Several weeks came and went just as they had before – full of work, school, and more work. We saw the usual strange characters occasionally at Pop's shop as we always had, but none like the stranger I'd met that night.
I'd washed the fedora thoroughly, and decided to make it my own, so I changed the dark brown band around it to a vibrant shade of red – the same color red as the thread I'd found inside it. I'd also added some material to the inside to fill it in a bit; after all, if I was going to wear it, I wanted it to fit properly. My cat, Seras, had taken an immediate interest in it, purring and batting it around like it was her new favorite toy. It was only after several food bribes and buying her 3 new catnip-filled toys that she finally decided to give it back to me.
So when I pulled up to Pop's shop and hopped off my bike on a Thursday evening, I had to make sure I knocked the few stray cat hairs Seras had left on my "new" hat before placing it atop my long, blonde-haired head.
After securing my bike, I untied my pack from the passengers spot. It contained my laptop, the files I was working on, and several other odds and ends I needed for either work or school. I slipped it over my shoulder and, with a stress-relieving sigh, stepped through the front door of Pop's shop and breathed in the wonderful smells that made me stomach growl in hunger.
"It's me, Pops!" I called out in Japanese as I nodded to one of the "regulars" – an older Japanese gentleman who came by for tea, sushi, and to chat with Pops every week or so. He nodded and smiled in response, then went back to sipping his tea and reading his book as I took my seat at the small table beside the counter.
I immediately hauled the contents of my bag out onto the table, plugged in my laptop, and began sorting the file folders to find the information I needed. Once I had what I needed I fished out my "Grimoire" (aka – the leather bound notebook that I keep all my important information in for work, school, and my private life) and began typing away, occasionally scribbling a note or two on one of the files.
I didn't look up from my work until I heard the familiar tap of Pop's cane on the wood floor beside me. He bowed slightly, a quizzical expression in his eyes as he surveyed my work.
"I see your work has kept you late again."
I nodded. "Yeah…the doctors aren't happy with the results they're seeing with the testing of the new genetic marking serum they've developed. They've made some progress on the mammal side of the spectrum, but not enough to satisfy the stockholders. And with reptiles, they keep running into 'roadblocks'." I sighed. "That's where I come in, considering reptile biology and genetics are my major line of study. Long story short, it means a lot of extra work for me…and that not something that I really have time for right now. With two exams in the near future that account for a large part of my grades, I just don't feel like there are enough hours in the day." I smiled and shrugged my shoulders. "I just keep trying to remind myself that it'll all be worth all the hard work in the end."
Pops reached over with a warm smile and gently patted my shoulder. "Indeed it will be, Child. Finish your journey strong and you will be well rewarded."
I smiled in return. "I sure hope so, Pops."
Pops winked at me. "With your determination, I am sure of it…but you must eat to keep up your strength." Still smiling, he turned and disappeared behind the curtain into the kitchen.
I watched him go, giggling softly to myself as he hobbled away. Then I turned back to my laptop and files and buried myself in my work until Pops returned with a piping hot pizza and some delicious Oolong tea.
I spent the remainder of my evening pouring over data and files, munching the occasional piece of pizza as I worked. As the evening turned into night and it neared closing time for Pops, I didn't even noticed when the phone rang and Pops stepped out of the kitchen to answer it.
"Pop's Pizza."
There was a pause.
"Yes."
Another pause.
"Yes."
Another, longer pause.
"Anything else?"
A short pause.
"Ok. That should be ready in about 20 minutes. Thank you."
I was scribbling some notes on a page when the sharp rap of Pop's cane on the floor beside me broke my concentration.
"Onna no ko…your Storm is returning."
For a moment, I stared blankly at Pops, unsure of what he meant. But then, as his eyes narrowed and he motioned toward the fedora still resting atop my head, his meaning hit me like a bolt of lightning.
Smiling slyly, I shrugged my shoulders and tried to feign a nonchalant air. "Interesting. I'll keep an eye out."
Pops frowned at me, not fooled at all by my casual air. He grumbled as I dropped my gaze back to my laptop and mumbled something in Japanese about cats and curiosity as he shuffled back into the kitchen. I heard pans slamming loudly for a moment, which was one of Pops many ways to let me know that he disapproved. I couldn't help but giggle softly then shout, "Calm down Pops…it'll be ok," in Japanese. For a moment, the sound of the pans ceased, then suddenly the ruckus started again, this time emphasized with a few sharp raps of his Mahogany cane on the hardwood floor. I shook my head, grinning from ear to ear as I continued with my work.
The sounds in the kitchen finally faded and I quickly lost myself in referencing chemical compounds and reptilian DNA sequences. I was so focused, in fact, that time got away from me and I barely noticed the sound of Pop's front door opening when it reached my ears. I was scribbling the last of a note about double checking if there were reactions in reptilians between two different types of sedatives when the sound of the door finally registered, along with the sound of heavy footsteps on the hardwood floor. I raised my head just enough to make out the lower half of a large brown trench coat, brown pants, and a pair of huge black boots. They made their way slowly up toward the counter, then stopped suddenly just a few feet from me. I resisted the urge to look up, and pretended to still be engrossed in my work, waiting patiently to see what his reaction would be.
Surprisingly, I thought I heard what sounded like a gruff chuckle…or maybe it was an irritated snort. Either way, it was all the acknowledgment I needed to raise my head and smile slyly at the amber-eyed stranger, tipping my hat to him as I did.
"Hey stranger. I see you have a new hat."
He was dressed the same as before, except that the hat he now wore was slightly more disheveled than the one I'd claimed from him. Because of the scarf, I still couldn't see the expression on his face, but his amber eyes told me everything I needed to know – apparently I was amusing him.
"I see you have one too," he replied, his voice betraying the smile that I was sure was hidden beneath the scarf.
My smile widened. "Well, you know what they say…possession is nine tenths of the law."
He grunted. "The red's a nice touch."
"Yeah, I thought you'd like that." I pulled the hat off my head, exposing my ashy blonde hair. "I got the impression red was your favorite color." I tossed the hat to him, raising a curious eyebrow.
He caught it easily and turned it over in his wrapped hands, inspecting the changes I'd made to it. Then he nodded and tossed it back to me, his amber eyes flashing curiously.
About that time, I heard the sound of pizza boxes dropping gently onto the counter to my left. Pops cleared his throat and nodded to the stranger as he set another beautiful box of sushi on the counter beside the pizza boxes. Then he pushed a few keys on the register and regarded the stranger with slightly narrowed eyes.
"$64.50 please."
The stranger stepped up to the counter and began digging in his coat pocket. This time he pulled out a folded group of bills and set them on the counter in front of Pops. Bowing his head slightly, he said, "Thank you. Keep the change."
Pops nodded his head slightly in response, never taking his eyes off the stranger. There was a moment of uncomfortable silence, then the stranger reached forward and gathered the pizzas. He balanced them carefully in one arm, then reached for the sushi box with the other. Glancing toward me, he growled quietly, "Can't have warm sushi."
This brought an immediate smile to my face, and I nodded in approval. Then, as he started toward the door, I leaped up out of my chair and hurried to get there before him. He paused, letting me get ahead of him so that I could open the door. After he stepped out into the night, I followed him and let the door close behind us.
"Nice to know you decided to come back," I said, still smiling. "Pops can use the business."
The stranger regarded me with curious eyes, then turned them toward the darkened street.
"It's good pizza."
I laughed. "Yeah, it is."
There was a moment of awkward silence, then I quickly reached up and pulled the fedora off my head.
"I suppose you want your hat back…"
The stranger regarded me intently for a moment with those piercing, amber eyes. I felt my face flush slightly, and I mumbled, "…I mean, it is yours…and I made the inside lining to come out so it still fits…" I fumbled with the hat for a moment, removing the lining to show him that the change I'd made hadn't been permanent.
He continued to stare at me, and for a moment, I just couldn't bring myself to meet his gaze. His eyes were so intense, and there was some emotion in them I couldn't make out. It bothered me that I couldn't see his face; couldn't read his expression, so much so that I really wanted to just walk over and pull the scarf away from his face. Instead I gathered the courage to meet his eyes and smiled sheepishly.
"I'm sorry…I shouldn't have stolen your hat."
For only the briefest of seconds I saw his shoulders shake in what appeared to be a chuckle. Then he stared at me for a moment, amusement in his eyes, and finally replied, "Keep it…it looks cute on you."
I immediately felt my face flush, and knew I was turning as red at the band of color I'd seen behind those dark sunglasses. I quickly shoved the fedora back on my head, then smiled sheepishly as I looked up at him.
"Thanks."
He nodded, amusement still showing in his amber eyes.
Taking a risk, I smiled wider and asked, "So…any chance on you telling me your name?"
For a moment his eyes narrowed, and I could see he was internally debating. Then he turned and started walking up the darkened street without saying a word.
I watched him go, the smile quickly fading from my face. My eyes fell to the dirty sidewalk below me, and I couldn't hold back the reluctant sigh that escaped my lips. When I lifted my head, I saw that the stranger had paused, standing just outside the shadow of a nearby alley. He turned slightly toward me, and I caught just a glint of those amber eyes as his deep voice reached my ears just before he disappeared into the darkness.
"My name's Raphael."
