This was the place, Simon thought.

With his ever trustful Gaston at hand, he had prepared a sack in which he had currently kept some clothes. Inviting Gaston to join him in prayer, the two waited for the annointed hour - or some other sign.

You catch a creaking sound as the southern door of the abbey opens, and a slip of a young woman steps in. Her cloak is heavy around slim shoulders, and delicate fingers hold it closed against the wind and the rain. She nods in your direction and pulls back her hood to give her blond hair a chance to breathe.

"A pleasant night for chapel, my lord," she says, smiling.

Simon nods before turning to the guest.

"Yes, it is. I hope your journey here wasn't too strenuous?"

"Not too bad, my lord." She smiles, the droplets continuing to run off her cloak. "It could be worse. How was the trip from France?"

"It was calm enough, thankfully - the tide seemed to be in our favour."

"Excellent." She moves in your direction. "Well, I must say that my client was very pleased with the outcome of our transaction. I've included a small bonus for a job well done."

She produces a sizeable purse from the folds in her cloak and holds it out to you.

"Gaston, would you be kind enough to check the purse? No one keeps our finances like you, so I'll trust you with our accounting."
"Yes, sir."

While Gaston took to checking and counting the purse, 'Ivory' decided to check.

"I wonder - was there somewhere else we could have met? Why here?"

It was a simple test to ensure they were who they said they were - if the agent knew of either his request or the reasons for rejection, then security would be considered tight.

"The Blessed Virgin watches out for the righteous," she replies without any sense of trouble or being off-put. It seems that Agent Hagar, if that is who this is, is a professional.

Gaston discovers that the sack contains 350 pounds stirling.

"If I may ask," she says quietly, "would you perhaps be interested in further work?"

Simon nodded, accepting the answer given.

He then further accepted the pouch from Gaston, before getting Gaston to make sure the door was closed behind them before speaking himself in hushed tones.

"In what specifically? Acting on behalf of Her Majesty or something more inline with the fate of the late?"

Agent Hagar raises an eyebrow. "I haven't the faintest idea as of yet," she says, a half-smile playing about her lips. "One makes do with the jobs one is given. What does their source truly matter?"

Simon is polite, but firm.

"Then I must assume the worst. I wish no more part in the taking of life, but perhaps if there is more... savoury work, such as providing sanctuary or hiding people, my ear may be open. But when I accepted your offer I was not myself - I do not wish to burden your smile with the details."

Having heard Gaston's account, he returns 50 of the pounds given to him.

"I will accept no more than what I gave my word to accept. The rest is yours personally, agent. I am in no position to tell you what to do with it."

Her smile fades.

"Disappointing, my lord, but not entirely unexpected. This trade is not for everyone." She accepts the return of the money, tucking the sack back into her cloak. "Thank you for your efforts. I hope that...well, if you should seek expiation, I hope it is granted you."

She curtsies and turns to depart.

He bows, letting her depart.

While alone with his valet he looks over the money, before placing the pouch in the sack they came in with.

"Yes... let us hope I find it. For I fear what man I will become if I do not."

[/scene?]

/scene.