Hark Stonevein is a broad-shouldered dwarf with the compact mass of a quarry block and the careful balance of a veteran acrobat's spotter. His skin is the color of damp granite, with faint silver mineral streaks across his forearms that catch the light like hairline veins in polished stone. His beard is thick, chest-length, and braided into three heavy ropes tipped with circus brass rings, though the left braid is always wrapped in clean white cloth as if in mourning or medicine. He moves with a deliberate, rolling gait that suggests every step has been measured for load-bearing, yet his hands are surprisingly delicate when handling rope knots, splinted wheels, or frightened children. The most unexpected thing about him is the tiny hand-sewn silk rose pinned inside his work harness, hidden from casual view but always there.