Like My Mother Does

[Beau LaRoux]

Beau sighed, leaning against the door and feeling the chilled air hitting his skin. He'd been standing there for a while now, his guitar sitting beside him, the heat of the bar almost calling him inward. But there had been a crowd of people gathered there, likely because it was cold and everyone wanted to be inside where the heat and drink and music was. Well, the music was going to be, if Beau ever go himself unstuck from his current situation. The bouncer was apparently out sick, which meant that nobody was really handling the door. Beau was hardly the most imposing figure, and his power was a crap shoot, so it wasn't helping either. No, instead he'd gotten stuck there because of manners.

Mama, sometimes... Beau thought as he smiled at the next person walking in. Half the people didn't even say thank you, which kinda grated on Beau's nerves after a while. Why couldn't the people of Vermont be half as polite as the people of Louisiana? Or maybe it just had to do with the fact that Beau was holding the door open for people who wanted to get their drink on. True, there were several girls that gave him the eye as they passed, and admittedly one or two got a look back. Something, or more accurately someone, kept coming to mind though, so Beau didn't do much more than a quick look back.

He did wanna get in though. He was supposed to be playing tonight, and while his mama might approve of his manners, since she'd done plenty of head-smacking to instill them into the Southern boy, Beau doubted that she'd want him to waste an opportunity to actually, you know, do his job and play. He just didn't see how to do that without abandoning the people at the door, and that just didn't sit well with him at all.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani's face was obscured by a scarf and he had a beanie pulled low over his brows so that his eyes were the only thing left open to the world. He breathed easily as he crouched over the city scape. The telekinetic blended seamlessly into the darkened sky and buildings. He rose to his feet and slid his feet off the edge of the roof his body twisting easily to catch the sill. His toes gripped the crevices in the brick and he slithered sideways melting around windows as people dined on late dinners inside. He reached the corner of his own apartment complex and with little effort he cast himself away from the wall into open air. He pitched his body forward and caught the slender sill with his toes and took a moment to establish balance. Then it was up. He jumped up and caught the sill of the next window with his hands and pulled himself up. He repeated this process twice more before he finally hauled himself up onto the roof. Staying low Lani sprinted across the shingles. He took a leap from that to another building and then another. Lani slowed and peered over the edge of the building. He had to cross an intersection now. This was going to be a challenge. Lani smiled, he loved a challenge. He took his bag off his shoulder and drew out a length of rope.

He threw it out and it strung across the intersection and down toward a closed window. It would take good timing for this one. He pulled his bag back over his shoulder and caught the rope. He watched as a car came and as it passed under him he gripped the rope and slid. His power held it still and rigid and at the last moment his power tricked the alarmed window and it slid open long enough for Lani and the rope to slip through before closing as though nothing had happened. Taking a moment to catch his breath Lani stretched out his power and found the cameras. The thief slithered in the shadows living up to his police given name and only ever revealing a shadow for a split second. Then it was there. The safe. The safe which held a wealthy man's information. Lani smiled. It was well protected and Lani honestly had no idea what it was so valuable, all he knew was that someone was paying him a hell of a lot to get at it. He closed his eyes and drew from his pocket a smoking device. Just as he'd expected. Changing laser alarms. They flashed momentarily as they changed direction, cycling through three different settings. It took only seconds for Lani to get the pattern and memorize it. His power painted them in his head and with a breath and a few steps back Lani dove forward.

If Adrianna had seen him, she would probably say something about dancing but Lani didn't count his acrobatics as dance moves. It took only moments to crack the safe with his skilled fingers and Lani was slipping out the window again in a matter of minutes. Precious minutes as the timed alarm on the safe had set off an alarm even Lani's power couldn't suppress. He watched the cops arrive from the window of the adjacent building. Planned perfectly to a tee Lani changed quickly from his black and gray disguise to a nice button up and jeans. He had the papers requested as well as several gems that had been too tempting to let lie in his bag and hidden by his clothes. He waited until the hallway was quiet then slipped out of the closet. The bag looked no different than a messenger bag carried by so many people no a day and it was really not effort at all for Lani to slip down the stairs and blend into the crowd. He had ended up in a bar and as tempting as it was for him to pick a few pockets and buy himself a drink he refrained. His package was far too precious to risk.

However, when he reached the doorman he couldn't resist taking a little pleasure in his handiwork. "Thank you," he said politely to the kid holding the door. He acted startled as he started to head toward the building that now had cop cars flashing out front. "Geez, what's going on over there?" He was curious if the doorman had seen anything or had been paying attention at all. He took a moment to look over the doorman. A rather small boy, no threat, but he seemed very unhappy with the circumstances that had put him out in the cold.

[Beau LaRoux]

Amazing what you could miss when you were focused on the little things. Beau had been busy acting as a human doorstop, and he hadn't even noticed the cars until the flashing lights caught his attention. Beau found himself looking over that way for a moment, wondering what the heck could have the local police all riled up like that. Given that this was Pilot Ridge, it could be just about anything. Beau had even heard about some sort of group, FUSE or PURGE or something that had been stirring folks up lately.

Which is where his thoughts were when the guy spoke to him. Beau of course muttered a "welcome," his manners operating on automatic. The question hit right where he was thinking, though all Beau could do was shrug. "I don't rightly know," he admitted, "been stuck here holdin' the door for folks," he turned, both to look into the club and to better face the other guy. Beau couldn't shake the feeling that he'd seen the guy around before, but whoever it was certainly wasn't anyone that Beau had spent time with. It did feel a little weird though, Beau couldn't recall seeing the guy before. Probably just missed it though.

"Probly's got somethin' to do with those folks that are goin' around rilin' folks up," said Beau, offering up his guess. He shrugged and then shifted, letting more folks pass by. When they did, Beau realized that he could just barely sense the new ability he'd picked up. The other guy probably had a good handle on it, which meant that Beau would be utterly clueless as to what exactly it was unless asked. Which, given Beau's stance on meta abilities, wasn't likely. The young musician twisted to look, frowning. He hoped that the ruckus wasn't going to stop the show. People were already staring, and the guy who'd talked to Beau wasn't the only one walking that way. People were drawn to police lights like moths to a flame.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani took a moment of the boy’s turned eyes to give him a once over. For sure he knew now that he could outrun him at least. Unless this kid had some sort of power that made him faster or otherwise able to keep Lani there. But the other boy started speaking and Lani’s nerves dissipated quick as a breeze. The best thing about humans was that they were more or less stuck in their own worlds until someone turned them around and forced them to look. Lani smiled politely and shifted to the side so he could then get a better look. It was only half true that the thief returned to the scene of the crime. There were times when they did, to view their handiwork or otherwise gloat silently. Then there were moments like these when they kept their distance and let those who did want to see what was going on take on a sliver of the blame.

It wasn’t in Lani’s best interest to stick around and he usually was one of those who if he returned it was by random happening and not for a purpose. He stared and started to shift away when something the other man said stopped him. His brow creased and he gave the other boy a curious look. “Wait, who’s been causing trouble?” He asked his first instinct was to be a little territorial. He was a soldier in Boston and he’d deserted. He didn’t expect to be the only thief in Pilot Ridge but if there was a group trying to make a move into Pilot Ridge Lani would be disturbed. He was not looking to get into another gang or mob, what he was looking for was for his source of revenue to stay safe. In Boston there were rival gangs everywhere and often times it was a fight for a good heist. Pilot Ridge didn’t have a lot of competition and Lani wanted it to stay that way.

Lani frowned now, unsettled a bit by the chance for something else going on. He’d been so caught up in his own problems and especially with the trial in Boston. He’d had no time for anyone’s problems save his own. If there was a political group on the move Lani had missed it. He shivered a little and felt a bit of sympathy for the kid having to play doorman in the cold. Taking a moment Lani sighed and shook his head. He caught sight of the guitar case and smiled at the kid. “Are you supposed to be playing tonight?” He asked gesturing with his chin back into the club. There wasn’t an ounce of guilt in Lani’s veins but he was curious as to why the doorman would have a guitar. If this kid had a show to do he was not getting very far by being the doorman. Lani’s expression turned a little sly as he regarded the scene from afar.

[Beau LaRoux]

The question caught Beau by surprise, and it probably showed on his face, at least for a few moments. Who hadn't heard about the rallies and all that stuff? Wasn't like the group was exactly quiet. Maybe this guy had just shown up here? Though usually the people who just arrived were younger. Either way, Beau had a question to answer: "Don't know for sure who's involved. Group's called FUSE or PLUS or somethin' along those lines, ain't big on metas an' I think they're stirrin' up trouble," Beau turned to look at the lights again, wondering. He hadn't exactly been against the group, at least based on what he'd heard. It was really hard to put the whole meta thing in black and white. Though Beau had to admit that three years ago, he'd probably be right there with them.

But it wasn't three years ago, it was today, here and now. And in the here and now Beau had a show that he was supposed to do, which apparently the other guy noticed. Beau looked over at his guitar, still propped within arm's length, and nodded. "Yeah, I'm supposed to be one of the acts on for tonight," he admitted. "Play a little music an' sing," bit of an understatement there, but Beau just shrugged and looked up at the guy. "People been--excuse me," this was half to the guy and half to a girl who walked by, taking advantage of Beau's courtesy, though with an added smile. "People been walkin' on through. I'm Beau, by the way, Beau LaRoux," and he extended a hand.

[Lani Hunter]

It was a strange situation for Lani to find himself needing information. He must really have been under a rock these past few weeks to have missed this. His eyes widened and his brows crept toward his hairline in shock. An anti-meta group? Here in Pilot Ridge? What were they? Insane? Lani hummed a little, more than a little disturbed by this news. That could not bode well. “Really?” He mused thinking aloud, “Has Hammel done anything?” He asked now. He didn’t know if this guy was a meta human or not, and Lani was not very hesitant to use his power or admit to it. There was a time he would have and if there was an anti-meta group it might be wise to regress into the lie of the plain human. If Dr. Neville knew anything about this he certainly hadn’t let on that he did. Lani frowned, he hated being lied to, which was a very hypocritical feeling and he knew it.

The thought unsettled Lani and the thief immediately started thinking about what it was that he could use his particular skills to do. Lani would not be in the dark for long. Well, let this FUSE or PLUS take the blame for this. It set things right in his book, he did the crime but let the real criminals take the hit. Lani turned back to the younger man and smiled. Lani shifted out of the way at the break in the words. He shifted back then to the side across the line of people so he was effectively not in the way and he shook his head indicating that he the younger man should indeed do his job without worrying about entertaining Lani’s thoughts as well.

Lani’s brow rose and he gave an impish smile. “So, you’re supposed to be an act tonight… but you’re out here… opening the door for people?” Lani said pointing inside then pointing to the ground beneath their feet. It was the telekinetic’s little way of informing this kid that he was being taken advantage of. Lani extended his hand and smiled. He’d gotten into using his last name as a first name as a cover, first for Ricio who he still wasn’t completely sure wasn’t a cop, then again with Molly. He knew Odion used to use his last name as a first name and technically it wasn’t a lie, it was a half truth. “Hunter,” he took a quick pause to make sure he was thinking of the right name on one of his aliases, “Hunter Toskah. So LaRoux, is that French or something?" He really should know better than to stop and chat a while, but he was still interested in what this kid had to tell him.

[Beau LaRoux]

Beau shrugged, "I ain't got a clue if Hammel's done anythin'," he admitted. It really hadn't had anything to do with him. Those flashing lights in the near distance were the closest Beau had ever come to any such group, and it was likely to remain that way. He didn't relish the idea of getting involved in something like that unless he absolutely had to. He looked over at the lights, wondering if maybe Hammel should be doing something. Group like that located in the town that housed the meta school... had to be asking for trouble, even Beau could see that much.

The question made Beau look back at the newcomer. He chuckled, kicking his foot against the door a few times. "Yeah, I'm thinkin' they're takin' advantage of my good manners again," he admitted. He rolled his head a little to get a look inside the building, where he knew they'd be calling him rather soon. "Ain't no one else doin' anythin' about it, an' it seemed like the right thing to do," he finished with a slight shrug. it didn't really bother him, despite the cold. He'd rather be taken advantage of while doing the right thing anyway.

the guy offered his name and Beau smiled and nodded, taking it in. Hunter Toskah; the name didn't ring a bell, well, maybe the first name. Beau got the feeling he knew someone with that name or was really close to someone with it or something; maybe in another life. But he wasn't even going to try to get that last name right.

"It's Cajun or somethin'," offered Beau, shrugging again, "I'm from Louisiana, 'riginally. That's why I got this charmin' accent," he chuckled at that, then moved a little further in, heading toward his instrument. "You oughta stick around, listen to me. I'm pretty good, if you're a fan of country, an' halfway decent even if you ain't."

[Lani Hunter]

Lani hummed now the sound going dark with concern. If Hammel wasn’t stepping up maybe things weren’t all that bad, but then again it could be that these anti-meta creepers were trying to goad Hammel into a conflict. The latter didn’t bode well for anyone involved. Nothing about this was sitting well with Lani. He glanced at the cops and was suddenly very afraid for another reason. If they knew he was meta and if they then knew that he’d gotten off because of Boston. He shook his head, that wouldn’t happen. If it did he would have to step in, until then Lani might even be best at getting into the shadows with this. No one ever looked for those who were not meant to be seen. Lani was good at what he did and well, he also took a certain pleasure in it, especially if it hit someone he hated hard.

A sneaky grin flashed over Lani’s face and laughter slipped through his teeth. “Well, therein lies your problem,” Lani said decisively. Lani cocked his head in interest, what a strange boy. Well Beau was definitely a kinder soul than Lani, Lani had the patience to hold the door open for a friend or maybe a person following him through a door but otherwise, everyone had hands. “Suit yourself,” Lani commented, “But there is a line between being polite and letting people walk all over you.” He hoped this kid wasn’t also supposed to play bouncer, he was about as intimidating as the guitar next to him, too polite, and too caring. He would probably be easy to manipulate. Lani bit his tongue surprised by the thought. It appeared the apple didn’t actually fall far from the tree at all. He’d been taught too well and he’d manipulated the man who manipulated him. And now he was thinking about manipulating this poor kid. He dismissed the thought and filed away the information he gleaned from the kid for a future date.

“Ah,” Lani uttered and nodded, “Now it makes sense.” There was the accent and then there was the French influence through New Orleans and the rest of the boot shaped state. Lani swung his head from side to side in consideration. It was tempting but the weight of his crime rested literally on his shoulders in his bag. It would probably be a bad idea. Oh well, it wasn’t like someone could search him without probable cause, he was actually well protected here. “Eh, I don’t know, country?” He exaggerated a wince and smiled to show he was joking, he hated country, some of it wasn’t bad but most of it, well Lani was much more into the rock side of the music. “Really though, I’ve gotta work early. Maybe…” Lani grabbed his phone and checked the time. It was still very early. He glanced back at the cops and shrugged. “Do you write your own stuff?”

[Beau LaRoux]

Beau just chuckled as Lani identified the problem. Yeah, he knew it; he'd pretty well known it since the dozenth or so person had walked past him. Didn't change things though, and the smile that crossed Beau's face now said that as loud as any words would have managed. As for that line: "Don't you worry, I know where that line is," said Beau. His voice was still on the light side, but there was a potential in there, a slight edge. Beau was willing to do what was right, sure, but he also knew all too well what Lani said. He'd been doing this for years, after all, and he wasn't naive; ignorant, maybe, but not naive.

The location explanation probably gave a lot away, really. It seemed to work for Lani, which is what Beau had been hoping for. The next reaction though, to Beau's music, was one that the Southern boy was all too familiar with. He chuckled, tapping his foot against the door again. "I get that a lot; usually folks change their mind after a song or two. 'sides, I can play some Southern rock an' a few others things too, if people want," Beau grinned at that, the slight suggestion of a request wiggling its way on out there. He'd done more than his share of covers of classic rock songs before, and he could even play some newer ones, if it came to it. His voice wasn't always the best match for it though.

As for that last question: "Yep, write an' sing a few of my own too. Not usually a lot for a crowd like this," he jerked his head into the bar, "but some." With that, Beau moved to pick up his instrument. All the talk about singing and playing was making him want to get in there and do it. Plus, the crowd was either staring at the cop car or already inside, for the most part. Wouldn't get much better chance than now. Beau did stop to look at Hunter, waiting a few moments to see what the other guy was gonna do.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani raised a brow and shrugged. At least this wasn’t news to Beau. Lani couldn’t help but fell a little twinge of pity for the poor boy, after all Beau wasn’t a typical name and didn’t necessarily fit into people’s assumptions of manliness. Lani felt that sting, after all in most situations Lani was a girl’s name and he had had to knock a few heads to get respected. Well, it had worked and he honestly wondered who really cared. Male or female, was there really such a difference? Lani shrugged off the train of thought and back to the conversation. “Well that’s good, but really, you wanna be standing out here in the cold? People do have hands.” He pointed out, his sarcasm was starting to show.

Tilting his head up Lani gave the boy a smirk. Beau had a lot of confidence and Lani was interested honestly to see if that confidence had any backing for it Beau had a bad case of boasting. Lani hoped it was the former, he liked Beau, Beau was nice and he didn’t seem like the delusional kind of person. “Challenge accepted,” Lani said narrowing his eyes. “Bah,
Southern Rock? Kid there is only one kinda rock that matters.” He laughed and shook his head, he was a big fan of old rock like The Who and he was a big fan of the metal and alternative bands. He wasn’t sure that southern rock was something he had actually ever given the time of day. Lani wasn’t a professional by any means and he usually didn’t listen to what other people said, he liked what he liked and he wasn’t going to change. Not in day. Perhaps that was a little bit of his stubbornness showing, he didn’t have to not like country. Hell, he might like it if he gave it a chance, but he would never give it the chance.

“Why not?” Lani asked looking at the people, they would all be drunk soon anyways, they weren’t going to boo him off the stage if he was any good at all. “You never know who might be listening.” Lani smiled impishly as Beau took up his guitar. “Don’t look at me,” he told the kid, “I’m not gonna tell you what to do, do you wanna be out here, holding open doors all night?” He looked around at the crowd that had more or less either going toward or away from the cops. “Listen, kid, if you go in right now, I’ve got enough time to see if you really can convince me of this ‘southern rock’.” He air quoted the last bit and smiled simply waiting to see if the kid would do his job first or finally see that they were shoving him out in the cold. Lani wondered if the bar would actually be upset if Beau left his post. Oh well, not his problem.

[Beau LaRoux]

Beau let the comment slide. His jacket was good and the cold didn't bother him as much as it used to. Maybe if this had been a few years ago, Beau would've taken note of the chilly winter air, but now? Now Beau had been here for three years; he'd more than gotten used to a little chill. And he wasn't going to let something like the weather stop him from doing what he thought was the right thing.

And it sounded like he'd at least managed to talk Hunter into heading into the bar. The owners were always psyched whenever Beau put more butts in seats, and that was something he was fairly good at. Usually it involved flirting with a girl or whatever, but that didn't stop him from convincing a male to actually stop and listen to some music. There was always some common ground there, and if nothing else, they often complimented him on his guitar playing or voice, which was enough for Beau. "Well, I can play a lot of rock," offered Beau, adding a shrug, "ain't able to play anything I ain't heard though, but you never know."

He'd been known to play some classics. Everyone enjoyed the Beatles; you could probably use their music as a basic test to see if someone was actually human. Beau knew a few other classic rock artists too, though he wasn't going to list any now. He had his guitar in hand and the guy was being as brusque as ever, which gave Beau more than enough to nod and head inside. The warmth of the bar was definitely welcome, despite Beau's own mental assertions of his cold tolerance. The smells were familiar enough that Beau barely even registered them: faint smell of smoke that probably shouldn't be there, strong smell of alcohol, and a faint hint of body odor. There was a stage with a small band, a few of which waved at Beau, a gesture he returned as he started through the crowd. He figured that Hunter could find a place somewhere; the bar had enough seats thanks to the sirens out there. Still enough people that the bartender gave Beau a "do your thing" look. Then again, Beau got that look pretty often.

[Lani Hunter]

The wind picked up a few leaves and Lani took a glance back at the cops. It might not be a bad idea to stick around and wait until it died down a little and if it didn’t it was so easy to get lost in a bar and escape out the back. This kid was really too sweet for his own good, Lani noted. Beau here would probably never realize, nor even consider, that the reason the cops were around here was because of the man he spoke to at the moment. Lani smiled to himself, he was really good at what he did and it was rather exciting to get away with it. That rush of adrenaline that came from the knowledge that he was doing something illegal and getting away with it. He’d gotten caught once and that was luckily only because they’d been looking for him, for an entirely different reason than stealing. But lessons had been learned and he was not going to be caught again.

At the kid’s offer Lani smiled and waved a hand dismissively. “Do what you wanna do,” he said with a little laugh. He couldn’t please everyone, there came a time when one had to be selfish. Lani’s smile faded faintly, he had that problem. He could talk all about how Beau should look out for himself and at the same time Lani was ready more often than not to throw away his happiness for someone else’s. All of the sudden Lani was jealous of Beau and his honest work. Lani didn’t know how to do anything but steal. He wanted a future in something else, which was why he was still going to school, but at the same time here he was stolen information in his bag. He was stuck. He couldn’t afford school without stealing and he couldn’t stop stealing because he was addicted.

“Alright,” Lani said more to himself than to Beau as the kid decisively moved toward the door. Lani followed inside and took a quick survey of the surroundings. He didn’t want to drink, he’d been doing that all too frequently lately and he was technically not in the clear yet with his loot. Instead he went and just asked for water and turned to find a table. There were some people standing and some sitting and otherwise. He lost sight of Beau in the crowd and went to find himself a place to settle. He chose a table by the wall and close to the back staircase he’d initially come down. He sat back and put his bag between his knees and locked his power on it to be extra sure no one like him tried to take off with it. The law was a terrifying monster but the real menace was other thieves. He’d taken a risk and trusted and thief and it had left his heart in shambles. He shook his head, he was not going to think of Odion, nor the time they had gone out together and gotten silly drunk. He pushed the memory of Odion out of his mind and turned his attention to the stage.

[Beau LaRoux]

At least by now Beau was used to moving through crowds of people. He felt his abilities shift as he walked through that thick group, moving through the gambit of possibilities. He had to admit, there were times when he really wished that he'd pick up somebody's teleportation or flight ability. Only problem there was that Beau had no idea how well he'd handle it once he got out of his ten feet range. Knowing his luck, he'd attempt to fly and wind up crashing onto the stage.

Walking worked, so walking it what Beau did. He made it to the stage soon enough, his guitar having been pulled out of the case on the way up. He slung the battered acoustic instrument over his shoulder before adjusting microphones and amps. He played a few notes just to make sure everything was in order. While his fingers went through the motions, his eyes were free to roam. He recognized a few faces in the crowd, and it looked like Hunter had found a spot. Beau gave a few knowing nods and grins, including one to the guy he'd just talked into listening.

Then the Southern musician leaned forward to the mike, smiling as he said: "Hey there folks, here's hopin' you're sober enough to listen," the words came out playful, and that smile no doubt helped. He counted off for the band and then began playing, the raucous music filling the small bar. Beau knew darn well that most of the audience didn't care whether he was up there playing or not; he didn't care. he was playing for the few people listening, and possibly himself.

"1, 2, 3
Turn it up

Big wheels keep on turning
Carry me home to see my kin
Singing songs about the Southland
I miss Alabama once again
And I think it's a sin, yea,"

The boy smiled as he sung, the emotions pouring into the familiar Lynryd Skynyrd tune. His fingers plucked the guitar with no small amount of skill. His voice was perhaps a little light for it, but he made up for it with pure emotion.

"Well, I heard Mr. Young sing about her
Well, I heard ol' Neil put her down
Well, I hope Neil Young will remember
A Southern man don't need him around anyhow"

Beau played the crowd too, winking at girls, moving a little on the small stage. He didn't have much, but he did enough to work them. The crowd looked more pleased than perturbed when he leaned forward to say: "Ya'll know this next part, so go ahead an' join in:

"Sweet home Alabama
Where the skies are so blue
Sweet home Alabama
Lord, I'm coming home to you!"

[Lani Hunter]

Lani cocked is head as the young musician took the stage and he gave a little smile to the kid. He was interested in how this was going to turn out. He thanked someone coming around to the tables taking drink orders and insisted he was just sticking with water. It was all too tempting. Adrianna would probably like a place like this, he hoped that she was doing alright. She’d had a rough time these past couple weeks and he was worried about her. It took a real force of will to not check on her every hour on the hour. But he knew that would only aggravate her and eventually piss her off. She was stronger than he was because she knew when to ask for help, but at the same time she was also well on her way to healing. He was hoping he could convince her to talk to someone, hell, even Lani had gone and talked to Dr. Neville for help. That had been quite a shit show but results had been made.

It was easy to concede that Beau definitely had a good cheer and people seemed generally pleased to see him and at least didn’t give any negative reaction. Lani’s skull started to ache from his power and he slipped a few pulls from his pocket and chased them with the water. He would give anything to have a chance to be pain free for once in his life. It was almost like life had dealt him a hard hand and then given him an amazing skill and tool to help him succeed but made the tool double edged. He had always hoped that eventually it would go away but it seemed to just be a constant pressure behind his temples. He was at the point where he didn’t even wait to feel the pain he just took the meds anyways in preparation for the pain.

It was hard for Lani not to laugh as he even recognized the starting up tune to Sweet Home Alabama. He knew that was quite an anthem in the country music collection. Lani raised a brow, this kid was pretty skilled. He wasn’t half bad! Lani grinned, but he wasn’t convinced. Sweet Home Alabama was rather popular and was a pop culture favorite. But Lani had to give it to the kid, he was good. He shook his head a little and simply let others in the crowd belt out their own drunken ballads. Country wasn’t bad, Lani supposed his mother was from the south and honestly if he had to hear Wagon Wheel one more time he would probably jump out a window. Well, not that he didn’t already do that. It honestly wasn’t so bad, he loved rock for many reasons but one thing he had never thought about was that he was clinging to the one thing that he and his father had in common. Lani clapped his hands along with the crowd and smiled at the kid, he might not have made Lani a believer but he had impressed the telekinetic with his skill.

[Beau LaRoux]

If anyone wouldn't have minded being laughed at for a song choice, it was Beau LaRoux. He'd half selected the particular tune as a nod to his earlier conversation with Lani, though Beau was always a fan of starting a show off with a bit of a foot stomper. Crowds, especially slightly inebriated crows, loved songs like this, and they really loved it when they could sing along, even if most of them couldn't carry a tune or stay on beat.

Beau continued guiding the crows through the tune, his hands never ceasing in their movement till all the music stopped. They did at least one run of the chorus without music, letting everyone's voices mix into the swelling sound, Beau's own voice just barely edging out the crowd's joined noise. He picked up the guitar soon enough, his fingers flying again, spreading the music throughout the air.

Soon that song faded, and Beau moved into another classic: Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire." He dropped his voice in a semi-comical manner, knowing that this crowd was far more likely to enjoy antics over more solid playing. That didn't stop him from playing the instrument with the same skill as always. It did make his voice strain a bit: Beau was not meant to sing in that low of an octave. Still, he carried the song easily enough, doing it a fair bit of justice. The audience seemed to like it, though a happy drunk audience was probably the best you could've asked for.

People were starting to filter in the back, a few more coming as the second song ended. Beau couldn't quite make it out from his position, but if he had to guess, he'd say that most of the excitement from the outside had passed. The cops had probably chased everyone away from the scene, and there hadn't really been that much to look at to begin with, not really. Of course, Beau didn't really know this, nor did he really care: he just kept the music flowing.