begun god knows when (late '95 i think), completed 8-12-97
first published attempt at fanfic
Gargoyles, the characters, etc are the property of Buena Vista or Disney or whoever actually owns the rights, borrowed in admiration; all other characters and story are mine mine mine!
Quote from a catalogue: "You are the Sun, I am the Moon, together we are Radiant!"
Yes! this is the most cliche'd thing ever written! I promise I'll do better next time. The only things to keep in mind here is that it takes place a little while in the future, and that in this reality no one knows that Owen is Puck. Everything else is pretty much the same.
As always, this is dedicated to the Family, and also anyone out there who also thought that Brooklyn got the short end of the stick in the girl department.
Three figures sat together atop a castle, overlooking the lights of
a great city, their feet dangling over the edge. The child squirmed,
and her mother sat her down between her and the girl's father. The
parents smiled at each other over the child's head. They each took one
of the little girl's hands, and the family sat and talked and watched a
waning moon rise.
The girl looked up at her father. "Daddy, why are you different?"
The parents exchanged worried glances. They had been expecting
this. Their daughter was at "that age", when children ask endless
questions, and when they begin noticing things like differences.
"Because this is what I am." Now he picked the girl up and sat her
on his lap. "Everyone is different, sweetie."
"Well, I know," she said. "I'm different than Mommy because I'm a
kid, and I'm different from you because I'm a girl but..."
The father sighed and looked at the mother.
The mother said, "honey, would you like to hear a story?"
"Yes," she replied immediately. The parents smiled.
"Well, a long time ago, when I didn't know Daddy...."
* * *
The Eyrie Building shone in the light of the setting sun like a
diamond hovering over Manhattan. It stood century over the island
majestically like a king surrounded by his subjects. The crown it wore
reached high above the clouds, the restored ruins of an old Scottish
castle. The proud Castle Wyvern was home to many: The Xanatos family,
David, Fox and their three year old son, Alexander; Owen Burnett, their
faithful servant and friend; a collection of rare antiques prominently
displayed in Xanatos' personal collection; and the gargoyles...
They were perched on the highest tower, overlooking and protecting
the whole city. One giant statue stood surrounded by the others, wings
outstretched. To the left, an older looking gargoyle wielding a sword,
one that looked like a dog, and one smaller gargoyle. To the right, a
female gargoyle, a heavier gargoyle, and lastly a youthful looking one.
Behind them stood three humans, waiting for the sun to set.
The sound of cracking stone filled the twilight air. Goliath and
his clan stretched, refreshed after a good day's rest. He turned to see
Elisa Maza's smiling face, and took her hand in his as they went through
the doorway together. Hudson yawned and patted Bronx's head, and the
two headed for the TV room. Lexington hopped off the ledge and caught
little Alex as he ran to his friend. Lex greeted Fox as they too
disappeared into the castle. Broadway eased Angela off her perch,
kissed her hand, and arm in arm they followed the others.
Brooklyn sat watching the last lingering rays of the sun follow
their source into the west. There was peace up there. The noises of
the city were faint by the time they reached his ears. Stars began
taking their places in the sky as the sun's golden beams died away. A
half moon shone a pale light on the castle. Peace everywhere....except
in Brooklyn's soul. It's not that he was ungrateful for all he had. He
considered himself one lucky gargoyle. He had his clan, his home....
But some nagging need within him announced itself every now and then.
It was times like this, when everyone else had plans but him...when he
was left alone on his ledge to watch the sunset. Sometimes he didn't
mind being alone, and other times he preferred it. And then there were
times when he'd give anything for someone to....well, even surrounded by
his clan he was lonely, and it was times like this that it hurt the
most. The sun was long gone by now, but it was still a long while
before Brooklyn took his eyes off the horizon.
* * *
Daniela rang the doorbell a couple more times. She blew a strand of
dark brown hair out of her face and thought, this is ridiculous.
It was her friend Amy's idea to do this in the first place. They both
had research to do for a term paper that was due sooner than they'd like
to think. Amy had arranged it so that they could stay at the library
later if they needed to. Daniela didn't think she'd need to be there
that long, but she said she'd stay with Amy for as long as it took. But
they wouldn't get anywhere that night if Amy didn't hurry up. Finally
her friend came out of the door.
"What took so long?," she asked as they walked down the street.
"I just wanted to make sure I had everything. You know, extra pens,
highlighters, disks..."
"We are not going to be there that long," Daniela said hoping
it was the truth.
Amy shrugged and said, "you never know..."
Daniela had a feeling this was going to be a long night.
* * *
It was around one o'clock, about time for their second patrol to
begin. The gargoyles were gathering on the tower. Elisa had already
gone ahead in her car, and Goliath was reminding them of their new
assignments.
"Hudson and I are covering Queens now. Angela, Broadway, Lexington,
you..."
"Yeah, yeah, we know..." The three jumped off the building and
headed for Harlem.
Goliath glanced over at Brooklyn.
Brooklyn, staring out at the lights of the city, sighed and said,
"Manhattan..." He headed for the park without another word.
* * *
Daniela flipped through a book about the old magics, every now and
again glancing at her watch, which crept deeper and deeper into the
early morning. She had long ago finished her research and was waiting
as patiently as she could for Amy to do the same.
Amy glanced up to see her friend nearly asleep in the pages of the
book. She went to Daniela and said, "Dani, go home. This may take a
while longer, and you should get some rest."
Daniela checked her watch. 2 o'clock. She rubbed her eyes.
"But I said I'd stay with you..."
"Don't worry about it." She brought Daniela her coat. "Next time I
won't put the paper off for so long, okay?"
Daniela smiled, and Amy herded her towards the door.
"You'll be alright getting home?," Daniela asked.
"Sure, it's not that far. I can always have Mike walk me home."
Amy, the eternal flirt, waved and winked to the library's security
guard.
Daniela just shook her head and laughed.
Amy turned back to her. "What about you? Think you can make it?"
"With a nice, squishy bed waiting for me at home, you bet I can!
See you tomorrow," Daniela said as she left the building.
Completely against all rules of being a lone female in New York at
two in the morning, and perhaps because of the lack of sleep, Daniela
took a shortcut through Central Park. She walked slowly, admiring the
moonlight shining through the leaves of trees, but also cautiously. She
held her backpack tight and stayed in as much light as she could.
Halfway through the park, she bumped into a reason why this wasn't a
very good idea.
"Good evening, miss," said the grungy looking man who now stood
before her. "Got any spare change for a poor derelict?"
"I'm sorry, no." Daniela tried to walk around him, but he cut her
off.
"Come on, I'm sure you've got a couple of bucks in that sack of
yours." He pulled a knife from his pocket and said, "better let me have
a look."
Daniela took a couple of steps back, but he followed. "Look, all
that's in here is some books and a fairly decent term paper. Go find
someone with money."
He stood there for a second, but when she tried to go around him
again he grabbed her arm. She swung her bag at him, and he let go of
the knife, but not her.
"Let go of me, you jerk!," she said, still struggling. "Help!" She
tried kicking him a couple of times, but he held her arm tighter,
pinching it.
"Oh, now, don't be like that. You go and attack poor old me and
scream your head off like it's my fault..." He tried to get her bag
again, knocking half its contents onto the ground.
There was a gust of wind, and Daniela saw a shadow behind the creep.
Then she heard a calm, yet annoyed, voice.
"I believe the lady asked you to let her go."
The creep turned to see two glowing eyes scowling at him. His jaw
dropped, and Daniela was able to free herself and step back a few feet.
She watched as the shadow, with its glowing eyes, moved towards the
creep. He stumbled backwards, but then quickly got up and ran from the
shadow, screaming. The eyes dimmed as the shadow shook its head and
said, "dork."
Daniela glanced at the shadow, then bent to pick up her things. She
jumped at the shadow's movements as it helped her pick up. An orange
hand passed her a book. She took it, and looked up. They stood there
in the light of the lamppost, looking at each other.
Maybe going through the park wasn't such a bad idea,
she thought. She'd always wanted to meet a real gargoyle.
Why isn't she afraid of me? Brooklyn thought, realizing that
the girl hadn't herself run away and was still standing before him.
"Um, thank you," Daniela said, breaking the silence. "Thanks for
saving me."
"Anytime. It's what we do."
"Yeah..." Daniela still couldn't believe it. She'd finally met a
gargoyle. She'd read legends about them, and heard the "urban fairy
tales", and she'd always dreamt of meeting one. Now this one had saved
her life. Thanking him for that didn't seem like enough.
Brooklyn was the first to turn away. He started moving back into
the shadows, but Daniela said, "wait!", and he turned back around.
Daniela stuck out her hand and said, "My name's Daniela."
Brooklyn gave a little smile, shook her hand and said, "I'm
Brooklyn."
"Hi Brooklyn, it's good to meet you." She smiled; she couldn't help
it. "Um, are you in a hurry? If it's okay, I'd like to get to know
you." He looked at her a moment. "You did save me. And I'd bet others
you've saved haven't shown as much gratitude."
Brooklyn had to agree with that. They sat on a nearby bench and
began chatting. Brooklyn told her about the clan, and a little about
what had happened to them, but he was careful not to disclose too much
information. After all, he didn't know this girl, who she was or who
she might work for. He knew he was being paranoid, but that was from
past "dealings" with people like Xanatos.
Daniela was very interested in things like the time period they all
originally came from, the third race, and their encounters with other
humans. She found Brooklyn easy to talk with. They sat in the park and
traded stories for a couple of hours. They lost all track of time until
the birds and the sky reminded them of the fast approaching dawn.
Brooklyn stood up.
"I have to go. The others will be worried."
Daniela rose as well. She knew they both had to sleep, he
obviously, and she because she had a class in a few hours. But she
also knew if they could, they would just sit there and keep talking.
The night was just too short. She wanted very much to consider Brooklyn
a new friend.
"Will I see you again?" she asked carefully.
Brooklyn thought about it. There were so few humans they could
trust and be friends with. Daniela seemed nice enough. He smiled. "I
would like that.
"If you can make it, how about two nights from now...over there."
He pointed to a nearby apartment building. "On the roof of that
building."
"Okay, great."
Again they stood there, staring at each other, in silence.
The sky was getting lighter.
"I really have to go. I'll see you later." He headed for a statue,
and glided off from it.
"See you." Daniela watched him go until she couldn't see him
anymore.
A few minutes later she saw the bright light of the sun peek through
the trees, and she smiled.
Brooklyn returned to the castle with only a few moments to spare.
"We were worried," Goliath said, but he didn't ask where he'd been
or why he was so late. It was enough for Goliath that he had returned
safely.
"So, Brooklyn," Broadway asked, "anything interesting happen to you
this morning?"
Brooklyn glanced behind him at the sun just before it rose, then
turned back and, smiling, said, "...mmmm...interesting..."
* * *
Daniela paced back and forth, wrapping her coat tighter around her.
She'd only been on the roof for a few minutes, and already the slight
breeze chilled her just enough to be annoying. She'd probably catch a
cold, but at the same time it was probably worth it. The past two days
crept by so slowly! Sometimes she could swear that time was brought to
a halt just to torture her. But the designated night had finally
arrived. Daniela looked up every now and then, telling herself to
relax and be patient. She couldn't really understand where all this
anticipation was coming from. This was really no different than
talking with any of her other friends. But Brooklyn was different, and
not just because he was a gargoyle. Daniela saw something in him that
she couldn't name, something....she just didn't know.
"Daniela!"
Daniela looked up to see Brooklyn land in front of her. She smiled
and walked towards him. The breeze died down a little.
"Hi Brooklyn," she said.
"You haven't been waiting up here long, have you?" he asked her.
"No, only a few minutes."
He sat on the edge of the building, facing her. "I'm sorry. I
would have been here sooner, but it took a while to convince Lex I
wasn't going anyplace dangerous."
"Yeah, can't be too careful around those city girls." They laughed
a little, and Daniela said, "but really, you could have brought him
along..."
Brooklyn appeared to ponder this, then shook his head, "nah."
Daniela blushed and tried to hide her smile.
Again they talked into the early morning. They found out some
things they had in common, like rock music and English literature.
They debated on things they disagreed on. Daniela told him about her
house, how she "inherited" it from her parents when they moved to
Florida, and how she was thinking about redecorating the library.
Their conversations were once again interrupted by the lightening hue of
the eastern horizon.
"Will I see you again?," Brooklyn asked her before he jumped from
the roof.
"I'd like that." They agreed to meet back on this roof in a few
days. "See ya," she said as he glided away.
Daniela sneezed as she headed for the stairwell. She laughed.
Oh well, she thought, I was right. It was worth it.
* * *
"Alright, who is he?"
Daniela looked up from her notes at Amy. "Hmm?"
"You heard me."
"He who?"
Amy sat down in the seat next to her friend, dodging some other
students and papers. "Whoever. I can't believe you met someone and
didn't say anything."
"Well who says I met someone?" Daniela was deliberately trying to
avoid Amy's questions. There'd be no way to explain Brooklyn to her.
She was lucky to have kept her at bay this long. She'd known him for a
few weeks now, and each time they met she'd had a great time, and look
forward to their next meeting.
"Hello? Dani, it's me, Amy. Come on, tell me! What's he like?"
"He's uh, he's not your type, Amy." Man, was that the truth!
"Well obviously he's your type," Amy said, nudging her and smiling
deviously.
"Really, you wouldn't like him much." Please, please stop
asking!
"Well it's not like I was going to try and steal him from you," she
said as the professor came in. She whispered, "I was just asking. As
long as you're happy, he's all yours."
As the professor began his lecture, Daniela looked down at the paper
she'd taken out for notes, its margins were filled with doodles of wings
and eyes.
* * *
The gargoyles greeted the night with yawns and stretches. Broadway
was about to head inside when he saw Brooklyn about to leave. It was
the second time that month Brooklyn had left just after sunset.
"Hey Brooklyn, what's the rush? We haven't even had breakfast yet."
Brooklyn thought quick. "I just felt like going out for a while,
okay?"
Broadway backed off a little. "Sure, whatever." Lexington came
over to Broadway and whispered, "maybe he's got a hot date," and the two
snickered.
Brooklyn sighed and leapt from the building. Let them believe
whatever they want. But the truth was, he was in a hurry to see
Daniela again. He felt so comfortable with her, like he'd known her
forever. He'd only known her for a little over a month, but already he
completely trusted her. He warned himself to be careful though. Inter-
species relationships were tough enough, but ones like this could be
dangerous. Just look at Goliath and Elisa. For all their joy there
were equal pieces of pain and alienation. The last thing Brooklyn
wanted was for Daniela to get hurt. He was determined not to make
similar mistakes. Things would be better for them, he was sure of it.
* * *
"So, uh, I was kinda thinking..."
"Shh..." Daniela held his hand in hers. She had just read a book
about palm reading, and was "trying it out" on Brooklyn.
Brooklyn had been trying to tell her his idea all night. But now it
was Very late, and he didn't think he'd get a chance to bring it up
again that night. It didn't matter. There'd be many more nights. For
now he was content to sit on the edge of the building with her, their
feet dangling over the side. He watched her as she examined his palm,
her touch soft as she traced the lines with her fingertips. Once she
looked up and caught him staring at her. They both smiled warmly, and
she went back to her "experiment." Then, smiling, he slowly closed his
hand around hers. Just as gently, she forced it back open, only to have
his hand close again moments later.
"How am I supposed to read your palm if I can't see it?"
He laced his fingers with hers. "Read it now."
She looked up at him, and for a long while stared into his eyes,
completely lost in them. She whispered, "I wasn't any good at this
anyway."
They sat in silence for a while after that, their feet dangling,
looking out at a world with busy people and technology, and seeing none
of it. All either of them saw was the other. By chance they had come
together, and now nothing would ever drive them apart.
Except the accursed dawn.
"Brooklyn..."
"Mmmm..."
"I don't think I can see you tomorrow."
Brooklyn's stomach flip-flopped. "What? Why?"
Daniela realized how what she'd just said sounded, and quickly
explained, "there's a huge storm heading for New York, and it's supposed
to be pouring by tomorrow evening. We can't come up here in weather
like that."
Brooklyn knew she was right. His idea would have solved this
problem if he'd told her earlier, but it needed time to set up. Then he
had another idea.
"Well what if I come over to your place tomorrow?"
"That would be wonderful, really, but I don't want you gliding in
that kind of weather. You'll catch a cold or worse." She squeezed his
hand. "Promise me you won't go out in the storm."
He kissed her hand and said, "I promise I'll try..."
Daniela sighed. The look in his eyes stopped her insistence. He
kept her balanced as she swung her legs over the side, then he did the
same, never letting go of her hand. They stood for a moment in silence.
Then Brooklyn stepped up onto the edge, still holding her hand and
looking down at her. They allowed their grip to loosen, and as he leapt
from the roof her hand fell from his unwillingly.
Neither of them noticed the red-haired gargoyle hiding nearby, who
had seen everything, and now wore a devilish grin on her face.
* * *
The rain had been coming down in sheets since around four that
afternoon, and the power had gone out an hour later. It was now dark in
Daniela's house, except for the oil lamps and the lightning. The rain
just wouldn't let up. Daniela was wandering around her house with a
lamp in her hands, looking for something to do. She hadn't been to the
bookstore in a while, so there was nothing new to read. She put some
batteries in a boom box, so at least there was music. She wondered what
Brooklyn was doing. She would look out the window at the falling rain,
sigh, and go back to wandering around the house. Eventually she wrapped
herself in a quilt and fell asleep on the sofa.
Thump!
The noise jolted her. She'd been napping for three hours! She
untangled herself from the blanket and carried the lamp into the kitchen
with her. She set it on the counter and went to the fridge for some
tea. She was about to pour a glass when she stopped suddenly and turned
around to the glass door.
There stood Brooklyn, soaked to the bone.
"What are you doing here?" she asked as she let him in. "Look at
you, you're drenched!" He sat down in one of the kitchen chairs, and
Daniela ran to the closet for some towels. When she returned she said,
"I thought I told you not to go out in this."
He looked up at her, his eyes pleading forgiveness, and said in a
whisper, "I wanted to see you."
Daniela sighed and handed him a towel, and stood behind him and
dried his hair with another towel. They were silent for a while.
Daniela was very glad to see him, but the idea of him gliding in weather
like this disturbed her. It just wasn't safe. But she understood why
he'd done it. She probably would have wound up on their roof herself
before the night was over. She needed him to talk and laugh with. She
needed him to sit with her and watch the world pass them by. She needed
him.....
Brooklyn sat still and allowed her to dry his hair. He felt her
fingers running through it. Despite the cold rain, he felt warm. Her
presence was like a candle within him, giving off light and warmth.
Being away from her was painful, like the light was being extinguished
by a bitter wind. But when she was there with him, all the turmoil
within him dissolved. Perhaps he had finally found the peace he sought.
She came back around to face him. "No more gliding in such weather,
really promise me this time."
He stood, took her hand and said, "I promise."
They got lost in each other's eyes, and it took them both a while to
find their way back.
Daniela cleared her throat. "The library is finished. Would you
like to see it?"
Brooklyn nodded. "Finished already? Last time you hadn't even
chosen a color scheme."
"Well once I did that the rest was easy." She grabbed the boom box
and led him down the hall. "I found the most perfect wallpaper, wait
'till you see it!
"Now close your eyes." He did. She opened the door and led him
into the room. She put the lamp and the radio on the desk and stood
back. "Okay, open 'em."
"Hey, it's great!" He looked around at the soft blue and lavender
room, with dark wood furniture and floor, that had only a few months
ago been a drab, gray mess. "You're right, it is perfect. This was a
huge undertaking. I'm proud of you."
Daniela smiled and said, "yeah, I'm proud of me too." They laughed.
"Oh, and I got a new CD just for this room." She went to a shelf and
selected a disk, then put it in the player. A slow, relaxing melody
filled the room, mixing with the sound of the storm raging outside.
Brooklyn looked at the collection of books while Daniela went to the
kitchen for some tea for them. He found one book, among dozens of
others in her collection about the older beliefs, about every creature
ever documented or ever told of in a story. Any and all creatures were
listed and described, their existences argued by the author. Griffins,
dragons, giant bats, changelings, unicorns...and gargoyles. Brooklyn
sat on the couch with the book and looked it over. Daniela returned
with a tray, which she set on the table. She sat next to him and looked
over his arm at the book.
"This is one of my favorites."
Brooklyn pointed to all the dog-eared pages and said, "I could
tell." She punched him playfully in the arm. He turned to the pages
about gargoyles, which looked like they'd been through a lot of
readings. "When did you get this book?," he asked.
"A couple of years ago, at an occult swap meet." They looked
through the book some more. "I love the illustrations," she told him.
He nodded. There were different examples of some of the beings, like
the dragons and the gargoyles; different styles of drawing them, or
different physical forms of them.
The CD reached the end and stopped. Brooklyn handed her the book,
stood and walked to the player. He hit the play button and set it to
repeat. He stood in front of the machine for a moment, listening to
the music. Then slowly he turned around and asked, "would you like
to..."
Daniela rose before he could finish and walked towards him. He
reached out his hand for hers. For a moment they looked at each other
and smiled, and then they embraced and swayed back and forth to the
music and the rain. She rested her head on his shoulder and closed
her eyes. He unfolded his wings and wrapped them around her, holding
her close. For both, it was as if everything physical had melted away,
and all that was left were their souls, mixing with the air, the music,
and each other. In this instant, they both knew. They knew they had
found what was missing in their lives. They knew the answers to all the
unasked questions that now would never need words.
They knew their love was real.
Continue...