Hermes smiled. "I knew a boy once ... oh, younger than you by far. A mere baby, really."<br /><i>Here we go again</i>, George said. <i>Always talking about himself.</i><br /><i>Quiet!</i> Martha snapped. <i>Do you want to get set on vibrate?</i><br />Hermes ignored them. "One night, when this boy's mother wasn't watching, he sneaked out of their cave and stole some cattle that belonged to Apollo."<br />"Did he get blasted to tiny pieces?" I asked.<br />"Hmm ... no. Actually, everything turned out quite well. To make up for his theft, the boy gave Apollo an instrument he'd invented-a lyre. Apollo was so enchanted with the music that he forgot all about being angry."<br />So what's the moral?"<br />"The moral?" Hermes asked. "Goodness, you act like it's a fable. It's a true story. Does truth have a moral?"<br />"Um ..."<br />"How about this: stealing is not always bad?"<br />"I don't think my mom would like that moral."<br /><i>Rats are delicious</i>, suggested George.<br /><i>What does that have to do with the story?</i> Martha demanded.<br /><i>Nothing</i>, George said. <i>But I'm hungry</i>.<br />"I've got it," Hermes said. "Young people don't always do what they're told, but if they can pull it off and do something wonderful, sometimes they escape punishment. How's that?