Standing so close to him, Megara felt the tremor that ran through Hercules. It matched the one rattling her. There was no time to run from the Prince of Thrace, and the way he'd raised his voice meant everyone could hear. If he recognized her, she could be unmasked in front of all Hercules's friends and allies who rushed to his defense.

Phil was the first to reach the cluster. He pointed a pudgy finger at the prince. "Ain't you the loser who's still in summer school after he failed to graduate? I don't see why any of your insults would make a difference to anyone. You're just jealous that the rest of the people you tried to lord yourself over for years moved on without you!"

"Wow. He's not as drunk as I expected," Megara muttered to Hercules.

"Satyrs have high tolerances. Usually, he just acts drunk, so people excuse him later," Hercules whispered back.

Galatea rushed to the center of the room with Medusa at her side. "Hey, you only get to spread positivity at my party! You shouldn't badmouth the guest of honor!"

"Bad form, Adonis." Where had Theseus even been? Was this part of his whole, 'mysterious hero of the shadows' vibe? "Princely behavior dictates that we must have some decorum. Hercules is my guest of honor, and you are the guest I forgot to invite. If you're not contributing to the fundraiser, I'll have to ask you to leave. Pick up some homework. I hear you're failing summer school."

Adonis gasped dramatically. "You all knew him back at Prometheus Academy, except for this– Megara?" Adonis sat higher on the mobile couch his guards were using to hold him above the crowd. "It is you!"

Hercules gasped in a sharp breath through his nose but remained stiff as a statue. Only Megara, from her vantage point, could know there was a change in him. "How does he know you?" he asked.

Great. Even she hadn't expected it to fall apart that quickly. "There was a–" Megara began, but Phil shouted over her.

"I told you that dame was trouble!" Phil exclaimed.

"You're seriously slumming it with a two-bit hero and his pet when you've experienced the likes of me? How droll!"

It had been too wild of a day for Megara to show any mercy. Ignoring the presence of Phil, she folded her arms and stood to her full height. "I know you're not exactly bright enough to comprehend this," Megara said, mirroring the way Adonis lounged on the couch his guards were carrying by leaning back against Hercules's chest. "My experience with you taught me never to go on a blind date again. I've got better taste than the person who set us up, and I'm not convinced it wasn't an elaborate prank. The entire time I was with you, I kept wishing I had a jarful of Lethe Water to bleach you out of my brain. It's too bad I never got my hands on any, but that doesn't mean I don't wish I never met you." Hades would never let her access Lethe water, anyway. He liked her miserable.

Adonis clicked his tongue. "It's been two years, and you still haven't forgotten me. It must not have been so bad."

Megara looped her arm through that of Hercules, who stood still as if carved from marble. "I remember that date, Adonis. As I recall, you spent the whole time talking about yourself and trying to convince me to take off my clothes. Imagine my surprise when I heard you had a steady girlfriend the whole time. It's class acts like you that could turn a girl off men forever. Fortunately for me, not every man is garbage."

"Don't tell me! You and Jerkules? My rejection must have seriously affected you. I was merely exploring my options at the time, and you did not prove yourself a valid alternative to Helen. But you don't have to be deranged just because you can't be with me. I'm sure you could do better than–"

"The greatest hero of his generation? I think not. As for you, are you claiming superiority when you're still here alone? I can't help but wonder if that's because you never learned from our time together. I mean, it must have been just as memorable for you, considering you still remember my name. Haven't you been on dozens of dates since then?"

"I remember all my conquests. That's how I know who to avoid if she displeases me. But as I recall, you were under my spell. You can deny it now, but I know by the end of the evening, you'll crawl back to me, and I'll be taking you home. We both know Jerkules doesn't know how to treat a woman."

"And you do? All you ever do is talk about yourself! If you had any sort of skill with women, maybe it would've been tolerable to spend a couple of hours out with you. But you ruined a good few months after I endured your presence, and the only way I'm getting through this encounter now is knowing there's a real man here to help me block you out." She took Hercules's limp hand and gave it a squeeze.

Hercules made a questioning noise to her, soft enough that only she would hear. Though he couldn't muster any words, it was clear that he was curious whether he was the man in question.

"Jerkules? Sure, he's taller now, but–"

"Get off your stupid couch and square up if you're going to question someone else's manhood, you insufferable narcissistic show pony!" Megara's words stunned everyone for the boldness with which she, presumably a commoner, addressed a prince.

Even Phil seemed to have gained some level of respect for her, or at least fear that she might do the same to him.

Hercules shook himself free of his shock. "I'm out of training now," he told Adonis. "I'm the hero of Thebes. I've slain a Hydra, and now I've… helped, kill two gorgons."

Medusa made a small noise, at which Galatea put a supportive hand on her shoulder to steady her.

"Thebes…" Adonis's eyes narrowed at Megara. "So that's why they sent you."

"Nobody sent me. I go where I want." That was a bold-faced lie, but Megara might as well have been on fire as she strode toward Adonis. She'd silence him before he could give away her identity. "I came here because I heard that the man who's single-handedly reversing over a century of misery and curses in my home city was leaving without an advocate to speak on his behalf. I should've known Thrace spat you out and isn't ready to take you back. Who would? You're here because your daddy wouldn't pay for your diploma. You're the biggest disappointment Thrace has ever endured, and that's impressive, considering it's such a backwater that there was no local school they could send you to. The most grievous indignity of all is that you're here at the mercy of Athenians, who don't even believe in royalty, and you're still lording your pitiful title over them as if anyone cares. The truth is, it's the only reason anyone would pretend to like you, instead of tossing you out of the nearest window. Now get out before I remember any of those inane anecdotes you subjected me to and recite them to everyone here!"

A sound very like a death rattle escaped Adonis's slacked jaw.

Megara looked the nearest one of his carriers in the eye. "You should either dump him or take him out now. Nobody wants him."

The servants were used to moving in tandem. When one moved without the others, their attempts to correct themselves resulted in them dropping Adonis to the ground at Megara's feet.

"You useless—!" He started, but his scream cut him off.

Megara pressed her foot firmly down on his fingers. "I'd be careful who you called useless. Consider your options. Who's going to get you out of here, you pathetic wretch?"

Adonis wrenched himself free and crawled backward from her. "You can't talk to me like that! You were supposed to be dead! Where did you even come from?"

Megara took a step closer, dangerously close to stamping down on his manhood for daring to hint at her past. "You're always going to wonder that, aren't you? Because you'll be haunted by the fact I know you, and there's nothing you can do to me. I don't officially exist. I let people spread rumors of my death so that when I meet my enemies, they never see me coming. If I ever hear of you speaking my name again, I will find you. Remember that. I'm never really gone. Now get out of here, you unsightly pustule."

With practiced professionalism, Adonis's servants collected him, threw him back onto the couch, and charged out of Theseus's palace.

When they were gone, the rest of the party stared at Megara. She knew there would be questions, but she was done. The doors were closed. No answers would follow.

"That was… unexpected," Theseus was the first to say.

"Huh. Weird," Medusa mused. "I no longer have the scariest eyes in the room."

"Guess none of your positive vibes were strong enough for that one," Galatea said. "But Meg, wow, you destroyed that guy."

"Do you think someone should go after him?" Theseus asked. "I never liked the guy, but if he dies after being at my party, I might be in trouble."

"Leave him," Hercules said. "I think we should all go back to enjoying ourselves now that he's gone. We've still gotta raise more money for the academy, especially because they have to put up with him a while longer." He didn't ask before taking Megara's hand and leading her toward the banquet table. "I can't believe what you did back there. Do you have some kind of special power I never heard of?"

"I've got a silver tongue, but it cuts deep." Now that the heat of the moment was fading, self-consciousness crept in. "I wasn't lying, either. One blind date, and I got so frustrated I didn't know what to do with myself. I seriously contemplated breaking into the underworld to forget him."

"I'm glad you didn't. I wouldn't want you anywhere near Hades."

Megara bent over the banquet table and scrunched her face as tightly as she could to hold it in, but a few notes of dark laughter still slipped out. He didn't know, he couldn't know, but she had no excuse for why she thought it was funny. What would she tell him? She was too light-headed from the sheer ridiculousness of the situation to construct a proper lie in time.

Hercules put a hand on her back. "Are you ok? Are you choking or something?"

She shook her head. "I'm totally fine at the moment. But… it's a little funny to me that you're already acting like you're responsible for whether I wind up on the wrong side of the grass."

"I'd like to be. Back there with Adonis, you kind of implied we were a couple. Was that just part of the act?"

"I'd like to know the answer to that, too," Galatea said from behind the two of them, making them jump.

Medusa flanked Megara on the other side. "Yeah, Meg. The two of you were gone for a while…"

"Before either of you start the rumor mill rolling, I haven't corrupted him, yet," Megara said. "He's still perfect and innocent. He came to find me when I got nervous about the party."

"You're nervous?" Medusa asked. "Galatea's been introducing me to every eligible bachelor in Athens!"

"She's got lots of catching up to do!" Galatea protested. "I mean, really, Meg, you understand, right? Of course you do. The three of us have serious work to do tonight."

"I thought it was a party." Hercules had been silent the whole time since the others approached, looking embarrassed, but he spoke up now with a hint of authority in his voice. "She needs to have fun. And food!" He picked up a tray and started piling random bits of fruit, cheese, and meat onto it. "What do you like, Meg? I had some before you came downstairs, but I bet you're starving."

"She does need to eat, but a good party is work!" Galatea countered. "And you know better than anyone, I live to party!"

Hercules smiled uncomfortably. He wrapped his free arm around Megara and shielded her from Galatea with the tray of food as if that would get her to hold back a detail he thought she was about to share. "Yeah! Yeah, yes, you um, you do."

Megara raised a brow. If he was keeping secrets from her, it must be important. "You two were real close, huh?" She picked some cheese off the tray Hercules had prepared for her and ate it while watching the two of them with intense scrutiny.

"It's not like that!" Hercules poured some wine for himself and Megara and nudged her away from Galatea and her dangerous memories. "We went to one dance."

"I really burned it down!" Galatea spoke with a joking tone, but Megara couldn't remember ever hearing that term before. She sensed a hint of sincerity. "But if you two are happy together, we'll just continue our socialization circuit! Won't we?"

Medusa made a face at Megara as she allowed Galatea to lead her away with no fuss and a handful of grapes.

Once they were alone, Hercules leaned down to Megara with a blush across his handsome face and whispered, "You could corrupt me a little," when they were alone.

"What?" She must not have heard that correctly. She really had been hungry, though too stressed by the day's activities to notice. Already, she'd devoured half the meat on her plate. She gulped down her wine, staring at him, and asked. "You want to be corrupted?"

"If you did the corrupting, I wouldn't mind. You remember I said I would do anything you wanted? Maybe I wouldn't be 'perfect' or 'innocent' anymore, but I'd be with you, so I don't care. As long as… I mean, that wouldn't put you off?"

"Depends." She finished off her plate and set it aside. "Would knowing I'm not a virgin put you off?"

A confused series of reactions flickered across Hercules's face so quickly that Megara couldn't track them. "I guess I never thought about it? All that matters to me is whether you're willing to be with me… and if you don't miss whoever else it was."

Did she? The topic arose like bile in the back of her throat. "I hope I never see him again. I think he'd prefer it that way, too, because the guilt would make him burst into flames." Or someone else would help him along. That would be ironic.

"Oh, I'm sorry, but… So that means…?" He took a step closer to her, but remained firmly under control with his hands clasped behind his back and his eyes averted.

Megara poorly suppressed a laugh. "Are you sure you could handle me?"

"No, not at all!" he chuckled unabashedly. His hands came out from behind his back as his whole posture loosened. "But I'm pretty sure you could handle me. I'd like it if you did. You know, if you wanted."

"If you're sure, I'll be gentle."

With a bashful chuckle, Hercules ducked his head. She watched him intently, from the unruly red-gold curl that drooped over his eye to the blush across his cheekbones. "I'm pretty sure between the two of us, it's me we have to worry about."

It didn't seem quite so wrong when he put it like that. For all his lack of experience, she wasn't more than two years older than him, depending on when his birthday fell. It wasn't as if she was corrupting the youth. While she didn't want to change him so much that he lost something essential about himself, it would take more than some light flirting or heavy petting to do that. Maybe something he learned from her would serve him in the future with the next girl. A knot in her stomach arose at that unwelcome thought.

"Are you sure you're not trying to say what you think I want to hear?"

"What if I mean everything I'm saying, and it's still everything you want to hear?"

"Then…" he scratched the back of his neck.

"We'll start small." Megara walked backward into a curtained-off niche, beckoning him closer with one elegant finger. He followed, stumbling as if intoxicated. Once they were more or less secluded, she leaned against the wall of the niche. "Tell me something you like about me."

"Oh! Well, there's your voice, and the way you tease me, and how you're so brave, and you're so smart, too!"

"Thank you." She set a hand on his arm, only to be distracted by the power of his muscles shifting under her fingertips. "None of that is corrupting you so far. Now tell me something you like about my body."

Hercules gulped, "Ah… thought I shouldn't…"

"I'm asking. It's not as if you walked up to me for the first time and said something about me before getting to know me. I need to know what you like so I can reassure myself that I'm still what you want."

"Your hair!" he hesitated, but with her encouragement, he ran his fingers over her curls. "It's like silk… but also like the back of the softest kitten… I'd like to see it down… It always has a wonderful smell…"

"That'll be the lavender, usually, but tonight it's spiced citrus." She practically had to drown herself in it if she wanted to escape the foul odors of the Underworld.

"Then there are your eyes… they're full of mystery and excitement. But also… sadness… I want to understand you and banish the sadness."

"Your ambitions reach higher than I thought. Don't worry so much about things that aren't your problem."

"If something's bothering you, it bothers me. I think I've proven that tonight, haven't I?"

It would be too easy to fall into that small, dark place again. She had to externalize her emotions again, keep them away from her core. "So you like my hair. I like yours, too. You have a gorgeous shade of red gold." She reached into his hair, aided by Hercules leaning down to help her reach.

Seconds later, his lashes hung low over his eyes. He let out a sigh, and his body sagged closer to her. "I didn't expect to like that so much…"

"You're used to your body being used as a weapon, yes? Honed and bulked and punished with more and more work. Just because you can take it doesn't mean you don't need something different once in a while, does it?"

Hercules let out a low groan that made her shiver, but he covered his mouth. "I'm sorry, that was…"

"Shh… don't worry about that. I'm the only one who heard you." While keeping one hand in his hair, she trailed the other lower along the outlines of his face, and down to his chin, which she lightly stroked.

Hercules closed his eyes, leaned into her even more, and wrapped his hands about her waist. "I also like how curvy you are…" he whispered. One of his hands traced her hip, then began to inch lower.

Megara arched her back, moving herself through his fingers before even considering the consequences. "You're braver than you thought, aren't you?" she purred. Her nails brushed lines from his jaw down his neck.

Hercules caught a sharp intake of breath, shocked into cupping a handful of her in each hand. Just as quickly as he'd done it, he withdrew and flung himself back against the opposite wall of the niche. "I'm sorry!"

"For what? Following my lead?" They were both breathing hard, but Megara should be above it. It was a bit of fun for now. She'd see to it that she didn't take either of them too far.

Hercules hid his hands behind his back and hung his head.

"I'm sorry. This is my fault. When you asked to be corrupted, I should've known you'd be at your limit even without kissing."

He lifted his head at the mention of kissing. "We could maybe try that…"

"Let's give you time to cool down. I think I just about melted your brain a minute ago. You should have time to go back to normal. I won't tell anyone you squeezed me if you don't want me to."

"Thanks… at least for now… especially with Phil around…"

"Understood. You'll go right back to the sweet, innocent Wonder Boy we all know."

"Do I stop being Wonder Boy to you if I'm not innocent, anymore?" A light pout appeared that inspired Meg with a desire to kiss him. He could never know he had this power.

"No. That only stops when you betray me."

"I'll never betray you. If I fail you, it'll be an accident, and I'll fix it as quickly as I can." He meant it. The poor sap.

"No pressure. We may never see each other again, after all. We never know things like that." She moved to slide back out of the alcove, but Hercules put up an arm to block her.

"Is there something you need to tell me?" he whispered. "There's got to be. It's crushing you. Please, tell me what it is. Why wouldn't I see you again? What's going on with you?"

"I can't tell you. I literally cannot tell you."

Something flickered across Hercules's eyes. "Someone's blackmailing you, and if they catch on that you gave that away, you'll be in big trouble."

"Wh–How did you…?"

"You're mysterious, Meg, but you're not impossible to understand. I've seen the signs before. I know when someone's hiding something from me because of the hero business. Except you know what else? I'm the one person you should tell because I'm the only person I know of who'll dedicate every moment to solving your problems. Just lay them on me, I'll carry them for you."

"You can't," she whispered. "But thanks for offering." How soon until Hades's next monster appeared? She'd fooled around long enough. How many people would she doom because their hero was fixated on her?

"Hey." Hercules caught her by the chin, still blocking the way out of the niche. "Stay with me. Don't disappear again, Meg. You'll only hurt both of us. Tell me something: is the person hurting you a human?"

"What would you do if they were?"

She'd seen him angry before, but she'd never seen this flinty darkness that overshadowed the sapphires in his eyes. "It's pretty easy to hurl a guy off a flying horse."

"You wouldn't…"

"Someone who was hurting you? Someone who made you feel like garbage and hide from the world, wishing for your own destruction? I could do worse. But I'm also making lots of money recently. Maybe I can buy you out of whatever contract you're in." There was an odd emphasis when he said 'contract.' As if he knew exactly what he was asking but wanted her to admit it.

"Nobody has that kind of currency."

"You paid in somehow. What are you in for?"

"A substitution clause," she blurted out. "But don't worry about me. I'm handling it, and you have so much to do."

"I only care about any of it if I'm with you. No hero business is more important than yours. If you'd just tell me–"

A scream rang out from outside. Despite how high-pitched it was, Megara was certain the screamer was Adonis. The scream was cut short, punctuated by a deep rumble that rocked the palace. More screaming followed as party guests scattered in utter confusion.

"Stay here!" Hercules paused to kiss her forehead, then barreled out of the niche into the banquet hall.

Megara followed him, heedless of his instructions to stay out of the way. In the chaos, she noted the hulking figure of a man-shaped beast with the head of a bull. Where'd Hades find that?

"I'm sick of labyrinths! You'll never get me back in there!" the creature said. "Where's Daedalus? I'll gore him through the skull! Some brain he'll have then!"

Hercules squared up against the monster while Theseus and Galatea took the point of ushering the guests out of the bull-man's path.

"You can take this bum! You've beaten him twice!" Phil was shouting at Hercules.

"The Minotaur is my nemesis," Theseus said, "I should help fight him, too!"

"Get your armor, then," Hercules pulled his sword out of his belt. "But hurry. I don't know what'll be left of this guy before you've changed."

Megara evaluated their surroundings. There was no hint of Pain or Panic. Not yet, anyway. There could be no witnesses if she found herself in a position to betray her "master" again.

"Come on, let's get out of here!" Medusa appeared at her side, tugging on Megara's arm.

"Where would we even go?" Megara shrugged the Gorgon off her. "Running upstairs won't do anything. He could knock out a load-bearing wall, and we'd fall. We shouldn't follow everyone else. That's a good way to get trampled."

"Whatever we do, it has to be fast!"

Medusa rushed away, leaving Megara busy evaluating the structure of the banquet hall.

"Every day I've been trapped in that labyrinth, I've thought of how I'd kill you when I got free," the Minotaur snarled at Hercules and blew a hot puff of air through his nostrils. He knelt down, aiming his horns at the hero, and readied himself to charge.

Theseus reappeared in his black armor, swinging down from the rafters. "You have two heroes to worry about, fiend! Don't count me out!"

"Both of you… yes. This is everything I've waited for!" The minotaur charged, but Hercules caught him by the horns.

Hercules growled with effort, and slammed the minotaur back into the floor.

"Let's get him out of here!" Theseus shouted to Hercules.

"I'm not going anywhere!" The Minotaur grabbed one of the columns he narrowly missed when Hercules flipped him onto his back and threw it at the heroes.

Hercules and Theseus ducked, but the massive column hit the ground and rolled directly toward Megara.

"Malaka!" Megara shouted, which brought Hercules's attention in her direction.

"Meg!" was all he got out before the column landed with a sickening crunch.

It cracked the marble below, and this did not stop it from rolling toward her. It kept rolling toward her like the hand of fate. This could be the moment that wiped her away. She stared at the oncoming masonry, unable to comprehend the concept of escape.

Hercules abandoned the fight with the minotaur and charged across the banquet hall.

The column was faster. There was only one thing Megara could think to do. She rushed back into the niche, only for the column to block it off and crumble some of the arch over its entrance. The curtain rod fell loose, bouncing off Megara's head while the impact of the column jostled her against the back wall.

Hercules dropped to roll the last bit of the way and lifted the column away from the niche's entrance. "You were supposed to hide!"

"Lot of good that did me!" Megara shouted back. She turned toward him with a sheet of blood trailing down her face.

Hercules cringed, reaching for her.

"I am sick of you ignoring me!" the Minotaur roared. He charged across the banquet hall.

"You want my attention?" Hercules spun around with the column held over his head. "You got it!" He threw the column back at the Minotaur mid-charge while Theseus flanked the enemy from the side with his sword.

Megara sank to the floor of the niche, growing dizzier by the moment. Her sore head was spinning. Her eyes blurred over. She needed to sleep… She sank onto her side and curled in on herself. Everything would be fine if she just took a moment to sleep…