Gilded Chaos

MIA Murphy

Waking up early should be a sin.

Waking up to a clean apartment, however, is nothing short of a divine mercy. I suppose Eric isn't all that bad, after all. I'm simply grateful none of his activities woke me.

Belatedly, I realize that he's probably seen my collection of books. That'll show him.

Having had the broth from last night for breakfast, I'm in a relatively pleasant mood as I make my way to work.

Reaching the shop, I push the door open- the customary greeting at the ready.

"Oh, Mr Muuu-"

I choke on my words as, not Mr Murphy but Mr Terrignem, comes into view, standing before the counters.

"Pandora".

"Eric".

"Hephaestus seems to have left the shop unattended and you've clearly taken your time getting to work this morning. So while you're working on the dagger- and do work quickly- I'll attend to things here", he says, indicating to the front of the shop where we receive customers.

That's when I notice what he's wearing.

I burst out laughing; I can't help it. He's wearing a sooty apron and knee-high rubber boots.

"Look at you", I say as I circle him, causing him to tense up- even more than usual, "You've even got your shirt sleeves rolled up. This is lovely, I like this sooty look, reflects your inner demonic dragon a lot more".

In turn, his eyes narrow on me as he cocks his head, giving me a look I can't decipher.

"The same cannot be said about your work outfits, they're transparent rather than reflective. Get to work, the parcel's on your desk".

Scowling at the back of his head, I make my way to the forge, fetching the parcel along the way and finally begin the real metalwork.

He made no mention of Holber.

Holber's been missing since.. Yesterday? Feels like much longer. And Mr Murphy never lets anyone open the shop other than me... Though he did say to trust Eric...

Grasping the block of marble, I make my way to the workshop and get started on the blade.

Grumbling, I swivel on my seat, intending to call Eric and throw the piece of metal at him. When I find him standing a metre behind me, however, I jump and I somehow manage to launch the bar of metal- right at his chest.

"Oomph!"

He stagger's a little but manages to catch the thing. With wide eyes, I'm just about to shout in warning that the bloody thing is hot, though I had been trying to melt for a while with no results.

He turns it over in his hands and says, "It's not even hot'', sounding just as bewildered as I feel.

"Pity."

His only reaction is to look at me from under his lashes and quirk an eyebrow. My Stars, he looks gloriously vexing. Not that he needs to know that.

"Not really, I know what to do."

"What? Do you have something hotter than these fiery forges?". A hotter alternative does come to mind.

"I do. Me." 

What? He reads minds.

"Conceited, aren't we?"

He ignores my question and continues staring at the ingot of dark metal in his pale hands. 

After watching him for a few seconds, I'm convinced he's gone mad. Conceited, inconveniently young and mad- a wonderful set of traits, he has. I reach my hand out to take the metal and-

"Ouch! Great bloody cosmos!"

The bloody thing is hot!