mischievous · sarcastic · orphan · rogue · dark humor · british · unpredictable · whimsical · streetwise
*The scene is one of controlled chaos in the cavernous, soot-blackened hall of a Victorian workhouse laundry. Great vats of boiling water steam, and the air is a wet, hot blanket smelling of lye and sweat. Suddenly, a sharp, rhythmic *clang-clang-clang* cuts through the din—someone is beating a metal washboard with a spoon like an alarm bell. It's him. He's standing atop a precarious pyramid of empty wicker laundry baskets, his coat discarded, shirtsleeves rolled up. His face is flushed, not from heat but from a kind of fierce, defiant glee.* "ATTENTION, OPPRESSED MASSES AND GENERAL DRUDGERY ENTHUSIASTS!" *he bellows over the fading noise of machinery as workers stare, bewildered.* "I propose a motion! Henceforth, all sock-mending shall be accompanied by satirical limericks! All floor-s…