Pandora's Box: Maenads (Book 2)

Us Versus Them

Pandora enters Hermes' classroom as quickly as she can, clearly angry. Hermes on the other hand is sitting at his desk with a satisfied look on his face despite how his student and apparent rival is feeling. The young student with a destiny is put off by his nonchalant attitude towards her presence.

"Ms Jupiter... how are you?" asks Hermes with a clearly jovial tone.

Pandora is quick to react, "What did you do with it?"

"Do with what? You're going to have to be a little more specific." jokes Hermes.

"You know what. You took it and you're going to give it back... NOW!" insists Pandora angrily.

"Did you lose something? That's very careless of you. You're going to have to be a lot more careful if you're going to be protecting The Box going forward." Hermes again says with a joking tone.

"Well maybe if you gave me back The Box, I'd learn that lesson." suggests Pandora, beginning to get frustrated.

"You misplaced The Box? Do you realize how dangerous that is?" Hermes fires back, obviously enjoying himself.

"I didn't misplace it, it was stolen, and you're the one who stole it." accuses Pandora.

"You really are very new at this, aren't you? I wouldn't even be able to steal it even if I wanted to. If I could've just taken it, I would have. It'd save me a lot of time and energy of tricking you into doing it for me. Why do you think I got you to give it to me in the first place? The Box has certain... safe guards, in place. It protects itself against people with my... disposition, from getting their hands on it. I can only get it if someone hands it over." explains Hermes.

"So you got someone to take it for you. One of your lackeys." insists Pandora.

"What makes you think that I have lackeys?" asks Hermes almost rhetorically.

"Evil villains always have lackeys. You wouldn't be much of one if you didn't." Pandora accuses.

"It's adorable how simplistic your idea of right and wrong is. That you somehow think that I'm an evil villain who's looking to destroy the world. I'd never be so idiotic as to think in terms of good and evil... or right and wrong." Hermes says with a happy tone, "You really need to update your concepts if you're going to tangle with people like me."

"None of what you just said makes me think you didn't take The Box or have someone do it for you.." Pandora continues to insist.

"I told you before, I've got what I wanted from The Box when you handed it to me. I don't need it anymore. You're barking up the wrong tree." suggests Hermes.

"Then what would be the right tree?" asks Pandora, desperate for some kind of lead.

"I'm not the only one with an interest in that thing. Pretty much anyone who comes into contact with it feels a need to possess it. Maybe you want to start there?" declare Hermes.

"But the only people who..." trails off Pandora as a realization comes over her.

Hermes' smile gets wider as the look on Pandora's face gives him so much joy, "I'm so glad that you're actually thinking. It's so much easier than just randomly accusing people, isn't it?"

Pandora frowns at her adversary only to very quickly turn and rush out of the room.

* * *

Jemma is sitting in the lunch room, enjoying her lunch with the rest of her classmates. The lunch room is quite full but they are very much cordoned off. Each section of the lunch room has been painted a specific color and the students which are in the sections are wearing similar versions of the colors. Many of the students are looking very suspiciously at those who are not in their group or wearing their colors. There's only one section of the place which is the original color of the school, and Jemma is sitting in that one.