Once upon a time, there was a redheaded, blue-plumaged warbler named Wally Warbles. Wally, a delivery bird, was notorious for his hair-trigger temper; the slightest inconvenience could provoke a cacophonous, feather-flying tantrum. But despite his impassioned nature (or, perhaps, because of it), Wally was quite successful with the ladies. During a typical mating season, he would score with at least ten to fifteen other birds.
His seasonal debauchery would eventually come back to haunt him, however. One fateful day, he found a new egg lying in his nest, along with an attached note that read "HE'S YOUR PROBLEM NOW". A week later, his new son - whom he named Willy - hatched from the egg.
Before long, Wally ran into a problem. His salary was already pretty unimpressive, and his newborn son put an added strain on his finances. To further complicate the issue, Willy turned out to be a child prodigy, sporting a broad vocabulary for his age and an affinity for science and technology. Wally had no doubt in his mind that Willy would have a lucrative career in STEM when he got older; for now, though, he was too young to work, and Wally had to do more shopping to support his interests in electronics and engineering.
Most people in this position would look for a new job, or seek out a source of secondary income. But Wally lacked the patience for that, so he spent every weekend gambling his hard-earned coins at King Dice's Casino, in the hopes that one day he would "win big" and he and his son would be set for life.
As you could imagine, this didn't turn out well for him. At most, he would leave with a few more coins than he came in with. At worst, he would get hit with loss after loss and would have no choice but to cut his losses and leave.
During one particularly unlucky night, he found himself down over 100 coins, and was desperately trying to mitigate his losses. After exhausting himself with a screeching fit at the roulette table, he was approached by King Dice himself.
"It seems tonight isn't your lucky night, Mr. Warbles," he said.
"Tell me about it," Wally said with a sigh.
"Well, it pains me to see you in so much despair," said King Dice, even though he didn't mean it one bit. "So I would like to offer you a chance to cancel out your losses. Come with me."
Wally was a bit suspicious, but he was also out of options, so he followed King Dice to a secluded hallway, far away from the main casino. At the end of the hall was a doorway concealed by a thick red curtain. King Dice drew it back to reveal a dank, dimly lit cave, so deep that Wally couldn't see the end of it even if he squinted.
"This is what I call the Challenge of Temptation," King Dice said. "At the very end of this cave, there is a golden crown. If you can bring it back to this very spot, it's all yours."
He leaned in closer, giving Wally a devilish smile. "There is one rule, and one rule only. You must touch nothing in the cave, except for the crown. If you break this rule, the Devil will have your soul."
Wally swallowed hard, unsure if he was willing to take such a gamble. On the other hand, he was down by a lot, and if he managed to complete the challenge, his financial worries would be practically over. Besides, how hard could it be to fly through a cave and back without touching anything?
"You're on!" he said, as he dove in and started soaring through the cave. On either side of him, he saw riches beyond his wildest dreams, piled to the ceiling: jewels as big as his head, mountains of doubloons, wooden chests full to bursting. Regardless, he managed to ignore all of the temptations and focus on his task. After what seemed like an hour, he found the crown, resting atop a stone pillar at the end of the cave. He carefully grasped it in his talons and began to fly back.
About halfway through his return journey, however, he began to tire, and he allowed himself a moment to land on the ground and catch his breath. As soon as he recuperated, he took off again and finished the journey.
"Easy as pie," he said, tossing the crown in the air and catching it on his head. "Now, how much is this thing wor-"
Suddenly, King Dice snatched it away. "I'm afraid you're mistaken, Mr. Warbles. You didn't win. You lost."
Wally gasped. "I lost?!" he cried. "What do you mean, I lost?! I didn't touch a damn thing in that cavern! Not one thing!"
"Ah, but you did," said King Dice, twirling his mustache. "During the return trip, you stopped to take a rest. When you landed, your talons touched the floor."
"Wha...THAT COUNTS?!" he squawked. "You didn't tell me I couldn't touch the floor!"
"Well, you didn't bother to ask me to clarify, now, did you?"
For the next few minutes, the echoes of high-pitched screeching and baritone laughter filled the casino.