The blacksmith shop was unusually quiet this late in the afternoon. Usually by now, Lorelei, the dwarven blacksmith, and Gralkar, her assistant, would be swamped with work from travelers and adventurers passing by the mountain town. Their little shop was nestled near the mountain road that lead from the main town square and out the back entrance. Today however, no adventurers had come and no travelers were in sight, making for a quiet day at the shop. Still, they had a lot of work ahead today thanks mostly due to their last customer leaving a large order of swords.
"You know, before I came to the city, I heard that dwarf women all had beards." Granklar said softly after he finished tightening one rope around another post. "Ha, crazy how these silly rumors get around" He looked back at Lorelei with a friendly smile, only to notice the dwarf simply continued her work, unimpressed.
"Oh no, it's true." She lifted one sword, the metal still warm and bright red. She checked its balance, before dropping it on the anvil once more and turning to Granklar. "Just... Lower."
Granklar tilted his head slightly. He opened his mouth to ask, but realized what she meant almost immediately. Lorelei returned to hammering the sword, but now a smile grew upon her face.
"Yep. Braids. Beads. The works." She leaned her head closer as Gralkar stared in awe. "A gold ring for every conquest~" Lorelei boasted, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. Gralkar blinked a couple times, not entirely sure if she was telling the truth or just joking around. Lorelei giggled playfully before returning to her work.
With skilled hands, she held up the heated sword and walked over to the furnace. Gralkar tried to focus on his task, crossing the room towards his tools, but Lorelei just followed him with her gaze."So if you hear a dwarf jingle as she walks... It's not a pocket full o' coins." She explained.
"This sounds like the time you told me that water was poisonous to dwarves, so you can only drink beer." Gralkar grabbed a clamp and handed it to Lorelei, who accepted it gratefully.
"Also salad is poisonous." Lorelei added nonchalantly. Gralkar nodded with intrigue, taking mental notes on dwarven diet tips. With the clamp firmly secured onto the blade, Lorelei picked up the tongs and inserted them carefully. "If you don't believe me..." A smirk crossed her lips as she leaned her head back towards Gralkar. "Maybe I'll teach you the nine ways to seduce a dwarf maid and you can find out yourself."
Gralkar pulled up a hammer casually, seemingly unbothered by Lorelei's innuendos. He walked past her with a quick smile,. "Do the nine ways all involve ale and gold?"
"Of course not!" She protested, her hand resting on the hilt of her blade prepared it for Gralkar to hit. "Well okay yes." She admitted. "But the nuance is very important!"
The sound of a hammer striking hot steel rang out as the two worked in the serenity of their blacksmith shop.
***
"I thought we'd never finish that order." Lorelei stretched her arms and torso before relaxing her muscles with a sigh.
"Uh huh, lot of work." Gralkar was lining the ordered swords onto the rack, carefully cleaning each before storing them properly.
Lorelei leaped from the ground, startling Gralkar slightly. "Hey, we should celebrate!" She declared, pointing at her gnoll partner while climbing up the staircase to the upper floor. "Yeah, we'll get a few drinks...!"
"Ooh, and some of those sticky ribs from Armels'" Gralkar followed her with enthusiasm, his stomach already grumbling with anticipation.
"But first..." The dwarf woman sat down on the couch and began removing her boot from her feet. "... Gonna rest my feet for a moment." Gralkar followed her, removing his protective clothing before flopping down on the opposite end of the couch.
"I think we earned a few minutes" he leaned his head back and crossed his arms over his stomach with a loud tired sigh.
"Yeah..." Lorelei responded in a quiet hush.
For a few moments, silence hovered over the living room as the two relaxed lazily on the couch. They were so engrossed in their exhaustion, they hadn't even realized how close they were sitting next to each other.