She received the gift of God [Greek mythology]

Pandora had that dream again.

The one that made her begin to understand longing and turmoil.

There are subtle differences in details from last time.The green grass, the shoulders being held, the black hair scraped to the forehead and the tip of the nose, and the rolling lips.She probably incorporated the feelings of that superficial kiss into it, so this dream was more realistic than before.She sank into the grass, was kissed and sank, and her body, as light as a feather in the dream, became heavier and heavier, which was a sign of awakening.

"don't want……"

Pandora couldn't help murmuring.

She doesn't want to wake up yet.

The fall toward lucidity stopped immediately.But the dreams she wanted to continue were also disrupted, and as usual, she broke into fragments of other people's memories.Probably because of the dream of kissing, she was drifting in a series of entangled memories: love at first sight, falling in love with each other for a long time, going to war after marriage, betraying clansmen for love, drinking magic wine to forget lover, raising wrong Sails, abandonment and abandonment, getting what one asks for, unintentional lies, deliberate betrayal, revenge as fierce as passion...

Not exactly a nightmare, but not pleasant either.

The residents of Zhifuleyuan are all special people recognized by the gods, but for some reason, if you only spy on their love and hatred, there will be few happy endings.

Tonight's dream seems endless, jumping to the next fragment.Pandora stood in the crowd, and there was some important ceremony about to be held.

The ready-to-go convoy stopped outside the magnificent mansion, and torches were lit on both sides of the flat and clean avenue, leading directly to the palace high in the city.This is a wedding, and the queue of newlyweds heading to the love nest is preparing to leave.

The waiting time was extremely long, too long, and the crowd watching the ceremony began to whisper, and the commotion turned into loud noise.

The bride is gone.

She had already paid homage to the altars of Artemis and Aphrodite, offering a girl's belt and a lock of hair to the two goddesses respectively.She then bathes and dresses in her best attire, but does not appear at the pre-wedding procession feast.I don't know where she hid.The queue is about to depart and the bride must be found immediately.

"it's here!"

"The bride is here!"

The hand stretched out from the side grabbed Pandora.Face after face turned to her, exclaiming and identifying the protagonist who had escaped from the celebration.

Pandora was so frightened that she froze and wanted to run away, but there were people in front of her and behind her.

There is nowhere to run.

"No, I'm not the bride—" she wanted to retort.But remembering that this is someone else's dream, he stopped struggling.She looked down and saw that it was really the bride's purple gown covered with beads and embroidery, with gemstones and pearls around the head and neck, and a colorful veil hanging from the bride's crown.

"Just waiting for you."

"We're all looking for you."

"Get in the car, God-given beautiful bride."

I don't know how many hands were kind and forceful pushing her, like sea waves carrying shells to the shallows, she came to the magnificent two-wheeled carriage in a daze.

There was already a person standing in the car, very tall, through the hanging veil, she could only see clearly the gorgeous shawl hanging from his shoulders.

"Come to me, Pandora."

A strange male voice called her.

Pandora raised her head in bewilderment.She didn't see the other person's face at all.Fear pierced through her suddenly like an electric shock.

The bride is not her, this should not be her dream, why can he still call her name? !

She backed away, but the curtain fell that blocked her view.

After a moment of darkness, she was already standing in the carriage, shoulder to shoulder with a strange man, the groom of this wedding.

Pandora wanted to jump out of the car and escape, but her body refused to obey her orders.Despite struggling and twisting in her thoughts, she stood erect and silent, unable to even turn her head to look at the "groom".

The flutes babbled, the majestic horses breathed, and the wedding procession began to advance along the brightly lit avenue. Men and women in long robes walked in front of and behind the carriages, some played musical instruments, some held torches, and others were responsible for throwing flowers along the way. Flowers and coins.Doors and windows on the side of the road opened, cheers and applause, and flowers and myrtle leaves thrown by spectators came around, as if to bury her.She tried to call for help, to justify, to scream.Her lips moved, and she didn't even make a meaningless gasp.

Wake up!

But she couldn't wake up from the dream as she wished.

This hilarious and bizarre nightmare, obviously not belonging to the aborigines, successfully haunted Pandora.

The queue was going uphill, and the palace at the end of the Avenue of Radiance was getting closer, and she was almost paralyzed by fear and helplessness.She doesn't want to be like this, she doesn't want to go to that palace, she doesn't want to be someone else's bride.

The thoughts in the dream were out of sync for a beat.Who else but "others"?

The two-wheeled carriage passed through the first major gate of the palace and stopped before the long steps.

The groom took Pandora's hand, got out of the car and went up the steps with her.Rows of majestic columns standing on the front of the palace reveal lights and cast shadows, dividing the white marble steps into mixed light and dark.The man who would be her husband stood in the shadows, and she was like a moth pinned to a blinding light.

Upon arrival at the new home, the groom unveils the bride's veil.

The groom turned on the last step and held out his hand to her.

The world is spinning and the scene is changing again.

Pandora was leaning on a couch, the tulle dyed orange with flower juice was still hanging in front of her eyes.The furnishings around me seem familiar, but I seem to have seen everything in my dream and can't remember it.

Once again, a figure came to her.

The other party seemed to stand motionless for a long time, or he might have only hesitated for a moment.

He lifted the veil and revealed his true face to her.

"It is very unfortunate that the bride was stolen during the most solemn moment of the wedding." The thief, with black hair and twinkling green eyes, stated the facts in a soft voice, declaring his crime without any sign of repentance.He pressed her shoulders, and with the other hand, he tightly grasped her wrist, sealing off the dodging space, and the shadow of the approaching shadow enveloped her.

He leaned over and kissed her viciously.The crown of flowers and grass jelly carved out of precious stones was heavily crooked, and slid towards the forehead and hit the skin, and was thrown out the next moment.

"Let me be your groom."

It was the rapid heartbeat that beat the eardrum like thunder, and she trembled all over.What a bizarre dream, even more arrogant than the previous ones.thought Pandora.But if it has to be a nightmare, you can be forgiven for ending it with wishful thinking.Anyway, the gods don't need to sleep, and if they didn't intend to, they wouldn't be able to spy on the absurd dreams she was having.

She closed her eyes in the dream, tears streaming from the corners of her eyes.

……

Pandora opened her eyes.The wet cheeks were chilled by the evening breeze.The intense emotion in the dream turned into confusion.

She sat up on her elbows, and immediately fell back to her original position because of the dizziness.It was dawn when she fell asleep, and now it was going to be sunset again. This sleep was too long, and she didn't get any rest at all, but felt tired all over.

The last dream left Pandora with lingering fears.

Why is she dreaming of a wedding?There's also the reason why Apollo took her, and the fact that she accidentally got it from the Oak of Elythion.Hermes left too many questions unanswered.she doesn't care

I straightened my sleepy hair, pushed open the door of the stone house and walked two steps before realizing that I forgot to put on my shoes.She simply walked barefoot across the grass and into the adjoining shrine.

There was silence behind the door.Unlike before, Pandora could feel that this space did not welcome her.

"Hermes?" She called timidly.

No answer.

She wasn't sure if Hermes had taken back the key to the temple, but she turned around and tentatively touched the keyhole on the temple door.

The next moment, she was in the outer hall of the temple.

Hermes said that Apollo made a mess of things, and Pandora couldn't help but imagine a big hole in the roof and rubble all over the ground.Even if it was really damaged to that extent, the interior of the hall has been repaired almost the same as before.

But there was no trace of the statue.

I don't know how Hermes is resting.Or maybe you just don't want to see her.

When and how did she piss him off?

Pandora stared at the empty pedestal for a moment, bit her lower lip, and walked towards the inner hall.The door separating the inside and the outside didn't automatically open for her as before. Her heart trembled, but she still went to push the door.

She was mentally prepared for the door to remain motionless, but she didn't expect it to be unlocked.She got in without incident.

The nave was not lit.Pandora searched around in every room, but there was no trace of Hermes.She walked all the way to the deepest part of the temple, took a few deep breaths, and then mustered up the courage to push open the last door.

Hermes was indeed sitting on the rock at the top of the cliff.

"What's wrong?" He turned around and asked with a smile.

Pandora froze for a moment.She thought he would be as cold-eyed as last time.

Seeing her speechless, Hermes was not in a hurry to find something to say, but just waited for her with the corners of his lips hooked.The evening clouds were burning on the sea, and his green eyes were also dyed red, which contrasted sharply with the blazing flame flickering in the coldest deep pool, which was breathtaking but difficult to approach.She couldn't help feeling that she had indeed accidentally touched some taboo.

"I slept for a long time, and when I woke up, I found that you were not there..." Pandora's sentence was broken in the middle.Although she came here because she was full of doubts, but in the end she just wanted to see Hermes.It was originally simple and clear, but it turned out to be difficult to say.

"Because you woke up and found that I was not there, you came to look for me?" Hermes asked mysteriously.

she was

His eyes dodged and flew around: "Yes..."

He smiled slightly.

"Can I...can go to your side?" Pandora asked carefully.

Hermes narrowed his eyes.His reaction almost felt that she was overstepping the bounds.But then he moved a little to the side, moving to a position more suitable to be side by side with people.

She went and sat down.

The sunset on the sea is magnificent and magnificent, but Pandora doesn't care to watch it.It was abnormal enough that Hermes didn't take the initiative to bring up the topic.She grasped the protruding position of the rock, and gently started from the safest topic: "The statue of the god in the outer temple is gone."

"It was broken by Apollo and Artemis. I am here, and there is no need to build one immediately."

"Are you... all right?"

"What is destroyed is only a statue that can act on my behalf, it cannot hurt me."

Pandora nodded.After waiting for a while, she had no choice but to start again: "How long do I have to stay in Zhi Fu Le Yuan?"

Hermes' expression didn't change: "You don't like this place?"

She shook her head decisively.

"Then why ask this?"

"I guess you can't stay long. Maybe that's what Apollo and Artemis came for. You've been good to me, and I don't want to make things difficult for you."

Hermes softened his attitude slightly.She can feel it.

"Apollo will not come again. There was some misunderstanding between me and him, which has been resolved."

She didn't ask the inside story: "Then what will you teach me later?"

The messenger of the gods raised his head back when he heard the words, stared at the colorfully splashed sky and thought for a moment, then asked the question to himself: "What else should I teach you?"

There was a gust of wind on the sea cliff, and Pandora waited for him to make up his mind, but felt cold again, and couldn't help but shrugged his shoulders.

Hermes sighed, grabbed her waist, and pulled her under the cloak.There were almost imperceptible pauses between his movements, as if he was guarding against her struggle, or like a temptation.

Pandora lowered her head, and after a while, she cautiously leaned a little closer: "You said before that if I can fool you, I will give me a reward. Then... I fooled Apollo."

She closed her voice pointedly.

Hermes' mood improved, and he was not annoyed by this little trick.He smiled tolerantly and even lovingly: "You want a reward?"

She glanced at him quickly: "Can you?

"

"what do you want?"

"I want you to answer a question for me."

A sharp light flashed in Hermes' eyes, but his tone was still calm: "Ask."

Pandora swallowed.She suddenly became a little timid again.Intuition told her there should be other, safer questions.However, the new information poured into her head directly from the oak tree aroused countless questions, and she just held back her thoughts while in the underworld.The dream just now was as real as an omen, adding fuel to the fire.

She is no longer a blank slate of ignorance, suspicious and speculative.

She is a gift for Prometheus' brother and mortals, but Hermes also said that she was born to be loved by all living beings. Is that what a gift means?Prometheus disobeyed Zeus, why did the gods give gifts to his relatives instead?

"The gods of Olympus blessed me, and you taught me additionally. Please tell me, after leaving Ilysion, what do you... the gods want me to do?"

The moment Pandora asked, the atmosphere changed suddenly.

The crown of light overflowed with cold light, Hermes released the coercion, and his eyes shone brightly.

But the words could not be withdrawn, she could only continue as calmly as possible: "Hermes, this is the question I want you to answer."

Hermes looked at Pandora expressionlessly.

He didn't know whether to thank her or resent her for keeping him awake.

She rejected him in her sleep, but chased him after waking up.She showed a little dependence without discerning the truth from the false, and he couldn't help but indulge a little bit.But the next moment she asked such a question with a sincere expression.But he can't blame her either, liars who tell good lies are always ruthless, intentional or not.

He really taught an outstanding disciple.Thinking of this, Hermes smiled lowly, and then called out a name: "Epimetheus."

The name of the intermediary between Olympus and humans, the younger brother of Prometheus, the Titan.

"I will send you to him after I leave Ilysion and return to Olympos to make some preparations."

He saw that Pandora's face suddenly turned pale.

She has been able to understand the underlying meaning of the words.

Epimetheus.

Pandora's lips moved, silently reciting each syllable.Is this the name of the "groom" in the dream?a calm

Her desperation enveloped her head, like returning to the middle of a nightmare, and she could do nothing but stand in the carriage at the forefront of the wedding procession.It really wasn't an ordinary dream, but an omen.

This thought suddenly ignited hope in her heart.If the first half of the dream is true—

However, Hermes' calm words simply shattered the second half of the assumption: "He will love you, be fascinated by you, and marry you as his wife. His mortal followers will also surrender and praise the father Zeus And the power of the Olympian gods."

He smiled viciously: "Then you will live a happy life by Epimetheus' side."

Pandora gasped.

In fact, Hermes didn't know why he said that.The same is lying, he can find other explanations.It's too blatant to say that sarcasm, it's completely jealous and unable to confess, embarrassed and despicable.

Perhaps he was thinking of using this method to give up his will, attacking the flames with poison, hoping that Eros' golden arrow would fail and set him free.In the end, he just exposed his wounds.Even though he said it himself, Hermes was stunned by the hypothetical future.

He managed to regain his composure, but when he looked at Pandora, his pupils dilated again.

Her complexion was pale, her eyes were wide open, almost unblinking, and tears kept welling up in her eyes and streaming down her cheeks.

"No—" She choked, inhaled and exhaled shortly, her voice was more like a shapeless whimper, "I...I don't want to."

She trembled violently, lowered her head deeply, and this time screamed softly: "I don't want it!"

Hermes froze.The body moved on its own, he tried to hug her, but Pandora struggled with an unprecedented resistance.She pushed him as hard as she could, twisting her body away from him, forgetting that she was on the edge of a cliff.She suddenly lost support and staggered outward.

"Pandora!" Hermes grabbed her into his arms, moved away from the cliff in an instant, and rushed to the eaves.

He backed up in a hurry and slammed his back directly into the palace door, but because his attention was focused on Pandora, he tripped over the threshold.

Pandora exclaimed, and fell to the ground next to Hermes.

The messengers of the gods who came and went like the wind had never fallen on their backs like this.

She leaned on him and gasped for breath, but when she wanted to say something, she coughed a series of times first.

Absurd.Hermes closed his eyes: "In the future, you are not allowed to go to the edge of the cliff

go with. "

It was the same words at the beginning.It was rare for Pandora to want to lose her temper, but she didn't know how to do it. In desperation, she directly grabbed Hermes' shoulder and bit down hard.

"Hiss—" Hermes almost didn't react.Through the cloak and clothes, no matter how strong the bite is, it doesn't hurt much, and the only thing that can hurt the god's body is the weapon of god.Looking at it again, the guy who bit him had watery eyes, tearful and extremely wronged.Her tears made him flustered, and he couldn't care about other things for a while.

Taking a deep breath, Hermes gently stroked her hair and back, coaxing softly: "It's all a lie to you, why did you react so violently? Just pretend I didn't say those words. Don't cry, Hmm? Okay?"

Pandora was crying a little bit, unable to speak for a long time, and finally choked up again before speaking: "Then...you are also pretending to hand me over to Epimetheus?"

Hermes blinked in pain and looked away.

Most of the lies are mixed with facts.This is what he taught her.

Pandora squeezed out a smile.In this case, she has nothing to hide.

"Before I came to you, I had a dream." She cleared her throat and began to confess abruptly.

Hermes looked back in surprise.

"In my dream, I was going to marry a man whose face I couldn't see clearly. The celebratory queue was very long, and amidst the cheers, I came to the gate of the palace high in the city. The man pulled me up the steps, but before he was going to set off Before my veil—" Pandora choked, she didn't dare to continue to meet Hermes' gaze, she turned her face away in a panic, "Before then, you... took me away."

The rising blood burned her from the base of her ears to her cheeks.The words on the tip of the tongue rolled down from the lips tremblingly:

"You lifted my veil and made me your bride."

Hermes stared at her in a daze, blatantly distracted.

Pandora bit her lower lip: "It's not the first time I've had this kind of disrespectful dream. Before that... the night I spent the night in this temple for the first time, I had another dream. In the dream you fed I will eat sweet wine, and then—" She couldn't find a suitable word to describe it, but Hermes must have a general understanding of what kind of dream it was.Her voice became lower and lower: "Because of this dream, I... started to think about it. Please excuse me—"

word guilty of blasphemy

Sentences are blocked and sucked down.

Hermes was slightly separated from Pandora, also a little dazed, stroking her cheek as if seeking some confirmation.Then he rolled the corners of his eyes and confessed in the same unrepentant tone in his dream:

"It was all my dream. You got caught up in it."