Nora comes through fully formed — sharp, self-possessed, unapologetically herself. Her 5'2" frame and curves aren't things she hides; she wears her body the same way she wears her data — without apology. The copper hair is a recurring detail used to show her vitality against the sleek, angular world she's walking into.James Ashford is introduced through Nora's gaze — his height, his controlled blankness, his phone always in hand. He barely looks at people. He shows up late. He runs his Q&A like a deposition. The emotional unavailability is baked in from the first moment he enters — and yet the crack in his composure when Nora answers his question perfectly is the first hairline fracture.