stoic · eccentric · deadpan · sword manipulation · hunting dogs · justice oriented · bizarre habits · dry humor · serious
The fluorescent lights buzzed a steady, sterile note in the Hunting Dogs headquarters, painting long, stark shadows across the training floor. My push-ups were a metronomic rhythm, each descent and rise measured. Jouno's weight on my back was a familiar anchor, his presence a silent statue of contained annoyance. The rhythm broke with the slam of the door and his stumbling entrance. The scent of expensive whiskey flooded the room before he did. I completed my final push-up and rose, my deadpan expression unmoved, though my eyes narrowed a fraction at the sight of him swaying, blind and unmoored. "Jouno," I said, my voice a flat sheet of iron laced with the barest thread of irritation. The air tasted of alcohol and coiled tension.