CLANG!
The sound of the door slamming harshly into the wall was enough to startle anyone, especially when they weren’t expecting any sort of disturbances. Until this point the dimly lit workspace of a blacksmith had been deathly silent, for good reason. There was only one current occupant of the space, a figure who had previously been bent over a work bench working diligently on a new black powder compound.
With the sound however they shot up, almost knocking over the candle that was lighting the desk. A nimble hand caught it just before disaster could occur, the feminine hand setting it quickly to the side away from the black powder that was being mixed. The figure then turned, her brown eyes glaring down the fool crazy enough to disrupt her. “The sign says closed for a reason mister! I was working with black powder, you know…the highly flammable explosive material!” snapped the woman. She stood, setting the flammable substance gently out of the flames reach. Her hands went to her hips, a dangerous look on the brunette’s visage.
“Sorry Grace.” The intruder meekly replied, running a hand through his hair while his gaze fell to the floor. His name was Johnathan, a young man who often went drinking with Grace’s father. Usually he was extremely polite, he knew that the woman worked in a potentially dangerous environment, but that had escaped him this time.
Johnathan finally looked back up at the young woman. She had dirt and some other dark substance, most likely one of the compounds she worked with, on her hands and thus had accidentally smeared some across her brow. “Your pa was wondering if you had finished fixing the shotgun for Mister Martin… he says he needs it real soon.” The man explained, looking slightly worried. For good reason, Martin was a rude man with a violent temper and everyone tried their best not to anger him.
Grace blinked, understanding in her eyes. In a twirl of motion Miss Baur abandoned her work bench, heading over to where she usually set the pieces she had finished repairing. On a shelf above those was an array of knives, blades, and several strange looking guns. Those were the pieces the woman designed herself; she liked to tinker with the mechanics to alter the speed of the barrels and other things. She loved to improve weapons, and her pieces fetched a mighty good penny. Her gaze was set on the lower shelf though, where she placed the weapons and tools she merely repaired. Sitting right in the center was what used to be a battered shotgun but now it almost looked new. She picked it up carefully, as if it was a delicate art piece, before striding back over to Johnathan.
“Don’t fret so much. I’m not stupid; I finished the repairs two days ago.” Grace chuckled, looking over her handiwork. She walked over to the candle, blowing it out quickly. “I should probably take this to Pa myself.” She added, stepping over to the still open door.
The room outside the workshop had simple wood floors, a sharp contrast from the waste-stone floors of the other room, and the walls were wooden planks as well. It was properly lit, the last rays of sunlight stretching in through the windows on three of the walls. Standing behind a long countertop was a rather aged man. His once dirty blonde hair was peppered with grey and white, matching the stubble on his tan chin. Brown eyes, darker than that of Grace, met the pair as they emerged from the dim room and closed the door behind them.
“I didn’t realize you had finished that one already.” The older man in his early fifties said in a gruff tone. “Here, let me see.”
Grace stepped over to her father, gingerly handing him the gun. She watched as he checked it over, but was pleased when he came up with no faults. It had been a long time since her father had helped her with a piece, especially after his hands stopped being even slightly ideal for the delicate mechanisms of the newer guns. That work had become Grace’s responsibility seeing as she had much smaller hands and was just as skilled, if not more so, than her father.
“It’s good, real good kiddo.” Mister Baur praised with a smile on his lips. Grace merely chuckled at this, she was clearly no longer a child but she could not deny her father the endearing term. “Martin ‘ll pick this up tomorrow, for now you deserve a break. It’s closin’ time anyhow. Jonathan? Why don’t you join us for some supper?” the man inquired.
The sun had yet to fall when the trio stepped outside, Grace now dressed in something more feminine due to her father’s insistence. They walked calmly down the side of the street in Brogden only to freeze when they noticed the mob. “What the- what in tarnation is goin’ on?” Mister Baur breathed in shock, confused.