deux: it must be done

[untamedantinous]

Enjolras has not held a musket since the barricades. However, there's no time like the present. Through trial and error and various annoyed thoughts directed to the closet in his rooms, he has found one that will suffice. It feels ...strange, to have one in his hands again, to know that not so long ago he had held one and killed more than once with it. But he is pushing aside any lingering apprehensions he may have and heading outside to the shooting range some helpful person had set up in the recent past. Perhaps no one will bother him here, he hopes, it is fairly far afield; and the whole purpose he has will make it difficult to have any conversations.

The slight tension in his shoulders may belie his earlier anxiety, but it has not affected his aim as of yet. Should anyone follow the sounds of gunfire, they will find Enjolras as well, loading, firing, and reloading his musket with some determination.

Comments

[onthewillowsthere]

Like everyone else, Galahad is drawn by the sound of the musket firing. It is entirely foreign to him (T.H. White notwithstanding) and when he finds Enjolras he stops and just watches him for a long while.

[untamedantinous]

In which case, Enjolras will have to thank Galahad for not disturbing him, later. If he stays to watch long enough he may well note that Enjolras is very good at what he is doing, shooting straight and true for the most part, despite the musket ocassionally bucking in his hands. He's settled into almost a sort of meditative rhythm, reloading and shooting and reloading again, and from time to time going to recover some of the lost musket balls. To all appearances, he is unaware of any watchers, or perhaps he's just purposefully being single-minded in his pursuit of alone time.

[onthewillowsthere]

Finally, curiosity overtaking him, he comes closer to Enjolras. "What is it?"

[untamedantinous]

Thankfully, Enjolras is not looking to shoot anyone today, and Galahad has disturbed him at an opportune moment, when he is paused in the middle of reloading. "It is called a musket. They are generally used in warfare at a distance." There's a slight pause. "If you are familiar with cannons, it is similar to that, but much smaller."

[onthewillowsthere]

"No." He comes closer. "It is a weapon?"

[untamedantinous]

"It is, yes." He offers it so Galahad can take a closer look if he likes, it has only got powder in it at the moment. "It --well, if you saw myself or my friend upon our arrivals, you would have seen; it can be very powerful."

[onthewillowsthere]

His driving curiosity here is whether his ability to use any weapon translates to weapons he's never seen before, and he takes the musket at once. It does come to his hand easily, and he lifts it to his shoulder as he watched Enjolras do. It feels as natural there as Laertes' sword did in his hand.

[untamedantinous]

"There is no ammunition inside it, only powder, so it will not do anything just yet. You fire it by pressing on the trigger, just there." He indicates it with a hand. "Would you like to try firing it? I can load it for you so you might see."

[onthewillowsthere]

Galahad squeezes the trigger experimentally, just to feel what it's like. "Yes."

[untamedantinous]

"Alright." Assuming that Galahad will let him, he takes the musket and continues loading it, tamping the ball and powder down quite well. When all is settled, he hands the gun back to Galahad and takes a few steps back. "You have watched me aim it, I think you might have a fair understanding. But do be careful, as the back end may kick out a bit."

[onthewillowsthere]

He nods. He has no idea what will happen -- it's one thing to have immediate mastery of a weapon used in close combat, and another for a distance weapon, which works on entirely different principles -- but he aims carefully and shoots.

What happens, to his great interest, is a sort of splitting of the difference. His form with the musket is very nearly perfect, and the recoil doesn't bother him, but his shot goes wide. He supposes that makes sense. God is in his arm, and by extension the musket, but not the musket ball, and he already knew from billiards that aiming at what you want to hit can be challenging. He glances over at Enjolras, pleased with the knowledge.

[untamedantinous]

Enjolras gives him a small smile and an encouraging nod. "Very well done, for your first time." Yes, it went wide, but practice does make perfect. "Would you like to try again? I can show you the whole reloading process this time."

[onthewillowsthere]

"Yes." And then, after a beat, "Thank you."

[untamedantinous]

"Of course." And so he repeats the process of loading the musket once more, going slowly so Galahad might watch: pouring some powder into the pan and then the barrel, adding the ammunition and wadding, and tamping it all down with the ramrod.

"If you are in a great hurry, after you put the ammunition in, you might slam the butt on the ground to tamp it. It works just as well."

[onthewillowsthere]

It's a great deal of work, and Galahad does wonder why not just use an arrow, but he's more interested in the process, so he takes it all in. He nods at this instruction.

[untamedantinous]

He offers the musket again, with another nod. “Try again, if you like. It does take some getting used to.”

[onthewillowsthere]

If the loading of the musket seems complicated, this back and forth is easy. Enjolras instructs, and all Galahad has to do is listen, and then use his body in the way God intended. He takes the musket again. His past selves were frightened by the idea of being a weapon, but Galahad is used to it, and it doesn't perturb him.

This time the shot is closer to the mark; the bottle rattles slightly as the air goes by. He has to try, and as with billiards, he likes having to try.

[untamedantinous]

It unfortunately is complicated, but Enjolras died just before proper rifles came about. "There, yes, now you're getting it." He gives Galahad another small smile. "Would you like to try loading it this time?"

[onthewillowsthere]

He nods and says, "Thank you," just to be on the safe side (it's obvious to him that he's appreciative, but he's learned over time that it is often enough not obvious to other people). He has a fairly good memory for the steps, and he does as Enjolras did, powder, ball, and wadding."

[untamedantinous]

"Of course." Enjolras, too, is brief with his words sometimes, and Galahad's quiet appreciation is clear enough. "There, good, now just tamp it down all together, and fire."

[onthewillowsthere]

So he does. If Enjolras doesn't object, there's a real chance that they will just be standing around shooting for the next few hours; he tends to hyperfocus on new projects, just as he did with Grantaire and the billiards.

[untamedantinous]

Of course he doesn't. If Galahad is willing, he will offer pointers and tips where he can, until Galahad is satisfied with his new knowledge. (It is a mercy that Galahad picks things up quickly, as Enjolras has never been one for patience.)

[onthewillowsthere]

By the end of it, he actually can hit his targets fairly well, and he looks over at Enjolras for approval in a way that, even with his often blank affect, is obvious.

[untamedantinous]

Which he will get, in the form of a pleased smile and nod. "You are a very quick learner, monsieur. I do not think that I picked it up nearly as well as you have, my first time shooting."

[onthewillowsthere]

"Really?" with a flush of gladness -- he didn't know how to do that before, he had to try.