Alpheus stretched his arms above his head as he gazed up at the night sky, wondering at the shining silver sphere and the winking points of light. Selene, goddess of the moon, was up there and he sincerely hoped that she was gazing down on him. The memories of their nights together tugged at his soul and he cursed his fortune to be tied to the earth. 

Not that the goddesses of the land or sea were unattractive. He had had his dalliances with plenty of them, but Selene and her sister were of an entirely different stock in comparison. Perhaps it was the prestige of the sky, or just the fact that she would always remain just out of his reach. Closing his eyes, Alpheus could hear the singing of his daughters, the nymphs further up the river, giggling as they forgot words or clashed in harmonies. Creatures of all manner scampered among the trees and chittered as they sensed their way through the dark. As he slowly exhaled, he could have convinced himself he felt the cool touch of Selene’s hand upon his cheek.

And when he opened his eyes, there she was. Her eyes, as dark and blue as the deepest pools of water, gazed directly into his. There was a slight smirk on her lips as her curtains of silver hair fell around him. “You called?” 

Instinctively, his hands reached up around her waist and pulled her down to him. She chuckled as he kissed her neck. “I missed you.” 

“You see me every night,” she protested playfully. 

“But I don’t get to hold you.” Alpheus hugged her tightly. She smelled like spring rain and moss, and she was cool to the touch, like a night breeze where her fingers graced his skin. He didn’t want to let her go, but she laughed and wriggled like a fish until he relented and let her sit next to him. 

After a few moments of silence, Selene’s face turned serious then thoughtful and she looked over at Alpheus. “I have a favor to ask you.” 

“Yes,” he answered without hesitation. 

“You don’t even know what it is,” she said sternly. 

Alpheus shrugged, “It doesn’t matter what it is. You asked, so the answer is yes.” 

Sighing deeply, Selene raised her hand and pointed up at one of the numerous stars in the night sky. As he looked up to where she pointed he noted that one of the glowing spots seemed to be growing, approaching until a small ball of light hovered before them and fell into Alpheus’s outstretched arms. 

As the light dimmed, he noticed that it wasn’t an object, but an infant, swaddled in an iridescent cloth. Past the shock, he felt a swell of emotion in his chest and a burning heat in the corner of his eyes as tears threatened to spill forth. Alpheus held the child close to his chest as he reached out to Selene and took her hand.  

“A child?” 

“Our child,” she confirmed.