Pandora the Curious

by Joan Holub

  CONTENTS

  1 MYSTERY BOX

  2 DITZ

  3 PICK ME!

  4 LIVERWURST

  5 ZEUS SNOOZE

  6 TITAN FLIGHT

  7 EEW!

  8 TROUBLE BUBBLES

  9 THE BOYS’ DORM

  10 THIEF

  11 SNEAKING AROUND

  12 ONE LAST HOPE

  13 WHY, WHY, WHY?

  14 JUDGES

  14 ABOUT JOAN HOLUB AND SUZANNE WILLIAMS

  For our mega-fantastic fans:

  Lilly W., Lynda Jane R., Idil B., Liya C., Mona P., Maya O., Jae S., Ariel C., Jessica Q., Lily-Ann S., Vivian L., Joei C., Lilith W., Echo S., Ryanna L., Mikki W., Kate M., Bethany V., Ally D., Rebecca Z., Rachel Z., Sarah M., Fres GG Club, Jocelyn Skye M., Katya B., Zoya B., Kayla S., James A., Nick R., Kevin M., Emily May A., Caitlin A., Sofia W., Justine Y., Chelsea B., Lorelei T., Nikki L., Samantha G., Loren A., Mariane D., Lana W., Sarah P., Martha P., Pat D., Zoe M., Denise D., Ashley V.L.N., Monet E., Kat G., Alex G., Makayla H., MacKenzie W., Maddie T., Juliette M., Lene R., Kashara B., Monica B., Rachel K., Briana S., Taylor F., Caitlin F.

  —J. H. and S. W.

  1

  Mystery Box

  PANDORA WAS WALKING DOWN THE HALL TO her favorite class—Science-ology—when she spotted something so interesting that it made her pale blue eyes go wide.

  “Ooh!” she breathed. She elbowed Athena, the goddessgirl beside her. Then she pointed the tip of her cream-colored Science-ology textscroll at someone coming toward them. “See that new Titan boy?”

  “You mean Epimetheus?” Athena asked. “What about him?”

  Black-haired with gray-green eyes, the Titan godboy and his brother Prometheus had only been attending Mount Olympus Academy for a couple of weeks.

  “Don’t you see that box he’s holding?” Pandora couldn’t take her eyes off it. It glowed and twitched in Epimetheus’s hands. And interesting sounds were coming from it. Like mouse squeaks, salpinx trumpets, and tiger growls all mixed together. “What do you think is in it?” she asked as they paused at the hall fountain.

  Athena shrugged. “Hard to say.”

  Epimetheus had stopped at his locker nearby. Pandora kept an eye on him and his box as she and Athena took turns sipping the glittering nectar that arced from the fountain’s spout.

  When the immortal godboys and goddessgirls at Mount Olympus Academy drank nectar, it caused their skin to shimmer. It had no effect on Pandora’s skin, though. Because she was mortal. One of the few mortals Principal Zeus had invited to go to school here at MOA.

  Athena was eyeing the box now too as she straightened from the fountain. “Well, maybe it’s—” she started to say.

  “Could it be an ancient jewelry box or something?” Pandora interrupted, unable to wait for Athena to finish. The box was about the right size for that. “Ooh! Maybe there’s a bracelet in it? Or something magical? Like a teeny genie?”

  “A bracelet or a genie wouldn’t make those weird noises, though,” said Athena. Holding her long wavy brown hair back with one hand, she took another quick sip of nectar from the fountain.

  Afterward her golden skin shimmered a little more brightly. Because, unlike Pandora, Athena was a goddessgirl. She was also the brainiest student at school. She and Pandora were roommates, sharing a room in the girls’ dorm upstairs on MOA’s fourth floor.

  “C’mon. Let’s get to class,” Athena said.

  But Pandora grabbed her arm, stopping her. “Wait! Aren’t you dying of curiosity? I am.”

  Athena faked a look of shock. “No!” she gasped. “You? Curious? Really?”

  Pandora grinned. She had a reputation for being more curious than practically anyone else at the Academy. In fact, as a sign of her curious nature, her blue and gold bangs were shaped in the form of question marks. But what was wrong with being curious? Nothing, in her opinion!

  “Well, I think somebody should ask him what’s in that box, don’t you?” asked Pandora. “I mean, who knows what he might have in there? It could even be something dangerous!”

  Without waiting for Athena’s reply, Pandora took a step in Epimetheus’s direction. But before she could take another step, someone behind her called out in a mean voice.

  “Hey! Dork-i-metheus!” It was Kydoimos. He and his godboy pal Makhai pushed past Pandora and Athena. Kydoimos was laughing so hard at his own joke that he didn’t seem to notice when his shoulder bumped Athena. One of the three textscrolls she was holding went flying.

  It hit the floor by Pandora’s sandaled feet. She stooped to pick it up and then handed it back to Athena.

  “Aren’t you even going to say ‘Excuse me’?” she called after the boys. But they didn’t hear. They were too busy making a beeline for Epimetheus.

  When it came to Titans, the godboys at MOA were always itching to start trouble. In some ways that was understandable. The Titans had fought a war against the most powerful and important god at the Academy—Principal Zeus. They’d tried to keep him from becoming King of the Gods and Ruler of the Heavens.

  Zeus had defeated them, of course. And the war was long past now. Still, a lot of distrust remained.

  Everyone knew that Epimetheus and Prometheus were the sons of Iapetus, a Titan god who had battled Zeus. So most of the students, Pandora included, couldn’t help wondering why Zeus had invited the sons of his enemy to go to school here. But he must have had his reasons.

  So shouldn’t they give these Titans a chance? What if the situation were reversed? she wondered. If one of MOA’s godboys got sent to a Titan school, wouldn’t they want to be treated with kindness?

  “Whatcha got in the box, Dork-i-metheus?” Kydoimos asked Epimetheus before Pandora could ask him herself. Except she wouldn’t have called him a dork, of course. Kydoimos really acted like a bully sometimes. Same went for Makhai.

  Epimetheus didn’t answer. He only clutched his mysterious box tighter and shut his locker. Then he headed off for class.

  Excited curiosity bubbled in Pandora. Since Epimetheus was in Science-ology next too, he was going the same way she and Athena were. Maybe she could get a better look at the box in class.

  As Pandora and Athena fell into step behind Epimetheus, Makhai sneaked up next to him. In a flash Makhai snatched the box away.

  “No!” Looking freaked out, Epimetheus made a wild grab for it.

  “Over here!” yelled Kydoimos, laughing. Running backward down the hall, he went long. His arms were raised like he was going out for a pass. Other students leaped aside in a hurry to get out of his way.

  Makhai tossed the box toward him. Everyone watched it sail overhead in a high arc, nearly brushing the domed ceiling. The inside of the dome was covered with paintings that illustrated the glorious exploits of the gods and goddesses, including their long-ago battle with the Titans.

  Pandora glimpsed Poseidon, the tall, blond godboy of the sea. His turquoise eyes had narrowed fiercely when they’d landed on the battle paintings. Then they darted to the mystery box. It had overshot and was hurtling past Kydoimos. Pandora gasped, afraid the box would smash on the marble-tiled floor.

  But Poseidon saved the day, leaping to catch it in one hand.

  What a hero! thought Pandora, sighing with admiration. Like numerous other girls at MOA, she’d been crushing on the mega-cute Poseidon for years.

  Epimetheus lunged for him. “Give it back! That box could be dangerous!”

  Dangerous? Pandora’s eyes rounded in dismay. Hadn’t she expressed that concern to Athena just minutes ago? Only, Pandora hadn’t really expected to be right!

  Looking startled, Poseidon shot a worried glance at the box, then quickly tossed it away. It fell into the hands of another godboy named Apollo. He looked startled
too, and tossed it to Ares, the godboy of war.

  After that it was tossed from hand to hand as if it were a hot potato. Since nothing bad happened as a result, the tossing soon turned into a boisterous game of Keep Away.

  “Epimetheus looks upset,” Athena murmured.

  “I know. I feel kind of sorry for him, don’t you?” said Pandora.

  Athena nodded. “If everyone stops watching, maybe the boys will quit teasing him. C’mon.” She tugged Pandora’s arm, hinting that they should leave.

  But Pandora had her eyes glued to that box. She just had to know what was in it!

  The box gleamed in the rays of sunlight drifting in through the windows, looking like a rectangular golden sun. However, when Athena kept tugging at her arm, Pandora reluctantly went. Still, she kept watching the game over her shoulder.

  Every time the box fell into a new set of hands, Epimetheus veered in a new direction. He skidded back and forth across the hall, desperately trying to retrieve the box.

  Suddenly one of the boys’ throws went wild. Pandora lost sight of Epimetheus’s box as the entire group of boys made a rambunctious leap all at once. Hands reached. There were shouts and whoops of laughter. The box tumbled and was knocked about in the mass attempt to grab it.

  Amid the frenzy Pandora and Athena got separated in the crowded hallway. Pandora was pushed into a corner at the end of a row of lockers. Going up on tiptoe, she was looking for Athena, when, unexpectedly, the mysterious box dropped . . .

  right

  into

  her

  hands.

  Plunk!

  2

  Ditz

  PANDORA STARED AT THE BOX, ALMOST HYPNOTIZED by its magnificence. And it had fallen right into her lap—er, hands. How lucky could she get?

  “Ye gods!” she whispered. It was even more amazing up close than it had been at a distance. It was about ten inches long and was decorated on all sides with carved swirls. The top was inlaid with a circlet of gleaming amethyst jewels.

  There was also tiny lettering, but it was in some strange language she couldn’t read. Still, as she stared at the words, they began to somehow make more sense to her. She could almost read them. Almost, but not quite. Maybe if she had more time.

  She looked up as she heard Epimetheus yell, “Where’s my box?”

  “I don’t have it!” she heard several godboys say. The boys around her were all way taller than she was, and at the moment their backs were to her. So for now no one realized she had the box.

  Cradling it in one arm, she reached with her free hand to touch the box’s shiny golden clasp. Unfortunately, she could see that it was locked. She ran a fingertip over it, and then pushed on the lock ever so slightly.

  Click! To her surprise it separated in the middle, its two halves parting. Her pale blue eyes glittered with interest.

  Would there be something awesome inside? This might be her only chance to find out. She knew the box wasn’t hers to open, but she had to see if she’d guessed right!

  Still, her hand wavered as she reached to open the box. Epimetheus had warned the boys that it could be dangerous. Yet nothing had happened when they’d tossed it around. And the lock had sprung easily at her touch.

  It was almost as if the box wanted her to look inside it. What could be the harm in taking one little peek?

  In an instant Pandora’s curiosity overcame her. She opened the lid, just a bit. As she did, an ominous sound like the rumble of gathering storm clouds roared forth. Then came a flash of lightning in the hall. And the crash of thunder.

  All around her, students were ducking and looking around anxiously. It wasn’t every day that thunder crashed inside the school.

  Did it mean Principal Zeus was coming? He’d thrown thunderbolts around before, though usually outside. She listened, but didn’t hear his booming voice or the stomp of his sandals.

  So Pandora didn’t duck or run. She saw no reason to. The box held her spellbound. In one smooth swing she lifted its lid all the way open. And then she frowned in surprise.

  What was this? Glass balls?

  She quickly counted ten of them in the box. Each glowing ball was a different color and was about two inches in diameter. As she held the box, they all sparkled and trembled gently. But the weird sounds she’d heard earlier were silent now.

  Then some of the balls began to rise and float away. Pandora gasped. They weren’t made of glass at all. They were bubbles!

  She silently named their colors as they escaped. Blue, purple, green . . .

  “Pandora has it!” someone yelled.

  She looked up, startled to have been spotted. More bubbles drifted out of the box. Orange, bronze, pink . . .

  “No-o-o!” she heard Epimetheus shout. His voice seemed far away.

  The crowd parted. As if in slow motion he began to stumble toward her. Meanwhile, three more bubbles escaped. Red, turquoise, chartreuse . . .

  Before the tenth bubble—a bright golden yellow one—could escape, Epimetheus caught up to her. Snatching the box from her grasp, he slammed the lid down so fast, it almost caught her fingers. Snap! Just like an alligator’s jaws.

  “Hey! Be careful, will you?” Pandora snapped back at him. The top of her head only reached to his shoulder. But then, she was dainty, shorter than almost everyone else in her grade.

  Epimetheus bent his head. His gray-green eyes peered closely at her, and he studied her face with a concerned expression. “Are you okay?”

  “Uh-huh. Why?” She gazed up at him, puzzled. Other boys had crowded around behind him, all watching to see what would happen.

  Epimetheus tuned them out, his attention only on her. “No reason,” he said. “But, I mean, you opened the box.”

  “Yeah, so?” Did this boy really think bubbles were dangerous?

  He heaved a rather annoyed sigh. “Well? Was there anything in the box?”

  She sent him a confused look. “It’s your box. Don’t you know?” If he hadn’t put those bubbles in there, who had? Besides, hadn’t he seen them escaping a second ago?

  Ping! Ping! The lyrebell rang, signaling that the next class period was about to begin. Other students lost interest in the show and started to leave. Game over.

  Athena finally managed to push her way through the crowd to Pandora’s side. “Are you okay?” she asked, echoing Epimetheus’s question.

  Pandora nodded. Ignoring Athena, Epimetheus stared from the box to Pandora and back again. “This box is impossible to open!” he declared.

  “Oh, really?” said Pandora, arching an eyebrow. “Then how did I open it?”

  “Good question. How did you?” Epimetheus mumbled as he examined the box carefully from all angles. To her surprise, Pandora saw that it had locked itself tight again.

  Pandora shrugged. “I don’t know. I barely touched it.”

  Athena smiled brightly. “Well, no harm done, then.”

  Epimetheus frowned at her. “I’m not so sure about that.”

  Honestly! thought Pandora. What was wrong with this annoying Titan? Couldn’t he see that his precious box was fine? Of course, all but one of its bubbles were gone now. But since he didn’t even seem to know what had been inside, she decided not to tell him. Why risk making him mad?

  While Athena asked him what he’d meant by what he’d just said, Pandora’s eyes tracked the nine escaped bubbles. Why wasn’t anyone else looking at them? she wondered. Hadn’t they noticed?

  Some of the bubbles had risen high in the air by now. Others were aimlessly drifting down the hall. A few floated out an open window.

  Pandora ducked as a bubble abruptly did a nosedive and headed straight at her. It was the blue one. She automatically thumped it away with a finger before it could touch her cheek. It ricocheted over and bumped Athena’s forehead instead.

  “Ditz,” a soft voice whispered. Pop! The bubble disappeared.

  “Who are you calling a ‘ditz’?” Pandora demanded.

  Athena and Epimetheus both looked
at her blankly. “What?” they asked at the same time.

  “You didn’t hear . . .” Her words faded uncertainly. Maybe she’d only imagined someone saying “Ditz.” After all, the hall was still pretty noisy with everyone scurrying to class.

  Ping! Ping! Ping!

  When the final bell rang, Athena reached around Epimetheus and grabbed Pandora’s hand. “Scuse us,” she said. Then she let out a very un-Athena-like giggle. “Gotta run!”

  With that the two girls rushed down the hall to Science-ology. Once inside the classroom Pandora took her usual seat front row center. Athena sat behind her.

  Epimetheus didn’t arrive till long after the bell. Lucky for him the teacher was late too. He didn’t have the box with him anymore, and Pandora wondered what he’d done with it.

  Her eyes followed him as he went to sit by his brother, Prometheus, one row over in the last desk. Rumor had it that Prometheus had been held back a year at their previous school. Since Epimetheus was a year younger than him, that’s how the two boys had wound up in the same grade.

  The two Titan brothers put their heads together now, whispering. As they talked, Epimetheus kept shooting Pandora worried, suspicious glances. It was like just because she’d opened his dumb box, he now expected her to grow nine heads or something. Hey, she wasn’t Ms. Hydra from the front office, who actually did have nine heads!

  Well, so what if he thought she was weird? Because she thought he was the weird one. Who carried around a growling, thundering box with bubbles inside it?

  She looked away when he suddenly caught her eye. She supposed he was sort of cute. All the other girls seemed to think so, anyway. But her crush was Poseidon.

  Her eyes cut in his direction. He was in his usual seat on the other side of the aisle, right behind Apollo. Even from here she could see that Poseidon’s mouth was set in its usual cocky grin. His turquoise skin shimmered, and his blond hair was perfectly styled as always.

  As she watched, he twirled his trident, which looked like a pitchfork, only cooler, above his head like a baton a few times. Then he stabbed its pointy prongs down into the floor beside his desk. He did that at the beginning of every class.