The Olympian Games 2: Beach Bummer

The Olympian Games 2

Tuesday Argyris

I'd never been to the beach before.

Liberty, my hometown, was located in the innermost area of South Carolina and though mom always promised to take me to Charleston she never did. I understood - being a lawyer was not a free job, and she had bills to pay. Not even Calvin could spare time off work.

After requesting permission from Chiron and then calling my mom, I was finally granted permission to visit a local beach park. It would be a lot more fun being out there than in the lake, I wagered, simply because there was so much diversity in New York and people watching could be quite the experience.

I took a bus to the southern tip of Brooklyn, right on the edge of the park, and peered up at the sun through my tacky straw hat that I'd picked up for three dollars at the bus stop. I couldn't remember the last time I'd been outside of camp and seen real, uncontrolled weather. I smiled into the light, at my dad, and pulled the brim down once again over my eyes.

Between myself and the beach was a sidewalk that winded through a pine forest, with several cut-offs that led to other attractions. A dog park, a small clearing of cabins (that shocked me at first, as I thought that I was back at camp), and a full set of three tennis courts where families laughs echoed with the sound of a tennis ball against their rackets.

I hadn't come alone, technically. Aside from my hat, I was outfitted in a floral magenta dress and black sandals. A rustic wicker basket hung from my right hand containing lunch - a simple peanut butter sandwich and a camp lunch's worth of grapes, along with a chunk of parmesan cheese which I planned on sacrificing to Apollo.

On the other side of the basket was a tightly wrapped orange towel from Camp Half Blood that, normally, would have a black pegasus and the greek logo printd in black on one side, but in public was plain as day. Along with it, a plastic fork and spoon, a few napkins, and a huge bottle of sunscreen. Again, from the store next to the bus stop.

As I shifted the basket from my right to my left hand, the peak of a gatehouse came into view. Next, slightly to its left, a large and likely steaming parking lot. Families would stop at the booth and have their belongings screened before being allowed into the beach. The first line, those who came in cars, was long and seemed to be in a hold up. As I neared the toll I focused my hearing on them.

"....No, sir, for the third time, there is no 'Tuesday' at this beach. And besides, it's Saturday."

"No! Fo the third time, her name is 'Tuesday'. I know exactly what day it is." As I entered the vicinity of the toll I heard someone talking about a girl who shared the same name as me. He wore a blue collared shirt and dark blue shorts, somebody from the postal sevice maybe? His mail bag seemed limp, and I noticed that there was a letter of some sort clenched between two of his fingers near his side.

"Well, sir, if this is really so important, I can hold onto it until she gets here." The young man at the toll stated. Judging by his sandy hair and freshly shaved face, he was only in his twenties and desperately hated his job. The postal man shook his head.

"No, it's important that I give this to Tuesday. It's my job, and right now I need to get inside." The tollman shook his head and the chain gate that rose above his head remained shut firmly. The postal man gave an irritated groan.

He looked familiar somehow....salt-and-pepper dark hair......a thin, elfish face....

"..Wait. Who is this 'Tuesday' chick?" The tollman asked, leaning against the fence. "Like, what does she look like?"

"About..yay-high," The man held his hand a bit higher than his head and waved it a bit. "Brown hair, brown eyes. Big ol' basket." He continued on with a description and a few minutes in a suddenly realized that he meant me. Confused, I sprinted down the path and to the other gate reserved for the people walking from the park. The tollman turned to face me.

"Uh, excuse me, I think-"

"Tuesday!" Postguy noticed me from the other edge of the fence, and immediately a look of relief flashed across his face.

"You know this guy?" The man inside the toll asked, jamming his thumb toward post guy. Now was my chance - should I say yes and lie, or no and go on without knowing what he needed of me?

...This could be important correpsondence from Mom or Calvin. On the other hand, maybe he was going to give me a bomb or something that could get me convicted.

I swallowed.

"....Yes." And within a few seconds, the postman and I were inside the beach grounds. He removed his hat and wiped his forehead with his wrist, releasing a whoop of air.

"Thanks, Tuesday. Nearly blew a gasket with that one, I swear." He chuckled lightly, still holding the small envelope between his index and pointer fingers. I watched it carefully and once he noticed he straightened his collared shirt and held the letter out in a formal and practiced way.

"Sorry. Anyway, here you go. Careful though, she'll get mad if you mess with it too much."

"She?" I replied quietly, taking the letter from his hand. Close up, I noticed it was a light shade of pink and had a small mirror sealing it closed, like a reflective sticker. It smelled of roses and other flowers I couldn't identify. It was.....perfumey.

As I looked up to thank the man he was already marching away from me, trying not to get his shoes stuck in the sand. I flipped open my basket and retrieved the chunk of cheese before chasing him down, kicking up sand in my bare feet's wake.

"Here. Sorry, it's all I have." I held out my offering to him as a tip and when he looked into my eyes, I felt strange.

"...Thank you." He replied simply,taking the parmesan wheel out of my hand and popping it into his mouth in one night. I'd thought a chunk like that would be dry and distasteful, but the man swallowed it whole. At once. I watched wordlessly as his throat expanded and returned to its normal size before he waved for a final time and disappeared into the line outside.

Wiping that odd man from my memory I sat down on my towel. The magenta dress was discarded into my basket and revealed a one piece bathing suit of the same color. I applied a gratuitous amount of sunscreen all over myself and took a few meager chunks off my sandwich before turning back to the letter, which set protected on the now empty side of my basket.

The mirror peeled off first and I carefully opened the letter, remembering the strange mailman's words. Careful though, she'll get mad if you mess with it too much.

Inside was a crisply folded letter. I examined the outside of the paper, another floral pattern of big roses and another kind of perfume before unfolding it to reveal.....

Blank. paper.

Needless to say, the envelope and paper promptly met the bottom of my basket as I hurried to get in the water while it was still sunny out.

After nearly getting hit by a stray volleyball I'd successfully dived into the water. It was a peceful experience, the hot sun beating down on my hair and the cold water against my shoulders. Magical, even. Families swam around and in the distance I noticed people surfing.

Around 3 o'clock I noticed the waves were starting to churn quite a havoc. I mumbled a complaint to Poseidon and rose out of the water slightly in an attempt to dive nder the waves when something bonked me in the stomach.

It appeared to be a makeup case for setting powder. I opened it up and sure enough there was a fluffy powder puff and a full, seemingly unused volume of the bronze minerals. I'd expected to see some pollutants in the water but this was just....weird. Who brings makeup to the beach anyway?

But I was curious. If someone had lost it then maybe....since I'd found it.....I could offer it a....new home. Yeah. If it fit my skin, anyway. My dripping finger lowered gingerly into the canister and scraped up a few flakes of the powder. Almost immediately it melted in with my skin color, and even filled the water-induced wrinkles. My finger looked and felt completely dry.

"Neat." I said quietly, hoping no one saw as I closed the contained and slid it through a slit in the side of my bathing suit.

As if on cue, someone tapped my shoulder from behind me. I turned slowly, trying not to splash them with my long, soggy hair, and nearly gasped.

A woman floated in front of me now, with voluminous, wavy black hair that spilled over her shoulders both down her back and chest. She had impossible skin, flawless and lacking any blemish or bump out of place, but with a light dusting a freckles along her nose and cheeks. Her eyes were green and shining like gems almost unnaturally.

"Excuse me," She smiled, revealing a row of pearly teeth. "Some of my makeup fell out of my bag and I was wondering if you'd seen it?"

I straightened immediately under her gaze, suddenly feeling very self-conscious. The can shifted against my side.

"N-nope! Sorry, miss, haven't seen anything." I answered quickly, maybe too quickly, as the woman's gaze turned more.....aggressive?

"Tsk," She clicked. "Really? Because..." Someones hand snaked around my waist and tugged the slit open, allowing the makeup can to bob at the surface of the water where I'd found it. I attempted to scream when the suit was pulled open but was muffled by a sudden wave with completely overtook both myself and the beautiful woman.

Now I was snorting, wiping water out of my face, coughing. "What.....was that....for?" I said through chokes. Moving the clumps of wet hair out of my face I noticed the woman still looked positively dry, and her expression hadn't changed.

"It's not polite to steal from people!" She countered, jamming a jade-colored fingernail toward me. "And a goddess, I may add! Wait until your Father hears about this you-"

"''Goddess?" ''I said over her scolding. That sure explained the ethereal looks and unnaturally colored eyes. The woman scoffed and ran a finger throgh a lock of her shiny black hair.

"Yes, a goddess. Go on, take a guess."

Black hair, green eyes.....

"...Demeter?" I tested. Her eyes flashed a dangerous muddy red color and she gripped my shoulder with one of her hands.

"Ew, no, I'm not old you-! Ah, I mean, no..." She turned back to her serene expression but I noticed her hair had lost its sheen and was now less voluminous without her confidence. I knew without a doubt who this was now.

"Oh, Aphrodite."

"Hmph." She frowned and removed her hand from my shoulder, crossing them underwater. I followed them until I noticed a rather.....distracting fact.

"Eh, Lady Aphrodite, is there any particular reason you aren't...."

"Speak up?" I gestured to my own chest, covered by my bathing suit. I hadn't noticed at first, but it was glaringly obvious that the goddess of love, beauty, and lust was swimming naked - and at a public beach!

"I was born from the ocean." She stated calm as day. "I can choose whether or not to cover up or not."

"But...can't Poseidon....?"

"....Oh, fine. If it makes you more comfortable." Before my eyes, a tasteful red bikini appeared on her body, the same color as my cheeks.

---

A few minutes later we were sitting on two towels nextto each other. I was intimidated by the goddess still - a given, due to her personifaction of beauty. I'd offered her half of my sandwich but she instead took my grapes, claiming she was watching her figure. Whatever.

"Uh, Lady Aphrodite, it's not that I don't mind the visit, but why are you...visiting me?"

"Have you ever heard of The Olympian Games, Tuesday?"

"No." I stated plainly. I'd just found out I was a demigoddess two years ago - I hadn't even seen my dad yet. "What are they?"

"A series of trials for demigods. The winner is crowned champion and becomes revered around the demigod world."

"Really?"

"No." She smiled slightly, popping a grape into her mouth. "Not exactly, anyway. The winner is indeed crowned champion, but that really only offers bragging rights."

"So why did you come to me?" The goddess waited a few seconds to answer my question.

"I want you to represent me this year." I spat a chunk of my sandwich into the sand and Aphrodite reflexively tucked her legs further into her chest to avoid touching it

"What? Why?" I asked once I'd choked down the thick mixture of bread and eanut butter. The goddess closed her eyes solemly and looked up to the sky.

"You have a certain......elegance. With a bow, I mean. It reminds me of Adonis, and of my son Eros." The air was stale and quiet for a few moments. "....Also, we aren't allowed to have our own children represent us. You were my backup plan."

Just as I thought.

We ate in silence then, watching the beachgoers come in and out of the park. Surfers glazed the horizon line and children painted the sand with shabbily made castles. Neither of us spoke for what seemed like hours.

"....I hope you don't expect you're going in empty handed." The goddess said, still observing the children on the beach. "I've decided to lend you my own bow. When Adonis visits, we sometimes go hunting. But I think I can spare it.....just once." I looked over at the beautiful yet vulnerable goddess and nodded understandably.

"I....I'll do it, then." The goddess nodded.

"Very well. You will find the bow under your pillow back at camp. Try not to break it. It was hand carved, you know." I heard a quiet laugh escape her lips shortly after and she leaned back, laying down on her pink towel with a sigh.

"I'm glad my trip out here was worth something, then. I originally wrote you a letter, but you didn't seem to get it."

My eyes widened and I peered into my basket. The pink envelope and stationary lay in the shadows, and as I brought them into the lit portion of the wicker weavings, I noticed a small impression in the corner. With a smile I realized it was a caduceus, a sign of the messenger god Hermes.

I'd just met two gods in one day.

And both had eaten my lunch.

