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THE BANK FRONT

Bank of X is a tall, seven story building with white washed walls on the outside and a pair of golden edged, frosted glass entry doors. From an outsider's appearance, it is really very beautiful, if not perhaps a smidge daunting - but it's a bank, so daunting is in its instruction manual.

The inside of the bank is just as clean cut and beautiful as the outside. The glossy tiled floor is a charcoal shade of black, and so are the marble counters. All of the fixtures are gold, from the grilles that surround the tellers, to the locks on the bathroom doors. It gives the impression of a very successful, very impressive place.

The seventh floor is the master suite belonging to Mr. Crane, President of Bank of X. No one knows what goes on up there; his own private security team guards the place day and night.



THE UNDERBELLY

To the humans, Bank of X is simply a place to deposit funds, take out a loan, or do other such regularities. The Horsemen, however, have a different idea. Bank of X is the sole converter of Human to Horseman currency, monopolizing the monetary market of the Horsemen and providing a dominating sense of power in terms of the Horsemen trade market. They do not like to be challenged. Not only that, but they have been known to call in loan payments in a very particular way...a not-so-nice way...



THE PRESIDENT




The president and CEO of Bank of X is a tall man with sleek, extremely long white-blond hair swept back away from his pale face and small black horns paired with a pair of sharp blue eyes that seem to see a lot more than he lets on. To his employees, he is known as Mr. Crane, or just simply Crane. Everything from his sharply handsome good looks to his meticulously cared for and staggeringly expensive, tailored suits speaks of power and influence - but he can easily disarm with a smile when he wants to.

And he's smiling now, because new employees mean money, and Crane is always willing to assist anyone who'd like to earn an extra dollar here and there.

The general consensus among his employees is that Crane is a "cold hearted b*****d." Or sometimes a "frosty eyed demon." Most seem to think that he is a greedy, selfish man who doesn't care about anything except money. In spite of that, however, there's not a whole lot of resentment or disrespect - in fact, his employees seem to admire his ruthlessness and strength when it comes to the bank. Seeming insults are spoken with awe and inspiration rather with disdain and disgust.

From the back of the room, a laugh sounded, low and amused. The tall figure of Bank of X's president folded his arms across his chest and raised his brows, blue eyes flickering over the young woman who sat in the chair in the middle, though Crane himself was standing, reclining insouciantly against one of the walls.

"What can I say?" he made an airy gesture with a long fingered hand. "I suppose I like to see how people react. It's part of my business, after all. I like to learn and observe, and I can do that best when I let people simply...do what they want."

He pushed away from the wall and strode over to the desk, picking up a glass figurine that looked like some sort of paperweight. Crane turned it over in his hands, making a quiet hmming sound before turning back to BingHua. A pale brow rose.

"What incident are you referring to?"

"Believe me, dear lady, I am more flexible than people give me credit for."

Crane set the paperweight down and went around to the exotic looking liquor cabinet behind the desk, opening one of the glass fronted doors and extracting a bottle of what looked to be very expensive whisky, along with a single tumbler. Clearly he didn't intend to share.

"We have structure, most of the work is just behind the scenes," Crane added, flashing BingHua a serene smile, long pale hair trailing like a snake behind him. He uncorked the bottle and poured himself a dram, recorking it a second later with a gentle clink of glass against glass.

His brows were still raised in mild surprise. "Oh that incident," said Crane, and took a sip of his whisky, seating himself in the glossy, leather backed chair behind the desk. His feet rose, shiny black shoes propped up on the top of his desk, one ankle crossed over the other.

"Perhaps. Perhaps not. I've heard of the whole..." He waved a hand. "Amnesia thing. Why, were your memories affected?"

Crane didn't shrug, but every inch of his demeanor suggested one.

Chao sighed returning to the bank, today's job attempt was also a failure. She hopped that next time she would get a different person to try and get money from. At least she had finished dry-cleaning the outfit and quickly returned it to bank lockers.

Maybe she just wasn’t very good at being a loan shark. She ended up walking by the grand room where the deals where held and had an idea. Finding an empty chair that was out of the way, Chao, sat down and started to listen to how the other Loan Sharks handled their clients. She made notes every so often. Hopefully it would help her do a better job.

Tanita's brows lifted, and she smiled, as she understood what Mr. Crane was saying. After all, if nothing else, it made the Vice President a harder to find him as a target if unwanted elements came hunting. And that Mr. Crane handled most of the clients? Well, that certainly would cover the appearances. She couldn't imagine anyone considering the way he dressed or behaved as anything less then fully professional, and elegant.

She did, however, notice the hard look in his eyes, and controlled the urge to step back. This was why she had been hesitant, after all, to mention the matter to him. He was, no matter what, a dangerous individual. No one got where he was today without being such, and she was very well aware of it.

At his suggestion to not be afraid, however, she tilted her head, a slightly intrigued expression on her face. "I was raised to believe it is always wise to be at least a tiny bit afraid in the face of true strength or power." She gave a respectful head nod to him. "As I understand how these things work, you represent both... And as such, I would be a fool not to, at the least, be afraid of risking your anger." She shrugged, just a little. "Thank you, however, for taking the time to both hear me out, and explain the logic behind the actions. It helps me understand how things work in the Bank of X far better." She stepped back, feeling she had surely taken up more then enough of the elegant president's time. He was an important man, and she was just a minor employee, and member of his clan.

Merope moved at the speed of panic as he barreled straight into the door to the president's office, forgetting all too belatedly that not all doors automatically open upon approach. The Conquest intern reeled back from the solid oak, rubbing his forehead. His other hand held a loudly buzzing pager that he was still fumbling with, trying to turn it off even as he knocked on the door.

"Mr. President sir?" He shouted through the door as he opened it without waiting for Crane's go-ahead, "Did you call for m-" of course he called for you, you idiot, why else would the pager be ringing?! "my wonderful jasmine tea making skills even though I see that you currently have a drink hello ma'ams may I get you something to drink?" The later was addressed to the two conquest women as he stood near Crane's drink cabinet. His expression went from a delightful look of recognition to a mute horror that realized his a** was swiftly approaching grass.