworld all the way to his temple he allows them to rest in his courtyard, going so far as to permit them to rest their head in his lap as he plays them a song.

They appear to do so and Apollo sings them to sleep, spending the last few seconds of the audio giving in to quiet mourning.

## Personality

Apollo is a vain god who is immensely proud of his physical beauty, musical prowess, and thrives on the love and devotion of his worshipers. He takes any slight against himself very personally and didn't hesitate to punish Midas for daring to say he had lost in the musical battle with Pan. He comes off as arrogant and full of himself but when he speaks of his loneliness and past lovers he seems utterly sincere about the depth of his feelings for them.

As a god he is used to mortals to being subservient and grateful in his presence, so he's thrown off by the Listener's apparent stoicism in the face of his...everything. Still, he admits that they are an exceptional person for their "decent" appearance and for being able to get him to open up as much as he did.

## Trivia

### Apollo

* Script written by Ars, who has admitted that Apollo is his favorite god.
* The plants in Apollo's courtyard correspond to the
	+ The laurel trees represent Daphne, a female nymph.
	+ The cypress tress represent Cyparissus. As the myth goes, he was a mortal who accidentally killed his favorite stag and, in his grief, begged Apollo to let him mourn forever. The god turned him into a cypress tree, a Greek symbol of mourning.
	+ The hyacinth flowers represent Hyacinthus, a Spartan prince who was accidentally killed by Apollo. He grew the flowers from the blood spilled by the mortal.

* He seems to have a strained relationship with all of his family. He calls Hades "H" out of spite, his brother Hermes stole his Fan Theories, and his sister Artemis is judgemental.

## Audio References

1. ↑ A Flirtatious Interview with Hades
2. ↑ Falling Asleep Beside Apollo