fandomtownies | The Street Near the Park, Saturday Afternoon

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@streets,
sparkle

The Street Near the Park, Saturday Afternoon

Sparkle was whistling merrily to himself as he walked down the road, thoughtfully sizing up a sprig of the mistletoe that he'd... procured... from the flower shop earlier. It was like everyone on the island forgot what he was good at, or had just never known. Picking locks, pocketing things that didn't belong to him...

It was a shame it was all going to end soon, really. For the first time in a long while, Sparkle actually felt useful.

Now if only he could find the little green one that had sent him off for supplies...

He paused to pat a slug on the head, giving it a pleasant grin. If it wasn't all about to burn, he'd almost be sad he couldn't keep one as a pet.

[OOC: Open streets, crazy Sparkle!]

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There'd been a time Atton had felt something for this kid - kinship, friendship, all of that.

But that was a long time ago. Right now, the way he walked, the slug by his side, spelled one thing only: useful.

So he stepped out of the shadows. "What are you doing?"

Sparkle looked up and immediately registered Atton.

... It was shortly followed by 'kinda scruffy,' because even crazy Sparkle was still Sparkle.

"Looking," he explained, and then held up the bits and ends, the leaves and cuttings that he had gathered. "For the green one? She gave me a list."

Poisonous plants and parasites, all tucked neatly up his sleeve.

"Any chickens or rabbits?" Atton asked.

His voice was flat. It didn't matter what he was saying.

Sparkle paused for a moment. Rabbits? Chickens!

"Not up my sleeve. I know where you could get them, though."

He sometimes stopped in the animal shelter for food for his fish. They had a whole coop up on the roof.

"Show me," Atton said, something flickering in his eyes. "We need some sacrifices."

Could everyone just ignore the blonde woman watching them from the shadows, a few houses down? Thanks.

Sparkle tilted his head at this shaggier, dirtier Atton. And then he nodded and tucked the plants away. He could find the green one later. Or give these to Atton, trusting that he'd put them to good use.

"Right this way. They aren't far."

There was going to be a busted into chicken coop and a flock of disgruntled poultry roaming the streets by the end of the day, wasn't there?

That was entirely likely, yes.

Atton trailed after him, watching Sparkle - and his slug - carefully. "What else have you gathered?" he said. "You're on board?"

"Mistletoe, foxglove, and for some reason forget-me-nots," Sparkle rattled off a few of the items on the list, and then turned a curious look toward Atton. "The little green one? The triangle? She told me to. You're here together?"

He figured that was what 'on board' was referring to, anyway.

Make it all burn.

"The triangle has her uses," Atton agreed. "Too. It won't be long. Just a few more days."

"A few more days," Sparkle echoed. And then he looked toward Atton hopefully. "I can be useful in those few days?"

There were so many things he was good at, things he'd been carving out of himself, habit by habit. He'd missed them. Missed himself. If the whole world was coming to an end, he at least wanted to contribute what he was to the cause.

"You're good at finding things, aren't you?" Atton drawled. "You find things."

"I'm good at finding things," Sparkle agreed, giving Atton a bright, hopeful grin. "Finding them, getting them, keeping them. Anything you need found, I'm your guy."

Which was punctuated with a pause in front of the Furnado.

"Like chickens," he shared. "And rabbits."

He pointed up toward the roof.

"They got a bunch of both in last Easter. The chickens stuck around. They're in a coop on the roof."

"Good," Atton said. "We'll need a few for the ritual."

Or they'd escape from his arms and run out of the cave while he was under assault by a deranged Preborn woman. That was also possible. "How much do the locals know?"

Sparkle shook his head a little.

"They know there are people here, extras," he offered, remembering Hannibal calling him to his place for 'safety' reasons. "They know there's trouble. I don't think most know what you're aiming for, yet, but they're paranoid."

A beat.

"I don't think they like the slugs."

For some reason.

"The slugs do what they have to do," Atton said. "They don't need to be liked."

"Well," Sparkle said, almost chirpy as he smiled down at his little slithery friend, "I like the slugs."

He was super not going to like the slugs when he came back to his senses.

"What do they have to do, anyway?"

"Kill everyone who gets in our way and claim the island for us until we're done," Atton said.

That flatness was sounding about as sunny as it was going to get.

Sparkle considered that, too.

"Efficient," he decided. Not his usual cup of tea, but hey, the slugs weren't attacking him, so it was someone else's problem. If they were attacked by slugs, they should've just gone with the plan in the first place. "I kinda like it."

It didn't have the same appeal as just burning it all to the ground, but he supposed they'd get to that, maybe.

"Like I said, they do what they have to do," said Atton, beginning to walk in the direction of the promised chickens. "They'll all die when we're done anyway. Just like you."

"Just like everyone," Sparkle agreed, following along. "Just a little more work, and then... quiet, right? Just... nothing?"

He didn't believe in God, didn't believe in life after death.

The quiet kind of sounded good, though. His life had been a whole lot of loud until now.

"Quiet," Atton agreed. "You'll finally get to shut up for the rest of eternity."

A pause. "You know where to take your items?"

"I get to shut up," Sparkle echoed vaguely, briefly, ever so briefly, torn between being stung or being vaguely amused by the comment. The two emotions wrestled around in his head for a few seconds.

Amusement won out. Barely.

"I don't," he said, letting it drop and getting back to business. "The triangle only gave me a list and then took off. Said she was busybusy. Just like that. 'Busybusy. Lots of work.'"

"You know where Selke Cove is?" Atton asked, raising his chin. "Meet us there. Bring a few more slugs. And chickens."

"Selkie Cove, chickens and slugs," Sparkle repeated, and then nodded his head a little. "Okay. I can do that. Chickens and slugs."

He then looked up toward the roof of the pet shop.

"Chickens."

Guess he was going to have to get lock picking.

Ada had met the other-Hya, and heard radio, but she needed a few things and so was flitting through the streets with all the lightness of a carnie long-taught to sneak about unseen. Not quite up to the level of Isabella, perhaps, but still slipping from nook to cranny with ease.

At least until she saw Sparkle. "Hey, Sparkle," she called down from the fire escape she was sitting on. "Do you mind if I go take some stuff from th' store--oh."

That. That was a slug. Yeah, Ada was going to pretend everything was fine and stay up here."

Sparkle blinked and tilted his head up at Ada. Normally he'd be more excited to see her, but, well...

"Not at all," he called back. Because what did a store matter, anyway? They were all going to be dead in a few days. "You need a way in?"

He could be pretty amiable for a guy who was helping hurry along armageddon, really.

"'M my own way in," she said easily, pulling a pair of lockpicks out of her pocket to shake them at him. "Don't need no keys or nothing."

Really, Sparkle, if you weren't mind-controlled, she'd be insulted.

She tried not to look at his slug, just to be safe. "You out for a walk?"

"Something like that," Sparkle replied, shrugging his shoulders. "Looking for somebody. About three feet tall, green. Big hair? She had me running some errands for her."

Nefarious errands. In a flower shop. As you do.

"Peridot sent you on an errand?" That...didn't seem right. "I ain't seen her today, but if'n I run into her, I'll tell her you were here and lookin' for her."

"You might wanna try the library? I know she likes books."

And maybe someone there would kill his slug and sit on him, to keep him from doing anything else stupid.

"The library?" Sparkle gave his fingers a snap, and then pointed up at her with a grin and a nod. "Hey, good idea. Thanks, Ada, you're a huge help."

He was probably not going to make it to the library before bumping into somebody. Maybe.

Then again, he did need a good sitting-on. There was way too much trouble around for even a somewhat unhinged him, and Hannibal had all his knives.

"Yeah, well, y'know me. 'M a helper," she said, standing up and heading the rest of her way up that fire escape to get away from street level.

She didn't like leaving him like this, but she knew her versus the slug probably wouldn't go well; she didn't know if her knives could even hurt it, and she ran the risk of Sparkle taking it...poorly. Best she could do was try and point him in another direction and hope for the best.

"You...hope you find everything you need."

And not what other people needed.

Sparkle nodded, gave her a grin, and a friendly little wave.

"See you 'round, Ada! Unless I don't, anyway."

Since, you know. End of the world. It was all so exciting, wasn't it?

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The Street Near the Park, Saturday Afternoon

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