The hard wood slowly creaked open under the thief’s foot, welcoming him into a pitch black room. Not exactly the best place to be but it was safer than back in the shop. Stepping through he gently allowed the door to close behind him with a muffled thud. The room smelt of dust and drying ink. An office maybe? Two steps forward had his knee collide with the solid leg of a table, yep definitely an office. Cursing under his breath as the newly bruised limb throbbed, Eleazar carefully let his hands search the table for anything useful. A candle or similar preferably, bumping about blind in the dark wasn't the best situation to be in.
Callous finger tips brushed lightly of the pages of a book, trailing down off paper to the worn wood of the table. Further along his hand brushed in something wet before the vicious point of a quill jabbed at his nail. Ignoring this, the hand wandered onwards wrapping around a laden candle stand as the thief's face twisted into an ugly grin in the darkness. Now to find a way to light the blasted thing. With the table exhausted of possible resources, he slowly skirted the piece of furniture, flailing hands searching for a cabinet or maybe a drawer.
Finding nothing he moved to turn back only to find a chair deviously positioned behind his knee. The joint failing him, sent the teen flailing backwards, chair crashing over onto the floor as his shoulder smashed off the table, shifting that by a couple of inches, allowing for something else to fall over on the other side of the room. Following the crescendo of noise, foot steps could be heard. Wait, there was another door into this room. Shyke! Why hadn't he realised that sooner!? Scampering under the table, the teen lay flat against the floor as a square of dim light appeared on the far corner of the room.
From the way his stocky figure entered the room, Eleazar could tell it was the same man as before. Face still grim with dark heavy bags now visible under his eyes as he squinted in the darkness. Poor guy must be having a rough time sleeping, especially with all the racket he had been making. Holding down a cough tickling at the insides of his throat, Eleazar didn't move. Each muscle lay tensed, ready for the man to find his hiding spot. A filth-covered face and dark hair really helped him as the lumbering fellow stalked further into the room, glaring suspiciously at every dark corner. Stepping forward the man, presumably guard or owner, righted the fallen chair before opening his mouth.
“Anyone in here ya better come out! I don't want any trouble.”
The room answered with silence, only just held as the teen battled furiously with the itch raking up his windpipe. Face burning red as he tried to hold his breathing steady, the irritation only grew worse. Swallowing didn't aid in his struggle either, making the task more difficult as each tick floated by. Unhappy at his lack of answer, the man threw the chair carelessly across the room, letting it slide to a rest next to the table.
Flinching with the sudden movement, the cough gained ground on the hiding teen, escaping his lips as a muffled squeak before two dirty hands covered them. Looking up from the darkness he lurked in under the table, Eleazar waited in horror for the man's next move. Luckily for him, the guard's drowsiness was playing to his advantage, as the only response to the noise was a hand rubbing at tired eyes followed by an exasperated groan.
“Em shouting at rats. Shouting at petching rats. First the vandals, now the rats. Grrrrrr.”
Grumbling onward, the man exited the room, leaving the door to rest ajar and Eleazar frazzled to his wits end. That had been far too close. Finally relenting to the coughing fit, the teen simple lay on the floor hacking muffled into his hands until he's throat was raw. Petching hai. Why was he even here again...? Oh right, a gift. A gift for that harlot. Shuffling out from the shadows, Eleazar took extra care not to knock into anything else, making use of the light now entering the room. Peering out into the room the man had disappeared into, the brightness momentarily blinded the thief before throwing a warm variation of golden yellows and burnt amber into his eyes. |
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