August 15th 12:23-12:24 pm 2058 - Downtown Seattle
She began singing the song and Stalker became lost in it. He hadn't heard the song in over a decade but he found that he remembered every word. It had been one of his grandparents favorites and it immediately brought back memories that hadn't surface in many, many years. He could see them singing to each other and dancing around the living room of the house as his uncles rolled their eyes at each other and John laughed at both of them. He suddenly missed them all in a way he hadn't since he left everything behind when he was a kid.
He let the music wash over him and pushed the sadness away from him, making himself instead enjoy the music, her voice, the rhythm. It was almost hypnotic and he wondered again at the her talent. She had a gift, no doubt about it but she wasn't using magic to augment it. Maybe it was just the emotional context of the song but she had an excellent voice and while not a virtuoso, she was a good solid musician with her instrument of choice.
She clearly hadn't been worried him for any reason other than being a perv. Her tension had melted away immediately upon his reassurance that he wasn't, although, this wasn't the smartest reaction in the world in and of itself. He knew he wasn't wrong in his assessment of her magical state but couldn't comprehend her lack of comprehension to what he had been referring. Almost any other reaction to it he could get but this total blank? It was a puzzle.
The song ended and she seemed lost in thought for a moment as she drained her cup. She looked up from draining her coffee and asked him how he liked the song. With a slight smile he spoke in a quiet voice, "That was fantastic. It would be tough to imagine it being done any better."
He started to ask her if she wanted another cup of coffee when he became aware of someone stepping up to the busker. He would have ignored it as just another passer-by, one of many since he had been sitting her against the wall with the busker except for several things. One, he was tall. Extremely tall, over seven feet. Two, they were clearly his goal and people got out of his path as he stepped up to them. Three, Stalker could recognize a faint scent of gun oil about the man. Even if he wasn't carrying, he was someone used to being around firearms on a regular basis.
He glanced up at the man as he reached into his pocket but there was not the least sign of aggression in the movement so it didn't worry him too much. He watched the man tossed a wad of cash in the guitar case. The reaction of the street busker as she recognized him and the following exchange was worth the price of admission. She knew him on the basis of mere acquaintance and the banter between them was amusing and fun to watch. Yet another interesting addition to what was turning into a distracting puzzle. It had definitely turned into a good choice to come into town today. This girl who seemed oblivious and her friend Too Tall? 'Curiouser and curiouser, cried Alice!', he thought to himself.
When the man she called Lobo turned to him and said, "Women. Sometimes there's no satisfying them.", Stalker had to laugh out loud. As his life died to a chuckle, Stalker looked up at him, "I see you have learned one of the great truths of life. You have indeed begun your journey down the path to true enlightenment."
