Chapter 1: Hot Chocolate for Two
Sunset was near in the Big Apple (a.k.a New York City) when at the same time, an 18-year-old girl with wavy waist-length red hair was stepping into Xanatos Enterprises, the most famous company headquarters in town, if not the world.
An excited smile forced itself on her face when she rode in an elevator to the very top floor.
To a handful of people including her, this place was the best in the world, for the said small group of people were the only ones who knew its secrets.
She leaned her head against the elevator wall as she remembered discovering New York's stories was actually nonfiction.
3 1/2 MONTHS AGO
She was walking home from working at her aunt and uncle's night club one late evening.
Before she stepped inside her building, she heard the loud sounds of grunts and...garbage cans being crashed?
It wasn't hard to understand there was a fight in the alley. The thought of thugs nearby terrified her and tempted her to hide in her apartment...but another thought stopped her.
"What if there's an innocent victim who needs help?"
Full of fear as she was, she couldn't live with the thought of a poor soul being harmed.
...With her mind made up, she swiftly pulled out her sakura cell phone to call for the police who assured her that they would arrive with the cavalry as soon as they could.
She knew the authorities would do their best to come, but she worried for whoever was in danger.
"Just how do I know if it's not all street gangsters fighting for territory like alpha males?" she asked herself. "I don't want to involve myself for nothing."
She jumped when she heard a growl from the brawl in the shadows...a growl that didn't sound human.
"Can it be?"
Dying to know if her presumption was correct, she carefully peeked in the alley to see three young adult street goons (the same Goliath beat on his first night with Elisa) trying in vain to knock out a...
"It's one of them!" she smiled excitedly, her hands together. "It's actually one of them, and up so close!"
She had heard of the wild stories of gargoyles turning from stone to flesh, roaming the city at night.
Lately for several weeks, she would see news about them, people going all panicky and acting like bigots, accusing the gargoyles of being monstrous outlaws with no real proof, much to her disgust.
She herself had witnessed them gliding and climbing up buildings from time to time, but she never saw any of them threaten anyone.
"Right now, I'd say that red one with the long white hair is the one being threatened."
She watched as he gave the trio of no-goods a well-deserved wallop, punching one to a wall; throwing the second one over his shoulder, making him fall with a thud, and using his tail to catch the last one by his ankles before flinging him right into a dumpster where he tossed the other unconscious two in.
"Right where pieces of filth like you belong," he hissed, his eyes glowing with anger.
"Awesome..."
He stood there with a victorious grin on his long face, his chest sticking out and his sharp claws on his hips.
His air of confidence soon disappeared when he sensed a new presence, sharply turning his head in her direction.
PRESENT
"From that night on, my life was never the same."
Her heart jumped in excitement when the elevator had finally reached the top floor.
She stepped inside through the castle foyer which looked modern as well as the rest of the opulent thousand-year-old Scottish dwelling.
Memorizing the maze-like building took her over three weeks to do. Now she was perfectly able to find her way to the tower where she found seven imposing statues of gargoyles.
Only these were very special statues. By day, they are forced to only be marveled at, but...
"Just a minute more," she whispered, waiting in anticipation for the sun to descend.
Finally, she could hear the statues shaking and cracking until with a burst of energy, they broke free of their stone cocoons that shattered to pieces, revealing the colorful skins of the legendary gargoyles.
She watched in amazement at how they roared as they stretched their stiff muscles.
The first one who turned to look to see which human friend had come to greet them tonight was Brooklyn who grinned ear to ear when he saw her.
"Hey, Aurora!" he greeted as he jumped off from his spot on a crenel with the usual ardor he expressed every time he saw her at sundown.
That always made her glad that he would be the happiest to see her.
Of course the others always put a smile on her face, too.
"Hi, Aurora," Broadway smiled with that ever friendly look he always had, along with his lover Angela.
"Hi, everyone."
"Evenin', lass," Hudson greeted as the he and the rest jumped down from their spots, too. "Surprise to see ya by your lonesome this time."
"Aye," Goliath, the leader of the clan, agreed, "Elisa didn't come to join you tonight?"
"I'd spoken with her on my cell phone. She says she'll be late tonight."
Goliath himself understood and headed out to glide to where she was to wait for her to complete her duties at the police station.
Bronx, the clan's pet gargoyle beast, gave Aurora's right hand a greeting lick that she accepted as she petted him.
When she first met him, the dog-like gargoyle wasn't as affectionate since he needed time to get used to a new person.
It wasn't long at all for her to get along with the rest of the clan. She was closest to the young gargoyles, especially Brooklyn (who was currently gazing at her as she kept giving Bronx attention).
Almost every night she would come to the Eyrie Building to play her iPod's music for them or read in the castle library with them. Tonight Lexington, Broadway and Angela went out on patrol while Hudson and Bronx spent time in the television room.
Brooklyn and Aurora themselves walked around the courtyard until they agreed to have hot chocolate on the tower.
She redhead waited for Brooklyn, gladly admiring this view.
"I haven't been this close to the clouds since I rode on that plane to this New York to move here."
Finally, she heard Brooklyn's footsteps climbing up the stoned staircase with a cup of hot cocoa in each hand.
"You deserve a tip," Aurora grinned as she accepted her cup.
"Nah, thanks but no thanks," he grinned back, "Customer satisfaction is always good enough for me. It always is for gargoyles."
"Thankfully, you've been getting a lot of gratitude lately," she hinted. "That night two weeks ago?"
"We don't stop thinking about it..." He smiled most fondly as he remembered that night when he and the clan saved the passengers on that train whom that madman Castaway almost had killed just to annihilate the gargoyles who were also onboard when they went to rescue Bronx and Angela. "That was the best night of our lives. Humans finally saw us the exact opposite of what Castaway is."
"Yes, they saw through his hypocrisy when all he wanted was revenge, not peace for his fellow man and all you want is to protect everyone, no matter what you would or wouldn't receive in the end."
"Hm, honestly, we thought it would be much longer until we'd finally get recognition."
"Good things come for those who wait...and persevere."
"Huh, I guess so," he concurred, "but lately...when we wake up, we keep worrying it was just a dream."
"Well, since it's something you all experienced, it couldn't be just a dream, could it?" she queried before taking a sip of her sweet beverage.
"No, no, it couldn't," he answered, shaking his head before looking in his cup. "We can't begin to tell how much that night means to us."
"As much as it means to the people who've always known you were ethical."
Thinking about the night before that...a flashback of the news of most of the Manhattan clan's alleged demise was currently overwhelming her with the same desolation she felt that night.
"That was the worst night of my life..."
After Brooklyn took a sip of his drink, he noticed her eyes looking misty. "What's the matter?"
"...You...You have no idea how relieved Elisa, Matt and I were when we found out you and the guys survived that explosion. We thought a blessing had come to an end and we thought Angela and Bronx were going to..." Aurora started, her right hand over her face as the memory replayed itself loud and clear.
Knowing she was on the verge of shaking and shedding tears, he put both him and her cups down before placing his hands on his shoulders.
"Hey, hey, don't," he insisted, she feeling forced to look at him. "Don't."
She knew he wanted her to stay strong since things turned out excellently... Still, looking at Brooklyn right in front of her made a tear fall down her right cheek.
"I'm sorry. It's just... My life has always been missing something... When I thought you were all killed, I nearly died on the inside."
Brooklyn looked at the ground for a moment, amazed at how much he and his clan means to her...
"...When most of my brethren died a thousand years ago, it killed me, too."
Looking back at the redhead, he rubbed her shoulders to help her keep steady.
"Remember what you keep telling us? Count your blessings. We're very much alive and equality is finally ours," he said gently.
Aurora closed her eyes as she took calm breaths. "You're right. There's a new age and it is finally yours as it rightfully always was."
Brooklyn nodded in approval of her knowing the facts before he remembered he was still massaging her shoulders that he carefully released as his face heated up.
Slightly desperate for an excuse to keep her from noticing, he picked up the cups.
"Here, the hot chocolate will be ice cold in this air."
Without question, she took back the mug before resting her left arm on a crenel to admire the view much to his relief.
"You know, I've been thinking," she spoke.
Without looking at her directly in the face, he slightly moved his eyes to her. "About what?
"The night we met by my building when you protected me."
He grinned fondly at that memory as he closed his eyes. "Yeah, that's a night I hardly stop thinking about."
THE FIRST MEETING IN THAT SAME ALLEY
Brooklyn stood where he was like a deer caught in the headlights, absolutely stunned that she sees him.
He was ready to get away from here before hearing any screams from her of which he and his clan were unhappily used to receiving instead of grateful praises.
However, he found the longer she stood there, the more confused he was that she hadn't shouted in terror.
"Is she just frozen with fear?"
Aurora took a good look at this male gargoyle who was wishing she would make the typical human reaction so he could go.
"You're beautiful," she said in awe.
"Did...Did she just say...? No, I gotta be dreaming. This can't be real... Or can it?"
It sure felt real, the chilly night air, the sounds of the city streets. Not to mention, the bruises he had gotten from his rough playmates definitely were still hurting even though it was a little bit.
"Then she...she actually isn't afraid of me. She isn't afraid!"
He was feeling so ecstatic, he would have been deaf to the world were it not for the familiar sounds of police car sirens that made him perk his head.
Seeing how alarmed he was acting, she asked, "What's the matter?"
"Sirens."
"Sirens? Oh, shoot, the police!" "You have to get away from here," she warned.
"What...?" he started to ask, but he couldn't complete his question when she gently pushed him further into the dark alley.
"I'd already called the police to apprehend those jerks. You've got to get away from here before they see you," she insisted.
His disoriented look was soon replaced with panic at the thought of cops coming here, so he wasted no time in jumping over the fence in the back of the alley.
He looked over his right shoulder with a crestfallen expression, hating to leave someone who seemed like a potential friend, but he knew it wasn't a good idea to stay here any longer.
"I'll come back to see her tomorrow."
Aurora stared in the direction she saw him disappear to which made her almost regret calling the authorities.
"Well, look at the bright side: Thanks to him, there are three less muggers to pounce from the dark," she thought, trying to be positive.
When three police men arrived, she made sure to give them a story that was true but without specific details: The three harassers were taken out by a good guy whose name she didn't catch and whose appearance she couldn't describe (as in she shouldn't describe).
PRESENT
"You sure know how to twist your words," Brooklyn complimented.
"Well, I really couldn't tell the cops what you look like."
"They wouldn't be the first people whom you kept a secret from. You've been seeing us for over a year and you never even told your aunt and uncle. Not until later," he grinned, resting his right cheek on his hand as he leaned his right elbow on the ledge.
"It was time they knew about my special friends," she grinned back. "I'm just relieved they took it better than we expected."
"Well, like you, they've always believed not to judge by appearances. That's what makes you three of the best humans around."
"Caution is necessary around strangers, no matter the species. However, understanding and fairness are what create peace and kinship. Of course, you know I was always too diffident to make friends before I moved to New York five years ago, but I had to let you guys know that I'm not your enemy."
"Glad you did. It saved me the trouble of finding out for myself when you asked Elisa to give you a lie detector test and letting her ask you very specific questions so that she would know it for herself."
"Well, I had met Elisa at my aunt and uncle's club long before you came to Manhattan, and I have seen you all carrying her from time to time. Having a cop for an ally must be very convenient," she smiled, her wrapped hands on her cheeks.
"In more ways than one. We still can't get over that you would have the nerve to ask her for a lie detector test like that."
"Honest people have nothing to fear," she declared softly and slyly.
The crimson gargoyle chuckled softly. "...We're also glad you let Elisa convince you to meet us despite your hesitation."
"She made it too tempting for me to pass up."
"Yeah, Elisa's got a knack for twisting people's arms."
"Yeah..." She took a sip of her sweet beverage before looking forward. "A skill that benefits all."
"Yeah, very beneficial," he agreed quietly, pointing his face forward also but only to take secret glances at the woman beside him.
The truth is: the first time he saw her was not at her building that night. He had seen her half a year ago when he and his rookery brothers Broadway and Lexington secretly came into her aunt and uncle's club through the attic window to watch the show that included Aurora as the songtress and dancer.
The trio liked the shows so much, they would sneak in the club often. Brooklyn himself started to wonder if it was possible Aurora was a good human.
He would have liked to believe so since she has such a voice, but he knew that that wouldn't nearly be good enough proof.
So he would follow her around without the clan knowing, trying to see what she was like outside of her work hours. The best he could learn was her name, and that she was quiet and alone most of the time.
This made him get a good feeling she was a reclusive, demure person. He did see a kind side from her when she would either open doors for people and donate money to contributions on the streets.
It tempted him to want to meet her, but it was too soon, so he watched over her some more.
Finally, even though he didn't know it yet, his time of watching from afar ended when he witnessed those three thugs attempting to mug and forcefully flirt with her which enraged him as he made the first move to defend her.
He didn't count on the noise attracting her attention...nor did he expect to admire him and warn him to flee before the police would find him.
"I felt so bad for almost getting you caught by the cops," she said, slumping a bit as she leaned her chin the back of her left hand. "I thought maybe those three were attacking someone, but in actuality you were the one keeping them from touching me."
"That is our job, and don't feel too bad. You still kept it a secret and you were right to call the police to pick up the trash I had thrown out," he comforted with a wink.
She smiled before looking at the tower wall.
"Honestly, that attempted mugging was a blessing in disguise when you think about it."
"That...and that I had been following her around more than once."
However, there was no way he would tell her about that and discomfort her of the fact he has been a...
"I'm not a stalker, am I? I just wanted to know if she was nice enough which she more than is. To think, she had known about us for the longest time and kept quiet, to keep us safe from the wrong judgment of easily frightened humans. "
He received another surprise of his life when Elisa introduced her to the clan. From that night on, Aurora would come almost every night and whenever she couldn't because she had work at the night club, Brooklyn would watch from the rooftops to make sure she'd get home safely.
Aurora would always know since she would constantly keep a sharp eye out for the prominent gargoyles, and she would always be grateful for his guardianship. And every time he saw to it she'd enter her building, she would open her apartment window and flag him to invite him inside.
Having him for a guest was always a comfort, for she had no other company besides her beloved aunt and uncle.
As of late, as much as she was fond of all the Manhattan clan, Brooklyn was always her favorite. His sarcasm was the same as hers and he liked reading and music just as much as she does.
"It's nice to have a kindred spirit the same age as I," she thought fondly.
What she really enjoyed was when Brooklyn would take her for a glide over the town. Even though she knew gargoyle wings weren't built for flying, it felt the same to her.
Brooklyn had learned from her that she never saw much of the city since she moved here, for she didn't trust the world very much.
So he talked her into letting him show her the wonders of the city the gargoyle way.
"He sure knows how to show a lady a good time."
"I have to admit something: As dear as my uncle and aunt are to me, I hated living here. I used to live in wide open fields and coming here in a crowded city made me feel trapped. For years, I've been saving money so that I could go back to my childhood home."
Those words struck him hard to the point he almost lost his grip on his mug before putting it back in his hold, but not without preventing a drop of the hot liquid spilling on his left foot.
"Ow!"
"What? What's wrong?" Aurora asked quickly, panicked by his cry in pain.
He hissed in agony some more as he made his right foot rub his other one.
"Uh, I accidentally got a bit of hot chocolate on me, but I'm okay," he assured.
Physically he was fine but emotionally, he was beginning to feel completely low-spirited.
He cleared the lump his throat, trying to act calm and casual as possible as he asked, "You said you're saving money to return to your old home? How close do you think you are of...achieving your dream?"
Aurora smiled as she closed her eyes, her expression piercing his heart when he thought she was close to having enough money.
"Aw, who really cares?"
Brooklyn blinked twice at her nonchalant tone. "You won't tell me?"
"I see no point at all in telling anyone about a plan that I aborted."
Did his ears deceive him? She gave up on leaving?
"That was then and this is now. Back then, I didn't have anything worth staying with. As I'd mentioned, my life was anything but riveting...until recently. But now, I wouldn't trade my new life for anything."
Aurora, having a feeling her former plans have upset her friend, reached her left hand to his left arm, making him perk up as he looked at her warm smile.
"I grew up with my family as my only friends. I don't want to spend the rest of my life with the same loneliness of having no one, age-wise and personality-wise."
He grinned sympathetically as he slipped his left hand to hold hers. "And you shouldn't."
Aurora felt so content with everything, she found herself leaning against his left shoulder to his surprise. A smile soon grew on his long face as he used the slightly strong wind as an excuse to wrap his wings around her, to test whether she would willingly welcome this or not.
"The air is a bit brisk."
"Thanks," she responded. He paid close attention to the way she said that and detected no sign of discomfort or reluctance at all.
What also took him by surprise was when she leaned the back of her head under his head.
His face rapidly turned redder as his body became very warm as Aurora found herself holding his left hand.
"There was a time I didn't mind my old life because it seemed peaceful enough for me... But now I never want to remember that hollow existence again."
Brooklyn could hear lament in her voice when she said those last three words. He smiled sympathetically when he gently gripped her hand as he wrapped his right arm around her.
"We'd be more than willing to help you forget."
She smiled most thankfully, a tear rolling down her left cheek as she leaned the right side of her head against his chest for him to see her face that he reached his left wing to gently wipe dry.