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[polarisation]

WHO polarisation / OPEN to the Hostel.
WHAT "Lowell", the hostel manager, makes the rounds at the hostel to make sure no one has magically disappeared. He needs to keep the room roster up to date, after all!
WHERE Le Gode Hostel.
WHEN All day of Wednesday, the 13th.
NOTES Feel free to assume your character either is or isn't on Sefton's check-up-on list-

Comments

[weightofadie]

Hard work and Arthur go together like bread and a very expensive, very fine wine. Anyone who has ever worked with the point man will know that it would be an effort for Arthur to not work hard, and as such he's almost forgotten to pay up what he and Eames owe on their rent. It's a realization that catches him by surprise and annoys him all at once and he almost forgets to lock the door behind him as he decides that one way or another he's going to have to pay now before someone comes looking

[polarisation]

Sefton almost didn't notice the man approach. He was in the middle of writing something into a textbook he had cradled in his lap, up at the front desk. It was his own attempt at self-education, which had been going about as well as one could be expected; he was just glad he could get his hands on the materials, really.

The footsteps finally registered, however, and he glanced up in time to snap the book shut, set it aside, and take a more professional position. He waited until Arthur was closer before he asked, "Can I help you?"

[weightofadie]

"Evening," Arthur's manners don't desert him in the face of anyone, even a guy with very, very blue hair. He nods his greeting with a small and mostly neutral smile and stops in front of the desk, one hand sliding into his pocket, the other holding up a pouch of money. There's enough inside to pay for his and Eames' room for the next week.

"I'm just here to pay up for the next week. Is that alright, if I do that here?" And if he just happens to figure out which rooms are still vacant and as far away from occupied rooms as possible, he may have a meeting point for that sedative he needs to test out.

[polarisation]

Sefton nodded, holding his hand out for the money to be placed in. "Yeah, of course. This is the front desk," he said almost humorously. "What room is this for, again?"

[weightofadie]

"Well, I guess I'm in luck," Arthur returns and passes the pouch over, sure that remaining a polite, seemingly harmless guy is better than giving away too much information.

"Room 520. There should be enough for the next week but let me know if I'm short," though he already knows very well that the exact amount has been counted out and verified, but there's no harm in pretending to be retiring and passive.

[polarisation]

Sefton took the pouch carefully - overly careful, in fact, not to touch an inch of Arthur's hand as it was handed over. He would count it later. With Arthur living here, he would be easy enough to contact if it turned out lacking.

"Sure," he answered amicably. There wasn't anything particularly unusual about the exchange. Although everywhere else in the city practically festered with immorality, it seemed that running an establishment specifically meant to house those unused to the nature of Bete Noire made for a much easier crowd to handle. "Thank you."

[weightofadie]

Arthur isn't sure why he's being thanked for actually paying his rent, but then he considers that maybe he and Eames are in the minority. Not that he's going to think too hard on the morality of it all. The money he's paying with isn't really theirs, but instead what the forger has managed to lift off unsuspecting Bete Noire residents.

"You're welcome. Things seem pretty quiet around here. Are there less guests than usual staying?"

[polarisation]

"Uh..." What a strange question. "Not especially," he answered, head canting to the side thoughtfully. "We've got kind of a... specialized clientele here."

[weightofadie]

"People who've just arrived?" Arthur asks and doesn't really need the answer to know he's mostly on the right track. It's enough to have him nod that he understands.

"I just wondered how many new people come into the city every day."

[polarisation]

"Seems like a lot sometimes," Sefton said. It really wasn't, not in comparison to how many other people lived in the city. "But... even then, sometimes they don't come here. So I couldn't really tell you."

[weightofadie]

"Where else can people stay if they've only just arrived?" Arthur's sure that he's been told on more than one occasion that the city isn't the friendliest of places to get started in. He just doesn't know where else people would stay, if not for the hostel.

[polarisation]

"Uh," Sefton said, running a hand through his hair real quick. It wasn't a nervous motion so much as habit while he thought. "There's the Victoria Hotel, though they don't give you as long as here, um... but mostly people either don't stay here 'cause they've already got money, or they might know people here, or they're just... stubborn. With accepting the offer. Y'know?"

[weightofadie]

"There's a hotel?" Arthur feels uncomfortable at the idea that he didn't know that. It has less to do with being more accustomed to expensive hotels back home and more to do with his research error. He prides himself on knowing as much as there is to know about everything. He's just quick to try and bring that expression under control, focus back on the guy sitting behind the desk.

[polarisation]

Sefton nodded in response. "Yeah, there is."

He caught the expression, the momentary lapse, and tried not to think about what it could have meant. He was observant and he was intelligent, but he did his best not to be a busybody. It wasn't his place to try and figure that sort of stuff out if it didn't seem dangerous.

"You want the address?" he offered.

[weightofadie]

"No, no. This is perfectly alright," Arthur says and is clearly talking about the hostel. He and Eames are already set up in the hostel with no reason to cut their losses just yet. He can't guarantee that will be the same in the next few weeks, but he knows they should be making the most of as many places to stay as possible.

"But thank you. I appreciate the help."

[polarisation]

"Of course." Whether Sefton advertised it or not, he was the owner here and it was his job to help the residents if it looked like something he could do in a managerial capacity.