Who: Madison and Felix Where: The kitchen and foyer When: After 1am
Felix was fairly certain that sneaking around the house was never going to get old, particularly if it was nearly always meant something great was about to happen at the expense of someone else. The only downside was the fact that all these shenanigans were seriously cutting into his beauty sleep. Not that he really felt he needed it. It was easier to tiptoe across the kitchen and into the foyer without any shoes or socks, despite the fact that the floors were a little too cold for comfort this time of the year, keeping a watchful ear out even as he settled the coffee maker onto the pristine floor near the wall by the doorway to plug it in. He waited for the digital clock on the front to start accusingly blinking zeroes at him, and then patted in lovingly on the head like a dear pet. Probably the only one that wasn’t going to end up dead before the end. Whatever else happened in the next few minutes, he'd at least have coffee and the food stash he'd procured earlier, currently taking up residence along with Chase's camera and film, cigarettes, and Pam's notebook, and his lockpicking tools, all stashed under the secret floorboard he’d painstakingly pried up a few days earlier. Now that the coffee maker was waiting on one button push to brew, he plucked the taped note that had been secured to his pantleg for the duration of their antics thus far in a fully visible position on the maker's flat top. When that was done, he slipped back toward the kitchen to throw a thumbs up at Madison, ready to push the button when they were set to make their escape.
Madison was filled with nervous energy. She had been looking over the plan for hours now, looking at everything she’d had retrieved over the course of the day to make it work. Cotton string to act as a wick, the leftover matches she had stolen from Kiley just in case, and finally lighter fluid. Not to mention the non perishables she had been bringing up and stashing in her closet. She had virtually not stopped working or running surreptitiously up and down stairs since coming back from town with Pam.
While Felix set up the coffee maker and the note, Madison had been spreading lighter fluid in a path around the kitchen, over counters and close to lower cupboards, around the island counters and the kitchen table, but purposely staying as far away as possible from the wall adjacent to the foyer and the way leading to it - the plan wasn't to burn the whole thing down before anyone noticed it was burning, after all. As for the billiard room...well, fate would decide. The way she had it set up, most cupboards and appliances would be burning, but the rest of the house wouldn't be in danger by the time the smoke detectors started making that delicious sound. Once she was done with the fluid Madison tiptoed backwards toward the foyer, unraveling and stretching the cotton string from the middle of the fluid pool by the island counters back to the entrance of the kitchen. She looked up, smiling at Felix and his thumbs up. With a roll of her shoulders Madison scratched the match against the doorframe again - sometimes she liked to feel cool like that - and carefully knelt down, carrying the flame with her towards the string. She held her breath while setting the string on fire, and remained for a moment, watching to make sure it burnt properly and didn’t go out before it reached the lighter fluid.
“We’re good, let’s go.” She told Felix in an excited whisper once she was sure the wick wouldn’t go out, standing up so fast she almost felt dizzy.
Felix could have watched Madison work her magic all damn day, though he managed to keep glancing back into the foyer and down the hall where Owen and Cecilia's rooms lay. He leaned in the doorway as nonchalantly as he could, allowing himself to sniff subtly at the air, the smell of the lighter fluid making his toes curl. He'd never been one for arson, but damn he liked that smell. And the sound and scent of the match striking. And the pretty glow. And the fact that Madison looked one hundred and fifty percent in her element. Maybe there really was something to all this burning shit that he needed to explore again sometime.
He held his breath as she lit the string, only exhaling when the flame caught. "Wow," he muttered with a quiet glee that only Madison could hear. "Just watching you do that...I think I got the Mission: Impossible theme stuck in my head." His hand went to his chest, as if he were moved by their combined antics, sighing contentedly. And with that he was moving again, heading toward the coffee maker to nudge the button with his toe, then straighten one of the three mugs he’d left on the floor beside it. That was about all the time he was willing to spend, unsure of how long it would take for the flames to really kick in. His movements were completely fluid and quiet as he began taking the stairs two at a time, waiting for her on the first landing with a massive grin on his face. As long as the house didn't burn down, this was going to be fun as fuck.
It was always good to be recognized for one’s work. Instead of speaking Madison smiled and curtsied, and with no time to lose she followed Felix up the stairs, as fast as she could on the tip of her toes.
“Been a pleasure working with you.” she told Felix on the first landing before they ran the rest of the way. It was a shame that she couldn’t watch the fire burn in all its glory, not even in the patio upstairs since that would have been suspicious. Shame. But as long as things burned and they were safe once the sirens came on, she was happy.