Molly and Bill huddled behind a large oak tree, peering through the foliage at the bustling children's party in the garden beyond. Colorful balloons bobbed merrily in the breeze, and the gleeful laughter of little ones rang through the air. Molly turned to her partner in crime, a mischievous glint in her eye. "You ready for this, Bill? Once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to score some seriously sweet loot," she whispered, gesturing towards the mountain of gaily wrapped presents teetering precariously on a nearby table. Bill grinned, his eyes sparkling with anticipation. "Oh, I'm ready alright. Those presents are practically begging to be liberated from that sad little table. It's like they're crying out, 'Take us, Molly and Bill! Free us from the tyranny of childish expectation!'" Molly snorted with laughter, clapping a hand over her mouth to muffle the sound. "Tyranny of childish expectation? Really, Bill, you've outdone yourself with the melodrama tonight." "What can I say? I'm a thief with a flair for the dramatic," Bill replied with a wink. "But seriously, let's go over the plan one more time. We wait for the clown to start his big finale - you know, the one where he pulls a bazillion balloons out of his nose or something equally terrifying to children and adults alike." "Right," Molly nodded. "While the kids are distracted by the balloon extravaganza, we slip in, snatch as many presents as we can carry, and make our escape through the hedge maze at the far end of the garden." "Precisely," Bill agreed. "We'll be in and out before anyone even realizes what's happened. They'll blame it on magicians or party fairies or something." A sudden burst of applause and excited squealing from the party-goers signaled the beginning of the clown's grand finale. Molly and Bill exchanged a final glance, a silent agreement that it was now or never. They burst from their hiding spot, darting towards the present-laden table with single-minded determination. Molly scooped up an armful of brightly colored packages, while Bill snatched a few more, tucking them under his chin for safekeeping. Just as they were about to make their getaway, a tiny voice piped up from the crowd. "Hey, mister and lady! What are you doing with our presents?" Molly and Bill froze, eyes wide with panic. Slowly, they turned to face a little girl in a frilly pink dress, who was staring at them with an expression of pure confusion. Think fast, Molly, Bill telepathically urged. Molly forced a bright smile onto her face. "Oh, sweetie, we're... We're just, um, rearranging the presents to make them look extra special for when the party's over!" The little girl considered this for a moment before replying, "But why are you taking them away from the table? The clown said the presents are supposed to stay there until it's time to open them." Bill's mind raced, trying to come up with a convincing explanation. "Clown's got it all wrong, kiddo," he improvised desperately. "The real magic happens when the... er, the presents take a little walk around the garden before the big present-opening extravaganza!" The child's brow furrowed, clearly not entirely convinced. "I don't think that's how it works. My mommy said..." Time was running out. Molly made a split-second decision, dropping her armload of pilfered presents and scooping the puzzled preschooler into her arms instead. "Well, kiddo, how about we go ask your mommy together, huh? I'm sure she'd love to hear all about the exciting present adventure from you!" With the confused child tucked under one arm and their remaining spoils clasped to his chest, Bill followed Molly as they hurried towards the hedge maze, praying that the little girl's mother was too absorbed in the clown's act to notice her daughter's absence just yet. As they raced through the twists and turns of the maze, Molly and Bill could hear the distant sound of laughter and applause from the party, punctuated by the occasional indignant wail of their tiny captive. "You know," Molly panted as they finally emerged from the other side of the hedge maze, "I'm starting to think this heist might not have been our best idea." "Oh, come on," Bill replied with a smirk, shifting the squirming child to his other hip. "It's not every day you get to steal both the presents and the birthday girl. I'd say that's a pretty successful night, all things considered." With a madcap giggle, Molly couldn't help but agree as they disappeared into the night, their arms full of purloined packages and one pint-sized prisoner.