** Prologue: (Summer, Mid-California, early 1960's) **
"We should move the rookery immediately," a female gargoyle with jet-black hair said to her clan, a hint of panic in her voice.
"I agree," her lighter-haired friend spoke up, "there are nooks deeper in the cave where our eggs would be safer."
"Calm down, both of you," the dark-haired one's mate said. "There's been no real evidence that we or the eggs are in danger."
"You would risk all our lives by ignoring what evidence we do have?"
The leader spoke up. "If gargoyles acted in fear of every threat they came across, we would be a race of nomads. This is our home, and it is safe enough."
The females wouldn't back down. "We all know it's not like Mike and Pam to stay away for so long without a word," the light-haried one said, speaking of their human friends. "No one has seen or heard anything from them in days. Something must be wrong."
"The humans have their own lives outside of this clan," the leader said. He looked to the mates of the two protesting females for help. But before they could say anything, the females went on.
"What about the news reports? We've been seen on patrol. They are going to come after us!"
"No one but Mike and Pam knows that we're up here," someone said.
"The humans are not stupid," said the dark-haired female, "they'll figure out that these caves are our home!"
"Enough," said the leader. "We will not hide like rabbits. The caves have been a safe haven for this clan for generations. Now, I don't want to hear another word of it," The leader said authoritively as he headed for the mouth of the cave.
The females tried again to convince their mates and the other females, but were ultimately defeated. The light-haired female began to cry.
"The children are in danger, yet they close their eyes to it," she wimpered.
Her friend calmed her. "If they will not help," she said, "then we will move the eggs ourselves."
"We'll never move them all before sunrise."
"We'll move as many as we can. If even a few survive it will be enough to continue this clan." She glanced back at the clan, assembling for the dawn. "Let's pray that the children will have more sense than their parents."
The rest of the clan were too busy talking about their strange behavior to notice their movement. The two females headed for the rookery. Though the eggs all looked alike, they each picked up their own eggs first, instinctively. They carried them carefully, deep into the cave. There were indentures in the rock which were lined with moss. They laid the two eggs in an indenture and went back for others.
They heard some commotion from the clan's direction. A couple of gargoyles were helping their human friends, Mike and Pam, up the hill and into the cave.
"There's not much time, you guys gotta get out of here!" Mike said, leaning on a gargoyle for support.
There were questioning murmurs from the clan. The two females stood with their clan just inside of the cave. They could see the quickly lightening sky outside. They looked at each other with saddened expressions on their faces, each now knowing their fate.
"There are these conservative KKK wannabe's coming up the hill right now," Pam told them. "We tried to lead them away from the cave, but then Mike slipped." She was already heading out of the cave. "You gargoyles are in deep shit if they find you. I'm going to try and throw them off again."
"Hurry! It's almost dawn!"
Mike's cries were the last thing the clan heard before entering sleep for the last time.
The destroyers were closer than Pam thought. They saw her come out of the cave. Two sympathetic humans were not enough to stop the angry mob from destroying the statues just inside the cave, or the pile of eggs deeper inside. Afterwards, Mike and Pam wandered mournfully among the remains of their friends. They hoped that some of the eggs had been overlooked, but there was nothing in the cave but shattered stone. They gathered large rocks from all over the hillside to seal up the entrance to the cave, their last act of friendship for the clan.
A small child, hardly aware of its own existence, heard through its shell utter silence, and shook at the discomfort and unfamiliarity of it, bumping into the egg laying beside it.
The Children of Oberon were not known, to those who knew of them, for their humanitarianism. The fae more likely saw themselves as the all powerful overbeings of the world, vastly superior to other races of the planet. They knew their own limits, but also knew the wisdom in not revealing those limits to even each other. Basically they were carefree, answering to no one (save Lord Oberon), and doing what pleased them. It wasn't always tormenting mortals, as some may think. Fae had their moments of humanity.
A fae couple sensed the lingering auras of the deceased clan, and decided to investigate. As they entered the cave the male, Rene, listened carefully to his surroundings. He felt the fear and hopelessness the gargoyles had felt in their final moments.
Lila, his companion, agreed that it was a tragedy. She also listened to the spirits. Suddenly she became attentive, as if receiving instructions. "Rene," she said, "there is still life here."
"What? Where?" He listened closer. Lila walked slowly into the rest of the cave. Her instincts led her to a deep chamber, with indentures in the cave walls. She listened again. She went to an indenture...and smiled.
Rene looked over her shoulder to see two surviving gargoyle eggs.
"How sad for them," he said, "to enter the world surrounded by death."
Lila said thoughtfully, "they can't possibly survive on thier own once they hatch."
"You want to keep them, don't you?"
She studied the eggs a moment. One of them shook slightly. Lila sighed. "No...I only want the girl."
"As you wish, my love, but what shall we do with the boy? We can't leave him here to die."
Lila turned her head, listening again. "The humans..."
"The ones who came to warn the gargoyles...I see..." he said, cracking a smile. "It's perfect."
The eggs twiched.
** Chapter 1: (Alaska, 1978) **
"Lila, tell me about how you found me..."
The fairy woman looked at the gargoyle who had become her daughter. "Again?" she asked. "Don't you ever get tired of hearing it?"
"I hear something new each time you tell it," the girl said.
Lila sighed. This was their doing. They had taught the gargoyle to be a thinker and a listener. They taught her as much as you could teach a mortal in the mortal realm about being a fairy. They even introduced her to human magick, at which she had become very proficient. It had been nearly 18 years since the couple had "adopted" the girl, but because of her slower growth rate she looked no older than pre-adolescence. But judging only by her mind, she was so much older than others her age, and Lila and Rene were as proud of her as any other parents would be.
"Alright," Lila said, setting aside the book she'd been reading. "Rene and I were travelling secretly through the mortal world when we sensed something in the hills. We decided to investigate, and found the broken remains of your gargoyle clan. There was so much death, but I sensed life crying out over the din of bodiless souls. I followed the vibration deep into the cave, and found you. We decided that you couldn't possibly survive on your own, and decided to keep you with us. Now, would you tell me what was different about the story this time?"
"It's never anything specific. It's just a feeling I get..."
Rene came home, shaking his umbrella before entering the house. "Lila, Denna," he called out.
"By the fire, my love," Lila called.
"Rene!" Denna came bursting though the hallway, her jet-black hair and wings flowing behind her. She plowed into her fairy father and gave him a tight hug. "What did the ferryman say?" she asked, looking up at him.
Rene imitated the ferry captain. "He said, 'that daughter of yours ought to be more patient'," he said teasing. "They're not expecting the shipment for at least another week and a half."
"Ooh, I'll be old and grey before I read that book!" Denna said, pouting and returning to the den.
"Honey, the book is published. It's not going anywhere."
"Exactly! It should be on its way here!" she cried with a smile. "Well until it gets here, I'll be in my room." She headed down the hallway, then turned and said, winking, "but do call me for dinner!"
Rene smiled and turned to his mate. He was about to say something but he noticed she was staring into the fireplace with a concerned look on her face. He knelt beside her chair. "She asked again," he whispered.
Lila nodded. "I think she's beginning to know that we're leaving out part of the story."
"Avalon bless her clever little mind," Rene smiled, prodding the fire. "We agreed not to hide the truth if she askes directly."
"Yes...I just worry she'll be angry with us for not revealing the truth sooner."
"Don't worry, Lila. Just keep telling the story as you have been. If she discovers it and asks, we will tell her. But she is our daughter. She would not be cross with us for long."
Lila stood and offered him a hand up. "We better start dinner," she said, and the two fae headed for the kitchen.
"So I watched the anchor talk and talk. It was sort of boring, so I thought I'd practice some magick. I focused my mind, and I spoke the spell, and it worked! He kept dropping his mic! The cameraman would try to follow him as he bent to pick it up but he kept losing him in the frame. It was hilarious!"
Rene laughed.
Lila said, "Denna, we told you not to use magick to torment humans..."
"But I wasn't tormenting him, Lila. I was practicing my telekinesis." She stifled a giggle. "I'm getting better," she said grinning.
"That you are, my dear," Rene said. "In fact, you may be nearing the end of your learning here. There's only so much magick one can do in the human world..."
"What do you mean?" Denna asked.
"The next step would be to allow you access to the fae world," he explained.
"You mean Avalon? Really!?" she said, looking at both of them.
Lila said, "it makes sense. You can advance your training further on Avalon. Plus Rene and I haven't been back to the island in..oh, ages."
"So we're really going?" Denna asked, excited.
Rene nodded.
"Yes! Thank you!" Denna ran around the table and hugged them both. "Thank you soo much! This will be great! When can we leave?"
Lila stood. "Certainly after you help me clear the table."
Denna grabbed some plates and headed for the sink, still prodding them for a departure date. "Rene, when?"
"We'll need to prepare," he said. "Probably tomorrow night?" he suggested to Lila. She nodded.
Denna hurried to finish her chore, then ran back to her room. "I'm going to pack now!"
"Are we sure she's ready for Avalon?" Lila asked Rene.
"Better question would be is Avalon ready for her." He laughed. "At least it'll get her mind off that book."
The next night, the trio headed for the shore. Denna had packed surprisingly light; an extra set of clothes, some books, her runes and some other small magickal trinkets. Her parents brought nothing.
When they reached the water, Rene called forth a skiff and helped the two ladies into it. He pushed off from shore, and once they were far enough into open water, he began chanting.
"Vocate venti fortunate
ex rege Oberonis
et hic navis flugem regate
ad orae Avalonis."
As he spoke, a thick fog engulfed the skiff. They could not see past the edge of the vessel. When the mist cleared, Denna saw before her a thriving island, and a high cliff beside the sea upon which a bonfire burned. The outline of a great castle could be seen against the majestic glow of the rising moon. A platform floated in between their boat and the shore. There were three nearly identical figures standing century from this platform, the only thing identifying them from each other was the color of their hair. They addressed Denna's parents directly.
"We welcome you home, brother and sister, after your long absence," said the blonde.
"But we welcome you home to an empty Avalon," her white-haired sister said.
"Sisters, what do you mean?," Lila asked.
"In your long absence our Lord Oberon has commanded that his children live in the mortal world for a millenium, and has left us as guardians of his isle," the one with black hair said.
Denna whispered to Rene, "just how long have the two of you been gone?"
"Well it must be over a millenium...we lose track of time after a while," Rene whispered.
"Lord Oberon would have no objection to his children visiting the island, but we do not know about the mortal you bring with you."
Lila told them about how they found her, and what had promted their visit. The Wierd Sisters discussed it.
"Oberon would not allow mortals on his island."
"It is a little late for that, I think."
"The sanctity of Avalon has already been tainted by mortals. What more harm can one child do?"
"She may not bring her magick. It is Avalon's first rule."
The Sisters turned to the skiff and addressed them, Denna especially. "No magicks may enter here, save Avalon's own."
Denna looked up at her father. "What does that mean?"
Rene swore under his breath. "I thought they'd do this. Honey, you can't bring your runes onto the island. They're human magick, and they're not allowed."
"We should have known better," Lila commented.
"But I'll need them, I'm sure of it," Denna protested. She stepped to the front of the skiff and spoke to the Sisters. "The Runes themselves are not magic, it is my interpretations which make the magick. You can't very well admit me and expect me to leave behind my thoughts."
The Wierd Sisters exchanged glances.
"This is true," one said.
The platform and the Sisters disappeared, and the skiff floated towards shore. The moment Denna's feet touched the shore she could feel Avalon's magick begin to penetrate her. She spun around, then smiled at her parents. They followed her on a path leading to the castle, talking quietly as their daughter ran ahead.
"Did you hear our sisters? There are other mortals on the island," Lila said.
"Yes, I heard." Rene though a moment. "Whoever they are, I can't wait to meet them. Denna," he called out to her, "wanna race?"
"No cheating," she said, getting into a sprinter's stance.
"No cheating," Rene swore, but Denna had heard that one before.
"Okay, ready," she said slowly, then "setgo!," and she took off down the path galloping on all fours.
"Hey, no cheating!"
"I meant for you!," she called back.
Lila watched the two dash down the path, and shaking her head laughing, she teleported herself directly to the castle.
Rene collapsed on the lawn, gasping for breath. "I won," he panted.
Denna shook her head. "No way," she said, "and don't pretend to be out of breath, oh ye who held your breath indefinitely to scare me to death when you taught me to swim."
"You're still mad at me for that? That was years ago!"
"Well," Denna said, "maybe. So who won this race?" she asked slyly.
"Okay okay, you did."
"Then I'm not mad," she said, grinning.
They heard Lila's laughter, and looked up to see her leaning against the wall of the castle. "Say that again? Who won?"
"No fair," Rene protested, "I couldn't cheat, so neither could you."
"Denna never said that, she only said you couldn't."
"She's right," Denna said, and hugged her mother. "Lila! The winner!"
Arm in arm, the trio went inside.
A kettle hung over an open flame in the courtyard, a beef stock simmering, releasing its vapors into the night air. Two long tables were occupied by at least two dozen gargoyles, and three humans. They were the first of her kind that Denna had ever seen, aside from her own reflection. They were older than her. Whereas Denna appeared twelve by human standards these gargoyles looked around twenty. Denna stood between her parents watching this clan chatter amongst themselves. One of them rose and went to check the stew. He looked up and noticed the trio standing just inside the courtyard.
"Better clear some room, it appears we'll be having company for supper," he called to the clan.
The human female looked up, surprised. In all the time they'd been on the island, they'd never seen anyone else. The younger human male beside her looked warily at the strangers, but the female placed a hand on his arm and he settled down. She rose and spoke to them in a sweet Scottish accent, "we welcome you to our table, strangers."
"Thank you," said Lila, "but we are not strangers. Avalon has long been our home."
"Ah, then ye must be wondering about us. Please, join us," the woman said, gesturing to the seats the others had cleared for them. "I am Princess Katherine of Wyvern, my husband Tom," she said, indicating the younger male, "and my trusted advisor, the Magus." The older one bent his head in greeting. "And of course, the eggs." Some of the gargoyles nodded, some waved. Denna waved back, and Rene introduced his family.
While supper was being served, Katherine explained to the fae couple how they came to live on the island, from the destruction of the Wyvern clan to escaping with the surviving eggs to the safe haven of Avalon. Lila in turn told them about living in the mortal world and raising Denna as their own. Denna listened carefully when Lila got to the part about finding her as an egg, and a serious expression appeared briefly on her face. She shook it off when a couple of gargoyles offered to take her on a tour of the castle. Introductions were made as Denna and her two escorts, Angela and Gabriel, made their way into the castle.
"Is there anything you'd especially like to see?" Angela asked.
Denna looked around. "Where you all sleep," she said finally. "Do you have rooms?"
"No, we sleep on the parapets."
"You have a room?" Gabriel asked the young gargoyle.
"Yeah, but I don't have a bed or anything. It's just my own personal space, you know?"
"It sounds like Angela's cave," Gabriel smirked.
"You have a cave?" Denna asked in awe.
Angela laughed. "Oh, that's just what we called it. When I was younger I found a chamber that you can only get to from the throne room," she explained. "I made it my own secret place. I kept it a secret from everyone for at least a year. Then Gabriel caught me sneaking into it, so I told everyone about it, but they all left it to me."
Gabriel added, "we brought in some lamps and sheets and such, and a couple of books from the library. Angela said I could use the space if I ever needed a quiet place too."
"A freehold," Denna said introspective. "Can I see it?" she asked.
The older gargoyles smiled. "Of course." They led her into the throne room and through a shallow doorway. There were sheets piled in a corner for a couch, and lamps and candles scattered all around. Gabriel lit a couple of lamps, and Denna could see a mini library stacked in a corner, all just as they'd told her.
Denna spent that day asleep on the parapets, outside with her kind.
Denna had decided that this night would be spent in meditation. Since she first set foot on the island she could feel its great magick all around her. Tonight she would try and absorb some of that magick. With only her runes in her hand, she set out for the forest, alone. She found a clearing and made herself comfortable. She could hear the forest, the whole island. Its voice resonated from every tree and every stone. She sat quietly and listened.
The magick entered her mind and her soul and began showing her various images. She could see Lila and Rene in the castle with the others. She could see the real world, people scurrying from here to there. Then the magick grew dim in her mind, and for a moment Denna was afraid she had lost her concentration. But then another image appeared, more blurred than the others. Denna could barely make out two round shapes through the haze. She saw her hand reaching out to try and touch the round objects, but suddenly Lila's hand pushed hers away. Denna looked up to see her mother's smiling face, and when she looked back there was only one round object where two had just been.
Denna woke from these images in her mind with a start. She took her bag of runes in her hand, and closed her eyes and chose one, asking for the meaning of this vision. When she opened her eyes the rune of separation lay in her hand. She considered this a moment. What were those round shapes, and why did Lila try and keep her from them? And then there was only one... Did Lila separate the objects? Denna tried to picture the shapes in her mind again, but the image was so blurred. She focused her mind more. Suddenly she knew what they were. She knew what the rune was telling her. A flood of emotions ran through her. She drew another rune, the rune of partnership. She stared at it in her hand a while before gathering her things and dashing back to the castle.
The humans, a few of the gargoyles including Angela and Gabriel, and the fae were gathered in the courtyard chatting when Denna ran in. She stormed up to Lila and said, "tell me how you found me."
"Denna you heard it last night, enough is enough," Lila said, taking a sip of her tea.
"Tell me!"
Lila sighed. "Rene and I discovered the remains of your clan. Amongst all the death I heard the life of your egg deep in the cave. We knew you couldn't survive alone, so we decided to raise you as our own."
"You took pity on my life," Denna said bitterly, "but what of the life of the other egg? Did you leave it to die?"
Lila looked up sharply. For a moment she absorbed the cold stare her daughter was giving her. She glanced at Rene, who glanced back before returning his gaze to his mug. She looked back at Denna. "Of course we didn't leave it to die," she said. "It would have been too hard to raise you both. Besides, I had always wanted a daughter. When we found you I thought you could be her. But I did not want a son as well."
Denna was about to respond but Rene went on. "We knew your clan had human friends that could be trusted. We left the other egg with them, and we took you to Alaska and raised you as our daughter."
"And you didn't think I'd want to know I had a rookery brother somewhere in the world?!"
"We didn't think it was necessary to tell you," Lila said. "But we agreed that if you found out on your own we would reveal the truth."
"I don't believe this," Denna said. "You just didn't want him? You just didn't think it was necessary? Well who are you?!"
"We are your parents for all intents and purposes, so please stop this yellling."
"Well excuse me, Mother," Denna said bitterly, turning towards the door, "but I think I have more than enough right to be upset." With that she left the courtyard and ran outside the castle walls, towards the cliff near the ocean.
"Denna!," Lila called after her. She started to follow, but Rene held her back.
"She needs time away from us right now," he told his mate. Lila sat down again, and tried to force down the rest of her tea.
It must have been a couple of hours before anyone else ventured out onto the cliff. Denna had been sitting there alone for that time, staring out at the waves, every now and then fighting back tears. Angela approached slowly, not sure if they shouldn't give her another couple of hours.
"It's okay, Angela," Denna said quietly, not even turning around.
"We didn't know if you'd want to be left alone," Angela said as she sat down next to Denna.
Denna continued to stare into the night. "I just can't understand their reasoning," she said after a while. "Why would they hold back the truth? What purpose would keeping me in the dark serve?"
Denna seemed calm now, but Angela could only imagine what she was really feeling. The humans who had raised her had told her all about the clan at Wyvern, and what had happened on their last night there. Angela really didn't know what to say, so she just listened.
"Coming here and meeting other gargoyles was like a dream come true," Denna said. "My whole life has been my parents, some humans and my own reflection. I didn't think I was the only gargoyle on earth, but sometimes it sure felt like it. But now, not only am I not the last gargoyle, but I'm not the last of my clan. I have a brother out there, somewhere."
"He's probably feeling the same things, the isolation of being the only gargoyle among humans," Angela surmised.
Denna thought about this, then said, "I'm going to find him. I'm going to reunite my clan."
"What do you think your parents will say?"
"I don't care," Denna said flatly. "They're either going to take me there or I'll just find it myself."
"You can't stay mad at them forever. At the time they thought they had your best interests in mind."
Denna wanted to protest but she knew Angela was right. "I know," she sighed. "I'll always feel like they betrayed me, but they are my parents, they raised me. I won't be mad forever." She stood and offered Angela a hand up.
"I wish you a good journey," Angela said, giving Denna a quick hug. "I know you'll find your rookery brother. Someday I hope to see the world and find others of our kind too."
"You will Angela, someday, I'm sure of it." Denna smiled as they headed back to the castle.