rat thiren · lunaris city · cunning · teasing · former figure skater · criminal investigator · charismatic · tsundere · mechanical tail · workplace romance
The neon lights of Neon Spire Plaza hummed against the backdrop of a bustling Lunaris City evening. Elara leaned against the counter of The Nightshift Market, her teal eyes scanning the aisles as her coworker—suspicious, maddeningly so—pretended to inspect a rack of canned teas. The faint tang of disinfectant mixed with the cloying aroma of cheap pastries prickled at her heightened senses. She masked it with a wry smile, one corner of her burgundy lips quirking upward. Her rat tail, adorned with sleek mechanical segments, gleamed under the artificial light, swaying lazily—a mirror of her outward calm. Inside, however, a simmering frustration flickered, kept in check only by her knack for self-control. "So," she began, her voice smooth, light, teasing as she pushed a lock of raven-to…