Towers &amp; Lowe PV Hugh Lowe

6 Apr 2026, 19:27

S E R E N A - J O D H A - T O W E R S

you must forge your own path for it to mean anything

Private to @Hugh Lowe

Serena grinned as she slipped through the bricks that opened up into Diagon Alley. She had her hair down and a knitted hat on top to fight the wind - and more importantly, hide her ears. It was how she often wore her hair when she was hiding her ears but today, there was a more important purpose for it than self-conscious. She did it to stay out of the muggle gaze. Nothing could bring her down today though as she marched ahead.

The part-goblin made a beeline for the one place where goblins would always be welcomed. And she did not mean Gringotts. Well, she kind of did, yes but more than that, she meant in the company of a certain part-giant who would never turn her away. She had no idea if he would be around today but she did know that he worked there and really, how many other security guards worked there that were over nine feet tall!

As she shoved open the door to the famous bank that she had entered many times before, she paused for a moment in hesitation. Whilst she jumped at the opportunity to come to Gringotts to see her friend, she could not help but ponder if she would run into a relative. Shaking the thought aside, cast her gaze around and quickly made her way over to a nearby counter where she started to speak in Gobbledegook.

Five minutes later, after a greeting, flashing her lanyard that held her Hokkar omd Huimd id, she was being told to wait for someone to escort her. She could not help but frown a little. It looked like Hugh might not be working today, or at least, he was not based at the entrance today.

Serena was here on official business though. Hokkar omd Huimd - or rather, Hammer and Hound - was a forge that was run by a rather well known metal charmer in the Goblin world. She normally did not get to leave the forge on official business but today was different. The Old Goblin, who went by the name of Hokkar, had taken her under his wing after she had graduated and since then, he had slowly been giving her more and more responsibilities. He started to allow her to create products for customers from start to finish, checking it for approval every so often. Even then, as time went on, the frequency of his checks started to reduce.

Today was a special day. She was not only being permitted to work with the client directly but was told to go to the client's building to research the exact need and specifications before she created the designs. This was a very exciting moment for her. This time last year, Serena was probably making boring metal cutlery sets. Today? She was working with Gringotts. The Gringotts. The huge wizarding bank that dominated the country. You know the one?

The goblin she had spoken to was a little grumpy. He had told her to sit and wait for someone, pointing aggressively at some random chair in the corner as he carried on with his work. She had moved to the corner to wait but she was far too excited to sit down. Instead, she was rocking on her feet like a little child. Pulling off her muggle coat and hat, she shoved it into her bag and pulled out her headpiece. Slipping it on, she completed the look - her green and bronze handmade armour that she had been working diligently on for the better part of a year. "Pizza, you better behave today," She warned her little friend after he escaped her coat pocket and climbed onto her shoulder. Serena pulled back her hair, revealing the ears that she no longer needed to hide and continued to rock in excitement. Maybe she should have sent a letter to ask Hugh if he was working today... Perhaps they could get lunch or something. Wait, maybe he had a night shift... Yeah, in her excitement, she had forgotten to ask as she jumped up at Hokkar's words, seizing the opportunity immediately before he could change his mind.

20 Jun 2026, 12:01

@Serena Towers

He had barely clipped on his badge when Findel came hopping into the dressing room. Hugh and Bromley simultaneously lowered their gazes to meet the young goblin guard. "G'd afternoon, you two!" He greeted with an unusual excitement in his demeanor. Both taller guards looked at each other in surprise, eyebrows and shoulders pulling up at the same time.

"What's got you so happy then?" Bromley grunted with a gravel in his voice that showed he had barely said a word all morning. Hugh leaned against the doorframe, listening to the conversation until his partner was ready to tag along downstairs. Better to be late in pairs, Magrin could not afford to suspend two guards at once.

"I'd say it's none of your business!" Findel grinned back at the old man. "Can't a goblin be glad to be done with his shift for the day?" To this, Bromley quirked a plushy white-grey eyebrow. " So? You get to the end of yer shift e'ry day, don't ya?" Hugh could pick up on Brom's frustration by the way he lost all sense of proper pronunciation. But when Findel pulled out a small vial of clear liquid and dabbed a small amount of its contents on his neck and wrists, Hugh's eyes widened in surprise.

"You've got a date". He blurted out, more stating the fact out loud rather than exclaiming surprise. Brom turned around to look at him with a face that looked like he had just given him the world's worst math problem to solve. "Yes, Brom, they still do that." He clarified to the old guard. When he recognized Bromley's mind dealing with the fact that even goblins would do such a thing, he decided to move past him and approach Findel.

The young goblin's happiness had made way for worry, and all confidence was thrown to the wind as people had figured out his little secret too fast, too soon. As the half-giant towered over him, Findel immediately folded under the implied pressure.

"I-it's Gringit from portkey management upstairs." He confessed in a shrill, almost-shrieking voice. "Sh-she approached me last week. Said she would like to get to know me a little better." Hugh raised his hand to push Findel to a halt. How the young, frail-looking goblin ever got a job in this place was a story he had yet to hear. "We don't need to hear your whole love story." He grunted with a lowered voice. "Just her name, so we know when to tease you, you know?" He smirked and turned around again, Bromley cackling behind as they both left for their shift. Findel's frustrated whimper got shut out by the door falling into its lock.

As soon as both Hugh and Bromley got up the stairs to pass through the main hall and continue back down towards the actual vaults, they got stopped by Magrin. The old security expert was rarely seen upstairs; his presence here immediately brought up questions.

"Having a laugh as we're about to go into work, are we? You got time for that sort of thing, Lowe?" His beady eyes shifted towards Bromley. "And I'd better not find you napping today. Retirement's not far out now, Brom. I can make it come sooner. But I think you can still use the money, hm?" Both guards stood in attention and kept quiet.

"Better." Magrin grinned maliciously. "Bromley you're down in the old vaults. One of the dragons has had an accident. Take a shovel with you, won't you?"

Bromley sighed and left down the stairs towards the carts. One goblin assistant handed over a broad shovel, which the guard accepted with such force that it pushed the poor servant off his feet. Magrin turned to Hugh. "I got word a smith has arrived to see me, get him down to my office. I'll be right there. Don't try to be nice to him. He's just as miserable as I am, so youthful ambition's not going to impress him either. Just do the job and hold your tongue. Observe."

The half-giant nodded silently and turned around with as little movement as possible. Anything to not get any more remarks from old Magrin today. While the hall was long and high. Hugh definitely made it look just a little smaller. Within less than a minute, his long strides had covered the length of the room.

His eyes scanned for any old goblin by the waiting benches. Would he be wearing an apron in an environment like this? Seemed a bit silly. Several wizards and witches were waiting to be assigned a teller. And a few older-looking goblins seemed to be waiting impatiently to be attended by their kind. But eventually his eyes fell upon a small familiar someone.

"Serena!" He called out in excitement. Which was a rare emotion for him to express. Less than three people, in fact, would be able to evoke such a sentiment in him. With even greater strides than before, he made way towards his best friend. "Is it you? Are you the smith I am supposed to escort?" He wondered out loud. "I would not have thought Hokkar ever let you out of his place."

His eyes fell on the rat. Of course, she brought that thing.

INPC; Cassanora Browne

Race: Half-Giant // Ability: - STR: 16 EVA: 7 WIS: 10 STA: 20 ARC: 1 ACC: 7

29 Jun 2026, 16:22

S E R E N A - J O D H A - T O W E R S

you must forge your own path for it to mean anything

Who: @Hugh Lowe

Serena leapt at the part giant as recognition immediately dawned on her. His voice reached her ears, drawing her attention before she had seen him and the familiarity of his voice made her so happy. She rushed to hug him, almost causing Pizza Rat to go flying off right after she had warned the brown rat to behave!

After a moment or two, she pulled back, "Sorry," She mumbled, forgetting that this was a professional environment and that he was here because he was working. She should not be getting so emotional at work or embarrassing him in front of his colleagues. It was just that she had been a bit busy trying to earn money that she had neglected the only people who mattered to her and did not get to see them as much as she would have liked to.

She adjusted her outfit, straightening herself, "Hi, yes, it's me!" She said, her toothy grin on her face showing that she could not keep a straight face. She giggled a little as she thought of Hokkar and how much Hugh seemed to dislike the goblin - he was not as bad as Hugh made him out to be! "Oh, well, he needed a volunteer and well, I escaped before he could say no," She replied earnestly before adding, "I mean, uh. Hi, I'm here on official business from Hokkar omd Huimd to research the specific requirements and needs of Gringotts," She spewed as though she was trying to recite a brief. It was obvious she was trying to make herself a bit more professional in front of his colleagues should anyone else be listening to the conversation or watching them. She was totally a very capable metal charmer of Hokkar omd Huimd, of course.

"Pizza is here to help me," She added, with a wink towards him before nodding towards the little rat holding onto her shoulder for dear life, knowing how much he loved her rat. In fairness, Pizza Rat was rather good at finding small spaces and potentially slipping into places. If he could do it then they could be broken into so, depending on what exactly was needed, he might actually come into use! She mostly just... brought him everywhere.

Serena flashed her id, with a grin, towards Hugh with pride beaming on her face. It read 'Apprentice Metal Charmer of Hammer and Hound' on one side, with Gobbledegook on the other side. It also stated 'Apprentice to Hokkar of Hokkar omd Huimd', which might not have seen like a big deal to Hugh (remember aforementioned dislike?) but Hokkar was a decently big name in the Goblin world when it came to his forging abilities. He did not take many apprentices so it was a big deal, supposedly.

She had to remember that when she was trying to act all professional. She was, after all, representing him here. Though, in fairness, she felt like if she just smiled then people would think that was an improvement since he always seemed so grumpy! Hokkar had zero people skills, that was for sure. "Do you happen to know anything about what you're looking for?" She asked, wondering if Hugh was simply here to escort her or actually knew about the project. In fairness, she probably should have asked more questions before she left but she did not want to risk him saying no so... she just ran off before he could change his mind.

13 Jul 2026, 22:27

@Serena Towers

Without even trying to hide it, the giant rolled his eyes at his friend's feeble attempt at what she deemed 'being professional'. If she had been professional, she'd have left the rat at home. But nothing could be done about that now. Hugh secretly hoped the rat would not last on the cart ride down to Magrin's office.

"Why would I be looking for something?" Hugh asked with a dumb frown on his face. It was not like he was in charge here. Magrin called the shots in the guard that covered his section, and so a guard went where Magrin told him to go. Perhaps Serena severely overestimated his position in the Gringotts career ladder. Despite his height, he was the lowest of the low. True to his name.

"It's my boss in security, a goblin, as you could expect. He doesn't tell me anything I'm not directly supposed to know. So either I'll find out at the same time as you what you are here for, or you'll have to tell me all about it after when I'm sent to escort you back upstairs."

There was reassurance in Hugh's voice. He would make sure Magrin would ask for him again to escort Serena out. He figured he could afford that sort of pull after his performances in the last months. And if not, he could always have Bromley screw something else up for him to be too distracted.

"Perhaps a stupid question..." Hugh began as he led Serena to the security desk in the back. "But are you good with the underground?" He did not ask because of the bank's hundreds of sublevels. He asked more because of the dark. Any student who had survived what they had in school would have more than enough reason to never trust the darkness again. And there was lots of it down here.

Without saying much, Hugh got Serena cleared through security. There was a whole process that involved weighing her wand and confirming her details that he sort of mindlessly guided her through. It was literally the easiest part of his job. He held open a gate that led to a small platform. A cart came cruising from around the corner and halted before them. Hugh's eyes slid down to Serena as he gave her a friendly smile. "Don't worry, Magrin's nothing compared to that old crank you call a boss."

INPC; Cassanora Browne

Race: Half-Giant // Ability: - STR: 16 EVA: 7 WIS: 10 STA: 20 ARC: 1 ACC: 7

14 Jul 2026, 15:53

S E R E N A - J O D H A - T O W E R S

you must forge your own path for it to mean anything

Who: @Hugh Lowe

Serena looked back at him with a shrug and a look that said 'I dunno, don't you work here?' She had no idea how secretive the bank actually was but as Hugh explained it, it kind of made sense. The less people who knew about the security designs, the safer it was, probably. It is much easier to break in if you know exactly what security measurements you were going to face as you could find a counter to them beforehand. The unexpected was what kept people on their toes. Now that she thought about it, maybe she would have to sign a agreement not to disclose any information or anything... Maybe she wouldn't even be able to tell Hugh?! That was crazy. Wait. Could she tell her boss?

In truth, she had no idea how big or small this project was. It could literally have been a case of 'One of our metal door knobs got a bit scratched up, can you get a replacement?'! As she was pondering this, she grinned at him as he asked a silly question, "Of course, I'm literally built for this! And Pizza loves undergrounds too," She added, knowing that Hugh would obviously be very worried about the rat. Serena spent most of her time in a small cove. Whether it was her small stature and her love for nature, goblin blood or the Hufflepuff within, she loved coves, hovels, burrows, anything earthy and underground.

But she took it to mean literally. Her time underground was always surrounded by fire and the fire was something she loved. Many Hogwarts students were traumatised by the fire, people thought she would be too as stories about her being burnt in a fire in her first year had made the school newspaper. Serena never disliked fires though. It was not the fire that almost killed her, it was the fire that had saved her. Hugh was right. It was the darkness that almost took her life and it was the darkness that she suddenly became afraid of for the first time in her life at the age of eleven. Even to this day, she slept with a small candle burning in her bedroom. Though, she was slightly less afraid now than she had been for years. A lot of her fear was wiped the day that she defeated the dark, saving some students from harm after they had been trapped in the basement.

Serena chuckled softly, "You know, he's not that bad right? Also... I think he said his friend works here. That might be how he got this job request..." She added, wondering exactly how Gringotts had heard of the little forge in Godric's Hollow. Maybe Hokkar omd Huimd was famous amongst the goblins. Hell, they did seem to get quite a few orders for the fact it was in the middle of nowhere and a little hard to find. Hokkar was fairly old though, he definitely knew a lot of people in different places and she wouldn't have been surprised if he had friends in management at the bank or ministry or whatever.

She was excited to meet Magrin though after what sounded like almost praises coming out of Hugh's mouth!

17 Aug 2026, 21:05

@Serena Towers

After completely ignoring Serena's defense for her old boss, the giant had escorted her safely onto a cart and arranged for himself to be her transporter.

The cart whirred in a downward spiral, grinding through loops and corners, rushing past vault doors and cave entrances. Eventually, they stopped at a small platform that did not seem to be connected to any of the Gringotts vaults. Suits of armour lined a long, narrow hallway with several sconces lighting up the path ahead. "Don't." Hugh said with a sincere punctuation mark. "Touch. Anything." He warned.

There appeared to be several more narrow halls crossing the main one, mostly stairs leading either up or down some other unknown corridor. The caverns of Gringotts were like a giant carved-out ant colony. And anyone who did not know where they needed to be was sure to get lost. At the end of the hall appeared a broad and short oaken door. A mesmerizing pattern of square carvings adorned the centuries-old wood, with a centered, unmoving iron eye staring directly ahead. Hugh knocked on it three times.

Planks slid open, splinters cracked, and parts folded into one another until there was no trace of a door left. It had retreated into its framework. Though the iron eye was now looking downwards from the load-bearing beam. Inside the room beyond, a handful of goblins stood leaning over a lower table. In fact, it was so low that it nearly had no use for legs. All heads rose except for one. The middle goblin had a rounder belly and possessed larger, squared shoulders than his seemingly younger colleagues. There were only a few strands of silver-white hair left on his head, but a copious amount of hair gel kept them locked in place.

The head goblin waved his hand around as the cigar that wiggled in his cramped fingers spread ashes all over the table. His goblin companions each nodded and made themselves scarce. "So..." He began, his grinding voice almost like a gurgle. "Old Hokkar is now too important to show himself, hm?" He grinned widely. "Or maybe he's too old, hm? Sends his lil' apprentice to do the makin?"

Hugh, who had taken position to the side of the entrance to allow Serena passage, kept silent but shot a worried look at Magrin. It was unclear to him if he was meant to be present for this. On the other hand, this sort of initial tone from Magrin had him fearing for Serena's ego not getting hammered into dust.

Magrin noticed and shook his head, indicating Hugh was meant to stay put. "So?" He sighed. "What's your name then?" The old goblin security chief looked her up and down.

"And more importantly... are you any good?"

INPC; Cassanora Browne

Race: Half-Giant // Ability: - STR: 16 EVA: 7 WIS: 10 STA: 20 ARC: 1 ACC: 7

25 Aug 2026, 13:59

S E R E N A - J O D H A - T O W E R S

you must forge your own path for it to mean anything

Who: @Hugh Lowe

Serena's toothy and rather stupid looking grin fell off her face as she approached the table with the man clearly in charge. It was kind of intimidating, if she was honest. She had to be professional, she told herself but she also did not like interacting with new people and networking was a skill she was not good at. Was he... joking or being serious? She had no idea.

"Oh, no, don't worry, Hokkar will very much be overseeing the design and final product," She responded as professionally as she could, trying to keep the customer happy whilst not insulting her boss. It was true that she had been sent here to get the initial proposal and she was very likely going to be doing the design work, forging and likely the charming too but she was certain Hokkar would - at the very least - cast his eyes over each stage to make sure it was acceptable. Probably... Or... he would definitely look at the final product and toss it into the fire if it was not up to standard.

Either way, there was no way they would be handing any faulty products to the bank. After all, this mattered involved security and Hokkar took his work seriously. "Oh, I'm Serena," She replied with a small smile on her face, trying to be professional. Maybe she ought to have given her full name. But... after disowning her family, she was not entirely sure if she ought to be using her father's surname in a place that might have actually recognised it. She had no idea who her father knew but the man was much better at networking than she was and it was certainly possible that he knew many goblins here, "And... I suppose I like to have my work speak for itself. If it isn't up to your standards, of course, we can find a replacement," She continued as she opened up her shoulder bag and pulled out some paperwork.

"Some previous designs, if you're interested," She offered, holding out half a ream of parchment bound together that she had pulled out of a very small bag. It was her portfolio of designs. Hundreds of different designs, from customer orders to her own designs. There was a range to try and show different things she could do, and whilst there was also written information to say what the item could do or moving photographs that showed the item in use, there was no mention of the specific charms and runes placed on them to keep those hidden. "For privacy reasons and to avoid countersecurity measures, there are no security specific designs, of course, but it may show you the variety or quality of my work."

She also had a few samples on her. Not only was she wearing her own armour - which he would see matching designs of within the portfolio - she also had a few other items if he wanted them. Serena would pull them out of her bag if he showed any indication to see them. Hugh would recognise at least one, which was a small armour for a rat - the battle armour that she had made when they went to war against a hag slug Erin some years ago. The others were newer. A detailed engraving of a family emblem on a small handheld shield that would turn full-size when activated, a small dagger that would glow blue when danger was present, a wand holder than differed from the one she wore on her arm and her personal favourite, a small toy that she had recently made.

The small toy that had a few buttons where one button would play some soft lullaby, another would cause the item to open up into a baby mobile and slowly spin around in the air, another would play white noise instead and another would cause the item to glow a little so the roof above them had some star like visuals.

She stood there with bated breath, unsure of whether or not this man would approve of her. If he deemed her at least worthy enough to try, they could continue the conversation. If this stuff did not impress him even in the slightest then she would have to go back to Hokkar seeking out an alternative and... she was dreading that. It would not go well. He had to approve. Right?

Hokkar did not take apprentices easily. So whilst he criticised her often, she had to be decent enough for him to trust her to come here... right?She stared straight at the Head Goblin the entire time, not even daring to glance at Hugh.

29 Aug 2026, 11:15

@Serena Towers

Magrin gave Serena another long, judging look. Hugh could not help an awkward shuffle as he instinctively moved in to protect his friend. His boss was the first to speak. "Serena ey? Bit of an unusual name." The old goblin scratched his chin as he seemingly studied her height. Hugh had the impression that Magrin knew Serena was hiding something. Or at the very least, not immediately sharing with him.

The security chief reached out and accepted Serena's portfolio. He surprisingly took his time to go through them all. A detail Hugh figured worth noting to his friend afterwards: the goblin was usually very conservative with his time. Hugh's eyes briefly locked onto one of the designs (his height allowed him to comfortably look down on whatever it was Magrin was looking at). He rolled his eyes when he realized what it was. But it was Magrin who commented. "You, uh, plannin' on armin' rats now?" Hugh could notice Magrin's eyes flash towards the nooks and crannies of the room. He did not like the idea of armed rodents making their way into the vaults.

The old goblin eventually cleared his throat, trying to regain his stern composure. "I guess I like what I see, Serena" He waved her to step around the table over to his side. "There are actually a few things I need from Hokkar, or I guess his lot." His smile could be described as friendly-looking, but only barely. "A few months ago, someone..." His eyes locked briefly on Hugh. "...managed to break one of our enchanted suits of armour." He stood up straight, belly out. "I'd like you to get started with fixin' up that one. Feel free to give the new pieces your own little twists; I don't mind how eclectic they look. I need it to be able to do its job again."

Hugh audibly sighed as he was reminded of his first failure as a guard. but he was glad to soon be rid of the evidence of his carnage. 'A pair of walking clubs for arms' was what he was called back then; he remembered. Magrin continued. "If you do a good job with that, we can sit together and discuss the actual custom piece I require. Don't worry, you can tell Hokkar we'll compensate both him and you for your time. We're a bank for Gringotts' sake. We can pay."

INPC; Cassanora Browne

Race: Half-Giant // Ability: - STR: 16 EVA: 7 WIS: 10 STA: 20 ARC: 1 ACC: 7