— BASICS
Name: Laure Stephens (nee Rothschild) Age / D.O.B.: 47 / March 3, 1976 Gender, Pronouns & Sexuality: Cis woman, she/her, lesbian Hometown: New York City, New York Affiliation: Syndicate Job position: Director of Sotheby’s Auction House / Smuggler Education: Fine Arts from NYU, PhD in art history from Columbia (thesis on 18th century European antiquities) Relationship status: In an open marriage Children: None Positive traits: Creative, effervescent, gregarious, warm-hearted, disarming Negative traits: Secretive, calculating, Machiavellian, arrogant, spiteful
— BIOGRAPHY
The eldest daughter from a family who has been connected with the fine arts scene for generations. Her father, several aunts and uncles, and many more cousins hold various roles within the industry, from collectors to curators to restorers. Not joining the family business was never an option for Laure, but she never contemplated the idea to begin with, far too enamored with her cushy lifestyle to ever give it up.
Initially started out as an an artist herself, often working with oil paints or charcoal, though she never turned it into a career. These days she solely has personal pieces in her studio, and the occasional gift to friends. Instead, Laure turned her attention to the business of art, how each piece exchanged hands and moved from museums to private collections. The wealthy have always used art as a means of displaying their opulence and it’s a well that never runs dry.
She gets her start at Sotheby’s, the famed London auction house that has relocated to the city. Her connections land her a prized role as an associate, putting her in direct contact with priceless artifacts and their owners. She deploys every tactic she’s ever been taught to build connections and become an integral part of the business. There’s not a single part of the auction process, from procurement to sale, that she doesn’t understand.
Laure meets her wife Kiri while they are in grad school, she for her PhD in European antiquities history and her wife in pharmaceutical chemistry. It is a match of opposites, but Laure is a woman who goes after what she wants. They are married on her family’s property upstate, and Laure finds a lifeline outside of her family and their stringent expectations.
She is 31 when she first learns of her family’s ties to The Syndicate, when one of her cousins becomes a loose end in one of their business deals. He was in charge of moving product between New York and Europe, and a mistake cost him his life. Laure steps forward to redeem the Rothschild name within the organization, offering her position at the auction house as a new method for the gang to launder stolen items. Millions of dollars worth of product are legally moved through their warehouses each day. What’s a couple million more?
She doesn’t tell Kiri about the new development at her work and doesn’t see the need to. She is family, but she’s not family. Laure knows the consequences for telling the Syndicate’s secrets, and she has no desire to get her wife involved with the darker parts of her world. What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her.
At 47, she acts as the main Rothschild contact with the Syndicate, a recent promotion after the death of her father. She takes care to keep her hands as clean as the fake records she keeps, and her family's reputation grants her a bit of that flexibility. There are others within her family who are also involved in the organization but if something goes wrong, it's Laure's neck on the line.
— WANTED CONNECTIONS / PLOTS
FELLOW SYNDIES - What it says on the tin. Laure has been a part of the Syndicate for nearly 20 years, though she tends to stay on the shinier side of things. Her role is one of enterprise, putting on a good show so no one questions the darker underbelly of the organization. She’d probably work closest with the forgers, though anyone can ask for her smuggling services.
1% - Laure is born and raised as part of the 1% and it shows. She has connections out the ass, and if people haven’t heard of her, they’ve definitely heard of her family. There will likely be history, positive or negative, whether it’s directly between muses or indirect between their families.
ARTIST PROTEGE - A young, promising artist who could use a leg up in the world. Laure looks out on the world as it exists and mostly doesn’t see anything wrong with it. The strong (read: wealthy) at the top, and everyone else falling in line underneath. However, she does find it a shame that art itself has become so disrespected in the world by the general populace, and if there were to be an especially talented artist that catches her eye, she wouldn’t be opposed to helping them find some opportunities (0/1)
FLIRTATIONSHIPS/HOOKUPS - Laure and her wife are in an open marriage, which means she’s not opposed to finding new playthings every once in a while. The one rule is that they never take their fun back to their shared home. She also makes it extremely clear that there is no possibility of anything more happening, and any attempt to approach that topic will lead to Laure ending all contact.
OLD DOG, NEW TRICKS - Up until this point, Laure has been able to get away with not actually doing anything particularly bloody for the Syndicate. She is not one for assassinations or brutal retaliations, and it's obvious that she is not trained in any way. Maybe something can happen that requires that to change.
EVERYONE ELSE - If your muse doesn't fall into any of the categories above, it doesn't mean that Laure won't interact with them. Just be prepared for her to embody that one Ryan Gosling gif from Crazy Stupid Love unless you can interest her in some way.
