While Pride left after dying his tears to tell the other sins about his plan, and Wrath soon after, Pandora's Box sat just the same, waiting for her sons to come back. She was glowing a brilliant red because of her son's gracious gift to her, and it made her feel better and more powerful. Even though it didn't seem like it, the sins' mother was proud of how powerful her children had become.
Even though their mother was, unnaturally, a box, she still had feelings like any other mom, even if she had a heart of gold and brains of steel, which really should never have a chance to move and think, but magic allowed all of that. She had memories of her children that would forever grace her mind, and she truly did love them, even if they sometimes did not love her in return.
She remembered it like it was yesterday - in her grand top ten list of things, which was filled with both angelic and chaotic neutral things, the day that her sons were brought to her for the very first time.
It was thousands of years ago when Pandora's Box shined with new and didn't have any wrinkles like she did now. The box simply had been asleep, asleep and empty, when she suddenly felt her privacy invaded.
Then there were things inside her.
Things that kicked and screamed and tried to tear her apart. The beatings were so bad, she had dents from where her children tried to escape. It felt like a literal burden to carry, both emotionally and physically, in her now-full stomach, and inside her mind.
She had dealt with this for months, sitting and being useless, getting more bent out of shape as each child slammed into her, begging to get out.
This was not a pregnancy, this was a prison. Just like prisoners, her children etched pictures and drawings on the sides of her from the dents like captives would do with chalk or pebbles on their walls, to count their days in a locked-down eternal abyss, counting down until they would be set free. If they would be set free. If they could ever be set free, was the question that both the mother and the children asked, but it always hung in the air like a cat in the tree. Never coming down, and never be answered. Unsure of how it got up but was never going to come down.
But one day, the cat did come down. It was the first time The Box had felt fresh air in years, and for the first time, she felt the burden of her seven children lift off and fly away. The children, eager to see an opening, flew out faster than their mother could ever imagine, and just like that, her children had left her to go on their own.
At first, it was a brilliant feeling. Pandora's Box could finally break free from her chains, even though she was the prison, she felt allowed to do what she pleased without hurting anyone or herself. Yes, her scars would always remain, but she had grown quite fond of them over the years. She thought of them more as artwork rather than bruises, they were her children's, after all.
But it left her with an empty feeling.
Though she had been dragged through what seemed to be endless piles of muck, braved thousands of physical threats, and had survived almost being smashed, she couldn't help but feel a little lonely and empty.
Her children had left her, for a greater expedition. But didn't she give a thrill too? It's not like she could have opened herself up to them.
Though she would have in a heartbeat if given the chance.
She supposed this was abnormal, or perhaps a matter of contention. Mothers really weren't supposed to enjoy their kids beating them. Mothers also weren't supposed to be boxes, but here she was anyway, living proof that a mother could be anything she wanted, and choose whatever emotions she liked to show.
It was all whatever opinion someone held, that if a box could be a mother, the kids didn't have to be perfectly normal, and Pandora's Box was okay with that. If she wasn't the norm, her kids didn't have to be typical just because she wasn't.
After all, her kids didn't make messes and eat cotton candy all the time, like it was some drug. Her kids ruled the world as soon as she let go of them. Maybe she had raised them well.
Even though her children were power-hungry and ruthless, she still loved them through it all. They may not have had innocent, smiling faces, washed hands, and kind souls like most children, but they were her freaks.
And for a long time, she believed that they were the only children she ever had.
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"BRILLIANT!"
On another side of the house, Pride was jumping through the hallways of the Sins' Manor, screaming his heart's content. No one could have known that the man had been crying a waterfall just a half hour prior. 'Brilliant' bounced off of the walls, echoing through the corridors. Pride hoped that everyone would hear him and come out to see what the big deal was.
"CHIMERICAL! LUDICROUS!" Pride did a huge leap, soaring through the air like a bird and landing gracefully on his feet. He twirled, and then squealed like a little girl. Pride pranced some more, and then flipped his hair. "And last but not least," he said, surprised his voice sounded drawling, "fab." Pride leaned against a wall and folded his arms together, and sighed in satisfaction, waiting for the other sins to emerge out of their rooms like servants, to see what Pride had stupendously thought of.
Pride, of course, being Pride, had shouted all of this, in the wee hours of the morning where not even owls were awake yet, nor the sun itself. Pride also seemed to be on a large dose of caffeine, because his hands were shaking like someone with tremors and his eyes bulged, dying to burst out and dance and leap around the halls like he was. Unfortunately, it was three am.
Pride was still chilling in the same spot, letting the quiet relax him, when his soul practically left his body and flew away when the volume was suddenly turned up dangerously loud - Wrath was the first to notice Pride, and he told him that by unleashing a stream of curses so fast and so boisterously, one could think that he was rapping them out.
Pride stepped back a few for protection and then realized that Wrath had just gotten to sleep, probably in a warm and comfortable bed, and now Pride was barging in and thrusting him out of his dreams like a crazy coach would do to his players. This made Pride feel a bit bad and embarrassed.
Wrath looked like a raging bull with fuzzy socks on. Smoke practically steamed off of his head like water in a saucepan. Pride was sure if he actually did pour water on his friend, his head would bellow like a tea kettle would.
"Did you really need to have an emergency slumber party?" Wrath growled. "Do you need that much attention, even at three, princess?" Pride was about to comment that Wrath was being as loud as he was when he was the only one in the hallway, but he decided to refrain himself. He liked his face right now, especially since it now smelled good because of Madame Rosette's skin washing solution.
Pride decided, instead of arguing, he'd simply agree with Wrath and let him be right, just this once. He wasn't being humble, he could swear on that, he was just being the big person right now. That was quite ironic, saying that Wrath was the only one taller than him.
With all the commotion, some of the other sins trudged out of their rooms, Lust being in the front of the pack. His usually neat hair was now in flyaways, sticking up wherever they pleased. He was grinning, and even though his eyes were drooping, he seemed to be thinking of a dream in his head, so he was happier than the others that were behind him.
Envy and Gluttony walked next to each other, both looking annoyed that they were woken up. Gluttony had his eyes shut while walking, and Envy was doing his best to make sure he didn't run into the wall or a table that sat in the hallway.
Behind them, an irked Greed was carrying Sloth in his arms, who was snoozing without a care in the world. Greed tried not to show it, but he was as miffed as Wrath was.
"Excellent!" Pride announced when all seven of them reached Pride, who didn't seem to notice the glares he was getting. On the contrary, he seemed delighted. "You're all here. I'm honestly so happy you all decided to come."
"Because you were being a loud mouth in the hallway," Envy muttered under his breath. "It's not like I would be able to sleep anyway."
"I have some delightful news, and I guess I'll have to share it right now since we're all here, instead of waiting until morning." Pride grinned. The whole reason he was loud was so they could get out of bed and listen right away. Sloth snored in reply, getting a strange look from Greed who looked like he was going to collapse under Sloth's weight since he was so tired.
Pride was the only one that was wide awake. "We're gonna win this war against the mean gods, I can guarantee it." This perked up some of the sins, but only slightly.
"And why do you need to tell us this now?" Wrath muttered, grimacing.
"Because you're all up, of course!" Pride said gleefully. "It's so amazing that you're all up at the same time. It's like we all can read each other's minds!"
"I wonder why."
"Anyways," Pride proceeded, now striding around the room, then smacking Gluttony who had fallen asleep on Envy, "I woke up our mom, and now she's going to fight for us, and totally crush the gods." He said this like he was simply commenting that the sky was blue.
"Excuse me?" Lust piped up in his squeaky voice. "Why would you wake her up? It's like waking up Sloth." Right on cue, Greed gave in and dropped Sloth on the floor with a loud thump, startling those who were starting to fall asleep standing up or thinking about doing so. Everyone turned to see if he'd wake up. In relief, Sloth curled into a ball, and only slept harder.
"Because," Pride continued, "she's powerful. And if we want to win, we need something powerful."
The sins didn't seem overly shocked or angry over this idea, and Pride didn't feel like mentioning that Wrath had given some of his energy to their mother. The five of them shrugged. "Can we go to bed now?" Greed whined. "We'll talk later." Perhaps it would all hit them in the morning of what was going on.
Pride looked shocked. "But don't you want to have tea with me? You're up, you might as well!" Pride thought it was a great idea, but the other sins didn't think so. At the mention of tea, Wrath had already hurried away, tripping over the carpet, and still scurried away even after his mishap.
The other sins were polite enough to shake their heads, while Greed said, "no, I'd like to sleep, thanks," and then sighed when he realized he'd have to pick up Sloth again. As the sins diffused, Pride continued asking the sins if they'd like tea, each of them turning him down until he was all alone.
Moonlight showed on the floor of the Manor, peaking through the curtains that tried to keep the light outside, like the curtains knew that these men were dark, and did not like light. On the contrary, Pride quite enjoyed it.
The sin sat on the window sill, watching the moon flicker with light and sparkles, the stars trying to copy it. "It's just like when the sins try to copy me. They can't be as perfect as me."
Pride grinned and put his hand on the window, feeling the cold shiver down his arm. He could feel sleep trying to overtake him, but he was too overjoyed to go to his bed.
"We will succeed," Pride said, "and we'll do it without a doubt."
He glanced over where the door to the basement was, a couple hundred feet down the lanky hallway. In there, was the key to his success.
But how much did Pride and the other sins really know about their mother? It was like joining a class and then never attending. Does one really have knowledge on the subject?
Most children go their whole lives without knowing they had a secret sibling, hiding somewhere in the world. But unbeknownst to the boys, was the eighth child, hiding in their house, in the depths of their very home, being nursed by their mother as if the child was a few days old.
Hope was her name, one of the few things that hadn't managed to escape when Pandora had unleashed havoc all over the world. Hope was exactly what she was - a shining beacon that showed the world, the sins, the gods, and even Pandora's Box that a light can be found in anything, even if it was bred in the dark.
But just because she is the brightest star, does not mean all stars are kind.