-Nico

"Coolest, room, ever!" I admitted, falling back on Truth's fluffy bed. For a hard-ass boss, Hermes did treat this girl right.

It was true, I'd only been here for a day and I already loved the place. Her room was decked out in different colors, mainly black and white, with all kinds of feathers and fluffy things. Her walls were covered with posters from all over the ages, starting as early as black and white photos dating back to the 1800s. Then her bed reminded me of Aphrodite's, except not as much like a cloud. It was covered in feather-filled multicolored pillows and throw blankets. All of this was on top of a indestructible water-bed.

Truth smiled from her seat on her purple desk chair. She grabbed another chocolate covered strawberry and took a bite. "Yeah, I really do love it here," She motioned around her. "Besides Hermes not liking me having friends, he's a pretty cool guy." She spun in the swirly chair, loving it.

I raised an eyebrow. "So, cool friend, bad boss?"

Truth stopped herself, holding her head to stop it from bobbing from side to side. "Yeah," she said in a shaky voice. "Cool friend, horrible boss."

Buzz. Buzz.

The little black phone began vibrating on Truth's white nightstand. "Got it!" The winged girl claimed. She stood up and took off, only to fall to the ground from dizziness.

I sighed and flipped the phone open, pressing the speaker button. I looked to Truth, letting her know to talk.

The girl groaned. "Truth here," she called. "Ready to deliver useless messages at a moments notice!"

"Ha ha, very funny bird girl." Hermes's voice came from the phone speaker. Truth fake gagged. "Look, I need you to meet me at the throne room. And no, you don't have a choice, I expect you to get there before me." The line went dead.

The bird girl in question sighed. "I'll be back in an hour at least." Truth got up and walked to the window. "If you get hunger just use my phone and call Gordon, he'll bring you something." With that, she throw it open, unfurled her wings, and took off.

I laid my head back on the 80s rock shirt feather pillow I'd been using. "So soft," I muttered, petting the soft blanket beneath me.

"Yeah, that girl does love her feathers."

I shot up to a sitting position. Leaning against one of the bedposts at the end of Truth's bed was a twenty something guy with curly brown hair and blue eyes. Basically, he was an older version of Travis. I immediately recognized this man.

"Lord Hermes," I tried to say. I knew how this looked, I may be young but Percy had tried to give me "the talk". (Though, he ended up turning red when I laughed at him, saying I wasn't stupid, I heard campers.) The point is, my hair was a mess and my clothes were all wrinkled from sleeping in them. Truth was, in a way, Lord Hermes's property. So, he could blast me for messing with her. "Don't blast me!" I said without thinking. Stupid mouth brake, why'd you disappear?

The god rolled his eyes. "Chill kid, my uncle would be breathing down my neck if he saw you as a ghost in his domain," Hermes laughed. "Just need to talk with you little dude." He walked over and sat on the bed.

"Yes sir," was my answer. I sat up straighter, trying not to look like a little kid.

Again, Hermes rolled his blue eyes. "Look kid, Nico, just don't hurt my girl okay," he said. Hermes looked over at a painting on the wall by Truth's closet. It was a painting of a baby girl with long black hair and black eyes being held by a man that looked extremely similar to Lord Hermes.

"She told me how her parents throw her out and you saved her," I told him. "Thanks for not just letting her die. I'd never have meant her then."

Hermes just nodded. "Yeah, I named her too," he admitted. "Truth because she was the real truth of the ugly, strangeness in the world. Now, she only seems to speak the truth. The name fits her, no?" He looked at me.

I nodded, a smile falling on my dark face. "Yeah. It was perfect for her," I assured him.

He nodded. The god's face became serious again. He stood up. "Now, I'm going to leave and you are going to pretend I never knew you were here," he said.

I jumped off the bed also. "Sir, why are you doing this?" I asked.

A smirk came on the thief god's face. "Because I see you aren't going to break my little girl," he said. The way he spoke about Truth made me realize how much Hermes saw her as his child. "If you do, I will zap you and I don't care what your dad has to say." I nodded just before he popped out.

I couldn't help raising my eyebrows at the place Hermes had stood. "So I'm not getting blasted?" I asked to no one.

-Nico