The last time Hercules appeared before a mortal, he'd done so to give advice on the perfect discus throw. The kid who'd come to see him hadn't really needed his help; he just wanted to say he'd gotten advice from Hercules himself.

Every interaction was so superficial, he grew weary of animating his statues. And yet… He hadn't expected this petitioner to be so pretty. It was still early, and she stood in the temple's shadows, but he could see a gentle slope of a nose and luxurious auburn hair that curled around her delicate face… He'd spent so much time admiring her face that he forgot what she'd called him about.

"Wow… you actually appeared."

"Don't… most gods?" Hercules leaned closer to her. "Hi. What can I do for you?"

The girl took a step back and bowed her head. "Sir, our city will be wiped out if nobody does anything. I don't know, maybe we deserve it. But I had to try. My cousin, maybe you've heard her pray to you before, or maybe she hasn't thought about it. But she thinks we could be saved. But…" she sighed. "I don't want to waste your time."

"No! No, you're not wasting my time. I've got… nothing going on. Who's trying to destroy your… wait! This is Thebes, right? My parents were talking about this city earlier."

"So you know… The gods know?" She raised her head again, and this time, he caught sight of her bruises in the proper lighting.

"Hey, what happened?" Hercules hopped off his pedestal and knelt in front of her. It was awkward, considering the proportions of his statue, but he was too focused on remedying the injuries she'd suffered to care about that.

The girl squealed and covered her face, and Hercules was struck with the realization she thought he was going to hit her.

Someone had hit her.

Right in that beautiful face. He thought he'd seen marks on her neck, too.

These were unforgivable offenses.

"It's okay," he said in his gentlest voice, though even that echoed. He didn't usually do this, but he returned his statue to its usual pose and walked out of it. He was still much taller than her, but he could scrunch down more easily to soothe her. "I'm a helper. I don't like hurting people. Will you let me look?"

The girl peeked at him from behind her hands. She was shaking.

"I don't think I remember your name. Could you say it for me?" Hercules smiled his most charming smile and hoped it worked as well on her as it did on his parents.

"Megara," she said.

"So pretty," Hercules said, crouched lower, hands on his knees. I'll help you, Megara."

"Oh, good…" Megara lowered her hands from her face, inadvertently revealing the fingerprint-shaped bruises along her neck. Thebes has seven gates, and there are seven armies. I think the plan must be for them to send one army against each gate.

"Hold on." Hercules didn't touch her, but his hands hovered near her face. "How did this happen?"

"Oh… I… well, I ran away, and the king is my cousin, and he's always done this, so he thought it was… Are you mad at me?" she winced, and her voice grew squeakier as she spoke.

"No, not at you. What kind of king thinks he can do that sort of thing?"

"Kings and princes think they can do anything," Megara scoffed. "Just last week, I was talking to the Prince of Thrace, and he…" Tears sprang to her eyes, and she turned away. "Ever since, I… wish I could just forget it… But then I tried to get Lethe water, and a centaur ripped me off…"

"I'm really sorry." Hercules didn't remember if it was proper to hug someone he'd just met; he just knew she needed it. He pulled her into his arms and held her while she trembled with tears. "That's so unfair. People shouldn't do that kind of thing."

"Yeah, well…" She hiccupped with tears.

Hercules had never seen anyone so sad before. It broke his heart. He had to fix it. "I'm a god of healing, you know, I can fix some of this mess." He raised one hand to her shoulder. "I'm not gonna choke you, all right? You know I wouldn't do that?"

"I don't know what you'd do, but… I guess I'll trust you."

Hercules rested his hand against the bruises on her throat. He sank his aura into her skin and eased the blood so that it could flow untroubled through her flesh. The pain and discoloration soon followed until he had willed her back to perfect health. He did the same then for the mark on her face.

All the while, she was giggling. Her laughter was sweeter than a cherub's.

He'd never felt the urge to kiss anyone, but he'd dreamed of it. Why not her?

He leaned in closer but then remembered himself and pulled away from her. He was not his father.

"That… feels better than it did before I was hurt," Megara marveled. She pressed a hand to her cheek, then her neck.

"A little of my power's still there. You'll be fine now. I'll let everyone know you're under my protection. The next guy who strikes you will lose his hand."

"That's a little… extreme."

"Are you sure? Because I think someone who hits girls is too cowardly to use his hands for anything worth doing." He had her laughing again, but he wasn't sure she ought to be so amused by what he'd said.

"I know my brothers don't like it when someone hits me, but I think that's just because they care about their sister."

"It's a credit to them that they do. But any man who loves his mother knows it's a crime to mistreat a woman. We'll have to make sure more guys learn that lesson in Thebes once I rescue your people from this invasion."

"It's not just Thebes," Megara said. "These invaders are definitely planning to take any girl they find and violate her. We're all taught early on that men search for girls in times like this."

"None of them are going to hurt you. I swear this to you by all the stars," Hercules declared. "We're not doing that today. I don't want to send you home where people are going to do things like that to you, so stay here. Anyone who finds you here and tries to remove you from my temple is an idiot, and I'll make him pay for it."

"My brothers might not understand," Megara said. "They might think I've just run off…"

"I'll make sure everyone knows that I'm taking over this war."

"Really?" she gasped. "I didn't think you'd go that far… have you won a lot of wars before?"

"My siblings usually keep me out of these wars, but this time, I'm going to make a difference for you."

"You mean for the city?" Her eyes were purple. Was that normal for mortals? Why was she so pretty?

"Uh… yeah. For the city!" Hercules scratched the back of his neck. He felt like an idiot. A real hero, not someone who'd just been given the title at birth, would know how to handle this situation.

Was this what it felt like to be around a girl he wasn't related to, or was she exceptionally gorgeous? Did it matter?

This wasn't the time. First, he'd saved her city, and then he'd see if she was open to dating.

"Remember to stay here, all right? I want to make sure you're safe until this business is handled, and I can check on you again."

"Uh… sure thing." Megara looked around the sanctuary as if trying to decide how to make herself at home.

"There are some facilities on my dad's side of the temple, but if you close this door, you should be left alone." He set a hand atop her head. It was meant as a blessing gesture, but it made him recognize how soft her hair was. Focus! "Back soon," he promised her. He vanished from his temple and went back to Pegasus, who'd found a tree full of songbirds. "Pegasus, I know what we're going to do today!"