Harpies are gossips, schemers, and the whispered word in exactly the wrong ear. They can turn a vampire's unlife into hell over nothing more than an ugly tie or an ill-timed insult. Many of the best Harpies, the most observant, sharp-tongued, and quick-witted, are elders, though talented ancillae and even the occasional neonate can rise into these hidden positions of power. A neonate who tries to force that ascent, however, usually finds their betters turning on them without mercy; most are flayed verbally on the spot. If they are lucky, they are only humiliated.
Harpies are rarely appointed outright. Those with the right instincts usually moved through elite social circles in life as popular gossips, dilettantes, and socialites. As in life, these social butterflies hover wherever the beautiful people gather, doing much what they always did. They are unmoved by posturing, display extraordinary insight into both human and vampiric nature, and often possess a near-unerring ability to see through pretense and affectation.
Most Harpies come from the "social" clans, especially Toreador and Ventrue, though more than a few sharp-minded Brujah and lucid Malkavian elders have filled the role as well.
Rudeness, vulgarity, speaking out of turn, disrespect, or obvious stupidity can put a vampire directly in a Harpy's sights. Some may sneer that the disapproval of a few "relics" and "paper-pushers" means little in the grand scheme of things, but Harpies, and their victims, rarely agree. In an age when information is both power and currency, Harpies and their webs of gossip can be astonishingly effective, ensuring an offender receives either a very warm or a very, very cold welcome wherever they go.
Harpies also help negotiate and formalize prestation agreements, and they are often asked to support their Princes during diplomatic visits, secure elder approval for passing through Elysium metal detectors with perfect courtesy, and politely direct any potential disease carrier to the laboratory for "tests."