Grimacing as the box was dropped into the back of the small blue Civic a little too roughly for her liking, Zoey climbed into the passenger seat as her roommate, Violet, came around to take the driver’s seat.  She still couldn’t believe that Violet had managed to convince her to come along to the party with her, and with fireworks no less.  To be honest, Zoey didn’t quite mind preparing the fireworks or going to the party.  It was the thought of spending time crammed into a building with dancing strangers.

Lost in her thoughts, Zoey didn’t realize that they were at the castle, the site of the party, until she could hear the music thumping through the stone walls.  “Did you know that the castle was never really inhabited?” she asked rhetorically, looking at the castle.  She had read a tour pamphlet about the area before, and, like all other facts, it was forever engraved in her memory, always within easy reach.  “The Duke who had it built died before he could move in, and, as he had no heirs, it passed onto the control of the king.”

“Hmmm,” Violet replied, too busy looking for a good spot to park and too used to Zoey’s tendency to share random facts to pay much attention.  Unlike Zoey, who was dressed in a pair of faded blue jeans and a plain green, baggy t-shirt, Violet looked ready for a night out, wearing a short black dress, tights, and a make-up.  It wasn’t that Zoey didn’t care how she looked.  It was just that she always had other things on her mind and never seemed to have the time to pay much attention to her appearance.

Once Violet had parked the car, Zoey got out and went to the trunk to make sure that none of the fireworks had been damaged during the ride.  With the amount of extra cushioning she had put in there, everything was fine.  And so, her check complete, she picked the box up and began carrying it around to the field behind the castle, passing by the front door and two girls in the process, though she was a bit too focused on making sure she didn’t trip and damage her cargo to pay them much mind beyond a friendly smile.

The fireworks wouldn’t be going off until a little later into the party, as it wasn’t quite dark enough at the moment to really be able to appreciate their beauty.  Most of them were ground-bound fireworks, but Zoey did have a larger one in store for the finale.  That was one of the things she loved most about chemistry: being able to make beautiful things out of seemingly dangerous chemical reactions.  Her skill with propulsion systems had also won her first place at a science competition last semester, and she had been glad of the opportunity to put her talent to use.  She just hoped that the others enjoyed them.