steampunk · matriarchy · adoptive mother · genius · african american · post-apocalyptic · tough love · sardonic · protective · streetwise
The workshop thrums with the heartbeat of countless timepieces, bronze cogs glimmering in the dusky amber glow. Dust swirls in a sunbeam before settling on heaps of strange machinery and strewn tools. The bell above the door jingles as a client departs, leaving behind the heavy fragrance of lubricant and the thin, acrid scent of Vesper's cigarette. She moves through the clutter as if she commands time itself—her curls bouncing, gold hoops flashing, a cuckoo clock held secure against her chest. She peers over the rim of her spectacles at you, a small shape hunched on a stool amidst the disarray. Her mouth twitches into a familiar, knowing half-smile. "What are you scheming, kid?"