Billy knew that if he was quiet enough and didn't move around much, his mother would soon forget that he was there. It was a fact of the seven-year-old's life that his mother, so engrossed in his baby sister's care and talking on her cell phone, would not notice if Billy moved away from where they had set up for a day of fun on the beach. Taking his favorite pail with him, Billy knew to stay close enough to hear his mother if she called for him, but, if he wanted to, he could also go over the little hill of sand in front of him, out of his mother's sight. And that is exactly what he did.
The first thing he saw once he had come to the top of the hill was the strange person sitting with their back to him in front of a pile of sand. Billy thought the person looked weird. The stranger was wearing what looked like a long black cape, kinda like what his favorite superhero Batman wore, but this cape was even longer and looked a little ragged. Also, the stranger had the funniest hair Billy had ever seen, even with his mom working in a beauty salon where he had to play sometimes. The blonde hair move every which way in the breezes blowing up and down the beach. Billy had been told by his mother and countless other adults to never talk to strangers, and Billy knew this was a good idea, but for some reason, this little rule completely slipped his mind as he walked down to where the stranger was sitting. As he got closer, he saw what that the stranger was trying to pile up sand into some kind of shape but it kept collapsing.
"What'cha doin'?" Billy asked, holding his pail in front of him.
The stranger turned around and Billy saw that whoever it was, they had funny colored eyes and wore some kinda make-up.
The stranger squinted and held a gloved hand up to block the bright sunlight and visibly relaxed, looking over the little red-headed boy staring back. "I'm trying to build something." The stranger replied in a deep voice, tinged with frustration. "Go away."
"What'cha trying to build?" Billy asked of what he guessed was a man.
"A sand castle, if you must know." The man replied, returning to his work.
"Why?"
"Because, in order for me to be more capable of understanding the human condition, I am required to accomplish certain tasks, one of which being," The man pulled a piece of paper out of somewhere and looked at it. "Build a sand castle on the beach, no magic involved."
"You're doin' it wrong." Billy said in a smug voice.
"What?" the man replied.
"You gotta get the sand wet. It won't stay together if the sand's not wet. Wait a minute." Billy said, then took off, headed for where the waves were washing up onto the sand.
When Billy turned around with a pail full of water, he didn't see the man or his poor excuse for a sand castle anywhere. He followed his footprints up to the dry sand and when he had gone a few feet he suddenly saw the man still sitting on the beach. The man let out a sigh.
"I was hoping you wouldn't find your way back." He said.
Billy poured the water out onto the sand in front of where the man was sitting, getting it good and wet. The man suddenly stood up and glared at the little boy.
"You should've warned me you were going to do that." He said somewhat angrily.
"You mix this up and I'll be right back." Billy said, not aware that he had angered the strange man.
When Billy returned, he saw that the man was trying to build up a wall with his gloves on.
"You gotta take the gloves off. You'll never build a castle with those on." Billy said in a knowing tone.
Finally the man shrugged and suddenly wasn't wearing gloves anymore. Billy, who was busy mixing the water and sand, didn't notice this and went about making a wall for the castle. He showed the man how to make towers by taking wet sand in the pail and turning it upside down and pulling the pail up and off the sand. In a little while, Billy and the stranger had made a sand castle in a square shape with towers on the four corners. After this was done, Billy started digging to make a moat around the castle.
"What are you doing now?" The man asked.
"I'm making a moat for the castle." Billy said, widening a trench in front of the castle.
"What is that for?"
"It keeps the bad guys out and also keeps the water from ruining your castle right away when it comes up this far."
"You don't wish to use a labyrinth?"
"What's a labeerunth?" Billy asked, looking up at the man.
"Never mind. So you just dig a trench all the way around the castle? Anything else?" The man asked as he dug the moat on his side of the castle.
"Well, you can dig a trench so when the water comes in, you can make it go into the moat and then go back out, or you can smash the trench after the water comes in and keep the moat filled with water for a little while. I like to make the water go back out, cause after a while the walls will come down." Billy said as he finished the moat.
"Well, thank you very much for your help, Billy. I do appreciate it." The man said.
"Billy! Billy!" Billy heard his mother calling for him from the other side of the hill he had originally walked over.
"I gotta go! I'll see if I can come back though!" Billy said, running towards where his mother was calling for him.
As the little boy ran up the hill he had come down from, the man took the piece of paper in his now-gloved hands and an X appeared next to where it said he had to build a sand castle. He then made the paper disappear and walked up a hill in the opposite direction of where Billy had gone. As he crested the hill, he turned and looked down at the sand castle he had built, made a motion with his hands, then walked down the other side.
"Momma! Momma! Come see the sand castle I helped build!" Billy said as he tugged on his mother's free hand.
"Is that where you were? I looked around and couldn't find you anywhere! Don't ever do that again!" His mother said even as she walked up the hill with Billy, balancing the baby carrier in her other hand.
As they came to the top of the hill, they both stopped and stared in amazement at the site before them. Where there had been a simple little sand castle a few seconds ago, there was now a huge castle with strange dome-topped towers surrounded by a large intricate-looking maze.
The first thing he saw once he had come to the top of the hill was the strange person sitting with their back to him in front of a pile of sand. Billy thought the person looked weird. The stranger was wearing what looked like a long black cape, kinda like what his favorite superhero Batman wore, but this cape was even longer and looked a little ragged. Also, the stranger had the funniest hair Billy had ever seen, even with his mom working in a beauty salon where he had to play sometimes. The blonde hair move every which way in the breezes blowing up and down the beach. Billy had been told by his mother and countless other adults to never talk to strangers, and Billy knew this was a good idea, but for some reason, this little rule completely slipped his mind as he walked down to where the stranger was sitting. As he got closer, he saw what that the stranger was trying to pile up sand into some kind of shape but it kept collapsing.
"What'cha doin'?" Billy asked, holding his pail in front of him.
The stranger turned around and Billy saw that whoever it was, they had funny colored eyes and wore some kinda make-up.
The stranger squinted and held a gloved hand up to block the bright sunlight and visibly relaxed, looking over the little red-headed boy staring back. "I'm trying to build something." The stranger replied in a deep voice, tinged with frustration. "Go away."
"What'cha trying to build?" Billy asked of what he guessed was a man.
"A sand castle, if you must know." The man replied, returning to his work.
"Why?"
"Because, in order for me to be more capable of understanding the human condition, I am required to accomplish certain tasks, one of which being," The man pulled a piece of paper out of somewhere and looked at it. "Build a sand castle on the beach, no magic involved."
"You're doin' it wrong." Billy said in a smug voice.
"What?" the man replied.
"You gotta get the sand wet. It won't stay together if the sand's not wet. Wait a minute." Billy said, then took off, headed for where the waves were washing up onto the sand.
When Billy turned around with a pail full of water, he didn't see the man or his poor excuse for a sand castle anywhere. He followed his footprints up to the dry sand and when he had gone a few feet he suddenly saw the man still sitting on the beach. The man let out a sigh.
"I was hoping you wouldn't find your way back." He said.
Billy poured the water out onto the sand in front of where the man was sitting, getting it good and wet. The man suddenly stood up and glared at the little boy.
"You should've warned me you were going to do that." He said somewhat angrily.
"You mix this up and I'll be right back." Billy said, not aware that he had angered the strange man.
When Billy returned, he saw that the man was trying to build up a wall with his gloves on.
"You gotta take the gloves off. You'll never build a castle with those on." Billy said in a knowing tone.
Finally the man shrugged and suddenly wasn't wearing gloves anymore. Billy, who was busy mixing the water and sand, didn't notice this and went about making a wall for the castle. He showed the man how to make towers by taking wet sand in the pail and turning it upside down and pulling the pail up and off the sand. In a little while, Billy and the stranger had made a sand castle in a square shape with towers on the four corners. After this was done, Billy started digging to make a moat around the castle.
"What are you doing now?" The man asked.
"I'm making a moat for the castle." Billy said, widening a trench in front of the castle.
"What is that for?"
"It keeps the bad guys out and also keeps the water from ruining your castle right away when it comes up this far."
"You don't wish to use a labyrinth?"
"What's a labeerunth?" Billy asked, looking up at the man.
"Never mind. So you just dig a trench all the way around the castle? Anything else?" The man asked as he dug the moat on his side of the castle.
"Well, you can dig a trench so when the water comes in, you can make it go into the moat and then go back out, or you can smash the trench after the water comes in and keep the moat filled with water for a little while. I like to make the water go back out, cause after a while the walls will come down." Billy said as he finished the moat.
"Well, thank you very much for your help, Billy. I do appreciate it." The man said.
"Billy! Billy!" Billy heard his mother calling for him from the other side of the hill he had originally walked over.
"I gotta go! I'll see if I can come back though!" Billy said, running towards where his mother was calling for him.
As the little boy ran up the hill he had come down from, the man took the piece of paper in his now-gloved hands and an X appeared next to where it said he had to build a sand castle. He then made the paper disappear and walked up a hill in the opposite direction of where Billy had gone. As he crested the hill, he turned and looked down at the sand castle he had built, made a motion with his hands, then walked down the other side.
"Momma! Momma! Come see the sand castle I helped build!" Billy said as he tugged on his mother's free hand.
"Is that where you were? I looked around and couldn't find you anywhere! Don't ever do that again!" His mother said even as she walked up the hill with Billy, balancing the baby carrier in her other hand.
As they came to the top of the hill, they both stopped and stared in amazement at the site before them. Where there had been a simple little sand castle a few seconds ago, there was now a huge castle with strange dome-topped towers surrounded by a large intricate-looking maze.