Page 7 of Pandora's Pain
"What time is it?" I asked groggily, pushing myself up so I was seated.
"Seven am."
The flood of information I'd come to expect with the new times and new ways of doing things, crashed through my head, making me wince in pain.
"It's too early."
"I didn't take you for a lazy one, Dora."
"I'm not lazy," I snapped. "But I’ve spent long enough being punished. Is one day of rest really too much to ask?" I demanded.
"That's not what you said yesterday."
Damn him to Hades. I’d said I just wanted this over with. Which pretty much meant the early wake-up call was on me.
"All right, all right, I'm getting up."
I threw back the covers and swung my legs around so I could get to my feet. The plush carpet was a welcome change from the rough stone floor I was used to, even if it did still feel alien to me.
"What's the plan?" I asked, stretching my arms above my head and trying to remove the crick that had appeared in my neck overnight. I wasn't used to pillows either. This whole setup was odd.
"You could have warned me you were naked," Alex half-shouted, covering his eyes.
A soft giggle escaped me. I hadn't taken him for someone who was weirded out by nakedness. He was a god after all, and pretty much all they did was get naked and have orgies. Or sex with animals. They really weren't a picky bunch. Sometimes, I didn't blame myself for opening that box. I probably saved a lot of my fellow humans from the gods’ debauchery as a result. Or at least, I hoped I had. There had to be at least some good from me opening the thing.
"How did you expect me to sleep?" I was genuinely curious. I'd always slept naked. As had most people I'd known. It was especially true when it got hot in the summer, and the only way to stay cool was to strip.
"Just cover yourself. Now." He thrust something flimsy and silky in my direction, his hand still covering his eyes.
I took it gingerly, not knowing what to expect. Shaking it out, I discovered it was some kind of robe, with a tie to fasten around my waist. I could live with that. Even if part of me wanted to stay naked just so Alex became more uncomfortable and flustered, I knew that probably wasn't the best choice for either of our sanities.
Tying the robe in front of me, I relaxed into the feel of it against my skin. That was good at least.
"All right, I'm all covered. You can open your eyes now."
He removed his hand slowly, as if unsure whether to trust me or not. If he wanted to offend me, then he should just keep going.
"Happy now?"
"Not even slightly," he grumbled.
Hopefully he'd snap out of the crazy moodiness at some point, no way was I dealing with this for the next however long.
I folded my arms and watched him intently, waiting for him to do... something. Maybe make a suggestion about what we should do to get my quest underway.
A snort escaped from me. A quest? That made me sound like one of the ancient heroes, and I wasn't so keen on that idea. They never got to take a holiday. Eternal glory just wasn't worth the workload.
Alex simply sighed. Helpful. Why didn't he just get on with it if he was so desperate for our job to be over?
He picked up a black gadget thing, and pressed a button, lighting up what I now knew was a TV. This instant knowledge thing was either going to be really useful, or really annoying. I wasn't too sure which. Maybe if I gave it another couple of days I'd be able to make up my mind.
The sound and color were a lot more vibrant than I expected, and the opening chords of what I assumed passed for music filled the room.
"This is the kind of person you want to attract." Alex gestured towards the TV where two women appear to be fake fighting along with the words of the song. How odd. I'd have thought they would just fight if they wanted to, not just sing about it.
"I'm not sure my fighting skills are what they used to be." Not that I'd ever had any. It was something
I'd failed at time and time again.
