Years: 1927
Location: Harlem, NYC, NY
Time: Evening
âOh god, donât say thatâŠâ Irealia muttered softly as she shook her head.
ââŠ.what now?âAmelie smiled and put a hand on her friendâs shoulder.
âIt's nothing too bad, I'll explain but lets get a table first!âThe two women would brainstorm for a moment on how to get a table before settling on good ol fashion bribery. They each had ten dollars on them, Amelie agreed to use half her cash to bribe a friendly waitress into giving them a prime table, and much to their joy the waitress took what would equate to nearly $75 in 2019 dollars and walked them over to an empty table directly in front off to the left side of the stage.
âPlease, donât mind the crowd, theyâre getting a bit anxious but Iâm sure Bobby will be on stage very shortly!â Both Irealia and Amelie nodded with a smile at the womanâs statement and waited until she turned and walked away to talk to each other again in a hushed tone head-to-head even though the growing complaints over Bobby Shortâs absence was growing loud enough to mask them talking at a normal volume.
âSo, Bobby is a no-show tonight, and it leads to a riot..."Before she could finish Irealia would complain about coming to a time where a riot was about to take place.
âI mean come on, I know you said lets bring them to a riot when we were drinking the other day but I thought you were joking and understood how bad of an idea that is!!âDespite Irealiaâs quiet hushed tone her frustration was still evident in her voice.
Amelie quickly explained how the riot broke out due to Bobby not showing but was quickly dispelled several minutes later by a car backfiring out on the street which was mistaken as gunfire for a while until a witness outside confirmed it was just a backfire.
âNevertheless, the riot is brief and there is no actual gunfire, but I want to prevent the riot before it happens.âIrealia inquired as to why, not fully understanding her friends plan. Amelie shifted a bit in her seat and unbuttoned one of the buttons of her coat before responding.
âYou said bring them to us but control the situation. I highly doubt they know the history of today, itâs so obscure - only someone uniquely interested in this era, place, or time, would know about it. Also, even if for some odd reason they knew of the history that is to happen here today, thereâs no way theyâd know about me wanting to change it.âAmelie would go on to admit that she knew changing history was pretty risky at best, and insanely dangerous at worst, but that she thought her idea wasnât that dangerous and fell on the low end of the risk meter - something that made Irealia roll her eyes.
âHear me out! I want to stop the riot byâŠâ Amelie looked around for a second and then leaned in rather close to Irealiaâs ear.
ââŠgetting on stage and performing one of Bobbyâs songs!âFor the first time Irealiaâs worry and frustration vanished off her face and a smirk would appear, she liked the idea.
Happy to see her friend smirking Amelie would smile back before asking Irealia to hand her the stopwatch she had set to the clock outside on the street while they were approaching the Cotton Club. Once the watch was in her hands sheâd tap on it as she began to talk again in a hushed tone even Irealia struggled to hear over the complaining crowd around them.
âI have to do it soon, several minutes before the backfire. It took a lot of research to figure out when it happened but belief it or not a book I found online had a copy of the police report with the date and time of the police forceâs arrival on the scene and how long the incident had been in progress before they arrived. With that I have a pretty good idea of when to go up on stage, and itâs soon.âAmelie took a big gulp of her drink before unbuttoning her coat completely.
âIn case we get separated when the backfire happens, you see that side exit? Donât go out that way, go through the exit further in the back, it has double doors so you wonât get trampled, Iâll follow close behind you. Weâll meet up outside by the clock tower and stay close to the scene. I have another idea on how we can get out of here afterwards that will put these people following us in a tough spot, that is if they actually show.âIrealia nodded.
âOh heâll show, I donât know why yet but he has a mission of some sort that is leading him to consistently follow our trail. Heâll take the bait, he can't resist following us.âA man yelling at a server about the performance he âpaid handily to seeâ being delayed would prompt Amelie to once again look at the stopwatch in her hands.
âItâs time.â sheâd say, before grabbing Irealiaâs cocktail and downing the rest of it in one big gulp.
âHey!â Irealia playfully complained. Amelie promised to buy her another drink before standing up, handing her coat to Irealia - who would cling tight to the garment, and making her way to the side of the stage. Sheâd tap the pianist on the shoulder and the older black gentleman would look down towards her and smile.
âWhy yes maâam, can I help you with something?âAmelie smiled kindly back at him before nodding her head.
âWell yes sir, you see the crowd is getting awful anxious waiting for Mr. Short. I was wondering if youâd like to help me quell their angst?âAmelie would go on to explain her desire to perform Bobby Shortâs âIll Windâ for the guest in an attempt to prevent any further unrest. The man was surprisingly game for her idea, and after a brief discussion with him and the band about shifting the pitch up to F, the Pianist would begin to play the opening of Bobby Shortâs âIll Wind.â
To say that Amelie was nervous would be putting it mildly, as she held the train of
her dress, walked up onto the stage, and made her way to the microphone, she had so many worries and concerns running through her brain. However by the time she let go of her dress and let the train fall to the stage the crowd had begun to settle down. The shouting and complaining ceased, and all eyes were on her.
Amelie closed her eyes as the Pianist neared the note she was waiting for, and cleared her throat. She was more comfortable in a higher range, and even with the pitch change to a higher F âIll Windâ still required her to singe at a lower range, something that would feel strange to her even if it was actually easier on her vocal chords.
âYou got thisâŠ..youâve practiced thisâŠ.itâs all goodâŠ.â she thought to herself moments before jumping into
her rendition of Bobby Shortâs âIll Wind.â
As she belted out the Bobby Short tune Amelie would mostly keep her gaze atop the crowd - avoiding direct eye contact with anyone. She made sure to glance over her shoulder at the band and lead them back in a couple times with her hand at parts that
required a break in the musicAs she reached the end of the song and took a breath to properly belt out the songs final belt Amelie would look at eye level with the crowd and almost immediately lock eyes with a man who bore a striking resemblance to the man her and Irealia had encountered in the Syracuse alleyway the other day. She would keep eye contact through the end of the last note and during most of the roaring applause, smiling slightly.
It wasnât until a short white man walked up on stage beside her and placed his arm around her waist did she break eye contact with the man in the audience and look over to the older energetic man holding on to her.
âOh doll I canât thank you enough, they were about to burn this place to the ground - youâre a life saver.â he whispered to her as the crowd continued applauding. The man, who Amelie assumed to be the club promoter, would push himself in front of her and grab the microphone to address the crowd.
âThank you, thank you everybody. We are delighted you enjoyed the performance by MrsâŠ.um, MrsâŠâ The man looked over his shoulder at Amelie, again grabbed her by the waist, and quietly asked what her name was. She thought about giving her gaming handle - Babydoll - as her name, but before she could say anything she was startled by the sound of the backfire.
Within seconds the crowd jumped up in a frenzy and began running for the various exits. Amelie would slip out of the grasp of the club promoter and jog towards an equally startled Irealia.
âRemind me later to gush over your voice, but for now lets go. That backfire scared me to death!â Her friend whispered into her ear as a bunch of people ran all around them.
Amelie would pull her coat from her friendâs grasp and quickly slip into it before grabbing Irealiaâs hand and heading towards the side exit with a bunch of other frantic patrons.
Once outside the two women would quickly mix in with a crowd of people hiding inside a neighboring shop's outside dinning space, but once the cops arrived everyone would shuffle out of the dining area and back onto the sidewalks on either side of the street..
âHeâs here by the wayâ Amelie whispered in Irealiaâs ear as they made their way back onto the street - forcing the young woman to once again hold the train of her dress in her hand to prevent it from dragging on the ground.
âWait, he is? Where!?â Irealia demanded, looking around frantically, only for Amelie to tell her to stop.
âFirst off, like you always tell me, donât look so obvious...and secondly, I saw him while on stage inside, I have no idea where he is any-âAmelie would abruptly stop talking as she spotted a man she thought to be him loitering on the street with a small crowd of Cotton Club patrons.
âWait, is that him? Across the way, under the streetlight beside the girl in the red dress.â Amelie asked her friend, while trying to get a better look without moving from behind the first couple of rows of patrons in the crowd on her side of the street, which was on the opposite side of the street from the man she had come to think of as their âtime traveling stalker.â
It took a moment for Irealia to spot him, but when she did her facial expression immediately switched from eagerness to one of annoyance.
âYeah thatâs him alright.â she muttered, before grabbing her friend by the wrist.
âCome on, I have a little idea of my own now, follow me.âNervous by her impulsive friends sudden idea Amelie wanted to inquire about it, but Irealia gave her no chance to and pulled her out from the hidden safety of the crowd, directly into the middle of the warded off street, and up to a pair of police officers.
âExcuse me sir, that man over there was holding onto his waist and looking about rather frantically, Iâm just terrified he might be the one with the gun!âIrealia played the damsel in distress role up quite a bit, and after she dramatically pointed out their time traveling stalker to the cops they would push the two women behind them and pull out their guns, demanding everyone on the side of the street their stalker was on to freeze, before singling him out individually.
âYou! Back up against that wall right there and donât you think about running boy!âIrealia would snicker as she pulled Amelie back onto the sidewalk and away from the scene.
âOh my god youâre insane! I canât believe you just did that, you are actually insane!âAmelie couldnât help but laugh as she shook her head, the two of them walking at a brisk speed away from the scene.
âAn insane genius you mean!â Irealia joked back, before pointing out the Harlem Grande Hotel at the end of the next block.
âCome on, lets get a room there!âAs the two women walked down the block hand in hand Amelie would inquire about what Irealiaâs plan was after going to the hotel.
âI donât know, maybe we stay a while? Maybe we leave?â sheâd respond.
âHe saw us walk off in this direction. If I was a time traveling stalker I think the first place Iâd check for a pair of women Iâm following, at night in a big city, would be a hotel - no?âAmelie raised an eyebrow at her friend, and the two women would giggle a bit before walking up to the hotel entrance.
Thanks to their gift of gab, and Irealiaâs Act 2 of the damsel in distress, the two friends were able to get a pretty good deal at the bed and breakfast - one night, double beds, and full amenities including food service, for $4.50. The two thanked the young man behind the desk and asked if he could send dinner up to them in their rooms this late. He informed them it was past the dinner time but since they had gone through such a traumatic event he'd make sure to get some food up to their room shortly.
So after once again thanking the young man the two women walked up several floors until they reached their room.
Much to their surprise the room was quite warm, the furnace had apparently been turned on in advance.
Irealia would turn on a pair of lights in-between the two beds, and in near unison her and Amelie would fall back onto each of the beds.The two said nothing to each other for a few minutes until finally they found it too warm to stay in their coats and stood up to disrobe - Amelie down to her under garments, while Irealia left her dress on but slipped out of her coat and jewelry.
âOkay, so what was your plan for us to get out of here?â Irealia joked, causing Amelie to throw a rather heavy pillow at her.
âForget that! You kind of ruined it with your impulsive decision! I still canât believe you did that, what if they arrest him!?â Amelie mulled aloud. Irealia shrugged
âI mean I suppose it would kinda suck for him if he got arrested, but hey, I doubt that happened, he probably got out of it - right? We just slowed him down by a bit. Like hopefully an hour or so. Or at least half an hour, I hope.âA sudden knock at the door caused both women to jump a bit, but when the knock was followed by a call for âRoom Serviceâ both of them calmed down.
âComing!â Irealia said, waiting for an unclothed Amelie to go hide in the bathroom before she opened the door.
She would take the two plates of roast beef, potatoes, greens, and fresh fruit, from the attendant along with two glasses and a pitcher of lemonade. Irealia then thanked the woman and tipped her a few coins before closing and locking their room door.
Always starving Amelie almost skipped out of the bathroom, quickly grabbing the plate with the bigger portions from her friend.
âWhy thank you!â she teased, before flopping down on her bed with her plate of food and glass of lemonade.
âNow, lets talk about that show you put on. Where in the hell did you learn to sing like that? What did you do, swallow a Billie Holiday pill before we left?âAmelie erupted into laughter at her friends comment, nearly choking on her food.
The two would spend the next half hour talking about Amelieâs initial performance, the club, and various other things, as they ate all the food on their plates.