A part of Hercules's mind remained with Megara and Harmonia while Theseus and his friends peppered him with questions that ranged from requests to recount his heroic antics to tips on fatherhood. In either case, he was happy to answer. It helped keep Thesesus's mind off of Galatea's ordeal, at least for a while, but he could see his friend's mood sinking.

Someone knocked at the door to the andron, making his heart leap. True to his hopes, it was Megara carrying Harmonia.

"You can't let your wife in here!" An Attican nobleman objected.

"Relax, junior, I'm not intruding in your little club. I'm only passing off our empathetic princess before the screaming starts," Megara said, holding Harmonia out to Hercules.

"Is she ready for a nap?" Hercules asked, gladly scooping the warm, burbling creature into his arms.

"I'm not convinced, but you could try it. She's met a lot of people today. She's got to run out of energy soon."

"How is Galatea?" Theseus asked.

"Fine, considering the circumstances. It typically doesn't get too bad to handle for… awhile." Megara's eyes darted to Hercules's, and it was clear she was worried about revealing how long the labor could go.

"You know, Theseus, you could try attending," Hercules suggested.

Theseus and all his friends stared at him in dismay at the suggestion.

"That's a woman's place," Theseus remarked after a long pause.

"But if you love her, don't you want to be with Galatea while she goes through this?" Hercules asked. He cradled Harmonia in one arm and pulled Megara close with the other. "It helps you appreciate what she's going through. You can't possibly imagine it, Theseus. When Meg was going through it, my heart broke for her. I wanted to take all the pain for myself. But I knew my presence helped reassure her and got her through that ordeal." He kissed Megara's hair. "What if holding her hand helps Galatea the way it helped Meg?"

"All sorts of women survive giving birth without men present," a nobleman Hercules was glad not to know the name of scoffed.

"And many others don't," Megara said. Her hand drifted to her middle briefly, but she quickly moved it away.

Everyone looked at her now, aware of what she'd tried to hide. Not only was she a survivor of birth, but someone destined to endure it again.

Hercules nudged her toward the door. He didn't like the way these other men were looking at her, with that speculative expression, as if wondering what she looked like without her clothes. By now, he knew that men had too often looked at his wife like that in the past.

He stood in front of her, blocking her view, and whispered, "I've got Moni. Go. Be the wonderful friend I know you are."

Megara took a moment longer to gaze at him, squeeze Harmonia's hand, and then dart away.

When she was out of sight, Hercules relaxed internally. Then, he turned toward Theseus's friends with a solemn gaze. "Before any of you have a wife who gives birth, you'd better contemplate what a sacrifice that is. Ingratitude will only prove how heartless you are."

"There's nothing heartless about acknowledging the divide between men and the realm of women," said the nobleman defensively, looking stung.

"Aren't you the god of manliness or something?" another inquired. "Shouldn't you know that?"

"Maybe if I'm the god of masculinity and I'm the only one who stayed with my wife during the birth of our child, I'm the only one doing masculinity right!" Hercules snapped.

Harmonia instantly reacted to the harshness in his voice and waved her tiny fists in protest. Hers was the only voice to fill the chamber.

While the others watched her protest with disdain and something approaching fear, Hercules doted on her and stroked her belly until she gripped his fingers in her fists. He softly hummed a lullaby for her, and Harmonia's lashes drooped over her pretty violet eyes.

"Everything I did before building my family was ultimately empty," he said, not even looking up from his daughter's face as she sank into sleep. "I found my telos when I found love and gave everything for the person that I couldn't stop dreaming of. Before, it was always some nebulous daydream of being accepted by a crowd of people I didn't know. But these two mean more to me than any brand deal or crowd of adoring fans. So maybe you guys could all stand to learn a thing or two about what really matters before you go your whole life being selfish and careless."

The first cry from the upper floor alarmed the whole room aside from Hercules, who could only close his eyes and will his friend to feel some comfort despite everything.

"I think it's time to invoke Bacchus," said a friend of Theseus.

Unimpressed, Hercules rolled his eyes. "Because it's you guys that need to forget your pain."

"In all fairness, Herc, I don't know how else to stay kingly through this whole thing," Theseus said. "I'm completely helpless here."

"Fine, call Dionysus. Let him help you forget what's going on," Hercules said, and he lounged on the couch with Harmonia falling deeper into sleep on his chest.

Theseus eyed Hercules warily. "Why do you say that like it's a bad thing?"

Hercules gazed down at Harmonia and wondered what he would say or do if his daughter grew up to have a husband who would rather drink away his cares than support her through a birth. He'd created Galatea with his own hands– along with help from Aphrodite. He wouldn't have considered her a daughter at the time or even now, really. But she was something like family.

"Listen, Theseus," he said, hoping he sounded calm. I am partially responsible for…" It was probably best not to blab about Galatea's origins in front of everyone. "... for how Galatea got to Prometheus Academy. She's my friend. It matters to me whether she's taken care of and treated the way she deserves. I think she deserves someone who would rather be in an uncomfortable situation than leave her alone in one that's worse."

Theseus bowed his head. "She has your wife and every comfort I can provide. You put me to shame, Hercules. But… this is tradition. I hope you can forgive me."

Hercules nodded. He'd forgive Theseus, but he'd be vigilant and selective with any of Harmonia's suitors. She'd probably hate him for it until she understood what he was protecting her from. He'd hope Meg would back him up on it all until then.

He nodded in Dionysus's direction when he appeared in a cloud of purple light and stepped from it, surrounded by celebrants all dressed in purple and draped in leopard skin.

Two of them, in particular, seemed familiar. Not that he'd seen either of the men before, but there was something about their features that made him think he ought to know them.

Maybe Dionsyus's followers tended to look like him. They all had long, curly brown hair that dangled over their faces. Just like Dionysus, his followers had sharp, angular features. One of them was on the shorter side, stockier, and red in the face. The other stood taller and more elegant than his brother.

Why had Hercules assumed they were brothers?

"Hey, brother!" Dionysus threw an arm around Hercules's shoulders and offered him a sip of his wine.

"Hey, Dio… None for me today. I'm watching the baby." He sat Harmonia up in her sleep to reposition her. "Good to see you, though."

Dionysus made a face. "Oh well. You should make some new friends, at least!" He gestured with his cup toward the mysteriously familiar gentlemen. "Wouldn't you like to know what Thebes was like back in the day? They're full of stories."

Thebes.

Hercules's eyes widened. "These aren't…"

Dionysus grinned. "You know, Hades doesn't guard his slaves all that well. And he's never figured out how to plug up all the doors I use to get in." He winked. "Go on. I'm sure you've got lots of questions."