As Xiumin lays within the darkened room to sleep off his inebriation, tendrils of smoke have s their way through cracks of opened and closing doorways, coiling around his milky skin. The mysterious subtense enters Xiumin’s airways and mouth, making his body arch in response to the sudden take over, still dazed in alcoholic dreams. Then waking up, as if nothing ever happened and continuing on completely sober wondering how he had managed to find himself in one of the many bedrooms within Sehun’s crystal palace.

“I must have gotten too drunk and passed out and Luhan put me here to sleep it off,” He says to himself, running his hands through his slight bed head and shaking the rest of his sleep off. “Luhan is probably waiting for me.” Xiumin finishes and leaves the grand bedroom, the elaborate double doors left open behind him.

He makes his way to the dining area to rejoin everyone, taking notice of his increasingly throbbing headache and regretting the idea and thinking about returning back to the comforting mattress. Out of the corner of Xiumin’s eye Chen makes him way up to him and he lets out an exasperated sigh, not wanting to talk to anyone right now except Luhan to tell him he’s ready to go home since he’s not feeling well, especially not his best friend.

“Xiumin, I haven’t seen you for the majority of the party,” Chen begins, the words leaving his liquor coated chords and hitting Xiumin’s, agitating him even further. The pain within his head increasing every second and Chen just continues to talk, and with that Xiumin snaps.

“Chen just shut up for one second! Please!” He yells, and Chen winces back because Xiumin has never sounded this angry. He’s always been nice and loving, so it’s no surprise that the sudden verbal attack left Chen’s mouth agape.

“The Xiumin?! I was just talking to you!” The god of fire exclaims. 

“Yeah, talking too much and for too long might I add.” The shorter god retorts, rolling his eyes to add insult to injury.

“What the is wrong with you?” Chen yells back, “You pass out for an hour or two and you come back not even yourself, it’s like you’re possessed.” He finishes, looking sideways onto the floor to hide the hurt his best friend has caused him, because he’s one of the only friends he has. The other gods not really paying much attention to him.

“Look, i’m sorry,” The god of love apologizes, not very convincingly. trying to work his charm. “I just have a heada-” 

“I was going to tell you that your necklace is missing since I’m still your friend,” Chen informs, cutting the shorter off. “Even though you aren’t acting much like one.” And with that he walks off, giving the other god his space while also masking his hurt expression.

The charming god’s headache has become to much to handle, rubbing his temples and roughly shutting his eyes, trying to settle himself as he sits down. Waiting for this sudden spell that has come over him to ebb away. It’s a good fifteen minutes before he comes back to reality, having being caught up on releasing the pain that does not wish to subside. Now remembering what his dear friend had told him earlier, he fumbles at his neck and to his dismay the necklace that was given to him 100 years ago on this day is gone, and he raises himself from wear his was sitting prior. Now walking toward Luhan with a set speed. Finally reaching the person he was looking for before his bitter encounter with his best friend and sitting himself down to rest.

“My necklace is gone.” Xiumin exclaims, surprising Luhan to the point that he can only blink his eyes excessively before he can form a few words.

“Well I don’t have it.” The taller explains, a confused look on his face.

“Of course you don’t because then I would know where it is.” Xiumin grabs Luhan’s wrist. “Come help me find it, I think it may have fell off when you laid me in the bed because I had it before I passed out.” And they walk off in search for the missing jewelry. 

“Why are you so snappy all of a sudden? It isn’t like you.” Luhan asks, stopping in the hallway and waiting for the other god to respond, wanting a logical answer.

“I just have a headache, that’s all.” Xiumin rubs the bridge of his nose, to hopefully release some tension from behind his aching eyes. “Come on Lu, lets go find the necklace so we can leave. the sooner the better.” He finishes and starts walking off, hoping Luhan is following behind him.

“I saw how you treated Chen earlier.” Luhan interrogates, folding his arms and giving the shorter a stern look. “Why would you do that to him? You know how the others treat him. You and I are the only ones who show him an ounce of respect.”

“Oh not you too.” Xiumin practically sighs in disappointment. “I said I was sorry but he cut me off.” 

“Maybe because you weren’t being sincere.” Luhan states, growing tired of Xiumin and his temper by the second. “But he wanted me to give you this,” Luhan extends his hand to Xiumin revealing a diamond necklace. “I went to talk to him after I witnessed the bickering to see if he was okay, and to apologize on your behalf.” Luhan shakes his head in disappointment but still looks at his lover solemnly. “It isn’t your necklace but he made you a replica until you found it. Although it doesn’t have the same power as yours does, it’s just simply an ornament.” He places the gift into Xiumin’s outstretched palm. “Maybe the next time you see him you should actually apologize this time yourself.” The god of the hunt finishes.

“I promise I will, now lets find this necklace please because it’s starting to worry me.” Xiumin pleads and Luhan obliges because he knows how much that necklace means to him and Xiumin places the god of the forge’s gift into his pocket, not giving it another thought.

They make their way to where the shorter god had recently laid his head to sleep, rummaging through the pillows and blankets for the object of interest finding nothing. While Xiumin is having fits and throwing around sheets and pillows, even flipping the mattress off the bed itself.

“Where the is it?!” Xiumin screams, tossing another pillow across the room. Causing Luhan to jump back in shock.

“Calm down Xiumin! Seriously what the hell has gotten into you?” Luhan asks, grabbing the angry god by his shoulders and turning him to look into his eyes, trying to calm him down.

“No Luhan, you don’t understand!” The god of love exclaims, shaking his head and looking down, raising it back up a second later. 

“What? I know it means a lot to you but it just makes people fall in love, no big deal.” The taller looks into Xiumins eyes still trying to calm him down but to no avail.

“No Luhan, I can make people fall in love without it, thats not all it does.” Xiumin breaks from Luhan’s grasp, starting to pace back and forth.

“What do you mean Xiumin?” the god of the moon asks, the look of worry creeping increasingly onto his face.

“It can bend the will of anyone, even a god. Can make them do whatever you want them to, complete control and I don’t have it. Which means someone else does.” The shorter turns around and looks at Luhan, seeing the look on his face. “So now do you understand why this is such a big deal?”

And luhan does, he completely understands because something of that magnitude in the wrong hands could mean the demise of them all, but now that he’s come to terms with what is happening. All he can muster from the impending worry is a faint and shallow

“Yes..”

Baekhyun puts the lyre back into the gold accentuated box, not wishing to open it again. Tucking it under his arm and running towards the looming crystal palace in the distance, the thought of ‘he isn’t getting there fast enough’ racing through his mind the entire way, increasing his speed. The wind caressing his face and weaving it’s invisible hand through the god’s sandy hair, the moon shining brightly above him in the night sky. Illuminating the field and increasing his line of vision, although if he wanted he could light the way himself. He makes him way into Sehun’s home and goes from room to room looking for Chanyeol, screaming his name. 

“Chanyeol!” The god of music shrieks, inside an unfamiliar marble room. Taking notice that he isn’t there he moves on to the next.

“Chanyeol!” He exasperates louder, still not finding the god of war.

“Chanyeol!” He finally screams into the corridor, The taller god running towards him as Baekhyun slides to the floor. “Baekhyun! What? What is it?” Chanyeol kneels down next to the shorter, embracing him into his arms. “Are you alright? Are you hurt?” He asks, pulling the boy out from his hold and scanning him over.

“No i’m fine, but are you okay?” Baekhyun asks, looking into the taller gods eyes and taking notice that he really does care and that he’s deeply worried about him.

“Yes i’m fine.” Chanyeol reassures him. “Why wouldn’t I be?” He asks, giving the other a questioned look.

“What about the others? Did anything happen while I was gone?” Baekhyun starts to get up, looking around to analyze the building for any sign of disturbance, finding nothing. 

“Baekhyun, slow down. Everyone is fine, but what happened to you?” The taller god cups baekhun’s face and brushes his thumb against his cheek. The god of light holding on to chanyeol’s wrist, finding comfort in his light touch and calming down to explain the events that took place.

Baekhyun takes a deep breath and begins, “I was singing with the nymphs like I said I was going to do and watching them dance until I noticed the forest that I’ve never seen before.” He stands up to start pacing, starting to wave his hands to better explain himself. Something he’s always done when nervous. “So naturally curiosity got the best of me and I ventured into it.” Baekhyun shakes his head, remembering details to make sure to not leave anything out. “The trees were gorgeous and they were humming, singing even, and I was so intrigued until I was snapped out of my daze by someone speaking.” He sits by Chanyeol and rubs his palms against his thighs and knee caps to remove the perspiration and clamminess from the movement he was just making. “He told me that it was his forest and that the trees were harboring the souls of the nymphs.”

“Who is ‘he’ Baekhyun?” Chanyeol cuts in, trying to make sense of all this.

“Thanatos.” He states, looking at chanyeol again. Seeing the troubled look on his face.

“But that doesn’t make sense, all souls go to Hades.” Chanyeol shaking his head as he speaks.

“Thanatos said that he struck a deal with the god of the underworld because the nymphs annoyed him, so he took them off his hands.” Baekhyun chimes in. “He said it wasn’t much of a deal, as a pleasure since their singing soothes him.” He shudders at the thought. “He also gave me this,” Baekhyun reaches to his side and shows Chanyeol the box etched with gold spirals and markings. “Thanatos said that it was apollo’s and that I should have it.” The taller god takes it into his hands and lifts the lid to open it, met with sudden slam as Baekhyun places his hand on top of it, preventing him any further.

“Don’t.” He warns, giving the other a stern look. “It’s a lyre and so I played it but something happened when I did and i’m not sure what.” The shorter lifts his head back to air out his eyes, feeling tears beginning to form within them and not wanting to let them fall. “It put me into a trance and I was awoken by his sudden twist of tone informing me that I can ’Thank the fate sisters for this one’ So I can’t help but feel that something bad is going to happen and it’s all my fault.” He begins to cry, finally letting out all his fears he was fighting back rise to the surface. 

“We’ll figure this out, come on.” Chanyeol hooks his arm with Baekhyun’s and lifts him up from where they had been sitting.

“Where are we going?” Baekhyun asks, lazily following behind.

“To speak with Tao.” The taller responds and Baekhyun pulls back in protest.

“Oh no! No, no, no, no, no. I told you this in confidence.” He gets his arm loose from Chanyeol’s. “We can’t tell anyone until we figure this out ourselves.”

“Tao is the smartest and wisest out of all of us,” The god of war begins, hooking their arms back together again. “He’s a god of war and battle strategy, as well as my counterpart. If anyone can come up with an answer and a solution, it’s him.” Chanyeol begins walking once more and the god of light complies.

“Okay.. Fine.” He sighs, tilting his head to the side. “But no one else involved, got it?” Making sure the one next to him understands.

And all Chanyeol can do is let out a soft chuckle. “Got it.” He finishes. 

“But Tao, there’s something going on with Xiumin.” Chen whines, complaining to the blonde haired god. “Have you ever seen or heard of him acting that way? It’s like he’s a completely different person.”

“I understand, but the only explanation I can come up with is that he just snapped.” Tao reaches over and rubs the shorter’s shoulder. “Even though it was very unnecessary and out of place it happens. I’m sure he’ll apologize to you the next time he see’s you. Don’t think too hard about it, okay?”

“Okay I won’t, but I still think it’s very strange.” Chen adds. 

“As you should but like I said, lets just wait and see.” Tao reassures and both him and the god of fire turn around as the doors to the grand room they are in open. Witnessing Chanyeol striding towards them, with Baekhyun not far behind. “Ah brothers, what can I assist you with?” The wisdom god smiles, spreading his arms across from each other to welcome them. “We have a problem.” Chanyeol tells him, looking very concerned. “Of course you do, and that’s what i’m here for.” Tao sits at the table in the middle of the room and ushers them to have a seat. The Table is adorned with spread out parchment and rolled up scrolls. It looks so messy, you would think having the mind of a thousand scholars would make you more organized. “So,” Tao finally begins, “Tell me what the situation is.”

“Baekhyun, explain.” The red haired god asserts, pointing his hand gently towards the god of music to shed some light on the subject at hand.

“I met Thanatos outside the palace earlier when I was entertaining the nymphs.” He begins, biting on his lip out of nervousness. Still feeling as though all of this is his fault, even though he doesn’t know what he is even at fault for. “And he gave me a present, something that belonged to the god that reigned before me. He seemed honest and trustworthy since he is our brother although I haven’t seen him since the day of our creation but I accepted it nonetheless.” Baekhyun watches Tao lean back into his chair and spread his leg over the arm rest and voices a “Continue.” Putting a finger to his lip and raising a brow and Baekhyun does. “It was a lyre and it was absolutely gorgeous, the vibrations that reminisced through the nightly air was a sultry sight and i couldn’t help but unknowingly put myself into a trance, but was suddenly awoken by his change of tone. He was no longer honorary but condescending, a complete one hundred and eighty from the way he seemed before.” Then Baekhyun slams his hand onto the table and throws himself back, the chair sliding behind him as he stands up. “He then proceeded to tell me that i could ’Thank the fate sisters for this’ which leads me to believe that I have done something wrong, oh horribly wrong.” He states in a whisper, shaking his head while giving a defeated look.

“You did nothing wrong, although what has happened is quite bad it isn’t your fault.” Tao sighs, putting his elbows onto the table and leaning forward. Swinging his leg back into the position it was in before he sprawled out within the chair. “This is quite a problem.” he comes to realize.

Chen shrieks when he sees the box that was sitting next to Baekhyun before he stood up. Everyone jolts in suprise because they had forgotten he was there, considering he fell silent to let them talk amongst themsleves. Something he tends to do way too often. Covering his mouth and pointing his finger he yelps “Why do you have that?!” Now standing from his own chair.

“Oh that’s just the box the lyre came in.” Baekhyun looks back and grabs the box, setting it onto the table with a gentle thud. “I put the lyre back inside, not even wanting to touch it because of what happened and I brought it with me.”

“No that’s not just any box, Baekhyun.” Chen is shaking now, scared to say the words that are about to spill from his lips.

“That’s Pandora’s Box.”