Run: 2026-02-16-01KHK9KV0PPG0NH4PVKZZQ1VTD

They crouched behind a shrub shaped like a dinosaur that had seen birthdays come and go. The community center hummed with squeals, kazoo solos, and a distant, menacing bounce. Streamers snapped in the breeze like confetti flags announcing a tiny republic. Molly unfolded a blueprint drawn on the back of a pizza flyer. Bill balanced a duffel bag that smelled faintly of oats and daring. "Observe the perimeter, Bill. Balloons, cake, uncles. Danger everywhere, opportunity also tonight." He adjusted his knit cap, which sported a pompom the size of an orange. "I see the gift table glowing like treasure. Why is it sticky already?" Molly pointed to the party through a gap in glittering crepe. "Because sugar is a solvent for ethics. Focus on the wagon there." Beyond the glass, a magician wrestled his hat like it owed him rent. "Got it. Wheels mean speed. Bows mean traps. Children mean tiny lookouts everywhere." A volunteer arranged cupcakes into a fortress around the punch bowl moat. "We blend as entertainment. I practice balloon animals. You juggle juice boxes." She snapped a balloon into a poodle that looked suspiciously like a question mark. "I juggle? Last time I juggled, gravity called security on me very loudly." Bill practiced a smile that advertised safety, then accidentally winked at the shrub. "Then you face-paint. Simple shapes. No existential spirals on toddlers this time." The clown rolled by on heelies, radiating diplomacy and seltzer vapor. "Fine. Tigers only. Meanwhile, who handles the clown, that inflatable warlord? Not me." Molly noted timing on a watch with frosting embedded in the bezel. "I bribed him with seltzer. He reports by honk, not memo anyway." Somewhere, a chorus of toddlers rehearsed chaos in D major. "Good. Time our entry with the song. Applause hides capers beautifully and clumsiness." She underlined the words when the candles smoke, we roll. "Recon shows two sentries: birthday kid and an aunt with clipboard there." The aunt patrolled with the precision of a parade marshal and the glare of a librarian. "I can distract the aunt by asking about gluten in glitter these days." Bill rehearsed an expression that said concerned citizen while hiding glitter on his sleeves. "Meanwhile I wheel the presents out, smiling like borrowed sunshine for everyone." Molly tested the wagon route with a recyclable grocery cart full of air. "And if a toddler tackles me, I deploy the emergency nap blanket immediately." He flapped the blanket like a magician who specialized only in yawns. "Exit route follows stroller convoy. We claim twins named Lars and Parsnip." They practiced nodding together like weary parents of hypothetical produce. "Lars is believable. Parsnip feels aspirational. I respect these imaginary children very much." "Contingency: piñata burst means candy fog. We move under cover of chaos." "What about the magician? His hat could detain contraband rabbits and us both." "I swapped his wand for a spoon. He will summon pudding instead." "You terrify me, Molly, and I mean that as professional admiration truly sincerely."