<Val>
::Immediately took to poring over their goods while simultaneously (with the help of the booze) swiftly forgetting the extent to which - or that he had even - offended Li at all. Li was often offended, so he supposed that this was nothing out of the ordinary, and Val just took it in stride.::

Hmmm... five dragons, three mines, a chrysanthemum, peony, kamuro, three lampares.... Ooo and two roman candles... ::he directed a grin at Li that was itself meaningless except to indicate that he was delightfully happy with their catchment.::

And then... the finale... ....... a Phoenix Inferno. ::Val produced the one last firework from his pocket, triumphantly, holding it up as if to emphasize its glory, before tossing it onto the pile.::

::It seemed however, rather small a cake for such a finale piece. It just looked like a ground spinning flare. And would most likely attract some skepticism from Li despite Val's cheerful - and obviously, we must remember - drunk facade. Nevertheless, he turned to his friend expectantly.: No doubt waiting for some form of praise...:

<Li>
::and as he was often offended and rarely could maintain any sort of anger or resentment against Val (particularly when faced with his complete and utter lack of remorse quite often paired with dogged cheerfulness and occasionally rampant charm (intentional or otherwise)), Li eventually settled into something more like his usual reserved status, his hands tucked into his sleeves and his fingers absently stroking the hilts of two of his hidden knives as he watched Val do inventory of their haul::

...Nnn... ::he responded in reply to Val's producing the Phoenix Inferno. he, indeed, looked dubious and skeptical:: ...Quite exciting. ::he finally replied, unable to disappoint Val for very long (at least not completely)::

::to avoid having to say anything further on the subject, he glanced over at a nearby signpost:: The beach would be that way. ::he nodded in the correct direction:: Shall we? ::there was an attempt to be indifferent, but memories of childhood were invading. he always had loved New Year celebrations. at least the kind celebrated at home. and fireworks made it seem familiar. there was a bit of wistfulness in his expression as he looked at the small pile of illegally obtained fireworks::

<Val>
Ho! All right then! ::he bright-eyed captain scooped up half of their loot - including the Phoenix Inferno - expecting his companion to take care of the rest. Once that was established, they made their way in the direction of Li's indication, at a pace Val set, that was to say, nothing slower than a quick trot.::

::Out of the corner of his eye, Val noticed this slight wistfulness in Li's expression, but he remained silent and as simply cheerful and smiling as he ever was, rockets and mines in his arms and all.::

::They scuttled to the shore, having to burst through a small thicket of trees before running down a steep, sandy dune sprinkled patchy with various low shrubs and coastal foliage, not to mention the occasional rocks and hazardous snags. This sudden incline served only to increase the speed at which these two travelled, however Val was in no way daunted by such a fact. He eventually stepped up his pace to leap over spidery shrubs and dodge between rocks to reach the beach sand with a certain boyish elation.::

<Li>
::normally, Li was with people who did manual labor for him and would only have carried something if it were in his own best interests to do so. but seeing as he was alone with Val, he was more relaxed about just about everything. so, of course, he gathered up the remaining fireworks and followed after Val without a breath of complaint, question, or hesitation, keeping pace with the excited captain relatively easily (he did seem to have more trouble with the obstacles than Val did, though, so he did lag slightly)::

::as he shouldered his way through the last of the brush and stepped over the last of the rocks, he realized he was rather disheveled and stood on the beach, admiring the surf faintly as he adjusted his clothing yet again. he frowned faintly, however::

...It's a shame we didn't think to bring something to drink. ::he pursed his lips thoughtfully and looked for an area to start setting up the fireworks::

<Val>
::Val had stopped in front of him, only two mere paces away. Without a word he dumped his stash of fireworks carelessly onto the sand before his feet, and swiftly reached into his jacket. It was almost imperceptible to Li what Val was doing beyond perhaps re-arranging his own clothes absent-mindedly, or looking for a handkerchief.::

::But in the very next moment Li was forced to act and catch something Val had tossed backwards in his direction.::

That's because you forgot your whiskey. :3

::Val said this, finally turning around and putting his hands at his hips in a rather satisfied pose. Then he secured his tri-corner hat and went back to gather up the fireworks again and, as if reading Li's mind, heading directly for the last place Li behind him had looked towards and wondered if that was the best spot to have them.::

::Val actually made most of this decision for the man, where Li's thoughts only touched lightly on the possibility. Whether or not Li was unsettled by this, or if he even noticed, was probably harmless to Val; he would react accordingly to how Li reacted.::

::he was already setting up by the time Li reached him.::

<Li>
::he was gazing at the place henceforth known as The Spot when he spotted a movement out of the corner of his eye. he had mostly ignored Val's theatrical dump of the fireworks (well, once he realized Val was making a bit of a show of looking for something rather than attempting to set up - and he had assumed, vaguely, that Val was going to produce a box of matches or other fire-starter) when he'd noticed the movement that indicated, "incoming". so he turned in time to bring his hands up and catch the bottle of whiskey, looking a little startled::

::he looked down into his hands (note, by the way, that his hands were empty as he'd re-stowed the fireworks he had carried to the beach up his sleeve or at his hip) and noticed it was his particular bottle of whiskey and he couldn't imagine how Val had managed to transport it all this way without having produced it to drink from before this. so he was suitably impressed on several levels and even unbent enough to smile again::

Your abilities to anticipate almost anything continue to astound me. ::he said this with a sort of sarcasm that would normally make it sound like an insult, but the fondness underneath it turned it into its proper compliment:: :) ::he even ignored the satisfied pose from Val as Val would be that satisfied and smug if his only accomplishment were to have got his tri-corner hat perfectly adjusted::

::so when Val gathered up the fireworks and headed to The Spot, Li was not overly surprised. in fact, he would have probably been more surprised if Val had headed anywhere else, though he certainly didn't take note of this on a conscious level::

::when he reached Val at The Spot, Li likewise unpacked his fireworks and arranged them in a fairly logical order. He hadn't handled as many fireworks as this, but he had watched his servants set them up and so he knew the usual order of a proper fireworks show.::

I don't suppose you brought glasses with you? ::he was crouched on the sand next to Val and looked over at him with a very impish smile. he in no way expected glasses to be produced, but was more teasing, the excitement of the fireworks reverting him again to a more pleasant, unguarded mood::

<Val>
::He had, in fact, been satisfied and smug because he had indeed gotten his tri-corner hat perfectly adjusted. And he looked rather dashing in it like that too, he thought.::

::Val finished setting up the last of the fireworks and stepped back to answer Li's question, shoving his hands into his pockets and rocking bashfully on his heels in a slight lean towards Li, once again cheekily emphasizing the act of which he was about to portray.::

I thought it would be more romantic if I said "blast" to the glasses and allowed you the liberty of sharing the one bottle with me. ::"Besides, I already drank out of it earlier today if you do care to remember, which you would, but there's always the possibility that you wouldn't. <3":: It can be like an indirect kiss. ::he couldn't resist adding, with all the trappings of girlish demureness bordering on coquettishness that obviously must have looked ridiculous when played out by a slightly tipsy male privateer in his late twenties. Or not. ;D::

::there was a glint in Val's eye that showed that he more or less predicted to gain for himself thorough entertainment through Li's embarrassment if he carried on like this. And he did (carry on like this) seeing as his body became increasingly more aware of exactly how much he had to drink that night and how exactly he should be reacting to it.::

Or... if you're especially nice to me, you could get extra lucky tonight and I'll let you drink right - out.. of.. my.. mouth. ::He winked, this time charmingly at Li, and if he was able, Val would have been inclined to complete his performance by leaning so far towards Li that he had to put his chin on the merchant's shoulder. If Li stepped back at all, Val would simply fall a few feet to his doom.::

::Or simply just stumble a little and walk away to light the fireworks laughing. The second option of which was so much more likely that it was practically guaranteed. XD::

=w=

<Li>
::though he at first tolerated Val's closeness with only a slight stiffening of his body and lean of his head away from Val, he only eyed Val with a slight, somewhat amused wariness. that is, of course, until Val used the word 'romantic'::

::he went as cold and still as a block of ice and sucked in an angry breath, his lips thin. he obviously felt comfortable enough with Val to be rather obvious about his angry reaction, rather than smiling pleasantly while plotting his doom. but he did no more than glare at Val during his speech (well, he also turned very bright red) and clench his fingers on the hilts of two of his knives. and he thought about it. he seriously thought about exactly how deeply he could cut Val and Val cheerfully forgive him for it later (because, of course, Li would feel badly about it later and still want to be friends)::

::a man with less control probably would have done it. or at least would have trembled with the fury ringing through his body:: :|

::when Val put his chin on his shoulder, Li reacted rather predictably and stepped back, but decided against stabbing his friend. and then Val caught himself at the last moment, turned and walked away, laughing. which Li would not tolerate::

::so having decided he could not tolerate this, he rushed at Val's back. his intentions were simple: leap upon his back and drag him into the sand to knock that damned hat off!!::

<Val>
::Now Val might have had the opportunity to expect that Li's reaction would move beyond normal embarrassment and dive swiftly towards the realm of "murderous intent", maybe he should have expected it, and upon that happening, things might have gotten a little more dangerous. But the fact remained that he stayed jubilant, and so very little suspicion was able to pass through his (thick) head that also eliminated any ability to blame Li for whatever he chose to do.::

::As we know his perceptiveness wasn't so sharp - (which is how he could have been sloppy enough to allow the old man to notice him slipping the Phoenix into his pocket, but still, it wasn't as if he was exactly worried about the consequences of that.) So though he didn't notice in time, neither would he be very worried about Li's ambush from behind.::

:D ... OOF!

::And Val swayed under the sudden, offensive weight of another person, but he managed to stagger to the side to smartly avoid the fireworks set up. He gave only a brief flailing struggle, (and some sort of hilarious squawk), before Li with a simple well-placed move or two, easily gained the victorious hand and brought him crashing to the sandy ground.::

::The captain landed face-first into the sand.:: >_<!!!

<Li>
::it was of his opinion that Val was far too sharp, rather than not sharp at all. it was simply that he was so confident in himself and possibly also his luck that he simply became careless.::

::he clung to Val's back, his expression very grim as he adjusted to Val's balance and tried to throw him off of it without actually hurting him any. but he was not above abusing Val's body in such ways as a push to the back of the knee with his foot or even a harmless pinch of a nerve to make him react by throwing his weight to the opposite side. so when they fell, Li was ready to fall on his knees in the sand, more or less straddling Val's back::

::he emitted a faint puff of air as they landed and snatched up the tri-corner hat before it hit the sand. since Val's hat was a rather dear object to him, and Li did care deeply for his friend and his friend's feelings, he did no more than remove it from Val's head and drop it on his own::

::after a pause, he laughed, somewhat triumphantly and somewhat just because it was utterly ridiculous of him to have got mad over Val's drunken "flirting". he leaned forward and moved his friend's hair away from his ear or face if his face were slightly turned by that point:: If you behave, I'll share with you. :)

::and he started clambering off Val to go and retrieve the bottle of whiskey, still wearing Val's hat. unless, of course, Val did something to alter either of these two. XD::

<Val>
::It was his first reaction, after the flailing, squawking defeat, to lie very still with his face in the sand, as Li had, while flattening him from sitting on his back, indeed leant forward and gone so far as to bush his hair away from his ear.::

::So it turned out that Val lay rather well behaved... for at least as long as Li held his hair in his hands and said his conditional words.::

::But when Li removed his person from atop Val's back, he pushed himself up to sit on his knees, really rather quietly and calmly at first...::

::Then all of a sudden his hands flew up to his face and forthwith Val spewed out distressed shrieks of alarm, while simultaneously scrambling to his feet to break into a flying, flapping sort of run in some crooked direction towards the shoreline.::

peh. AAGHHH MY EYEEESSSS I HAVE SAND IN MY EYES I'M BLIND I'M BLIND!!! XOOOOO

::he reached the waves and sloshed into the water, once getting about waist-deep, plunging his head down to cleanse it of any adamant and clinging foreign particles. Once he seemed satisfied, he straightened back up again - or, that figure that had been reduced to minimal detail that simply signified Val that Li could see from the shore - and Li could hear him shout in a sort of absent, astonished tone, which also gave way to one believing that he had not been paying any attention to anything since he'd stepped into the water, not even where he was looking at his friend on the beach.::

Where's my hat?

<Li>
::startled by the noises and actions Val took (though not exactly surprised, Li stared after Val with a sort of bemused concern as he raced off into the water. he felt really rather guilty, but not so guilty as to go and join him in the water::

::when Val shouted back, inquiring to the location of his tri-corner hat, Li blinked several times from his position - kneeling on one knee, half-reaching for the bottle of whiskey in the sand and turned toward Val::

..... You're so foolish, Captain! ::he shouted back. and then smiled, knowing that Val should be perfectly fine. he left the whiskey bottle where it was and went immediately to the dunes to get brush with which to build a bonfire. again, normally he would leave this for menials to do, but as the Captain out-ranked him and was obviously going to be in need of a fire to dry himself, though the weather outside was rather balmy, it fell to him to perform this task for his friend. it was, after all, partly his fault he'd done a dive in the first place::

::by the time Val trudged his way back to the beach, Li should have at least got a few pieces of the fire piled up, if not already started it, if Val takes his time in the water::

<Val>
::It wasn't a particularly cold night, as the island they had docked at was almost equatorial. So Val was in no danger of catching cold or any such illness from being soaked through in the middle of the night. And he was pretty much soaked through.::

::He made his way onto the beach, leaving a trail of damp and messy footprints right up from the waterline. When he reached Li, a fire had already been started, and Val carelessly wrung out his jacket before draping it on a rock. His hair was still saturated and clung to his face not unlike like a dead octopus::

Well! That was refreshing. I think I dampened our matches. ::he grinned at Li through his hair, though his eyes were barely visible from the outside.::

::The fireworks had been set up mere paces in front of the bonfire, and it was at this moment that Val, once having dried his hands, trudged over happily to crouch down and tinker with them.::

::If Li was so inclined, here was his opportunity to make an inquiry with regards to Val's undertaking.::

<Li>
::with some humor, Li (who was still attempting to build the fire to the point where they wouldn't have to look after it again the rest of the night) looked over at Val and smiled:: I had thought that you might have done so. ::"soaked the matches", he meant:: Thankfully, I had a fire-starter with me.

:;he took his eyes off Val for a moment to see to the fire and when he looked back, Val was crouched by the fireworks and playing with them::

::he paused:: ...what are you doing, Captain? ::with some wariness. maybe he should have built the bonfire further away from the fireworks::

<Val>
::For a moment, Val pretended not to hear him, as Li wasn't quite near finishing getting his bonfire set up as Val wanted. So he continued to check each of the rockets and mines, not touching the way they were set up, but with careful little tugs he was extracting something out from each in an action that seemed somewhat suspicious to anyone who didn't otherwise know what exactly it was that Val was doing. He busied himself almost to the point where it looked like he should be humming some ditty to pass the silence in preoccupied thought.::

::When Li was almost done with the fire, Val looked back (just to check and confirm this visually :3), then rose to his feet, looking pleased with himself.::

Since I soaked my matches, we'll do things the more comfortable way.

::As he walked back up towards Li, Li could soon tell that he was holding a bunch of thin fuses in his hand, each of which stretched back to each one of the grounded fireworks.::

They're all imports, so they're made with inbuilt fuse-coils. :3 ::he picks out half of the fuses and hands them to Li, indicating that they'd use the bonfire as their main source of ignition.:: We'll take turns. n_n You get this bunch. I assure you the dealings are equal. :D Except for this one, which is mine. >:B

::He produced the Phoenix, which he had taken back from the arrangement, and displayed it to Li in a small throw-catch motion, before putting it away again. Obviously it was something Val was going to keep with him.::

::With that he went around so that half of the fuses snaked around one side of the bonfire for Li, and the other half around the other side for himself. Val then proceeded to plonk himself on the sand next to Li (the bottle of whiskey between them) because from there, without even getting up, they would be able to light each fuse and let it run its course to where the fireworks were planted. The captain grinned at at the merchant for the umpteenth time that evening. Ingenious, no?::

<Li>
::while Val worked in suspicious secret, Li kept a weather eye on his friend as he built up the bonfire. though he knew Val was slightly sobering, as it'd been awhile since their last glass of the whiskey on the ship, he also knew it was not entirely unlikely that even sober, Val wouldn't think to throw an armload of fireworks directly into the bonfire. not likely, but not unlikely either.::

::he finished his arrangements of the fire to his satisfaction. it was perhaps not the best bonfire built on the beach. (in fact, by the beach's standards, it wasn't even in the top 100 of the year built there.) but it wasn't the worst and it did exactly what he wanted from a fire - give off heat and light without burning out of control or giving off dangerous sparks. this was, of course, the exact moment when Val chose to speak, so he looked up and over at him:: :)

::his expression changed from vague wariness to a thoughtful expression. then realization followed swiftly by appreciation. he took the fuses with a smile up at Val::

You may keep your firework, Captain. ::said fondly, settling himself back into the sand for the show while Val did his final preparations. when Val joined him, Li smiled in return::

Master Jimmie had far more merchanting credentials than I had first supposed. Only his salesmanship is fraudulent. ::he paused and then smiled again:: And it was very clever of you to think of the fuses.

<Val>
::He looked towards Li matter-of-factly, though his voice still carried with it a lilt of self-satisfied, general amusement, his response was still mildly astonished, with a smile.:: I didn't think of it. Whoever made those imported fireworks thought of it. And for that, they are very very clever. X3

And I told you not to worry about that old codger! They see to get rather wily at that age. But - ::he picked up the bottle of whiskey and held it up in front of them:: Here's to the wily old codger! Master Jimmie... :D For supplying us with a very lovely bounty of new year's day fireworks. :33333 And ample amusement for the lesser part of the evening. ::He then went and knocked back a generous swig of the beverage before holding it out to Li:: :3

::Val did also notice that his friend was still wearing his hat, but he didn't seem to do appear too worried, or to do anything about it. He sat back with the clump of fuse-ends casually grasped in one hand (both of which he was using to support himself in leaning back) on the sand, turned back to the fire, and then up at the sky.::

<Li>
::he smiled at Val warmly, accepting the whiskey and taking a drink from the bottle (with no apparent concern for his usual dignity) before settling it back in the sand between them::

Hnn... ::an amused sound as he looked out at the ocean and then back to Val:: You may not have originally thought of it, but I would think that, in general, the fireworks manufacturers did not think of their fuses being used for the audience to be sitting in the sand, their backs against a rise of sand and their feet warmed by a bonfire. [i}That[/i] bit of cleverness was all you. I perhaps would have stood like a fool, bent over to light the fuse, and stepped back like a child. This way is much preferred.

::he took out his small pouch of powder and took a pinch of it while he spoke:: But... very well... To Master Jimmie. May he continue to amuse us from afar. ::somewhat darkly:: Very far. ::he still resents Jimmie's comments on Mainlanders and, more-so, his physical attacks on his person and Val's::

::he placed this pinch of powder on his tongue and closed his eyes to savor the moment. when he opened his eyes he seemed much happier and turned to Val. he thought a moment before taking a second, smaller pinch and offering it to Val silently, an eyebrow raised in question::

<Val>
::He laughed, letting the glow of the fire warm his cheeks, his blood, his expression. He knew exactly what Li was thinking about Master Jimmie, (that he was remembering the old man's comments on him being a Mainlander and also the the attacks) though it really didn't take a lot for anyone who knew Li to figure it out. Hopping onto the wagon of Li's thoughts, Val replied to him in a light and genial tone::

Very far, ::he assured, still trying to get across that the harmless Master Jimmie should be forgiven for his geriatric ways.:: But as if you need to worry about feeble swats from a grumpy old man. You and I know we've been through far worse. XDDD

Anyway, we won't be in need of him again. Except maybe until next new year. If he's still alive! :D Ahahahaa. ::then Li took out a bit of his powder.::

::Strangely enough, as his previous actions might otherwise have suggested, he didn't dare to pounce or advance on Li's offering. Val simply turned to his friend, well-noticing what he held out to him, and despite his state of intoxication, just happened to smile carelessly at the eyebrow raised in question.::

<Li>
I suppose I shouldn't let him bother me, no... ::slightly musing:: Very well, as you wish. I shall let bygones be bygones. ::purses his lips...:: ...Unless we cross paths again and he's got worse. >:P

::he waited a moment and when Val seemed unlikely to simply accept the offer of powder quietly, he tilted his head and tried to offer more formally:: Captain - would you like to sample from my private store?

::his dark eyes glittered in the firelight, under the shadow of the tri-corner hat's brim. his expression was more or less neutral. though the 'less' side of neutral was a friendly sort of expression. he was warm inside from the whiskey and powder - and since he sincerely enjoyed Val's company, he was friendly from that as well. but he was also a more or less cautious fellow and did not want to make a huge production out of his offer of powder if he didn't have to::

<Val>
::At this, Val remained grinning holding his fuses and and closed his eyes as if in some thoughtful, smug, pondering gesture.::

=w=

<Li>
::and he waited as long and as patiently as it was possible for him. which, generally, was very long indeed unless someone pushed him past his breaking point. there was a memorable bargaining session across a table in Port Royale where he sat smiling, his hands stuffed up his sleeves, at the opposite merchant for an hour and twenty minutes before the other merchant finally caved and started talking more along the lines Li wanted to hear::

::but, of course, this was Val Li was dealing with. And Val provoked otherwise unlikely or unheard of reactions from Li. so this time he only lasted about two minutes before he reached his breaking point::

::and rather than becoming angry, Li broke into an exasperated sort of smile before leaning forward:: Just take some, already! ::and pushed his fingers with their supply of a few dozen grains of fine almost-blue powder between Val's lips.::

::for my record and yours, Li had, in the past, determined that Val did not have poor reactions to the powder, so he knew very well exactly how much of the powder was safe to give him - providing a loose, happy mood without inducing sleep (or death, even) or dependency::

<Val>
::His eyes opened immediately at the sudden feeling of Li touching him directly - more so, putting something into his mouth, even if he did already have an idea of what it was.::

Mmf! O_O

::Swallowing automatically, Val withdrew from Li's fingers as far as it was necessary (not very far) to properly deal with his reaction. There was a moment that passed where he simply sat there and stared at his friend, with an expression that anyone else (whose eyes were not quite as sharp as to be able to tell the difference between Val being violated and Val being violated with a simmering undertone of amusement) could only interpret as "violated".::

::This however died down remarkably fast.::

Ahhrm. ::Val said, clearing his throat minorly, and attempting to reconfigure his mental setting:: Much obliged. ::was all he could manage, somewhat in a baffled state, leaving Li, momentarily, all the space in the world to sit back and be smug. Whether he took advantage of it or not though, was up to himself to act upon.::

<Li>
::since he was watching Val's reaction quite closely (to make certain he didn't accidentally give him a bit too much and he got sleepy immediately rather than relaxed), he did realize that there was a bit of amusement to Val's reaction. so he smiled::

Of course. ::he said these words with overtones of smugness. he felt 'avenged', in a way, for Val's joking flirting with the "drink this from my mouth" stuff. it wasn't a 'perfect' revenge, but it was about as close as he had a mind for::

::Li selected a fuse from his small collection and got out his fire starter, turning to look over at Val:: Ready, then? ::and that was almost a laugh in itself::

<Val>
::Val only responded by looking down, having already lit one of his fuses and watching the spark travel down towards the rocket it was connected to::

:3333