Who: Charlie McGee (Open if you want, but can also be a narrative) What: Burning down a Lawrence newsstand relatively close to the complex. Where: The middle of Lawrence. When: Present day, but in the middle of the night.
People always talk about how things can change drastically in just the blink of an eye, but Charlie never thought it would happen literally. One moment she was ready to board a bus in Ohio, looking for a ride to a new town and trying to dodge the watchful eyes The Shop had in place, and the next moment she was on an unfamiliar street corner. Suddenly she was on guard. When strange and inexplicable things happened to Charlie it was usually safe to blame The Shop.
Her eyes darted around in a panic and Charlie felt her heartbeat speeding up in alarm. There was a newsstand just beside her and in a frenzy she read the headlines. It seemed completely impossible. From what she read it seemed that she was in Lawrence Kansas in the year 2011. She put her hand to her forehead and paced in a close circle.
That’s how it all began. An intense emotion, whether it be lust or fear or anger, always seemed to be the catalyst for her fires. As she tried to slow her breathing, the thin paper of newspapers and magazines curled and glowed the amber of a starting fire. The smell of smoke teased her nostrils and she became aware of what she was doing, perhaps too late. Little flames were growing in size and Charlie’s eyes widened in shock. She was prepared for things like this, always toting fire extinguishers in her ruck sack, but Charlie didn’t want to draw attention to herself. Instead of saving the newsstand she took off, running from the scene.