While Zoey continued setting up the fireworks, which primarily involved setting out bases to provide further stability and, for some of the fireworks, tying the fuses together for the show, the group of people currently outside, including Desmond, Astrid, and a couple of other people whose name she hadn’t been given, had migrated towards the edge of the forest.  Though they weren’t far enough away that she couldn’t hear them, she didn’t pay them much attention for the moment, focused on the fireworks as she was.  Apart from that, she could always look back through her memory if she needed to know what had been said.  Perks of having an eidetic memory, she guessed.

One thing that she couldn’t help but notice was the gradually increasing number of people on the patio of the castle.  Violet was clearly spreading the word of the fireworks show, as was expected.  She had a tendency to ride the coattails of those she knew who were doing something that would be popular in the court of public opinion.  Needless to say, Zoey was rarely the subject of such exploits, as she was rarely considered popular by any stretch of the imagination.  Nope, that was reserved for when she brought out the fireworks.

Noticing that one of the girls from the group that had been near the forest had turned to her and come a little closer, Zoey finished tying off the knot she was working on.  “If you’re worried about the ‘methane,’ you shouldn’t be,” Zoey said, taking a wild stab at what be on her mind while moving onto the next set of fuses that needed tying together.  “I only have a few that launch into the air, and they reach altitudes of about two hundred feet, which means that any sparks will be cooled by the air as they fall, so they won’t be able to light anything.”

Once she was done with the last knot, she stood up and surveyed the crowd of people, which has spilled down from the patio and onto the ground.  They were still a safe distance away, so she was ready to go.  Grabbing the long detonator fuse in one hand and grabbing Luna’s sleeve with the other, Zoey walked towards the crowd, checking to make sure she was at a safe distance when she got there.  After setting the fuse down, Zoey pulled out a lighter, setting the fuse alight with one smooth motion.  The little flame made its way towards the first knot, splitting to the first set of fireworks.

As the flame reached the fireworks, they went off, creating a cacophony of high-pitched shrieks and whistles and a spray of multi-colored light.  The oohs from the crowd behind her was satisfying as ever as Zoey watched the fuses hit their next marks.  The next set were a little quieter, but they made up for it in brilliantly vivid colors and angles to their spouts of fire, though measured carefully to avoid mishaps of course.  The third set was virtually similar to the first set, with the addendum that the fireworks would seem to stop suddenly before starting up more violently than they had at first, eliciting several pleased responses from the crowd.

The fourth and final set were the best, of course.  They were the ones that launched into the air.  It had taken a bit of careful planning to get the design right, but it was worth it.  The fireworks were arranged carefully to produce the flag of Ireland with the crest of their university on it once it got to its max altitude, hopefully creating a lasting memory in the minds of the people in the crowd behind her.  That was what her goal with fireworks usually was, and she knew that she at least would never forget it, though the cheers of the crowd seemed to indicate that they wouldn’t either.