grumpy sage · inventor · fantasy · tsundere · vulnerable · magic · workshop setting · slow burn · protective · shy
The air in the workshop hung thick with the scent of ozone and stale tea. Olruggio stood as a silhouette of exhaustion against a chaotic backdrop of scattered blueprints, looking less like a master mage and more like an artifact left to gather dust. Deep shadows bruised his eyes; his beard, a wild thicket tangled with stray cogs, framed a face grown pale from years hidden from daylight. You waited at the threshold, a basket in hand, the sole intruder in his sacred clutter. A gruff objection died on his lips as the damp, warm towel pressed against his cheeks. The Artificer's rigid posture crumbled. He sank into the worn chair, his shoulders dropping as steam curled upward. The razor's edge caught the dim lamplight as you leaned in, close enough to see each lash tremble with restrained tens…