After completing the deal by signing my name on several documents, which I examined with my zoom feature over and over to make sure it didn't have any hidden clauses, I exited the woodworks shop made my way back to the inn.
I found the crew already gathered on a table just like in the morning, but this time with the addition of bob, Elly's butler, and potentially our crew's cook.
"I see you guys are getting along well enough," I said as I took a seat at the table.
"you're just in time, captain. I was just talking about the den den mushis I bought for us earlier today," Laffitte said as he took out a small box with several air holes in it.
I picked up one of them and put it in my pocket after inspecting it to satisfy my curiosity. "Good thing it slipped my mind then. We might have ended up with more than we need right now, otherwise," I remarked as I lit up a cigarette and took out my whisky bottle.
"how much did these things cost, anyway?" I asked as I poured myself a cup of whisky and placed the bottle on the table for the rest to use.
"they were five thousand bellies each. I bought six, four for each of us, one to stay on the ship once we have it, and another one just in case," Lafitte answered as he handed over the den den mushis to the rest of the crew.
"at any rate, you did well," I remarked with a smile. "Now let's get something to eat, so we can go to the most expensive bar around to celebrate our haul and you two joining the crew," I concluded as I drained my whisky cup with one gulp.
"Now we're talking," Wilson shouted and then poured himself a cup of whisky and drained it, then repeated the process several times.
"Sounds good," said Laffite as he stood up to call for a waiter to take our food orders.
"your call, captain," said Elly cheerfully with some expectation in her voice.
"very well, I shall accompany you young punks as well," said Bob, while playing with his mustache. "Nobody invited you, old man," I snapped at him, but he ignored me and started chatting with Elly.
We left the fully fed and in an excellent mood after half an hour and made our way towards the city's best bar, old Talbott Tavern. which was a large two-story building made of redwood.
"Everyone's drinks are on me tonight. We're celebrating a special occasion," I shouted once we were inside, and all the bar's patrons started to cheer, whistle and clap in joy.
One of the bar's waitresses came to guide us to a table located right in the middle of the bar soon after my remark, then smiled at me in expectation and asked what she can get for us after we took our seats.
"get us the best drinks you have and keep them coming," I said as I took a one thousand belly note and slid it into her hands.
We kept drinking and chatting for a while, but that soon became too boring for me, so I stood up, went to the band playing music at the bar, and asked them to play a specific tune after I slid some belly notes into their hand.
After glancing at the piano player and receiving a nod, I took out my guitar and silenced everyone with a loud twang of its strings.
"What kind of celebration would this be without a proper song?" I shouted, watched as everyone in the bar sent bewildered looks in my direction.
Even Laffite and Elly seemed confused by my actions, as they didn't know I was a musician, but I didn't care. I wanted to sing, and no one was going to stop me.
"you guys like parties?" I asked with a booming voice as I sent another electrical guitar twang into the bar's patrons and smiled as they cheered and clapped.
"then I'll give you the party of your lives," I shouted again and signaled the band behind me to play. (author's note: play the jolly rogers - the flying dutchman)
"The sky was grey and cloudy, And the wind was from the west, When we spied a battered frigate, With her tattered sail full dressed," I sang after waiting several seconds for the right moment to start, and the crowd cheered even more.
"They signaled they had letters home. They asked if we could take. They dropped them in a barrel. They left bobbing in their wake," I continued to sing along with the music as some of the bar's dwellers stood up and started to dance.
"We reefed the sails and slowed the ship, To fish, the barrel out. The old ship sailed to the distance. Then we saw her come about,"
"The captain watched through a spy-glass when we heard him catch his breath., And we saw the storm a-brewing Had become a wall of death," more of them, including Wilson, Laffite, and Elly, stood up and started to dance. The others listened to me sing without moving, as if they were listening to a story and not a song.
"Turn this ship around, me boys, turn around and run! That storm it wants a battle, and it's sure that we're outgunned. What of that ship that's out there, she's called the flying dutchman, and it's rage that fills her sails," I sang the chorus, and after gesturing for the listeners to sing with me, I repeated it as almost every in the bar sang it with me.
We continued to drink, sing and dance until it was the bar's closing time and left.
We were all drunk at that point except for me as I was only feeling tipsy and bob, who didn't drink too much, so we left after paying our tab. Which had amounted to the staggering sum of 75,000 bellies, and that's when I started having regrets, but it was worth it so whatever.