THE SANDBOX

[wolfintheattic]

NO LONGER IN USE

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[neighborofthebeast]

He pulled the ticket out of his pocket and forked it over. "They probably won't give you the super fresh ones anyway. I just happened to get here at just the right t-time. I also have perfect timing, did I mention that?"

Please think I'm cool, bug dude.

[toaflame]

That got a laugh out of Adrian as he stepped over to hand the ticket to the vendor, turning his attention back to Roman as he waited for them to bring the fries out. "You're just full'a surprises, ain't you?"

[neighborofthebeast]

You have no idea.

Roman just grinned and sat back on his tail again, thrilled to have finally mastered that trick.

"Hey, once we're outta range of flammable stuff, you oughtta show me that fire t-trick of yours again! I've heard of that whole moths and the flame jazz, but you take the c-cake. Is it hard to do?"

[toaflame]

"Eh, not really. Kindof hard to get the hang of when I was a kid, but I managed to get through it without burning my house down," he said as he took the new basket of fries from the counter once it was brought over. His brothers and sisters before him all had. All of his sisters seemed to be able to master it a lot faster than the boys, though, and Adrian himself was always a little impatient when it came to learning. He just wanted results.

[neighborofthebeast]

"Well I'm jealous. I haven't been doing it for long at all." Once Adrian had his fries, he hopped to his hooves and waved for the pyromancer to follow him. Night finished falling and the roads were awash with yellow streetlights and bouncing reflections from shop windows. A basketball game echoed and roared from somewhere.

"What's a guy do with a power like that? Make metal sculptures? C-create those really fancy blown glass horses?"

[toaflame]

"Sure, if you want to," he answered with a shrug as he followed Roman down the sidewalk, tossing one of the fries over his head to catch in his mouth. "My old man was pretty decent at that sorta thing. Made a lot of stuff mom used 'round the house." It was good for all of them, especially since they hadn't had a whole lot growing up.

[neighborofthebeast]

What a strange answer.

"Why don't you?" Roman was totally planning on making/selling a super cool TRASH DRAGON once he was good enough with his fire to focus it for any length of time. He eyed the fry as it flew in its graceful arc up and then down into oblivion. "Nice! Betcha c-can't do it five times in a row!"

[toaflame]

"Don't usually got the stuff to. I do it sometimes, though, when I got it," he shook his head a little at Roman's request, sneering. "Tch. Alright, watch me."

And so he resumed tossing the fries into the air to catch as they came down, successfully downing three before the fourth bounced off his nose with an eloquent hiss of 'ow, shit'.

[neighborofthebeast]

Roman burst out laughing and was quick to stoop down and snatch up the fry straight off the sidewalk before eating it.

"Too baaad!"

[toaflame]

He made a face at that but said nothing. Five second rule, and all that.

"Alright, so where are you takin' me, anyway?"

[neighborofthebeast]

"I know a parking lot."

That's not sketchy as fuck at all.

[toaflame]

"Do you now?"

Not at all.

"Should I be worried, or...?"

[neighborofthebeast]

"What? No way, we're gonna have a fire party! But we gotta do it somewhere the c-cops won't see because for some reason when magicians do it on TV it's art but when I do it, it's arson."

Soon the buildings parted and a dead mall showed itself, hunkered low at the back of a broad, cracked parkinglot.

[toaflame]

That ended up getting a barking laugh out of him. Not an unkind one; if anything, he sounds very amused.

"Hah. Sounds like my kinda party, then."

[neighborofthebeast]

Hooves echoing in the empty space, Roman raced ahead and took a flying leap into an abandoned shopping cart. It rolled four feet and promptly dumped him out onto the concrete.

"That was cooler in my head." He sat up and rubbed a furry knee before grinning back at Adrian. "This looks like the place!"

[toaflame]

"Break your neck why don't you," he muttered with a grin as he finished off the last of the fries, letting his gaze pass over the empty lot.

"Not bad. Not as much sand n' boulders for my liking, but it ain't bad."

[neighborofthebeast]

Roman stood again, his tail waving behind him in unrestrained excitement.

"I don't think there's sand anywhere near here unless the construction site on the other side of t-town counts. But that place is guarded. We can do whatever we want here."

He snapped his fingers and the withered grass growing between the cracks in the pavement burst into flames.

[toaflame]

"Does 'whatever we want' include setting the place on fire?" he joked, eyeing the weeds as Roman scorched them. He didn't stay put though, instead starting to walk a little through the lot so he could get a better look at the place.

"This place ain't nothin' like what I'm used to. Why is it abandoned?"

[neighborofthebeast]

"I think the c-cops would notice that." He laughed anyway and turned to look at the gloomy, unlit building. "Probably just went out of business..." He looked back over his shoulder with a grin. "Or maybe it's haunted."

[toaflame]

"Oh shit, there goes my plans of gutting the building and making it my new summer home," he sneered, nudging Roman slightly with his elbow as he walked past.

"Got cops here too, huh...they pretty strict round these parts?"

[neighborofthebeast]

"Yeah," he shrugged, figuring it was common knowledge. "Fires are...pretty serious when they're applied to buildings."

"With these new phones, anybody anywhere could call and tattle." A thought came to him. "...wanna go on the roof?"

[toaflame]

"Sure, why not. You lead the way and I'll follow," he answered, glancing briefly over his shoulder to make sure they were alone before rolling them slightly, letting his wings appear behind his back.

[neighborofthebeast]

Roman spread his dinky little wings and flapped up the side of the building, claws and hooves scrabbling against the stone wall.

"Dude! There's like a bunch of dead birds up here!"

[toaflame]

Adrian followed Roman up with relative ease, used to having to get himself up off the ground without much lift.

"Gross," he muttered, lifting a clawed foot to avoid actually stepping on one of the aforementioned birds. "This place must've been shut down for a while."

[neighborofthebeast]

Once he was roofside, Roman also took care not to step on the dead birds. There were a lot of them. His ears turned to avoid the wind that always seemed to be blowing around high places.

"I guess so, but why would there be so many?" Roman's tail wound around one ankle. "Shit, what if it really is haunted?"