#sipriotes

I'm no Greek Mythology expert i don't have any professional qualifications whatsoever(tho when i go to college imma minor in classics with a bio major but you don't care sorry :'(

i'm just a nerd who spends way too much time researching/reading a million books(calling all PJO fans/riordanverse in general i'm a fan too)on greek mythology(btw any of you read song of achilles, that shit broke my heart but i can't help it i just love greek mythology adaptations so fucking much)

these aren't in order i don't have a particular timeline but i think it's important to discuss lgbtq+ themes in greek mythology in SOME CAPACITY especially with something called ERASURE I SAID GREECE WAS GAY YALL but the greeks were more sexually fluid so they don't really have labels for this the same way we do and the way we defined their sexuality is not how we define it but this is most likely how it would've translated in the modern world and it's still important because seeing lgbtq+ figures in ancient cultures proves their existence and that we're here and queer, I can't do everyone here so i might do a part 2 if yall want

*Zeus did have like maybe 1 or 2 male lovers, the most notable ganymede but like Zeus is an asshole he's not cool enough to be queer so no i'm not going in depth about him AT ALL

1. Apollo

we all know Apollo, god of: music, poetry, healing, sun/light, archery, prophecy

but also he's THE bisexual icon(there are other gods like Hermes and Dionysus notable for male lovers I said Hermes was pan in like he was literally the god pan at one point and he's pansexual) but Apollo has the most male lovers out of any god and he does have a fuckton of female lovers(not nearly as many as zeus tho, no one gonna surpass him) Apollo is also depicted to be extremely hot no pun intended but also having a rather feminine appearance

some of his famous same sex lovers include:

Hyacinthus(this one my fav)- so fucking tragic got turned into the hyacinth plant

Admetus- no tragic end for Admetus unfortunately Admetus is a...straight-ie(I usually only call the cringe straights straighties but i'm just in pain in how Apollo hopelessly pines over him)

There's others but they're not as notable so imma speedrun but if you want me to talk more about them in depth and other lgbtq+ themes in greek mythology ask for a part 2

2. Hermaphroditus

This god was the son of Hermes and Aphrodite(please don't ask how THAT happened it just did)

Hermaphroditus is intersex, he's the god of intersex people, a symbol of androgyny and is the reason why intersex animals like snails(they have male & female reproductive parts) are called "Hermaphrodites"

The story is Hermaphroditus was just chilling in a body of water when the nymph Salmacis jumped on top of him while he was chilling and intended to rape him and she called on the gods to make it so that she and Hermaphroditus would be together forever so the gods merged them together into a partly female and male individual

3. Chaos

if any of yall read hesiod's theogony or...just hear stuff elsewhere, you may have heard of this creation myth where in the beginning there was a primordial kind of emptiness or void which was Chaos and this is mostly a headcanon but i legit cannot remember if they refer to Chaos gender AT ALL sooooo

NON-BINARY NON-BINARY NON-BINARY

4. Sipriotes

There are multiple stories of Gods changing mortals gender maybe as divine punishment, to help disguise them/protect them or whatever so the mortals may go mtf or ftm so TRANGENDER

Sipriotes isn't the most notable or even the most important in fact she only gets like a 1 line mention in some author's work but she's important to me

because she has some agency in this story. basically i think what happened is that she(he at the time) saw Artemis bathing(like actaeon but the reason that Artemis gets mad at her isn't clear since this myth is so obscure and it's not certain if the bathing is even the "correct version" or correct as can be with greek myth) so Artemis in retribution gave Sipriotes an ultimatum, she could either be given a woman body and join Artemis's hunters or worse so Sipriotes chose the hunters and the woman bod

5. Iphis and Ianthe

There are 2 people in this one cause 1. this is much longer than i anticipated and i don't think people wanna read that much 2. these people aren't important enough to have their own and their stories are so intertwined that individual sections would be too short and basically the same

Iphis was raised as a dude despite being a woman so one day when Iphis gets married they are offered to a woman named Ianthe. Iphis is sad because Iphis fell in love with Ianthe(mutual) but Iphis knows they can't be together as 2 women so Iphis prays to the gods for a solution to be able to marry Ianthe so the gods like turn Iphis into a dude

so this could be a trans guy with a bi?(if ianthe knew iphis was a woman) woman or technically this could be seen as wlw or i should say sapphic cause this greek i tend to lean toward this being trans guy but i won't argue with your interpretation unless you're being transphobic

6. Callisto

Now greece was very misogynistic and had a high emphasis on manly men. that's why in greek mythology there were so many mlm couples but you can't find shit on wlw there are technically only 2, one of them being the previous one and this one...it's technically not wlw it's awful it's evil but it's all we got

Callisto was a hunter of Artemis who might've been a queer woman. So basically Artemis's hunters say no to the company of men and swear off romance so none of the gods can touch them. But one day Zeus was like "yo Callisto do be looking kinda hot tho" and tried to seduce her even tho Callisto is off limits, he did this by shapeshifting into the Artemis and then called Callisto into a private spot where he raped her and got her pregnant. unfortunately since Callisto is no longer a virgin she had to leave the hunters and i think she got turned into a bear by usually Hera but sometimes Artemis too tired to double check

7. Artemis, Athena, Hestia

Now these lovely ladies are famous for being the only 3 beings Aphrodite(goddess of love) has no power over as they are virgin goddesses who swear to be maidens forever. I tend to see them on the Aroace spectrum.

Artemis was someone who said no to romance and to forever forswear the company of men that could technically be interpreted a few different ways(aka did she like girls? lesbian ace maybe?) I tend to lean toward no she appears more aroace as she had nada in the relationships department(no she never loved orion i'm tired of answering that question)

Athena is pretty specifically aroace as its very much explicit that she has no time for romance and prefers to spend her time on battle strategy and crafts. She is called Athena Parthenos* virgin athena for a reason. I heard her childhood best friend pallas was her woman lover from a random internet person but i can't find any sources for this so take that with a grain of salt but it could be that sources are hard to come by for ancient civilizations idk so she could be biromantic ace maybe????

Hestia is def aroace but also we have very little sources of any kind about her. only about her worship no myths. which is sad as fuck because she's a dope goddess i wish there was more about her

Send ☼ + a ship and i’ll...

who would be the one to randomly adopt a puppy without consultation - Icarus for sure, though Rhys backs him up on it

who would force the other to take aesthetic pictures of them - Probably not force, but Sipriotes loves pictures with her boys okay???????

who would do stuff they think is stupid just to make the other one happy - Rhys. And Icarus. And maybe sometimes Si if they’re both sad puppies.

who picks out the horror movies to watch just so the other will cling to them - Rhys picks it out, everyone clings anyway

who is constantly studying and who is constantly trying to distract them - Icarus has to study all the time, Rhys distracts him, and they both pull Si out of her spirals when she’s working too hard

who initiates the facetime calls whenever they’re separated - Si for sure

who is more likely to storm out after a fight and who is more likely to cry when they do - Si runs out of fights cos she can’t do confrontation, but she also cries. Icarus is angry but doesn’t 

who stays up way too late binge-watching their favorite shows - Rhys and Icarus, they’re binge buddies for sure

who bites the other’s ear when they’re feeling frisky - Icarus

who sprays the other with water when they’re washing the car - Any of them, causing a total water fight that leaves them all soaked and laughing their heads off

who has more fun decorating the house during holidays - Icarus gets all the decorations in from storage and is tired out from the heavy lifting, Si does the general around the flat decor, Rhys does the stockings, and they all decorate the tree together

who is more likely to give the silent treatment when they’re mad at the other - Icarus. When he’s properly angry, he does silent rage.

who plays with the others’ hair more - THEY ALL HAVE SUCH GREAT HAIR but Rhys helps Icarus with his hair and it’s a real bonding time for them it makes me happy. 

who is more likely to climb all over the other one when they’re bored - Rhys? Icarus? The boys in general?

who tries to kiss the other as often as they can - Rhys

who pouts when the other one tells them to shut the fuck up - Icarus pouts, Si told him to stfu

who initiates the sex and who walks away when the other is riled up - ALL. 

who always forgets the umbrella and who holds it when they actually have one - I can see Rhys holding it and the other two clinging to him so they don’t get their hair wet lmao

who demands showering first in the mornings - Si because it’s her routine, Icarus does in the evening post-training, and Rhys joins whichever he can

who sneaks into the shower with the other one in the mornings - Rhys then I guess lmao

who prefers riding the roller coasters and who prefers playing the games - Icarus is adrenaline-junkie level so he’d be on rollercoasters, Rhys on the games then? Si just tags along or joins in

who will text the other one thirty times in a row until they respond - Icarus

who always forgets to charge their phone overnight - Rhys????

who comes up behind the other and slides their hands into their back pockets - Si, when she’s needy

who tries to get hugs from the other as often as they can - ALL.

who is louder and who constantly has the tell the other to be quiet - Si tells the others to stfu

Artemis is born first. She’s a babe for only moments, springing into gangly-limbed childhood between one breath and the next.

Her mother is red faced and sobbing, prostrate on the ground and reaching for her. “He’s too big,” she sobs, “He won’t come out – I’ve failed! Hera has won and I have failed!”

There’s blood, too much blood, blood that she herself is still slick with. “No,” she says firmly, kneeling in between her mother’s legs, “We have not failed.”

It takes too long, too much blood and screaming, but hours later Leto sleeps, exhausted and pained but alive.

Her brother does not grow as she did, and she cleans him and swaddles him and hold him against her chest. There is too much intelligence for a freshly born-babe in his eyes. She pets the soft golden curls on top of his head.

She looks to Leto, bloody and torn and nearly forced to die with her son inside of her, and decides that her mother’s fate will never be her own.

The only man she’ll ever love is the one currently in her arms.

~

Apollo grows, faster than he should but slower than her until they match, until they are not-quite adults, beautiful adolescents in a godly package.

Her brother worries her; sometimes he reminds her too much of their father and she fears for him. She’s never afraid of him, her golden twin brother, but in that regard she thinks she may be alone. He’s too smart and not careful and feels as if every beautiful thing is his to possess.

The first time he forces himself on a mortal woman, she shoots a silver arrow through his shoulder. It bleeds, an arrow shot by her, more than it would if any other goddess had done it. “They are mine,” she declares, standing in front of the scared girl with her torn clothes, “You will not touch what is mine.”

Apollo says,“Very well, sister,” slick with blood, and she wants to go to him, to heal him and take care of him as she has their whole lives, but she stands her ground. In this she will not be moved.

He leaves, and when she turns to comfort the girl she’s already gone.

~

Her brother doesn’t touch any other unwilling women after that, although there are still plenty of willing women. And why shouldn’t there be? Apollo is gorgeous and strong, brave and just when he forgets to be selfish and petty.

There are men, however, whom are not always so willing. Nothing so harsh as that first time with that girl, nothing that dramatic – but enough that it pains her to see the callous way her brother treats them. Artemis stays silent on that. She is not the patron god of all of humanity, and she can’t hoard them all.

Her brother is a warrior and a poet and harnesses his chariot to the sun so that he may bring light to all the world. She loves him, but sometimes – sometimes she hates him. She is a huntress and a midwife, a bringer of life and a taker of it, and there is something terrible in her power. She thinks this is what Persephone must feel like, as the goddess of spring and queen of the underworld. It’s intoxicating. But it is a quiet sort of power, a harder one.

He is the sun and she is the moon, and there are times she fears that is all she is – a reflection of her younger brother’s brightness, cursed to be nothing more than a poor imitation.

~

She’s fully grown the first time it happens, older than many cities and twice as beautiful as her brother’s sunrises.

She’s sweat soaked and blood covered, but the mother and her sons sleep soundly and safely after the difficult birth. If she were to tell the other gods this they would not believe her, but being the goddess of childbirth is her hardest job by far.

“Come,” the sister of the mother says, a pretty young thing with large eyes and a wide mouth, “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

Artemis could clean herself up just fine, but allows the young woman to lead her to her room, to remove her blood stained clothes and run a warm cloth over limbs that are sticky with dried sweat. The woman goes to her knees before Artemis, running the cloth over her legs, and then the woman touches a place no one has ever touched.

Artemis jerks with surprise, looking down, her mouth agape. “My lady goddess,” the woman murmurs, parting her wide mouth and licking her lips, “I would thank you for aiding my sister, if you be willing.”

There’s a low curling heat in the pit of her stomach and something fluttering high in her chest. It’s something she hasn’t experienced before. “I am to remain a virgin,” she says, blank, because many men have looked at her like this woman and she was revolted by all of them. She’s not revolted now.

“Virginity is a man’s invention and a man’s concern, my lady,” the woman says dismissively, beginning to move her hands in way that makes Artemis flush all over, “There are no men here.”

That’s the last bit of talking they do until morning.

~

Artemis has many more eager women coming to her, offering to worship her. She accepts, again and again, and there’s never anything more than temporary sparks of desire, yet she enjoys all the women who seek her out, is delighted by them and seeks to delight them in return.

She is bathing in a lake one evening, golden hair having grown longer than she usually keeps it and brushing past her shoulders. She’ll have to cut it soon. She ducks beneath the serene, smooth lake, and when she pops her head up there’s the sound of rustling and footsteps, then clothing being shed.  

There’s a man dipping his toes into the lake, and Artemis rises, ready to kill him for his insolence.

Then she meets his scared eyes, and she’s done nothing to provoke his fear, not yet. Then she has to look again, eyes raking over his naked body, and this person certainly looks like a man. Yet –

“Who are you?” she demands, hands on her hips.

“Sipriotes, miss,” the person says, and bends to pick up the discarded clothes. “Apologies, I did not expect anyone to be here. I’ll go.”

“Why?” Artemis asks, taking a guess, “There’s plenty of water for two women to share.”

She knows she’s guessed right when Sipriotes’s mouth parts in surprise, and then widens in a pleased grin. “Thank you, lady,” she says, dropping her dress back at the lake’s edge and stepping into the water.

“Your hair is a mess,” she observes, looking at the tangled bun on top of Sipriotes’s head, “Let me help you with that.”

“It’s okay, miss,” she says politely.

Somehow this woman hasn’t figured out she’s a goddess yet. Artemis is in no rush to tell her – she’s scared enough of her as it is. “I insist,” she says, swimming over and twisting Sipriotes around so her back is to Artemis. The woman’s muscles are tense, and Artemis runs light fingers over the pale, criss crossed lashing scares. Artemis is smart, so she doesn’t ask the obvious, stupid question and undoes the woman’s bun. Her tangled long black hair tumbles down to her hips. “What a mess,” she says quietly, not explaining whether she talking about her hair or her back.

Sipriotes relaxes, tilting her head forward as Artemis gently untangles her hair until it lies smooth.

~

Artemis tries, but she can’t get the woman from the lake out of her head. She lives alone at the edge of the village, doesn’t bathe with the other women because they don’t welcome her. They don’t shun her, but they don’t wash her hair or her back and it makes Artemis’s blood boil.

She expects better from those she has claimed as her own.

The sun’s just setting when her brother appears at her side, watching her watch Sipriotes gather water from the well. “He’s not your usual type, is he?” he asks, leaning against her and tangling his fingers in hers.

“Yes,” Artemis says, “she is.”

~

For the first time in her life Artemis feels uncertain, but kicks at the door anyway.

It opens. The wariness on Sipriotes’s face is replaced by confusion. “Hi,” Artemis says, “Do you like bear?”

The creature is slung over her shoulders. She’d just killed it, and it occurs to her too late that a normal woman wouldn’t be able to casually hold a bear across her back. “I like you,” Sipriotes says, stepping aside to let her in, “you can bring the bear if you like.”

She offers Artemis warm wine and insists she sit as she skins the bear, sticking chunks of it on a spit and salting the rest of it. This time she keeps up a steady stream of conversation, eyes warm and smile soft, and Artemis wishes she could blame the wine for the heat on her cheeks.

“I like your shoulders,” Artemis says, watching her finish up preparing the bear meat.

Sipriotes pauses and turns to Artemis, eyebrow raised. Her dress is stained red with the bear’s blood and her silky black hair is braided to the side. Artemis wants to run her fingers through it. “You do?”

She stands, moves slowly in case this isn’t what Sipriotes wants, and presses her hands to her back the same way she had in the lake. “Yes, they’re broad. Strong. Like mine.”

Sipriotes turns, and Artemis trails her hands from her shoulders to her face, pressing her thumb against Sipriotes’s bottom lip. “The bear will burn,” she says, eyes dark.

“I’ll bring you another one,” Artemis says, walking her backward until they reach the bed, until Sipriotes’s knees hit the edge of it and she falls back, until Artemis can climb on top of her and straddle her waist.

Sipriotes holds up a hand, and Artemis captures it in her own and turns it so she can leave a butterfly kiss on each knuckle. “I know who you are, Artemis,” she whispers, “Are you – are you sure? No man can touch you.”

Artemis leans down, pressing more kisses across Sipriotes’s collar bone, and says, “There are no men here.”

That’s the last bit of talking they do until morning.

Send me a ✵ + a ship and i’ll tell you who does what at christmas!

who spends hours putting up lights only to get tangled in them and storm off? Rhys, but the others come through and help. Icarus actually gets them pinned up, Rhys de-tangles, and Si directs them to make sure they’re straight/even

who accidentally eats a whole box of christmas chocolates in one sitting? Icarus, and the others complain that he ate all the good ones before realising that he straight up ate ALL of them

who insists on watching the cheesey hallmark christmas movies? Si and Icarus both like them, so they watch them if Icarus has the time. Sometimes Rhys joins in too

who insists on playing nothing but michael buble in the few days running up to christmas? Icarus, and it bugs the other two so Si hides the CD whilst Rhys distracts him with kisses

who gets their presents wrapped at the mall so the other cant go snooping? Si, she’s not letting them ruin it for themselves!!

who insists on making snow angels? The boys, and Si is told she either has to take photos or join. 

who put christmas outfits on all the pets? Rhys. Si finds them first, and she’s totally melted by how much she loves her dumb boyfriend. Icarus comes home and doesn’t stop laughing for 20 minutes. 

Do they go to family’s or have a quiet day in? Quiet day in because family is complicated, and idk how Rhys’ family would like the fact that Rhys is dating a Not White Guy, not to mention Si...

who insists on wearing matching ugly christmas jumpers? Icarus because he can, and I quote, “pull off any look”. The others joke that it’s a challenge until he provides a Santa, Mrs Claus and Rudolph set

Who waits up until midnight to give the other their present? Rhys - he even sets an alarm for it

Who insists on hand-made presents only one year? Si, because she knows money is tight and she claims it’s a great idea. They all end up giving each other home-made hair masks.

Who puts mistletoe on every door frame? Si, though she never fesses up to it. No one can move between rooms. Kisses everywhere. Traffic is hell in the corridors. Some kisses ‘don’t count’ and ‘need redoing’. Total chaos.

Who gets too drunk at the work christmas party and has to be picked up at 9:15pm? Rhys - so the others take one shoulder each and basically carry him home