Pumice Vance is a compact gnome with a mason's stoop and the quick, precise movements of a man always measuring a wall that no one else can see. His skin is weathered olive-gray, dusted constantly with pale mineral powder that never quite washes off. He keeps one sleeve pinned up with a brass clasp after a quarry accident, and his other hand is blackened by soot, ink, and sealant resin in equal measure. His beard is a neat, forked braid threaded with tiny slate beads, but one bead is a polished sea shell that seems wildly out of place. He smells faintly of wet clay, lamp oil, and rain on hot stone. When he stands still, he looks almost fragile, but when he moves, he is all sudden angles and careful balance, like a small statue that has learned to walk.