"Honey, owning a pet is a big responsibility.  You have to feed it and give it water and pay lots and lots of attention to it and love it and help it to grow.  I'd hate to see a whim of yours destroy the life of this animal."
    But Violet wasn't listening, at least, not to her mother.  She was transfixed on the singing coming from somewhere in the pet store.
    "Uh huh.  So can we go look?  I have to know what's making that sound.  That beautiful song - it's calling to me."
    Violet ran into the store, her mother sighing behind her.  Following the song past rows of puppies, kittens, birds and fish, she came to a large cage holding what appeared to be a 20 year old human male.  He had long dark hair, glasses and a clever T-shirt.  He was singing intently as tears rolled down his cheeks.

    "My language is rusty, so I let you speak
    but you aren't speaking to me anymore
    I should've spoken sooner but I didn't know how
    as I told you 'I love you' you were slamming the door"

    "Oh my.  That's so sad."  Violet's eyes were beginning to mist up.  "Pardon me, but what, or who, has made you so unfathomably sad?  You sound like the Mock Turtle from Wonderland."
    The creature in the cage stopped singing, opened his eyes and looked down at the young girl.  A smile threatened to invade his chapped lips but instead moved to his eyes.  With infinite patience and serenity he sighed, "It's about a girl I knew named Mandy."  He then leaned towards her, nearly touching his face to the bars of his cage.  Whispering, he continued with a wink from his now twinkling eyes.  "Maybe someday it'll be about you."

    "Shaddup, you!"  An employee struck the cage angrily.  He then turned to face Violet.  "Don't listen to him.  These Troubadours is always so damned charming... until you get 'em home.  Trust me, you don't want nothin' to do with him.  Why don't you go look at the puppies?"
    "I was just curious about his song.  It's so beautifully sad."  Violet's eyes interlocked with the Troubadour's.  "I've never seen a Troubadour before."
    "Well believe me, they ain't nothing but trouble.  We've sold this guy twice already.  And each previous owner returned him after a few months."
    "Come on, Violet.  We have to go pick up your sister."  Violet's mother pulled the girl out of the pet store, eventually breaking the gaze shared with the Troubadour.
    "Violet..." he whispered as he watched her go.  A single tear escaped his eye.
    That night, Violet couldn't sleep.  It was as though she could still hear the mournful wailings of the Troubadour.  She knew she must free him from his cage.  Tomorrow.  As the sun rose, Violet found sleep.

    "See?  Listen to him!"  Violet urged her older sister on towards the pet store.  "Have you ever heard anything so beautiful?"  The Troubadour was indeed singing again.

    "We shared a morning once, but now I mourn alone
    The tables have been turned  Now I kneel before the throne
    I beg for your forgiveness  I wail and plead and moan
    I throw away my life for you to let me come back home"

    He stopped and looked up as the girls approached his cage.  This time the smile came freely to both lips and eyes.  "Violet!"  He was shaking with excitement.  "You came back to see me!  I knew you would."
    "Of course I did.  This is my siter, Colleen."
    "Hello."
    "Hi."  Colleen eyed the Troubadour strangely.
    "Colleen, this is the Troubadour."  Violet was beaming.
    Colleen furrowed her brow, still watching the man in the cage.  "What's his name?"
    The Troubadour turned to Violet.  "What name do you like?"
    She didn't have to think twice about that.  "Gus.  Gus has always been my favourite name."  She said, not missing a beat.
    "What a coincidence," the Troubadour smiled.  "Gus happens to be my name."  Violet began to glow with excitement.

    "You are liking Troubadour, pretty girl?"  She spun around to see an ancient Asian woman with long silver hair cascading over her shoulders.  "I am Yin, owner of pet store.  You like?"
    "It's a lovely store, ma'am.  Yes, I like the Troubadour quite a lot.  I dreamt of him all last night.  I so want to hold him and listen to his terribly sad songs."
    The old woman eyed Violet carefully.  "Troubadour is no easy to care for.  Is great responsibility.  Are many rules to follow."
    Violet reached between the bars and took the Troubadour's hand.  "What kind of rules?"
    "He know the rules.  He can tell you."  Yin turned to the Troubadour.  "Go on.  Tell pretty girl Rules of Love."
    "Tell me," Violet squeezed his hand tightly.
    The Troubadour sighed and shook his head.  "To learn the Rules, you must play the Game.  You must agree to Love and to Be Loved.  You can't tell someone how to ride a bike or how to write a song.  You must comit to the Game and strive to understand it.  The Troubadour is a dying breed.  Few can handle the responsibility of being with someone who refuses to deviate from the Rules."  He looked deeply into Violet's eyes and squeezed her hand back.  "You might just be the one who's willing to accept me."
    Violet turned to Yin. "Yes.  I want him.  How much is he?"
    "Troubadour is not gained with money.  You give me Promise.  Promise to try.  Promise to try to understand his unusual antedeluvian Rules."
    "Oh, I will!  I will love him.  I do promise to try!"  Violet was positively gleaming with excitement.
    Yin smiled and unlocked the cage.  The Troubadour stepped out and embraced Violet in a passionate hug.  As they walked out of the store, Yin called to him, "Good luck, sugar."
    The Toubadour stopped briefly and turned to look back at the old woman. "See you in a few months."  A single tear rolled down his cheek.