But Erechtheus, too, had children fated to misfortune. One of his daughters, Orithyia, was courted by Boreas, the North Wind. Erechtheus did not approve of this blustering suitor, and he was rejected. Not to be thwarted, Boreas abducted Orithyia in a gust that carried her off to the North, where he ravished her. In time Orithyia gave birth to two sons that were to sail with Jason on the Argo.
Another of Erechtheus' daughters, Procris, married Cephalus, a man with a passion for hunting. He went off on a long expedition to hunt and Eos, the goddess of the dawn, fell in love with him. When she failed to seduce him Eos told Cephalus that surely his wife Procris had been unfaithful to him during his absence. To test his wife's fidelity Cephalus disguised himself, returned home and tried to tempt Procris. Although she never gave in to this stranger she softened considerably, and Cephalus revealed his true identity in a rage. Just as angry, Procis left him and went to Crete, where she cured Minos of a curse that Zeus had inflicted on him. In gratitude Minos gave her a spear that never missed its mark. Eventually Cephalus sought Procris out, having repented of his jealous fit, and the two were reconciled. As a token of her love Procris gave her husband the magic spear, and he took her with him on his next hunting trip. Seeing something move in the thicket before him, Cephalus hurled the spear, killing the only woman for whom he cared.
A third daughter of Erechtheus, Creüsa, was ravished by Apollo against her will and secretly gave birth to a son in a cave, where she abandoned it, fearing for her own safety. Erechtheus married her off to a foreign ally of his, a man named Xuthus. Creüsa produced no children to Xuthus, who desperately wanted a son. He finally took Creüsa with him to Apollo's oracle at Delphi. The oracle told him that the first boy he met on leaving the temple would be his. He found Creüsa talking to Ion, a lad who served Apollo at the temple. Xuthus joyfully greeted the boy and claimed him as his son, thinking he must have sired Ion on a Maenad, whereas Apollo had simply intended the boy as a gift. Creüsa felt a deep bitterness at this, because Xuthus now had a son while she had lost hers for good. She also hated Apollo for having raped and deserted her. Outraged, Creüsa tried to poison Ion, but when her attempt was discovered, Ion and a crowd were about to kill her. But then the Delphic priestess brought forth the blanket in which Ion had been wrapped as an infant, and Creilsa recognized it as her own. Creüsa embraced Ion as her son, but the priestess warned against telling Xuthus the truth. Presently Athena appeared at Apollo's request and prophesied that Ion would one day rule Athens. Creiisa gave up the long grudge she had felt for Apollo, and through her son she lost her dislike of men in general.
