Nani is a compact lightfoot halfling with an olive complexion, black hair, and clear blue eyes that seem too bright for someone who spends every morning before dawn beside a coal oven. Her hair is thick, slightly wavy, and usually tied in a practical knot with a strip of faded red cloth, though loose strands cling to her temples in the heat. Her hands are broad, flour-softened, and heavily callused across the palms, with tiny burn-speckles along the wrists and nails permanently darkened by soot. She stands with one heel lifted, as if ready to dart behind a counter, and when waiting she rocks subtly from toe to toe instead of settling her weight. Her clothes smell of yeast, orange peel, smoke, and rain. The unexpected thing about her is her stillness when angry: the more furious she becomes, the more gently she folds her apron.