The pair work out a way to use the Pot. Without blowing themselves up.

After their shifts, Leonard and Erica dropped by her apartment one last time. She’d gotten most of her clothes the night before, but small knickknacks and documents were still left behind. Not to mention the food she hadn’t eaten yet.

Luckily the furniture came with the apartment, and they didn’t have to take any of it. Lenny’s car was not big enough to hold even a single chair. Not to mention how annoying it would be to maneuver anything big through the cramped doorframe. He didn’t know her place was that small.

Now he was looking over a steaming pot of a type of stew. Erica’s leftovers were mostly soups, since according to her she usually didn’t have the energy to eat anything more solid. Lenny asked “I should try to use the Pot for something, right? I mean, obviously we don’t wanna blow up the apartment, but it could be good to try and get something useful, couldn’t it?” as he stirred the gargantuan mixture.

Meanwhile, she was making up a large sandwich with multiple layers of lunch meats and cheeses, based on a sudden craving. After tenderly placing a slice of roast beef over a piece of swiss cheese, Erica said “Yeah, you’re probably right. I have an idea for a good thing we could try to get from it, anyways. We just need a large space without a lot of people around who would call the police after hearing an explosion. Do you know anywhere that would be good?

Leonard blanched. “I might.”

Leonard’s mother said “I’m happy to see you again dear, but isn’t it a little soon? I mean, it feels like Christmas just happened.” She was a small thing, barely five feet tall. She also was spooning some macaroni salad onto a plate, one she passed to her husband.

“Isn’t this fine, though? House has been awfully empty without him around. Plus, we hardly ever meet his friends.” Lenny’s dad chuckled. He was a six-foot-five giant of a man, a former college linebacker. “I’m partial to this one, myself.” he whispered to his wife as he put a large steak onto the plate.

Erica would’ve passed it around, but she was busy digging into her own dinner ravenously. You’d think she hadn’t eaten meat before. “Can we stay here forever…?” she asked, tears in her eyes.

“Erica, focus.” Lenny whispered, before grabbing the plate from his dad. He said “Well, we’re not going to stay long. Just wanted to show her the space out back. She didn’t believe me when I said how large it was.” as he started cutting a small piece of his meal. It took him a bit longer than he’d hoped. He gently elbowed Erica’s arm.

“Huh? Oh, right.” She muttered. Erica said “Yeah, that’s true. I mean, two acres? We practically live in a hole in the wall, it’s a little far-fetched.” like they had practiced earlier, with one small addition.

It was an important one.

The father’s eyes widened. He looked at his son, asking “You’re living with a gal like her…?” as his jaw began to drop.

Lenny hadn’t wanted this. He hadn’t wanted any of this. “… yes. We’re roommates.”

“Oh my god, they’re roommates…” his mother gasped.

“W-We’re not doing any weird sex stuff, though! Your son and I are just very good f-f-friends.” Erica stammered, realizing what she had said, though still mostly digging a deeper hole for her and her roommate.

“Y-Yeah, good friends.” Lenny smiled, trying to keep from unconsciously implying he’d secretly fed her his cum.

Both of his parents raised an eyebrow. “Right, sure.” his father said as he went back to his dinner.

After a small dinner the pair went out to the aforementioned “backyard”, dressed in clothes as thick as they could prepare on short notice. It was mostly in case the Pot of Greed really did explode. Erica wasn’t entirely sure her hunch was correct, considering it seemed to just be magic.

They made their way to a suitable non-grassy segment of the area, which wasn’t easy considering most of it was trees. Eventually they found a spot that had been cleared out, covered in ashes and dust. The remains of used fireworks fountains were left near the center.

“Here it is.” Lenny declared. “We usually come out here for the 4th of July. Dad likes to make burgers while the fountains go off, can’t imagine why.” he exposited, holding out the Pot of Greed card. “Come out.”

Once more it appeared noiselessly after he’d blinked. Erica whistled. “That’s eerie… Okay, so what happens when you put your hand into it? Be careful, leave it on the ground.” She was tensed, body at the ready for… something. Leonard could tell she expected trouble.

Reaching into the Pot for the first time, he was surprised to feel… nothing. “Feels empty.” Lenny looked back at Erica. “What now?” he asked.

“Hm… think of something you’d want to find inside of it…? I mean, it’s the Pot of Greed, not the Pot of No Feeling In Particular.” she proposed.

“Well, worth a shot.” he decided. He focused on something small, that would fit into the large green jar. A crisp $5 bill, he decided. Lenny decided to avert his eyes, in case that helped.

Scraping the bottom, he suddenly felt a paper-like sensation. With grasping fingers, he gripped what seemed to be a bill. “I think I just made money…!” Leonard declared, awe dripping from his voice as his eyes widened. He was about to pull his hand out, but…!

“Wait! Keep your hand in the Pot!” Erica interjected. He froze, doing exactly as she’d asked of him. The shock made him stop concentrating, and the $5 bill disappeared. “Now, listen to me very carefully, and try to grab the thing I’m about to tell you from within the Pot.”