High up on a hill in a city called Athens, lived a kind princess named Creusa. One day, Apollo, the god of sunshine and music, visited her. It was a secret visit, and soon, Creusa had a secret baby boy.

Oh dear! Creusa was very worried. She couldn't tell anyone about her baby. So, with a heavy heart, she gently wrapped the baby in a soft blanket, placed him in a little basket with some special trinkets, and hid him in a quiet cave near a temple. She hoped someone kind would find him.

Apollo, who sees everything from his sunny sky, knew his little son was there. He asked his speedy friend, Hermes, the messenger god with wings on his shoes, for a big favor. "Please, Hermes," Apollo said, "take my baby boy to my special temple in a place called Delphi. Keep him safe."

Zoom! Hermes carefully picked up the basket and flew the baby to Delphi. There, the kind priestess who looked after Apollo's temple found the little one. She decided to raise the boy right there in the temple. She named him Ion.

Ion grew up sweeping the temple floors, lighting the lamps, and helping the visitors. He was a happy and helpful boy, but he often wondered where he came from. He didn't know who his parents were.

Years and years went by. Princess Creusa married a good king named Xuthus. They were happy together, but they didn't have any children, and they wished for one very much. So, they decided to travel to the temple at Delphi to ask the great god Apollo for advice.

When they arrived, Xuthus went into the temple to pray. Apollo, through his mysterious oracle, gave Xuthus a message: "The very first person you meet when you leave my temple, Xuthus, that person will be your son!"

Xuthus was puzzled but excited. He walked out of the temple, and who was the first person he saw? It was Ion, diligently sweeping the temple steps!
"You!" Xuthus exclaimed. "The god Apollo said the first person I meet is my son! So, you must be him!" Xuthus was overjoyed and gave Ion a big hug. He even decided Ion was a perfect name, as it sounded like "going" (because he was going out of the temple when he met him).

But when Creusa heard this, she felt very sad and confused. She didn't know this boy. She thought maybe Xuthus had a secret son she didn't know about, and she became quite upset. She even thought of a plan to send Ion away.

Luckily, before anything bad could happen, the old priestess who had raised Ion stepped forward. She was holding a very old, woven basket. "Wait!" she said. "Many years ago, I found this boy, Ion, in this very basket, left at the temple steps."

She opened the basket and showed them the faded blanket and the little trinkets inside.
Creusa gasped. Her eyes grew wide with tears. "That... that blanket! Those trinkets! They are the ones I left with my baby in the cave!" She looked at Ion, her heart pounding. "Ion," she whispered, "you... you are my son!"

What a surprise! Ion couldn't believe it. He finally knew who his mother was! Creusa hugged Ion tightly, so happy to have found her long-lost child. Xuthus was also happy, understanding that this was a special gift from Apollo.

Just then, a bright light filled the temple, and the goddess Athena appeared. She smiled and said, "Yes, Creusa, Ion is your son, and his father is the great Apollo. Xuthus, you should love him as your own. Ion will become a great leader, and his children, and their children after them, will be known as the Ionians, a famous Greek people."

And so, everyone understood the truth. Ion was reunited with his mother, Creusa, and gained a loving stepfather in Xuthus. They all returned to Athens as a very happy, if slightly unusual, family, all thanks to the surprising plans of the gods.

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