It's been a few weeks since Nerva arrived in England to audit her own family members. These last two years she stabilized Sangréals assets in America, particularly the stock market. When sleuthing through the books, she found some odd movements coming from the UK branche. Sadly, despite being an American, she had her responsibilities to the main branche in France, so she had to deal with this headache.

To avoid her relatives from hiding their tracks, she went straight to the source to find out more.
Given that her family has been doing business with Gringotts for centuries, she only wanted the best to aid her. Under the ruse of moving some large amounts from the American account to the UK account, she sent a request to meet with Stephen Descôteaux, a senior banker and a International Trade Specialist.  She had her imps do a background check on him, but it wasn't enough to get a good picture of him-which made her rather curious. Would his skills be an asset to her or eventually a nuisance? Time to find out if this was going to be fun.

There were some whispers when she used her name at the front desk since it wasn't often that a Sangréal was visiting. Nerva wore a dark green pantsuit with minimal jewelry, her only bold statement being her trademark red lip. She didn't bring a bag or briefcase, only her wand safely hidden underneath her sleeve in a wand holder. Her dark red hair was styled in an updo with loose, face-framing strands on either side of her face.  With a confident stride, she followed an employee to his office, the steady click of her heels echoing through the hallway. With her hands in her pockets, she subtly scanned her surroundings, memorising the route.

Finally, they reached his office on time. As she had a busy schedule, she didn't like waiting or wasting time. The employee knocked on his door and opened his door slowly to announce her. " Sir, miss Sangréal is here for her appointment" Nerva gave a slight nod to thank the girl, flashing her pearly whites in a charming smile as she entered his office. Her light eyes focusing on the man sitting behind his desk. Once close to his desk, she took her hand from her pocket, extended her hand for a firm but gentle handshake. "Good morning, thank you for meeting with me. I am Nerva Sangréal, the Chief Financial Officer of the Sangréal family" she spoke slowly, with a soft but confident voice.

Like all other mornings at work, this early morning was busy for Stephen. He’d finished with his team huddle, and his administrative assistance provided him a copy of his schedule for the day. Curious. The Sangréal family held assets between several different countries and Gringotts helped broker money between their businesses. Curious. It was someone he didn’t recognize from the family, Nerva Sangréal.
 
He leaned against his large dark brown oak desk in the center of the room, jotting notes down with his quill on a notepad while he mentally prepared himself for the day. Several double-paneled windows let gray lightin from the overcast and cloudy day, his windows providing a view of Diagon Alley buzzing below them. 
 
Tapping his cold mug with his wand, his cup of coffee bubbled, steamed, and began hissing. The bitterness of the scent waking him up again. His door cracked open and he looked up from his notes, expectedly. ”Nerva Sangréal is on her way.” The door shut as quietly as it opened and he looked back down at his desk and his papers.
 
He wore a smart dark-blue suit, lighter-blue button down that complimented his blue eyes. Vertical pinstripes framed his fit body. Lifting up the picture frame on his desk, Stephen readjusted his families photo so it faced him. Lastly, he put his wedding band back on.
 
”Sir, Miss Sangréal is here for her appointment.”
 
The door opened, and Stephen watched Nerva stride in behind the employee. He stood from his desk and reached over to receive her offered handshake. “It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Sangréal.” He accent thick, and he recognized Nerva’s own general English accent. She wasn’t from here. “Take a seat, sit.” He pointed at the chair beside her and took his own seat, smiling at her. “What brings you in, today?” Getting straight to business.

"Thank you." Nerva unbuttoned her blazer before sitting down, crossing her legs as she leaned back in the chair, letting her elbows rest on its armrests.She liked him getting straight to the point,  so she matched the energy and did the same.

" My family has had a longstanding relationship with Gringotts. However, as a representative of the main branch in France, I'm here to ensure that my English relatives have.." a short pause, before continuing with an amused smile "kept our standards up"  A comment to gauge his own ideas of the English as she had noticed his accent and his last name. Not only that, but a quick glance saw his weddingring and the typical photo frame on a desk which was probably a family photo. If not for his physique, he'd be the stereotypical 9-5 boring clerk. It's almost a shame to have such a man behind a desk, he'd be much better suited in the field. It was only a few seconds, but there is allot to be learned from a handshake. She felt the callouses that came with handling gym equipment, yet there was a lack of roughness that comes with physical labor or dueling. Most noticeable was the absence of thickened skin on his index finger, typically a sign of frequent wand-wielding. It made Nerva wonder if his physique was merely a superficial attempt to appear powerful. Then again, one doesn't hold such a position without using their intellect- and that's what she needed.

"So I'd like to request a thorough audit of several accounts. Considering this is a rather delicate matter, you came highly recommended because of your attention to detail.. and discretion." Nerva's eyes locked on his face, curious to gauge his reaction to suddenly gaining access to restricted accounts of such big players on the financial market. It was a bold request , but that's why she couldn't just ask a regular employee.The Sangréals were a notoriously secretive group, fiercely protective of their information and intolerant of prying eyes.

If he needed to verify her status and authority within the family, she had her family crest and vault 'key' with her. "of course, I have the necessary documents to verify my authorization for this request."

First she needed to know if he didn't have some loyalty to her English relatives. Nerva wasn’t sure how much importance he placed on the concept of family and if it would influence his judgement.  "Likewise, I need assurance that you are able to audit with complete impartiality." She spoke with a calm authority, keeping a friendly smile on her face.

Whereas Nerva examined the deftness of Stephen's wandwork based on his handshake, Stephen did not do the same to Nerva. He held her hand firmly, and let it go, then sat at his desk.

What he did notice was her put together, tailored pantsuit that hugged her body. The snug fit, and wool material of the pantsuit, suggested she was part of the Sangréal line. He relaxed into the chair, making eye contact and drinking in her green eyes. There was something different about her, but he didn't know what it was.

His head nodded, acknowledging that she could procure the necessary documents.

"I can do that for you." He smiled, "As you know, we'll have to request books from your family branch accountant in order to do an independent audit. How do you suggest we keep this...discrete?"

Impartiality was not difficult. They randomly audited companies every year, it just wasn't practice to audit the same company yearly because they brokered so much money between different major banks. It was assumed that their own in-house accountants dealt with the closing the books at the end of the fiscal year. But an audit was something his office could do. "What are you suspecting is happening?" At least if he had a ballpark of what he was going to be looking at, it would be easier to see the patterns sticking out.

His concise answers made him hard to read so she decided to change the stage. An office was like a small, self-contained world with unspoken rules: the visitor follows a predictable path, sits across from the owner, the desk acting as a barrier between powers, and then the visitor leaves the same way they arrived. Thus, creating a boring play. 

Nerva broke their gaze , pushing herself up from the chair to take a look around his office. "Excellent. I will have them send over the necessary documents. There are also documents in our vault that I'd like to retrieve. "She requested impartiality,  however giving him full access to accounts was not going to happen. Nerva already had her eye on the people that would likely be culled from the family tree but she needed evidence.

"There have been odd fluctuations in our stocks which resemble pump and dumps schemes. The stocks in question are.. " as she meandered through his office, looking at the luxerious yet minimalistic furnishings, she began naming stock names from the top of her head with the stock worth on a certain day last year and the following fluctuations in percentages.  Fluctuations in stocks were common but the percentage of how some moved were way too high or low to happen in a day. To an amateur, it was subtle—a matter of mere cents that, in their vast pool of wealth, was hardly worth fussing over. But whether it was one cent or one million , you don't steal from a Sangréal.

Nerva circled back to him, this time moving behind him to look at the collection of books in his bookcase. "I also want you to look at the tax deductions of charitable donations and work related expenses from the last 10 years."

She had noticed him studying her before, but she wasn’t here to engage in that kind of game. Still, getting a closer look at his physique was making it tempting.  "As for discretion, I'm sure you have a trustworthy team but I want to keep this between us. My family has too many eyes and ears." Nerva turned towards him, catching a glimpse of the people in the picture frame- his family., "This audit will require significant time and effort. I’m willing to cover any expenses, but I don’t want it to disrupt your work-life balance." Nerva softened the look on her face as she looked at his family picture.

Had Nerva Sangréal been anyone else, Étienne would have asked her to sit back down so they could finish the proceedings. However, Nerva wasn't just a normal client and Étienne sat rigid in his chair as she began looking around his office. It made him uncomfortable being around her, he was not used to feeling so small around someone.

Almost like she'd taken the place of the alpha in the room, and he had to fawn around her to stay in her good graces. He felt a shiver run down his spine, there was a darkness in her tone as she explained the conundrum that befallen the family. Embezzling money from the Sangréal family and manipulating the stock market! Insider trading? The accusations she laid out were pretty serious.

It made Étienne glad that he wasn't part of the Sangréal family. She circled around him like a shark identifying it's prey, getting ready to strike. He felt uneased as she stood behind him and examined the images of his family.

He really wished he could tell her to sit back down, but his lips were zipped as he listened and wrote himself notes of what she'd revealed. Gringotts benefitted from their relationship with the Sangréal family and he hadn't wanted to mess it up.

"In relation to our market?" He clarified, "Your families assets are diverse; it would take a team to look through all of the charitable donations and work expenses from each business in your families vast enterprise." His stiff lipped response was calculated. "Though I am sure if there are specific businesses you believe are affected by this, I can review those." He didn't address the time commitment of such an audit. Restructuring their ongoing work could be done to keep the Sangréal family content with Gringotts services.

A family man that's not taking the chance to talk about his family despite having their picture on their desk? How protective. How boring.
Nerva trailed behind him once more, her fingers gliding lightly over the back of his chair. She didn't care how much work it was going to take,  finding chow for a mythology-loving Pescatarian already consumed enough of her time.[1]She wasn’t about to settle for less than what she wanted.

 "I'm sure a man with your capabilities will manage just fine." she said, casually brushing off the effort involved as though it were nothing. Her tone was almost flippant, as if the work she was demanding barely warranted a second thought—certainly not from someone of his expertise. Resting one hand on the edge of his chair, she invaded his personal space once again by leaning forward,stopping just short of brushing against him. The closeness was deliberate, a subtle yet undeniable assertion of dominance. With calculated elegance , she reached for his notepad and calmly began flipping through his notes.

"If I wanted another pencil-pushing drone or sycophant, I wouldn’t have chosen you."  With her resources, finding someone like him would be easy, but she chose him for a reason .She knew her dominant demeanor unsettled men in their masculinity so she'd reassure him just a little. " With your background in magical law enforcement and American banking, you’ve proven you’re more than just a Gringotts employee" Her words were carefully chosen to balance both praise and challenge. While complimentary, they carried an undercurrent of expectation.

With a swift flick of her wrist, she tore the note listing the stock names from the pad. Turning her head toward Stephen, she held the paper up in front of him.
The paper begins to smolder between her fingertips as she focused her magic to heat up the material. Within seconds flames devoured the note , leaving no trace but a faint wisp of smoke curling upward.  "So, let’s keep the note-taking to a minimum." Her gaze never left him as she rubbed the remaining ash between her fingers, a sly smirk playing at the corners of her lips.Not only had she invaded his personal space, but she had also made it clear that she had done her homework on him.

Nerva finally cut through the tension with a sharp slap of her hand on the desk, leaning back to give him back his space. She surprised him further by speaking French, her voice had a beautiful and sultry accent—with no trace of her American roots. "Venez Etienne. Rendons-nous à la voûte!"[2]  Nerva walked toward his door and opened it slightly. She glanced back at him, raising an eyebrow as she waited for him to follow.

1.	Future mermaid plot
2.	Come Etienne. Let's go to the vault!

He could feel his shoulders shrinking into themselves as she stood above him. He heard the soft clicking of her heels as she meandered leisurely in his office as though she owned it. Gulping, Étienne heard her pause and looked up from his notes. He saw her gazing at his family picture, and he wanted to push the pictures down so she’d stop looking. It felt intensely personal, and he wasn’t used to opening up about himself in that way.

Étienne bit the inside of his cheek, and his breathed out into her compliment. He didn’t realize he’d held his breath a moment while she hung above him, and now next to him. Her breath tickled his ear, and he shifted, minutely, away from her. If she was trying to tell him that she ruled the roost, he accepted and acknowledged it.

The taste of iron filled his mouth when he let go of his cheek. Fuck. "Yes, ma'm." He nodded his head, while simultaneously feeling unsettled. How did she know so much about him when it was the first time they'd ever met? Obviously Nerva Sangréal did her homework before she sought him out. It made him feel weary, but compliant. He didn't want to disappoint her.

Then the witch did something unexpected.

Cool, but unexpected. Her hand reached out to take his note and the ash of the note floated over him, dirtying his pristine suit. All she did was twist him up, make him feel fearful. She played a game that he wasn't privvy of and her dominance was on full display. He cowered.

It had been so many years since someone had done this to him. He didn't know what it was about Nerva that made him feel...supple and weak. Her slap on the desk woke him back up to reality and he jumped out of the chair exclaiming, "Oui ! Allons dans votre chambre forte."[1]

He grabbed at his wand on his desk and went to the door to open it for her. After she finally left his office, Étienne led her back to the lobby where the carts leading to the vaults were at.

From her status, Étienne knew it would be quite a journey to get to her families vault. He wouldn't be able to navigate them through the maze once they were off the cart. He also knew that Nerva's families vault was one that was protected by ancient magicks and enchantments and it would take a Goblin's expertise to assist.

Behind the head desk, Xasper looked down at the tall pair. "Yes?"

Étienne filled in, stammering, "S-Sangréal vault."

Xasper disappeared from behind the desk and reappeared at the corner of the desk. She was nearly half the size of the two wix before her. "This way." The Goblin's long braided hair swished as she moved forward, leading the pair to the cart with the large "G" emblem.

1.	Yes, Let's go to your vault!"

Nerva trailed behind Etienne to the desk, all passivity and smiles now—a stark contrast to the ball-busting she’d delivered in his office earlier. While taking a mental note of the surroundings, she watched how Etienne moved, how he exuded confidence with his physique—confidence that disappeared the moment he conversed with the goblin. It baffled her how someone could spend so much time crafting this physique only for it to be an empty husk. There was an urge to crack his sculpted persona, find the cause of this insecurity, and then kill it in order to rebuild this wizard into something more befitting of his outward image. Alas, she didn't have time for another pet project—for now.

She gave the goblin a friendly nod and followed them to the cart, taking a seat behind her. Once the cart started moving, she subtly unhooked her wand from her wand holder, knowing what was ahead—a rare but useful childhood memory. The cart began picking up speed after a few sharp turns, suddenly plummeting down a winding track into the deeper levels of the bank. The Sangréals were not the first to open a vault at Gringotts due to their rocky relationship with the British in the past, yet they managed to secure a place difficult to reach nonetheless.

As the cart crossed a vast cavern, Nerva raised her wand to cast the umbrella charm across them before the cart drove through The Thief's Downfall. The cart slowed as it entered a tunnel lined with stone columns, until the track ended in front of a large door nestled between pillars, with stone dragon heads functioning as guard dogs, their mouths ajar and ready to breathe fire—or something much more sinister.

In the center of the massive metallic door, the outlines of a chalice were visible, with thick metallic tree roots growing from the cup and branches extending from the foot, functioning as locks as they took root in the stone. The chalice and tree were references to their Old French name and family tree—Sangréal, meaning 'holy grail' or 'holy blood,' the ol' blood elitism.

"The Sangréal vault," the goblin announced.

Nerva lowered her wand, stepping out of the cart onto a narrow path with slated stones leading to the vault. She took a breath, finding the cold and stale air rather comforting as they made their way to the door. The female goblin used her hand to deactivate the first security layer of the door, the rhythmic ticking of ancient gears setting another lock into motion. Under the foot of the chalice, a small portal opened to reveal a porous stone. The goblin looked up at Nerva. "The key."

Without hesitation, she used the tip of her wand to make an incision in her other hand, her face showing no reaction as the blood pooled in her palm. Years of hardship had numbed most of the nerves in her body, dulling her sensitivity to pain. Once she had drawn enough blood, she pressed her hand against the cold stone. The key to the vault, like her name suggested, was blood - the only valid proof of her lineage. Like a sponge, the stone began absorbing the blood, the roots and branches slowly retracting back from the stone and into the chalice. With a loud bellow, the vault unlocked, and air rushed out from the sides of the nearly hermetically sealed chamber. Nerva took her hand from the stone, stepping back as the door opened slightly. She cast Episky on her bleeding hand, looking rather unbothered by it all, flexing her hand to make sure she hadn't cut too deep. Nerva looked back at Etienne before crossing the threshold. "For your safety, don't touch anything unless I say so." She turned to the goblin while tucking her wand back in its holder. "Thank you, we won't be long." Goblins were allowed entry, but not today, so she would have to wait at the cart until she was done.

Once the vault door closed behind Etienne, torches flared to life, illuminating a grand semi-circular hall carved into the rock, with several stone stairs leading up to tiers of floors with balconies overlooking the Central hall. The Sangréal vault was a gigantic library filled with rare relics, antiques, and art. Despite the large number of filled bookcases and the plethora of riches, it was all systematically organized. On every floor were doors numbered with Latin numerals—the personal vaults of each Sangréal, with limited access.

Nerva walked over to one of the large oak tables arranged in a semi-circular formation at the center of the hall. "Alright, let's get started." She took off her jacket and draped it over a chair before rolling up the sleeves of her blouse, revealing a military-style wand holder—not something a typical socialite would wear.

"Grab one of those boxes. " She gestured toward several mid-sized lacquered boxes with seamlessly fitted lids and leather handles on the sides. "There's an Extension Charm on it, but I'll need you to hold it while I grab the needed documents." She placed her hands on her hips, giving him a smirk. Yes, she was going to make use of his muscles this time.

They followed the Goblin onto the cart, and the day manager took the pair to the revered Sangréal vault, deep in the caverns of Gringotts. The entrance was pronounced by an overlarge metallic door with what the Frenchman presumed to be an ancient family seal. He watched with curiosity and disgust as Nerva cut into her flesh and pressed it against the stone.

Étienne covered his ears as the air whooshed in and the door cracked open to reveal a rather considerable space. "Shite." The booming noise startled him; he would have liked if Nerva had given him a warning.

He looked back up as Nerva cast Episky on her wounded hand, noticing an uncanny lack of emotion displayed on her face. Between the noise, and her self-inflected wound, Étienne would have assumed she'd have shown some kind of reaction. Her tepid warning caused him pause, and he followed her into the threshold of the vault. There was something really wrong with this woman.

Judgement held in the goblin's eyes and she gave Nerva a curt nod before heading back to the cart at the end of the hallway.

Stepping into the vault was otherworldly. There was so much here, so much that he wanted to look at and explore. The antiquity, the history, he breathed the stale air in and heeded the warning by keeping his arms to his side. Étienne followed Nerva to the oak table and took off his own fitted jacket, following the witches lead. "I'm ready when you are." He whistled under his breath, sucking in the air as his eyes wandered over the vastness of the room.

"There's an Extension Charm on it, but I'll need you to hold it while I grab the needed documents." His eyes snapped back to Nerva and he looked at the boxes that she gestured to. Away from the goblin, inside the institution, her voice had softened.

"Oh, yes, I'll get that." Étienne went to the indicated box to pull it out. Lifting with his back straight, his arms flexed as he gripped the box and pulled it away from the shelf. He wasn't sure why he was doing this, she had a perfectly good wand tucked into her arm. "Do I need to hold it? Can I put it on the table?"

She watched him lift the box with ease. This was probably going to be the most physical work-related activity this man had done in ages. "Hold it," she said firmly, keeping a tight grip on the reins.

With a smirk, she fixed her hair as she went up a set of stairs. "Follow me." It had been years since she'd been in this vault, so she wasn’t sure if her family had set up traps that would alert them if someone tried to take certain books. Setting traps triggered by magic was something she would have done, ergo , her relatives likely would have as well.
Best to warn her errand boy in case he had any bright ideas. "We'll start with the stock certificates and shareholder agreement ledgers in the older section. I’m not sure if any new traps have been set, so let’s keep magic to a minimum."

With a steady pace, she walked past bookshelves filled with ornate books, their spines decorated with beautiful designs. The air was thick with the scent of old paper and leather, while cobwebs covered a treasure trove of collectibles any historian would dream of. Her eyes scanned the shelves for any disturbed dust to see which ones had been recently consulted. "As you can see, we are avid collectors… or maybe just hoarders," she chuckled, running her fingers along the spines, rubbing the dust between her fingers . "The perfect place to hide something you don’t want found. But luckily for me..." She glanced over her shoulder at him with a smile. "... for us. I know exactly where to look."

As they moved down a narrowing hallway, the antiques grew older, and the books became duller, their spines damaged from years of use. The hallway opened into a tall, circular room lined with neatly filled bookshelves. Some shelves bore clean streaks in the dust, hinting at recent use.

"Etienne, you can put the box down and start grabbing the books that have been recently moved." Nerva slid a shoddy library ladder across a rail that ran along the wall. She carefully climbed up the ladder to reach shelves that held multiple chained books. "Oh, and remember, no magic."

Nerva had Étienne follow her around like a puppy trailing it’s master. Her tight leash on him kept him from inspecting and exploring the over-large bank vault. He tried to stop himself from looking because it made him curious about how this family acquired their wealth; some questions were better left unasked. With the box held in his hands, it was easier for him to concentrate on walking forward without tripping. The uneven ridges of the laid brick and walking up the stairs required him to think about where he was setting his feet down.

     "The perfect place to hide something you don’t want found. But luckily for me..." He gave her a reciprocated smile back to her. "... for us. I know exactly where to look." The news that they wouldn't be rummaging through too many tomes was encouraging. He followed her down the hall, up the stairs and to the indicated bookcase.

He put the box down where she indicated, “What am I looking for?” It had been years since he last worked as an Auror, and he’d worked behind the desk as a paper pusher for years.  Étienne walked up to Nerva at the bookcase and pulled at a tome in the area that the Sangreal heir indicated, absently.

Nerva hooked one leg around the stile, steadying herself as the ladder gave a slight wobble. She leaned to the side to grab a chained book from the shelf where light scuffmarks had disturbed the layer of dust. Carefully she opened the book, ready to check the contents but his question made her pause.

Didn’t she just tell him what to do? Surely, his auror background would be enough to figure out what to do..and more importantly what not to do.

"You'll be looking for-" A growl emitted from the book Etienne touched, cutting her off. It shot from the shelf, snapping at Etienne with sharp, metallic claps for teeth. The smooth leather would make the book slippery to grab , not that its vigorous chomping was helping. The book clearly wasn’t pleased about being so rudely awoken from its slumber, its agitation starting to wake up other magical books.

Nerva’s face fell into a deadpan stare of pure disappointment as she looked down to the commotion. Whoever gave her intel claiming he was an Auror was definitely getting fired. While the book kept snapping at the once-pristine suit, hair, and skin of Etienne, she calmly placed her book back on the shelf and stepped off the ladder.

Now, Nerva could easily help him, but instead she rested her elbow on a rung and placed a hand on her hip. She watched as this giant of a man struggled against a mere book — until he got too close to a bookshelf that harbored similar-looking volumes. Her voice rose to warn him, her hand reaching out. “Watch out for—!” Too late. The bump into the shelf triggered another magical book, which shot out, eager to join the feast. She pinched the bridge of her nose as the second book latched onto his shoes and pant legs.

Annoyance creased his features as he pulled the eventual book biter out from the bookcase. Nerva expected him to just know what to find, but it had been over a decade since he’d last worked behind a badge and a wand. His held the frown inside as his fingers touched the spine of the book. It reanimated.

Opened it’s mouth up to clasp his nearest limb and lunged from his arm to bite his head, face and hair.

“vas t’emmerder”[1] Etienne nettled, face flushing as he waved his wand and tapped the back of the book. It stopped moving and dropped to the floor, but he’d jumped back and touched several other spines. Nerva’s warning went unheard.

One went after his leg, another slobbered his face with a magical-saliva that froze up his features. His face tingled and prickled but he couldn’t speak, and couldn’t cast.

A warning of the nature of the books would have been helpful. Nerva had warned him of the artifacts, though, and in his anger he could see that he was wrong for not waiting patiently. His leg was aching from the gnawing of the toothless book that seemed to want to inhale his leg. He swore it was growing in size, but couldn’t concentrate on that because his hands were trying to close the book that found his face.

1.	Go fuck yourself