Ben pushed past the last of the shrubbery, whistling as a cabin came into sight. The cabin itself wasn't much, but the beautiful lake in front of it and the open space all around spoke a lot about the wealth of his client. As the admiration died down, a curiosity swept into its place. Sure, a vacation home was nice and all, but was there anything valuable still inside? The noble, Monsieur Fancypants McSnobface, had told him there'd be another person coming to assist him in fixing up the little cabin for his family's gathering next week. (Although Ben had protested, insisting he could do the whole thing himself so he could have the full pay, he had been swiftly shot down. "I'm sure you can, but you have such a pretty face," he'd been told. What a prick!) There was no obvious movement inside though, so maybe they hadn't come yet? It was the perfect opportunity for Ben to do some snooping, and maybe a little bit of "unannounced indefinite borrowing". "Taking without plans of returning". "Stealing". Whatever you'd like to call it. It was all the same to his sticky little fingers. Doing another quick visual sweep of the area, Ben dashed across the scenic landscape, forcing the door open with his masterful skills. And they key he'd been given. Stepping into the picturesque cabin, Ben promptly started to hack his lungs out. "EUGH!" Dust! There was dust everywhere! Luckily, despite his initial reaction to the unwelcome substance, Ben wasn't allergic to dust in this game. Actually - he was pretty sure he wasn't allergic to anything in the game, which was always nice. It wasn't that bad, really. Dust everywhere, several cobwebs tucked away, a tree had grown through a part of the cabin and several panels were broken or close to it. It could be worse. Like there could actually be a dragon chilling inside, ready to devour him for intruding! Ben wasn't sure if he'd actually try to fight it or just immediately go back to the noble and tell him he was probably fucked if he wanted to keep that cabin. But it didn't matter, did it? There was no dragon. Yet. No dragon yet, at least. "Now, if I were a stuck up snob, where would I keep all my fancy stuff?" he mused, going further into the cabin and making quick work of things. "Come out, come out wherever you are, little goldies!" Drawers were drawn and furniture was lifted – nothing was left untouched by Ben. Just as he was about to give up on finding anything useful, something shiny caught his attention. Gold?! Jewels?! Giddily, he knocked back a floorboard and shoved his hand through, blindly reaching for whatever it was he'd seen. He made contact with something rather round, and with delight, pulled it through. A coin! He grinned, blessing his luck and astute eyesight. Crushing the coin in his fist, Ben stood, ready to actually clean. … Crushing the coin… in his fist… He looked down at the chocolate smeared mess that was his hand. "You've got to be joking," he said, a sharp laugh spilling out of him. With a snarl, he tossed the crumpled chocolate and golden wrapping across the room he was in. As he washed off the brown stains from underneath his fingernails, Ben heard noise outside. His partner? "Hey!" he shouted through the door, "I hope you have tools with you, because this place needs some big time lovin'!" Thrown die: 82 +82 @Enrico Daniels
After a few more moments of awkward silence, Ben peeked through the door. Nobody was there. Had it been an animal? The rogue stood with a frown before turning and scavenging through the pitiful excuse of a cabin. If his partner was going to ditch him, Ben hardly felt obliged to actually finish the job. Plus, there seemed to be nothing of value here. What rich person had such a sad cabin? None. No rich person would forget to leave a precious jewel or some coin behind! Ben struggled to find excuses. It wasn't because he was too lazy to scout the house or not skilled enough to spot any hidden stashes. They just had nothing for him to steal! So with a nod, he turned right around and left. [FIN]
