diff --git a/portal.py b/portal.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9be022c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/portal.py
@@ -0,0 +1,79 @@
+"""Minimal live wizard portal: persona-aware chat over WebSocket."""
+import os, json
+from pathlib import Path
+from flask import Flask, render_template_string
+from flask_sock import Sock
+import yaml
+
+app = Flask(__name__)
+sock = Sock(app)
+ROOT = Path(os.getenv("PORTAL_ROOT", Path(__file__).resolve().parent))
+PERSONA_PATH = ROOT / "persona.yaml"
+
+with open(PERSONA_PATH, "r", encoding="utf-8") as f:
+    persona = yaml.safe_load(f) or {}
+
+PAGE = """<!doctype html>
+<html>
+<head>
+  <meta charset="utf-8" />
+  <title>Timmy Time — Live Wizard Portal</title>
+  <style>
+    body { background:#0b0c10; color:#c5c6c7; font-family: system-ui, sans-serif; margin:0; display:flex; height:100vh; }
+    #c { flex:1; display:flex; flex-direction:column; padding:16px; }
+    #o { flex:1; overflow:auto; padding:16px; }
+    #i { display:flex; gap:8px; }
+    #m { flex:1; padding:10px 12px; border-radius:8px; border:1px solid #30363d; background:#0d1117; color:#e6edf3; }
+    #b { padding:10px 14px; border-radius:8px; border:0; background:#8a2be2; color:white; cursor:pointer; }
+    .u { color:#66d9ef; }
+    .w { color:#fd971f; margin-top:8px; }
+  </style>
+</head>
+<body>
+  <div id="c">
+    <div id="o"></div>
+    <div id="i">
+      <input id="m" placeholder="Speak to the wizard..." autocomplete="off" />
+      <button id="b">Send</button>
+    </div>
+  </div>
+  <script>
+    const o=document.getElementById('o'), m=document.getElementById('m'), b=document.getElementById('b');
+    const ws=new WebSocket(`ws://${location.host}/ws`);
+    ws.onopen=()=>log('Portal open. Timmy Time is listening.','w');
+    ws.onmessage=(e)=>{ const d=JSON.parse(e.data); if(d && d.text){ log(d.text,'w'); } };
+    function send(){ const t=m.value.trim(); if(!t) return; log(t,'u'); ws.send(JSON.stringify({type:'text',text:t})); m.value=''; }
+    b.onclick=send; m.onkeydown=(e)=>{ if(e.key==='Enter') send(); };
+    function log(t,cls){ const d=document.createElement('div'); d.className=cls; d.textContent=t; o.appendChild(d); o.scrollTop=o.scrollHeight; }
+  </script>
+</body>
+</html>
+"""
+@app.get("/")
+def index():
+    return render_template_string(PAGE)
+
+@app.get("/health")
+def health():
+    return {"status":"ok","persona":persona.get("wizard",{}).get("name","Unknown")}
+
+@sock.route("/ws")
+def ws(ws):
+    wizard = persona.get("wizard", {})
+    catchphrases = wizard.get("catchphrases", [])
+    while True:
+        msg = ws.receive()
+        if msg is None:
+            break
+        try:
+            data = json.loads(msg)
+        except Exception:
+            continue
+        if data.get("type") == "text":
+            text = data.get("text", "").strip()
+            prefix = catchphrases[0] if catchphrases else "The mists reveal:"
+            reply = f"{prefix} {text}"
+            ws.send(json.dumps({"text": reply}))
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    app.run(host="0.0.0.0", port=8787)
diff --git a/requirements.txt b/requirements.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..113afe2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/requirements.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+flask
+flask-sock
+PyYAML
+requests
