AN: Sniffles Thank you all for those lovely reviews! It makes my day super bright (wow, I sound hyper). What makes me happiest is that you're actually reading the story. So, here we go!

"Dionysus, may I congratulate you!" said Zeus grandly. "Who's the lucky woman?"

Dane couldn't bring himself to look into Dionysus's eyes. He could feel his ears heating up like coals.

Dionysus didn't speak for a while. "What do you mean?" he said at last.

Dane cleared his throat, but all he was able to mange was a whisper. "He wants to know who's Mom." He made himself look up at his master, and he could feel tears of shame in his eyes. "You know…mother?"

He saw the rage in Dionysus's eyes. It felt as if he was given arena seats to the battle he had forced his master in. How could he expect Dionysus to lie for him? He was asking Dionysus to sacrifice his honor, to pretend that this waif was his son.

"Come, come," said Zeus merrily. "If you in fact did have a boy, it's nothing to be ashamed of, right?"

Dionysus spoke slowly, "There is shame."

Dane couldn't breathe. He felt the efforts constrict his throat.

"Shame?" asked Aphrodite slowly. "What sort is it? Not one of love?"

The god took a long breath. "He is the god of rubbish," offered Dionysus. "He collects the rats that squirm in piles of rotten food and blesses the trash with handfuls of flies. But he was not to come to the party tonight." Dane gaped at him with astonishment, feeling grateful enough to burst.

"Now, there is no shame in being a god of trash!" boomed Zeus. "Someone must clean the filth from the Earth. Humans do have a way of making a mess of things."

They sure do, thought Dane. Humans like me.

"And who was the mother?" insisted Zeus.

"A wood nymph, of sorts," muttered Dionysus. If he had named a goddess, someone might have asked her to confirm it. However, Dane could see the shame Dionysus had in giving a nameless nymph as his paramour.

"Ha! A nymph, hear that Hera? A nymph! I congratulate you on finally having a lover who lived long enough to give you a child! Makes all that fuss with your former loves, Prosymnus and Ampelos, much more secondary?"

"What have we here?" A voice interrupted them. Dane looked up and saw a young man with hair the fiery red color of dawn. He gripped a harp, and a hidden smile was upon his lips.

"Apollo, right on time!" said Zeus. "Meet Dionysus's new son!"

Dane felt the blood drain from his face. Apollo, the god of truth.

"Oh?" he said, only giving him a short glance. But with that 'oh,' Dane could hear all the condemning and all-knowingness he had suspected from the start.

"Apollo," pleaded Dionysus.

Apollo paid no attention to him. A look of foreboding passed his fine features as his eyes settled on Dane. "Well, I am sorry to say that you are mistaken, Zeus. This is no god. It's a little human boy, ready to spoil the gods' fun."

Everyone grew quiet. This time, Aphrodite threw her head back and laughed. "Apollo, you speak of the impossible. How could a child climb up Mount Olympus and not be dead from exhaustion? Even Dionysus here claims to have trouble lugging wine casks up here."

"Did he now?" said Apollo lightly. He fixed upon them an accusatory stare. "Perhaps he meant that he had trouble lugging up little boys into our dwelling. And since when has Dionysus taken along another woman?" He took a look around at the stupefied faces.

"Do not be a fool," snapped Zeus. "What Dionysus did or didn't do with a woman is none of your concern. This is a party celebrating the birth of my child. No more of your ill news."

"You dare doubt the god of truth?" Apollo's voice was cold with anger. He turned to a woman with silvery hair that floated above her shoulders. "My sister, may I borrow your bow and arrow?" She passed it to him, her pale limbs contrasting with the dark, honed wood.

"If he were a god, which I doubt, he won't feel a thing. If, however, he is a human, he will die in front of all the gods today." Apollo fit shaft to bow and said gravely to Dane, "Consider it an honor."

Like a stupid, scrawny boy, Dane began to cry. He couldn't help it. The tears blurred the point of the arrow until it looked like a soft blob, but he knew that when released, the mark would be true.

"Goodbye, ill-bringer," Apollo whispered. The bow groaned as he tightened it. Dane clenched his hands to keep them from shaking.

"Stop!" Dionysus cried. "Apollo, you knew from the beginning. You know he will die!"

Apollo did not lower his bow. "Yes."

"Then why would you?"

"Those reasons I shall keep to myself," he said quietly. "But unless I'm much mistaken, here stands your little slave boy, am I right?"

Dionysus's voice broke. "You need not ask."

"Fine. Fine," he handed the weapon to Dionysus. "Then you kill him."

"Why?" asked Dane. "I'd much rather you do."

Apollo stared at him until the hairs rose up on his head. "Dionysus is your master. He is responsible for you, and law on Mount Olympus states that a human who enters our domain is to be killed. If you were not his slave, believe you me, I will gladly take upon the task. If he does not kill you, Dionysus shall lose his honor and pride."

"Zeus, can't it be changed?" begged Dionysus.

"I am sorry," Zeus answered regretfully. "He must be punished."

"Be glad it is a quick death," said Apollo spitefully.

Dane watched with horror as his master took the bow in his own hands. He stood silent, holding the weapon like a lead weight. Finally, Dionysus looked up at Dane, and he could see the torture within his eyes.

"Dane," he whispered. "Forgive me."

Dane closed his eyes. Dear Hades, he prayed, I have never prayed to you before. Forgive me for that. Please do not let me—

Clack.

He opened his eyes again and saw the bow and arrow at Dionysus's feet.

"What's this?" asked Apollo, exasperated.

"I shall not kill him," said Dionysus slowly. "I release him. Dane, I free you from my power. You are no longer my slave. Let the other gods deal with you as they see fit. I will have no part."

Dane's heart ached inside his chest, and the tears threatened to pour again. Thank you Dionysus, he prayed fervently, for letting me die a free man. Dionysus nodded as if he heard.

"Then I suppose I shall have the privilege of punishing him," sighed Apollo, reaching down to the bow and arrow. Before he could touch them, a foot was placed firmly on the arrow.

"No," said Hera with disdain. "I shall."

AN: Now things are going to get interesting! Let's just say that Hera might not kill Dane…she might decide to do something worse! Review please—and thanks to the others who did! Special thanks to Ellen, who told me I disabled my anonymous reviews!