Chapter three: Have we got a plan yet?

"Woah!"

Riley skidded to a halt and looked offended. "I beg your pardon?"

Hatie grinned a little sheepishly. "It just occured to me that some things in that store could be useful." She pivoted sharply on one heel and Riley had no choice but to follow, catching the door before it smacked him in the nose and shrugging apologetically at the store owner over the tinkling of the doorbells. Sidling out from under the man's suspicious gaze, he made his way to where his companion was pulling things off shelves.

She squeaked happily and snatched up a small bottle. He craned to look at the lable and she helpfully tilted it towards him. "Sulfuric acid," she said, just in case.

"I can read. What do you need it for?"

"I've already got nitric acid--" he blinked, stupefied, and she defensively clutched her prize close. "It's useful stuff! You're the one who asked if I used acid to you-know-what you-know-where!" Apparently deciding to be sore at him she huffily moved on to grab a bag of cotton balls. Shoving her current handful onto his arms (obviously her snit didn't preclude using him as a pack mule) she proceded to select a glass bottle of soda, a water bottle, and a book of matches. Surveying the pile, she added a small bag of marbles and a skinny tin of olives. Finally satisfied, she dragged him to the register.

Being a gentleman, Riley paid without giving her a chance to complain...okay, he also didn't want to risk remaining in the doghouse for too long. Refusing the plastic bag offered, they stashed half of the load in Riley's mostly-full bag and the rest in various pockets and pouches secreted about Hattie's person.

They left the store, Riley silently cursing the tinkly little bells, and as soon as they were out from under the suspicious cashier's eyes he spoke up. "So, what do you need it for?" She eyed him as if trying to decide whether to stay offended or not and he levelly returned the look, raising his eyebrows. (Maybe one of them was a little higher than the other. Darn it.) "Hey, don't blame me for being surprised to learn that my new fleeing partner has corrosive materials on her person."

"Fleeing partner?" Riley refused to take the bait and she sighed, dragging him into yet another secluded area. (He recieved a conspiring wink and "You dog!" expression from an older man nearby which he promptly tried to forget about.) "Alright. Pay attention." He paid attention as she began to tick points off on her fingers. "Soak cellulose--in this case, cotton balls--in nitric acid and sulfuric acid for two minutes, wash it in cold water, and dry it slowly..."

He nodded to show he was keeping up. "Cotton balls, glass bottle to mix in, water bottle to rinse..."

"Right!" She seemed pleased to have someone keeping up. "You got yourself guncotton. Put some in the tin with marbles and light a fuse, you're on your way to a respectable bomb." He looked at her with honest admiration and she preened a litle before adding, "And if I don't have time to dry the stuff, I can just soak it in pure nitric acid and drop it in the sun; flash-bang, conflagration, instant distraction."

He shook his head slowly and led her back to the street, shifting his bag with new wariness and ignoring the audience. (Dirty old man, anyway.) "Cue the MacGyver theme music."

"I love that show!" She looked up at him a bit sheepishly--brief mental pause to celebrate befriending a short girl--and flushed. "Look, sorry for getting a hissy fit. I can be a defensive little goober some times."

He waved off her apology. "Ah, don't worry about it. Ben pouts more than you, and better, too."

"Ben?"

Yay, corruption of innocent...pyromanical...minds. "Ben Gates, heroic historian. Him and his crazy family led the way to the treasure." He frowned in an aggrieved way. "Got the girl, despite his pouting. Probably why he felt so warm and fuzzy inside that it seemed like a good idea to refuse the freakin' finder's fee."

"Now who's pouting?"

"...oh, shut up."

A/N: I've been on wikipedia, can you tell? 0:) Another chapter of nothing but banter, dear Lord will no one stop me:P