Living In Sin

Mercy gazed around the church from where they stood in the shadow of a pillar.

So far, so good.  The place looked empty, save for them.

They had to be careful, they knew.  They’d distracted Oleander fairly well yesterday when he had been doing accounting, but they’d taken a lot from the tithes this month.  They were saving up for something extra nice this month, and they only needed a few hundred more carats for it.  Of course, they could wait to the end of the month, they’d have enough money honestly by then.

They just weren’t going to do that.

It wasn’t as though they didn’t ensure the Church always had enough, that there were funds for caring for the baby buns born each year and the newly adult buns…  And everyone got their paychecks, maintenance was able to be done, and above all, the Church approved of a bun acting on their vices.  It was part of their beliefs, after all.

They still didn’t want to get caught, though.  They’d been able to bribe their way out of it one way or another every time so far - but they had no desire to push their luck or get into a situation they couldn’t get out of…

Something felt off, though, so they waited just a little longer, looking up towards the choir loft in case there was someone up there.

…ah, there it was.  Two young buns engaged in sex and trying very hard to keep it quiet.  They were doing a pretty good job of it, honestly, Mercy would give them that much.  They hadn’t heard them, just had the vague sense that they weren’t completely alone.  At least they were too high up to see anything, and too wrapped up in each other to even notice other buns existed.

They were quiet, of course, as they approached the tithing box and opened it.  Quickly, the counted its contents - several large checks, which were too risky to take…  A fancy ring - too distinctive, though, and Oleander would probably have to check to make sure it had been intentionally donated and not slipped off a finger by accident…  Fortunately, though, there were well over a thousand carats inside.  Mercy counted out what they needed for their new purchase, and hesitated.  It couldn’t hurt to take a few more…  Maybe just another hundred?  That would be enough, they told themself and counted the extra out before they closed the tithe box up and scurried off towards their office, concealing their ill-gotten gains in their long sleeves.