People hustle and bustle through a clothing shop in Athens. Drachma passes hands while mutters fill the air of Theseus' presence. A little boy waves at him which he returns.

Theseus picks up a dark blue dress that is backless. "I think this one will go great with your eyes," he tells Ariadne.

She shoots him a playful look. "And you want to look at my back as well."

"That's just a bonus," he smirks.

He looks over at Medea to make sure she doesn't try anything to Bellero. So far so good.

"They don't have anything that I like. I will go next door," the witch tells them.

Bellero looks over the many designed tunics and pinches a light blue one with golden vertical stripes. Yet, he can't hide the sadness in his darkened eyes. Would anything actually-

"Brother, do you need help?" Theseus interrupts his thoughts.

Bellero drops the cloth. "I-I'm always used to wearing my regular clothes. What are you going to wear?"

"A dark blue tunic and Ariadne will match me color wise. Tell me what you're thinking."

"I like blue, but...I think that no matter what I wear, things won't change."

"What do you mean?"

He then notices one of the staff members has removed the cloth that Bellero just touched.

"Excuse me, ma'am. You can leave that here," Theseus clearly announces.

"I'm so sorry. I will leave it here then."

She gives the cloth to him. Theseus sees a tailor and waves to him for help.

The man smiles after recognizing him. "Hello, Prince Theseus! Have you picked out an outfit?"

"I'm good. My brother needs help with picking a color that suits him."

Bellero turns his face away, knowing what to expect.

"I'm so sorry, sir. I'm quite busy at the moment."

"Stop lying. There's only a few people here. Why won't you serve my brother?" The demigod raises his voice.

Ariadne comes out of the changing area after hearing her husband's voice. "What's wrong?"

"L-Let me get the manager. He will explain why."

"No need. I know why. Is it because of what he is?"

The manager is heard from a distance because he's afraid of Theseus."I-It's not our fault he leaves a fishy smell on everything he touches."

Theseus holds back his aura from the lie. "Ariadne, Bellero. We can forget about this place."

"Don't let me stop you from getting clothes. I can just wait-"

"No. If they won't serve you, then I'm not buying. We're leaving."

Ariadne throws the dress on the table to leave with them.

Theseus points to another store. "Let's try-"

Bellero grabs his wrist. "Stop, brother! Just......stop. I won't be accepted anywhere. I'm used to it."

He leads them to an alley where he can show them something. His aura comes out to reveal to Theseus and Ariadne a glimpse of what he had to grow up through. 13 years old, when he first manifested his fish-like body.

A girl around his age jumped into a deep river to escape the wild boar. The young Bellero trapped the creature with some fishing line but didn't see his friend. Parts of her fingers above the surface had him dive right in.

While fighting against the strong currents, something strange happened. The water around him becomes easier to swim through like air.

After recovering her back on land, he noticed her blue lips with no breath coming out.

He pressed his hands down on her chest repeatedly. "Wake up, Selene!"

His intention to save her brought out blue wisps around his webbed hands. With that help, he got an idea.

He placed his hand above her mouth and thinks about pulling the water out. His eyes widened as the water shapes into a sphere above her face. Selene coughed as he threw it away.

"It's okay. You're safe," he held her up.

Selene's eyes blinked more times than she could count. The fin on her friend's back. Scales like fish on his cheeks. Gills on the side of his neck. Yet his calm eyes told her who he was. The voice of her father called her name. Her eyes widened in horror.

Thwack!

Her friend clutched his head after landing to the side of her. Her father gripped the club to strike again, but she raised her hands to stop him.

She explained it was her best friend who saved her. But it fell on deaf ears. Her father's jaw clenched from the abomination in front of him.

"Stay away from my daughter, monster!"

Selene tried to stop him, but he pushed her away to land another blow. His demigod instincts to survive kicked in.

He ducks. Claws appeared on his fingertips to knock the club away--

Spurt!

A moment before Selene's father screamed in pain. Blood dripped from Bellero's fingers. His pupils shook from his unintended action. Selene's reaction burned into his mind. The thought of hurting her had him dive into the river to return to the castle. He showed his mother who explained his actual father.

News spread around Corinth and outside of it of what he had done. Although he was a monster, he was still a prince and they had to treat him as such. Bellero had to wear a wet scarf since the gills never went away and for living through this. For three years, he had to endure the muttered insults.

"Freak. Monster. Just die already."

He kept to himself within the castle grounds despite his parents' protests. The one time he decided to, he saw Selene and ran away from her. Who would want to be friends with a monster

His aura dies out. A crying Ariadne embraces him tighter than a boa.  Bellero is speechless.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't know."

"It-It's okay."

Theseus embraces the both of them. "I'm sorry too. I should have been aware of that."

"It's not your fault."

"If they won't accept you, then we don't have to buy clothes. We can go as we are."

"You are a part of our family. We're not leaving you behind," Ariadne's words reduce him to tears. Happy scales decorate his face.

The couple lets him take a breath. With an exchanged glance, they tell him the good news.

"Plus, we are expecting a family member to come into the picture," the white haired demigod rubs his wife's belly.

Bellero's eyes almost pop out."I-I'm going to be an uncle?"

Ariadne nods with a smile.

A wide smile cracks across his face followed by a bear hug. "This is great!!"

"Your niece or nephew will be happy to see you. We expect you to spoil them every time."

"They will be lucky to have you."

Bellero couldn't stop smiling. "I promise to-"

Medea's presence silences him.

She has a bag in one hand and sees that they don't have anything. "You three couldn't find anything?"

"We decided to dress in our regular clothes for the dance. You can wear whatever you picked out," Theseus tells her.

"That's strange. Did something happen?"

"No. It was a mutual decision," Ariadne bluffs.

"At least I will look good as your coach. Bellerophon, why are you smiling like that?"

He looks up at the clear sky. "No reason. I like this day."

She sighs while taking out her chariot. "Let's head back."

----

Later that day,

Taki's group eats an early dinner together. Echo sits on the opposite side several seats from Chrysaor. He waves and she gently waves back.

"Are you sad?"

Echo doesn't respond to him. Chrysaor is confused and Perseus picks that up.

He signs to him. "Maybe she needs space. Try again tomorrow."

Chrysaor gives an OK sign to show he understood.

A woman refills his water and gets close to his ear. "Perseus?"

He leans away from her. "Yes?"

"If you want some company tonight, maybe we-"

"Sorry. I can't."

She thinks it's because of Chrysaor sleeping in the same room. "Well, we can get our own room or we can include-'

"No, thanks," he firmly states.

"I'm sorry. I misunderstood."

She walks away and rejoins another servant. "He's not interested."

"Maybe we're not his type. I'm sure the Gorgon Slayer has a preference."

Chrysaor turns to them in anger, but Perseus puts a hand on his arm to sit him back down. The servants leave after his reaction.

"You must have heard that name a lot," the mountain nymph speaks up.

He gently nods.

"I'm sorry that you have to deal with that, Chrysaor. I would be angry too if someone disrespected my mother."

Hearing her voice and empathy has him take some "breaths".

"I lost her when I was born too," she continues.

This surprises the group. Chrysaor's jaw drops.  "I'm sorry."

It's okay", she signs back.

Takashi offers his hand and she takes it. He gives her a gentle squeeze to comfort her. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know."

"It's alright. I still had my friends and family who loved me. They told me about what she was like. They said I have her face and her warm personality. I'm glad to have received those aspects. What do you know about your mom? Not based on what others said?" She directs to the metallic man.

Chrysaor looks at Perseus and he sees one index finger on his arm. A sign.

He thinks deeply and writes his response to show the group. "Warmth. I never felt cold when she was around."

"That's so sweet. I wish she was still alive."

"What do you think of Medusa, Heracles?" Perseus asks.

"In what way?"

"I know that some of your tasks included slaying monsters. If you were in my shoes, would you have done it too?"

"Not if she can be reasoned with. The monsters I killed were harming others and had to be stopped. If she and I could talk, I would have left her alone."

Chrysaor feels relief from what he said.

"And if Athena found out you let her live, what would you do?" The young son of Zeus continues.

"Reason with the goddess and ask her to call off the bounty for Medusa's head."

Perseus is silent as he processes his brother's words. 1 down.

Takashi's eyebrows come down from the line of questioning.

"Uncle Taki, what about you?"

"My wife, Penelope, wrote a paper about Medusa. That she was a victim of a crime and was cursed by Athena. I'm starting to think that way after I met Athena in Athens."

"You did?" Chloe leans forward.

"Her temple creeps me out. The group of stone statues called Crimes of Medusa. Their faces weren't of fear, but surprise and maybe some care. I don't trust her one bit."

She grabs  his hand.. "Shhh. Don't let her find out!"

"I think she already knows. Besides, if she really did hide the Trojans and made them suffer, I want her to face justice for her crimes. They didn't deserve that."

Dark green wisps foam at the end of his words before pulling them back inside.

Perseus leans in. "She hid them?"

Taki summarizes what happened and why Aphrodite is lending her help to him.

Perseus feels more comfortable around his teammates but wants to wait. "That's great what you did. What are the tests?"

"I have to write a love poem and perform a dance. Dancing is not my best skill, but I have help."

"He sure does. Two lovely ladies," Chloe smiles.

"He just needs a woman taller than him, but I asked around and they don't have dancing experience," Echo adds.

"Try asking Adonis. He's a great dancer and can perform the roles of man and woman easily," Heracles proposes.

"Well, that solves that when I start tomorrow. I just need to organize my thoughts for the poem."

"We believe in you, uncle. Let us know if you need some help. I have some dancing experience too," Perseus offers.

"Thanks. I will let you know."

After dinner, he starts writing his love poem.

----

Nov 20th 6 am Gaia (9 days before the tournament)

Taki wakes up from his desk. His hands push away the crumbled balls of parchment from last night. He grabs his phone and leaves a voice message about the tests he will undergo.

     ".....I have two left feet, but I have some help so I can at least pass her tests. When I get back, I want to dance with you.........I want to apologize for not saying enough about how much I love you. You've been so patient with me since I worked those long hours. I've done more actions than words and you need both. Let me make it up to you. I love you."

After getting dressed, he opens the door. Heracles and Echo are leaning on the wall close to his room.

"You're up?" He questions.

"It's a habit at this point."

Echo has a plate of food ready. "Let's get started."

He eats the light meal and follows them to the banquet hall. Aphrodite's servants are up and about as they decorate the place.

"Morning, Taki. Slept well, handsome?" A servant asks.

"Morning. I sure did," he blushes.

"Let him be. He's not interested in any of us," Chloe projects her voice for all to hear.

"Morning."

Chloe bows. "Morning. Are you ready to dance?"

"I am," some doubt slips out.

"Aphrodite's not looking for perfection, just effort. What do you know about dancing so far?"

"Besides having two left feet since my wedding day, not much."

Chloe grins at him. "We can work with that. Aphrodite may have us play either slow or festive music. So let's practice hand placement and go from there. Raise your left hand like this and touch my hand."

He mirrors the action with his right hand and they touch hands.

"Now clasp it. Not too strongly. Imagine we are holding a thin sheet between our hands and keeping it there."

Taki listens and clasps his hand over hers.

"Now you will put your right hand on my side."

She takes his hand and puts it on the side of her upper back. She puts her left hand on the back of his right shoulder.

"This is called an open facing position. It's how we start. You can also place your right hand on your partner's hip to guide them. Let's take a forward step. Lead with your left foot and I will step back in response."

"How big of a step?" He looks down at his feet.

"It's between a small step and a big step. Just enough to get started," Perseus overhears while walking with Chrysaor to witness this.

Taki turns to him and looks back at Chloe for confirmation.

"He's right."

Not too big to step on her, but not too small. Think middle.

He takes a small step forward with his left and Chloe steps back.

"Good. Now bring your right foot over to join."

He does so.

"Let's do it again."

He repeats the action as many times as Chloe tells him.

"Now, we will do the same thing, but telling your partner what you're going to do first. With a slight push of your right hand, your partner knows what to expect. Apply a push forward on my side."

Taki applies a very light push before taking a step forward.

"It's okay. Apply a little more pressure to me."

"I didn't want to hurt you."

"You won't. Let's try again."

Taki applies a little more pressure to her side and takes a step forward while looking down. "Is that better?"

"It is. I could tell what you wanted to do."

He feels more confident as he repeats the action. Heracles and the others are happy for him.

"You're catching on quick. Let's play some music."

She looks at the servants and they play on a harp and lyre. The music has a slow tune to it.

"Now we just have to step to the rhythm. Starting now."

He signals to her and takes a step forward. He takes another step forward and Chloe stops him. The servants stop playing.

"You're off beat now, but that's okay. You have to listen to the music, not just with your ears, but right here," she places a hand on his chest.

Listen to her. We can pass this test.

"Okay. How do I listen?"

They then hear some notes from a pan flute and turn to see it was Perseus playing it.

"It's notes from the song," he explains. "Uncle, when you hear this note.....That's your cue to start a movement. It's the same note you will hear in any song. That's when you should move. When you don't hear it, that's when you stop. Stopping helps you think while you're waiting for your cue to begin again."

To Taki, it makes sense to him. "I'm ready to begin now."

The servants play the song again and Taki listens to the notes being played. He hears the note again and he takes a step forward. He hears the note again and takes another step forward. And another one. The servants stop playing.

"That's perfect."

"Thanks, nephew! I didn't know you could play music."

"Me neither," Heracles adds. Echo expresses the same.

His grip on the pan flute tightens and loosens. "It's something I picked up at the palace, but I will tell you more about it later."

Chloe resumes teaching. "Let's get back to it. Forward step is good, so let's learn more about the other steps. Backsteps and side steps. For back steps, you have to signal by pulling me forward as you step back with your left. Any movement pattern will always begin with your left foot."

Taki imitates the notes he heard in his own way which makes her laugh.

"Go slowly with it. Like ba..da..da..da."

Taki gets the pattern down as he steps back with his left. Chloe has him do this pattern over and over again. She notices that Taki is paying more attention to his feet.

"You can look up at me."

"Sorry for looking down so much. I really want to get these steps down."

"I know. Once you're more comfortable, you won't have to look down as much. It's important to maintain eye contact as you dance. She needs to trust you since you're the leader. We are going to help bring that out in you."

"I appreciate that. Let's keep going."

Chloe teaches him the side steps and then the box pattern. A forward step, left step, back step, and a right step to conclude it.

Taki listens to the notes with his ears and heart. He imagines Penelope is right in front of him and he acts on the right note. He goes through the box pattern and repeats it. He's getting a hang of it as he continues throughout the song and doesn't look down as much.

"Great job, Taki! Your wife will be so happy when you dance together."

"This is kind of fun. I wish I had done this more."

"You will!" Echo yells.

"Now practice with Echo."

She walks up to him. He takes into account their height difference as he lays a hand on her right side. Perseus plays the same song, and he practices what he learned.

He steps on her foot. "Sorry about that."

"It didn't hurt. Start again."

He calms himself and listens for the note. He then goes through the box pattern with her, and she smiles as he has improved.

Chrysaor is happy to see that smile but reminds himself that they can only be friends and nothing more. He shakes his head and continues to be happy for her. Heracles pats him on the back.

"I know how you feel. The next woman you meet will be lucky to be with you."

Chrysaor appreciates hearing that. The same servant who requested help from him before approaches him.

"Would you like to practice our dance?"

He nods and she leads him to the floor. He gets his hand placement perfectly on and he listens for the cue to start. She steps onto his feet and he moves into a box pattern. Taki notices this and Echo turns her head to see them having fun.

Chrysaor gets the woman off his feet and he twirls her in place.

"I didn't know you could do that. You are full of surprises," she laughs.

He blushes from her compliment while she hops back onto his feet to keep dancing.

That feeling is still there, but...I'm happy to see him like this. He should move on from me. Maybe it's better this way.

They take a small break before continuing with the dance lessons. Chloe teaches him how to twirl her around and move to the right place. They do it slowly, step by step. When Perseus played some music, Taki rushes to get there which throws off their timing.

"Let's try again. Slowly."

He tries slowing himself down, but he would miss the cue each time.

"If you're too early, you can still hold my hand and dance by yourself as you wait for me to finish."

He takes this in mind as he gets to his position too early. He tries multiple times with the music playing and he gets it right with the timing.

"You did it."

"Thanks to you. Can we keep doing this?"

"I'm all yours."

He continues to dance with Chloe and then dances with Echo. Chrysaor continues dancing and stops with the servant.

"That was so fun, Chrysaor."

She stands up on her toes and kisses him on the cheek. Chrysaor is stunned as she walks away. She looks back with a mischievous grin.

The mountain nymph squeezes Taki's hand. The sharp points of her hand digs into his.

"Echo, let go please," he grunts.

Perseus stops playing music.

She quickly lets go of his hand. "I'm so sorry! Are you okay? Did I cut you?"

"I will be okay," he shakes the pain away.

"I-I don't know what came over me," she questions herself. She tries to remind herself of her love for Narcissus.

You're with Narcissus and he lo-.......Why can't I finish my thought?

"Echo? Are you alright?"

"Probably just tired," she stammers.

"Did Narcissus reply to you?"

"I haven't gotten it yet."

"Maybe it will come tomorrow morning."

"I hope so," while her crown of flowers shrinks.

Chrysaor wanted to cheer her up but respects her space.

"Let's take a break from this and start training. You're ready, uncle?" Perseus asks.

"Let's do it..."

Chrysaor acts as referee again while the others watch. Takashi is facing Perseus barehanded. Perseus summons his aura and Taki does the same.

"Zone."

Perseus is curious why he said that. Chrysaor raises and drops his hand. Perseus fires off an energy fist to test him. Takashi runs towards him.

"Slow."

The son of Zeus sees his fired off attack slowing down to his confusion. Takashi runs around the attack and Perseus goes to cut him off.

Taki taps his chest. "Zone. FF."

His body vibrates. Perseus jabs to test his reflexes. Taki dodges it and hits him with a punch to the abdomen. Perseus' defenses hold up, but he's confused as Takashi is now moving at a faster pace. He raises his aura as Taki attacks him at all sides. Perseus' defenses withstand the barrage of attacks.

He goes for a takedown, but Taki backs up. Heracles sees what he's planning to do as they get closer to the energy fist.

"Zone. Rewind!" He points at the energy attack while ducking.

The energy fist from before flows in reverse at its current size and flies back at Perseus. Perseus guards with both arms and doesn't flinch from his own attack. At that moment, Takashi gets behind him and fires off a small, charged beam at the back.

His eyes widen that he didn't move an inch. He figures that his nephew's defenses were further enhanced.

"Play."

His body stops vibrating.

Perseus lowers his guard and turns to him. "That was incredible! You were really fast!"

"I have a level above that, but it's risky. Aphrodite's gift will help me withstand the strain of it."

"I have so many questions."

Taki demonstrates the rest of his powers to Perseus and wraps it up. Chrysaor and Pegasus shake their heads thinking their eyes were playing tricks on them. Chloe and the servants express pure wonder.

"...So that's how my powers work."

Perseus nods. "I don't think I get it."

"It's okay. You don't have to fully understand it."

"You've gotten a lot stronger, Taki," a familiar voice calls to him. A wide smile cracks on his face as he turns in that direction.

Helena is here.