Once again, his smile broadens. "Cloud formations. That's a wonderful way of putting it."

And, since Bonnie has given him her seal of approval, he takes the small liberty of pointing nearish to her and asking, "You don't mind if I, ah --?" He moves from where he was standing to crouch in his chosen spot although he makes sure to leave a polite distance between them. "I feel somewhat rude towering over you. And at least this way you can get to know some of the details."

Any passers-by can double-take at the well dressed man sitting on the pavement all they want. He does what he likes.

"I suppose it all depends on how much you use a talent. I was a child when mine manifested, so I've had a lot of time to practice. At first I started to hear these murmurs when no one was talking. Then I realised it wasn't conversations I was hearing; it was other people's thoughts." It had been thrilling and terrifying at the same time. And lonely, too. Not to mention he had been exposed to things that children shouldn't know. "And then when I became really good at that, I started to experiment with what else I could do."