Hercules had never been gladder that the day was over. He wanted nothing more than to fall asleep, but he couldn't. With a humiliating gym experience involving losing his gym chiton (courtesy of Adonis), breaking three of the lunchroom tables, four lockers, and a wall (courtesy of his own clumsiness), and failing a history test on the gods, he was ready to turn in. Phil had berated him for his failure and run him ragged during a long training session in punishment. The kicker was that it was Phil's extensive training sessions that had left him no time to study his family tree.

So now, as the sun began to set, Hercules just wanted to study for his makeup exam. But Phil had Meleager and Nestor over, and they were drinking. So, after listening to their raucous laughter for half an hour, Hercules stormed out of the house and called for Pegasus. He just wanted peace and quiet, so he left a note to Phil that he was camping for the night, and then he flew off for a forest.

When he was far away from any cities, he guided Pegasus down into a glade that looked promising. Gathering deadwood, he lit a fire, set up a tent, then pulled out his history scrolls. The test was about the major gods, and it had humiliated the demigod to no end to not be able to ace the quiz about his parents. There had been questions that he didn't understand, something about siblings and marriage, and he was fed up with everything.

He read the scroll, pursing his lips. History was not his strong subject, but it was about his family, so he could learn it, right? But the more he read, the less he understood. Hera was his mother, Zeus's wife, but the scroll kept mentioning siblings. That was so wrong to his mortal mind, and he couldn't reconcile it. After an hour, he tossed the scroll aside and groaned. He would never pass. He didn't understand.

"Problem?" a soft, smooth voice asked.

Starting, Hercules looked up to see a young man leaning casually against a tree. He had long, black hair, which was slightly curly. His form was lean but muscular, and there was a strange grace about him. The fire cast him in an odd light. He almost seemed to be glowing, but Hercules shook his head. It wasn't a god. Of course he isn't glowing, Hercules told himself. A god would have recognized him, told him who he was, but this man was clearly mortal. But what was he doing so far into the forest?

"Are you going to answer me, or are you just going to stare?" the man asked.

Hercules blushed, his cheeks warming. He hated himself for it, but he managed to keep his eyes on the man.

"Just studying for school. I don't get it."

"Why aren't you at home?"

"Phil's having a party."

The man inclined his head. He pushed himself off the tree and sauntered over. There was an energy about this man that seemed almost magnetic. He was exceedingly handsome, and his walk was fluid and contained a grace that was obvious even as he leaned down to pick up the scroll.

"May I?" he asked, gesturing to the ground.

"Huh?" Hercules asked.

"May I join you?" the man asked, his lips quirking in an almost boyish way.

"Oh. I guess."

The man sat down and opened the scroll. He scanned the words then chuckled.

"History. I love history."

"Lucky you," Hercules muttered. "It's making me confused."

"What's so confusing?"

"It talks about Hera and Zeus like they're siblings. But they're married."

"Yes," the man replied. "Both are true."

"How?" Hercules demanded. "A mortal wouldn't ever do that!"

"They aren't mortal. The gene pool of the gods is very narrow. But because they're divine, there aren't any birth defects. Except for Hephaestus. But that's another story. Studying for a test?" When Hercules nodded, the man rolled up the scroll and set it aside. "Anything specific?"

"The major gods."

"So the sons and daughters of Cronus," the man said, leaning back on his arms.

"Um…?" Hercules shrugged helplessly. "I saw his name… somewhere."

The man laughed, the sound full of mirth. Just hearing it made the hero-in-training grin.

"Not very studious, are you?"

"I just don't get it."

"You're in the mortal realm," the man said. "You're used to your own rules. The gods have a different set."

"That's not fair," Hercules muttered.

"Well, life isn't fair." The man sat up and crossed his legs. "I can teach you about the subject. How far back do you need to go?"

"Just to the birth of the major gods," Hercules said.

The man tossed his head and flashed teeth so white that it was dazzling. "Alright then. Well, Cronus and Rhea are their parents. Every time that Rhea had a child, Cronus would eat him or her."

Hercules's mouth dropped open. "Wait, what?!"

Laughter greeted his incredulity. "Yep. But because they were divine, they didn't digest. But Rhea was angry, so when her youngest child, Zeus, was born, she raised him in between the earth and sky so that Cronus wouldn't know and gave her husband a rock to eat instead. He never chewed, so he didn't figure it out. When Zeus grew up, he fought and defeated his father and banished him to Tartarus, the prison in the underworld. First, he made Cronus vomit up his other children, who became the gods and goddesses that you know."

Hercules blinked, taking in this information. The questions were beginning to make more sense, but he was greatly disturbed.

"Okay. Which gods were that? I know about Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon."

The man nodded, brushing his hair back. "Those are the most well-known. But there is also Hera, whom Zeus married, Hestia, goddess of hearth and home, and Demeter, goddess of agriculture and harvest. Those are the major gods and goddesses."

"So Zeus married his sister?" Hercules asked numbly. "My parents are siblings?"

The man studied him. "If they are your parents, then yes."

"B-but that's…"

"Before you say wrong," the man cut in. "Keep in mind that they are not mortals."

"But still," Hercules muttered. "We can't live like that. Why do they?"

The man pursed his lips again, sorrow entering into his grey eyes. "You don't even know the half of what's so wrong about the gods, young man."

"There's worse stuff than marrying your sister?" Hercules asked. "I doubt it."

"Then you don't know anything about the gods." The man stood up and brushed off his dark blue chiton. "I've got to go. Good luck with your test."

Hercules blinked. "Wait!" The man paused and looked back, raising his dark eyebrows. "What's your name?"

There was a long pause as the man turned back to appraise the boy. His jaw was tight, his eyes searching for something, what exactly, Hercules wasn't sure. Finally, he smiled.

"Mercury."

"I've never heard a name like that before," Hercules said.

"I'm from Rome," the man said, his lips quirking again.

"Oh, well, I'm Hercules."

"Hm," the man said. "Son of Zeus and Hera?"

"Yeah."

"Not very godlike."

Hercules flinched. "Technically I'm a demigod," he said weakly. "I was cursed or something and turned half-mortal…"

Mercury smiled sadly. "It wasn't an insult. It's more like a compliment. There are few things worse in this world than a god."

The boy paled. "You're going to get smited."

"Smote," Mercury corrected. "And no. I don't think so."

Hercules hesitated. "How can you say that?"

"Are you asking to berate me, or are you genuinely curious?" Mercury asked pointedly.

"I really want to know. I'm going to be a god someday, so… I want to know why that's a bad thing." He paused then added. "Please?"

Mercury studied him. "The gods' legacy is a long line of rape, murder, vengeance, and rage. They are all a part of the same family. Brothers and sisters copulated with each other and produced more and more gods and goddesses, demigods, and on and on. And most of the gods are caught up in their own affairs and petty lusts and desires so deeply that they don't give a single thought toward mortals and their problems."

Hercules stared at Mercury for a few moments, too stunned to speak. He opened his mouth and shut it again then looked back down at his fire, which was fading from lack of wood. The concise way that Mercury had spoken disturbed him. It told him that Mercury had thought long and hard about the gods in a negative way. But it was more than that. The young man spoke with such conviction, such firmness, that Hercules found himself wondering just who Mercury was.

"Can I ask you something?" he finally asked.

Mercury crossed his arms and nodded. "Sure."

"Are… Are you a demigod?"

The young man chuckled. "No, Hercules. I'm not a demigod. I've studied them for a long, long time. I know their history very well. I know their deeds. And that's why I think the way I do. So many people only know a select few stories about their gods. And they don't probe deeper. They learn the genealogies in school, but then they forget as soon as the tests are over. Few ever know as much as I do about the gods."

Hercules continued to stare at the fire as it got lower and lower. "Does that make me bad?" he asked.

There was silence for a moment then soft footsteps, so light that Hercules could hardly hear them. But he felt arms around him, and he jumped, turning his head fast to see Mercury kneeling beside him on the balls of his feet. His grey eyes shone in the light, and his perfect skin gleamed, reminding Hercules once again of the gods. But what he most noticed was the compassion in his expression as he pulled Hercules to his chest. It was so intimate, and Hercules didn't know how to feel about being held by a total stranger. But there was something comforting, something peaceful, in the embrace, and it was so familiar that he didn't pull away.

"No, Hercules," Mercury whispered, running his thin hands through the boy's red hair. "Don't you ever think it's your fault for what your parents did. Nothing the gods did is your fault. You are not bad because of their actions before or after your birth. They are at fault, and nothing you did or didn't do would have changed their actions. You are in charge of yourself and nobody else. Don't let their badness destroy you. Because it will if you let it."

Hercules wanted to ask how Mercury knew that, but an overwhelming sense of exhaustion passed over him. He immediately began to nod off, and he leaned closer as his eyes slipped closed. The last thing he was aware of was strong arms lifting him effortlessly and then blankets being pulled over him. Then he slipped into dreams of dancing trees and a young boy laughing.

Mercury knelt there, watching the boy sleep for a few minutes, thinking hard on how Hercules didn't deserve to be born into a family with such issues. After five minutes of silence, there was a soft breath of wind, and a delicate question reached his ears.

"It's okay, Daphne," he said, turning his head to look into the dark woods. "He's asleep and won't wake until morning."

The nymph walked out, her pink eyes studying the boy.

"So he is not a threat?" she finally asked. "He was not looking for us?"

"No," Mercury said, standing up and brushing off his knees.

His bare feet barely made a noise as he stepped gracefully closer to the dryad. She smiled at him, unafraid. Mercury glanced at the fire then knelt down again to stoke it up. Daphne watched.

"Do you know this boy?" she asked.

Mercury nodded, carefully piling wood into the flames. "Would you mind tending this all night? Or have somebody else do it?"

"Until morning, yes," she replied. "Who is he?"

"His name is Hercules. He's a good boy. I can swear he wasn't looking to lose his virginity to the nymphs."

"You must be close."

"Not really," Mercury said, crossing his arms.

"But you just embraced him. Held him. Comforted him. You would not do that for just any boy. Please explain."

Mercury studied Hercules's face, tilting his head as he chewed on the question. Daphne waited patiently. There was no use rushing the man. He would answer when he was ready. The nymph was ready to wait all night if she had to. But it was only another few minutes before he spoke.

"He's my brother."

Daphne blinked, her eyes widening. "Hermes? What do you mean?"

Hermes watched Hercules smile in his sleep, his own expression somber. "Zeus is his father."

"Maia?" the nymph gasped. "Again?"

"No," he replied quickly. "Hera."

"Then he's your half-brother."

"I don't care for that sort of thing, Daphne. You know that," Hermes chided gently.

Daphne blushed. "Sorry, little god."

Hermes smiled, standing up to take the fair nymph into his arms. With lithe grace, he began to dance with her, their bodies in perfect sync. Daphne sighed, leaning close to breathe in the earthy scent of Hermes as they spun slowly around the clearing. When they stopped, Daphne pulled back to smile. Her scar stretched along the left side of her face, but Hermes didn't find it ugly. To him, it was the height of beauty. He brushed her dark green hair aside and leaned down to peck her cheek.

It was the crack of a log popping in the fire that brought their attention back to the little camp. Hercules continued to sleep peacefully, curled up in a ball. Hermes sighed, passing a hand over his face. Daphne touched him gently.

"Little god? What's wrong?"

"He doesn't deserve to be in this family," Hermes groaned, doubling over with his hands over his heart, which ached so fiercely with love and sorrow that it was overwhelming.

Daphne helped him to sit down, and she pulled him close, stroking his hair, just as Hermes had done with Hercules. She shushed Hermes as he sobbed quietly into her bosom. He began to talk softly, his voice shaking with grief.

"Herc's such a good boy, Daph. He's got a good heart. And you know why? Because he was raised with mortals. His mortal mother and father loved him and raised him right, and Zeus and Hera kept their noses out of it. It was the best decision they ever made, to stay away from their son once he was mortal. Thank the stars that they don't like to meddle in mortal affairs. And he's turned out so good, so very good, and yet his one desire is to become a god, something so horrendous. It tears me apart. I know he wants to be with people like him, but he doesn't know that they are nothing like him."

The nymph listened without speaking, continuing to run her hands over Hermes's pale skin, giving him the touch he needed. When he stopped, breaking down into sobs again, she kissed his forehead gently.

"Hermes, my dearest little god," she crooned. "He must live his own life. He is not you."

Hermes sniffled, sitting up and staring over at the sleeping form again. "I know. I just wish I could tell him what he needs to know."

"Maybe another day. Come, Hermes. The others want to know where we are. They are worried."

"Remember to keep the fire," Hermes said, wiping his cheeks. "I don't want my little brother to be cold. He is half-mortal."

Daphne nodded. "I'll come back in half an hour."

Smiling at each other, they stood and linked arms. With one look back at Hercules, Hermes strode into the dark forest, listening to the breeze playing through the trees and wishing he could do this again. Because Hercules needed to know what he was really getting into before he didn't have the option to get away. And Hermes was determined to tell him, even if he had to break his self-imposed silence on his real relationships with all of the gods and goddesses. Because Hercules was worth it.