Only several days after she had put up flyers asking for students to volunteer for some extra credit work at NICE Labs, Dr. Steiner had been rather busy interviewing potential hopefuls, though none of them had managed to impress her enough for her to consider them as suitable for the position she had in mind. Truth be told, she was rather doubtful that any of them would and was beginning to consider that she might have to go off-planet to find such a candidate.

Until then, however, she did have one more student left to interview, and had her brought to NICE Labs once she was available. However, the student had been left in Dr. Steiner's room for the time being as she was forced to deal with one of the Harvesters she had brought back from her recent trip into outer space, the creature going on a rampage due to a technician's carelessness and demanding her to deal with it personally.

Ah, it wasn't like the student would do anything stupid once left to her devices. Even if there were plenty of things to see in her room, plenty of things that could be stolen, but it would only take a truly reckless person to do that, and the students of Shokushu Island were no such people, Right?

...Right?

Right! Unless that student happens to be the one trying to run a black market right under the staff's nose. And it had been rather successful so far as well! So of course she's taking the opportunity to root through the cabinets and drawers in search of something useful. And it would have to be something better than cotton swabs and pens. Now those latex gloves...maybe they would come in handy!! But what she really needs are some personal items! The Doctor certainly can't spend all her time in here without something to keep her occupied. Maybe a nice bottle of scotch...

For one running a secretive black market, there were indeed a wealth of things that could be nicked around the doctor's office, which also kept plenty of medical and computer supplies as well, along with the doctor's fair share of guilty pleasures. Latex gloves were a given, naturally, but so were things such as relatively simple medicine such as aspirin, pain killers, even some slightly narcotic ones. And if one were to go through the small storage container in the corner, by the file cabinets, one would find several packs of cigarettes and a bottle of bourbon, along with an unopened bottle of wine from a colleague, which happened to be made in a very good year. A wealth of things, indeed. All for the taking, really, if one were to get away with it!

Emilla is in scrounger heaven, more or less. There's all sorts of things here but really she can only take a few select items. The aspirin yes, and the cigarettes and alcohol. Those definitely go into her pack. She gives the other medicines a wide berth for the moment. Those sorts of things tend to be easily noticed missing after all, but she doesn't put them out of her mind. Now, what she really needs, is copper tubing and some nice, large containers. Perhaps even a burner or two and some fuel. After all, if one is going to set up a still, then one needs supplies, no? And the labs would be the best place to find them! Doesn't even have to be copper really, just some tubing that she can form with her hands.

And as it were, plenty more could be found in the closet adjacent to the room, filled with even more things. There were far more stuff in the supply closet dedicated to Dr. Steiner's office, packed with all manners of things from even bunsen burners to flasks and vials, along with all manners of equipment used in chemistry and biology, even tubing and all. And there were certainly plenty of empty containers on the floor, from the scientist going through her supplies rather quickly. It certainly wasn't as if she would miss any of them easily. And as seeing as she had yet to return so far, it seemed safe for the time being, but the window of opportunity could only last so long.

Well, perhaps the scientist had only gone so far, but there's no way she can get away with some of these things, not yet at least. She does snag some of the tubing, stuffing it into her back as well. One more trip to that closet for a good last look. After all, she might have looked over something small that she could get away with. And she should have plenty of time to find anything that she can get away with. So, with a few flasks in her hand, she backs out of the closet and kicks the door shut.

Truly, it had been quite the opportunity for any scrounger to nick plenty of good stuff to sell later on, considering how much of a treasure trove the private rooms of the Labs were. Granted, there was always a risk whenever one decided to try and steal things from other people, especially if said people happened to be in some rather high places, but as they said, the bigger the risk, the bigger the pay-off.

It was simply unfortunate that, as the student came out of the closet and kicked it shut, there was now someone at the other door, waiting. And boy, did she look rather annoyed! Dressed in a rather tasteful black dress and her usual lab coat, the scientist held a stern stare upon her face as she was confronted by the appearance of a student with a backpack full of ill-gotten goods.

"Welp, you're in trouble now..."

Emilla freezes as she hears that voice, slowly turning her head to look over her shoulder at the woman standing in the doorway. "Er.." she begins, her eyes widening slightly. "This stuff was just...laying around. I was helping you to clean up a little." she says, a very weak excuse but she still has to try. She turns to face the woman, her arms full of the things she had been intending to stuff in her pack with the rest. She puts on her very best smile, standing up straighter and waiting to see what the woman will do.

"Really now? I'm afraid I simply just do not buy that excuse. Did you really expect something as poorly conceived as that to persuade me?" The woman did not appear to be amused, not in the least. Instead, she closed the door behind her and approached the student she had just caught red-handed. "You will deposit everything you've taken on my desk, and perhaps I will refrain from sending you off to the Basement for a week's worth of disciplinary action, young lady. Now."

"Well, no." she admits. "But it was worth a shot." She frowns at the other woman for a long moment before she sighs and slowly walks to the desk, depositing her armload of items. "There..everything I took.." she announces despite the fact that it's not. Her bag still contains a few items that she hopes the Doctor won't bother looking for. She gives the other woman a small smile, placing her hands behind her back. "I..well, I just needed them for a little bit.."

"Need them for a little bit, really now? What on earth could you need these things for, young lady?" Dr. Steiner was still not amused, her expression quite stern as she glared at the student. Suspicion, though, drove her to consider other things as well. It was then that the woman looked down at the chair where the student's pack was, then back at her. With no further words, she eased down and began opening the pack, noticing the ill-gotten goods within.

"That's all, is it now? And I suppose this," She spoke as she pulled out the bottle of alcohol that had been hidden before, "Oh, just happened to crawl into your pack? Along with these cigarettes? All right, you need to come clean here. What were you doing with all these?" While it looked quite bad for Emilla, the doctor could not help but think that this student was likely to be desperate now, and if she was desperate to get out of trouble, then she might be more likely to be open to a proposal the doctor had in mind. It appeared as if she had indeed found someone 'suitable' for the position she needed filled.

She swallows hard as the Doctor shifts her attention to that pack. "Dammit." She curses softly undernearth her breath, watching as the best items are pulled out and displayed to her. "I..ah..you see..." she stammers. "I just..well, the thing is.." The girl takes a few steps back, swallowing again. "I just..I needed them...that's all." she finally says, weakly. "Please don't send me to the basement.."

"Young lady!" Dr. Steiner began, trying to silence the girl. "I do not care for your excuses anymore. You will tell me now what you're up to with all this things, or I will have to bring the authorities into this, and I can guarantee you that things will be so much worse at that point for you!" She held herself with a firm posture, staring down at the student, daring her to give her yet another excuse. If her hunch was correct, driving the student into a corner would certainly make her more easier to manipulate.

She jumps at the sharp little reprimand, her expression turning sullen. "Fine.." she says. "I was planning on getting drunk and smoking cigarettes." Better than the truth anyways. Ok, maybe she was going to get a little drunk. "And I know this girl who..wanted the other things. Said she'd give me more booze for it." A half truth, at best. She looks down at the floor, fidgeting a little bit. "What do you want? You got all your stuff back. I'm sorry."

Saying nothing, the doctor picked up the pack and allowed it to rest on the floor beside the chair. "Sit down, young lady." Dr. Steiner then walked around the desk and seated herself into her own chair only after the student had done so. Leaving the bottle of bourbon on the desk, she then stared at her latest applicant, as if she was trying to see through her. "No, you're not being quite truthful with me, are you now?"

"Wanting a smoke and something strong to drink, I can understand. However, going as far as to try and steal some of these things, especially from someone's office, for the sake of another? I'm afraid that isn't plausible enough, especially for this island." The woman smiled, as she opened a drawer and brought out two small glasses, pouring a bit of the bourbon into them. "Do have a drink. You did say you wanted to get drunk, yes? Or was that another lie?"