*DISCLAIMER* I do not own any part of the Gargoyles. All characters are owned by Disney.* This is my very first Fan Fiction piece. Please be kind in reviews.
More chapters will follow, and will be less detailed in nature.
Thank you, and please enjoy.
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Amber waves of sunset light glistened off of concrete fortresses. Glass walls shattered images about the sheer face of the behemoth pillars. Soon enough the twinkling of street lights, office lights, and headlights would pierce the creeping darkness. Cool wind whipped off of the river and rushed down the corridors of this urban canyon.
Perched atop the world, alone, listening to the echoes of city life, she wept. Tears streaked down her cheek and mingled with the tendrils of her wind-tussled hair. She lingered, letting the sadness pour forth from her.
Their stone casings fractured, shivered, and cracked off of their flesh as it always has. They stirred upon the tower. The clock chimed at a quarter till six. They stretched, and howled as they woke for the night. Their eyes glowed like lightening in distant clouds. Thus was their waking ritual.
There was a gathering of the clan – the family – as the evening ticked forward. There were smiles, laughter, and the sound of happiness in their gathering. Someone familiar was drawn to their jovial cacophony, and entered the tower to share with them. As she passed through the hatch in the floor, she was warmly greeted by the familiar snorting of a dog-like creature. It bounded over to her, licked her hand, and she patted him on the head. They gathered around to listen to her tales of her daily life, and the toils of human flaws. She explained the crimes, the protesting, and the fervor of the city. Faces that were once filled with the light of smiles slowly turned solemn. The booming voice of their leader patiently instructed them to continue on with their vigilant quest, and remain true to their heritage and purpose.
Per their obligations, they separated for the evening. They stood atop the ledge waiting for the breeze to catch the sail of their leathery wings. With a patient gust, they were lifted off of their brick tower and soared upwards and out into the night sky. They fanned out, heading in all directions.
The brick red angel glided seamlessly between the air currents. His white hair whipped wildly about his face. The Manhattan Island stretched out before him, and the noise of New York lifted on the air. He paid it no attention. The vastness of the sprawling spires of the sky scrapers reminded him of a great cavern – filled with stalagmites of concrete and glass. Such was his home; a home operating at light speed with little cause or consequence to the suffering of humanity. Such was his loneliness. Such was the reality of his vast heart. The wind quickly whipped a tear from his eye.
Somehow, over the rushing wind in his pointed ears, and the hum of city life, he heard her. He heard the soft rasp of weeping. As he glided through the evening sky, his eyes were drawn to a rooftop, and to a figure precariously lingering too close to the ledge. He circled, high above the figure, uncertain of the situation, but hypnotically drawn to it. The figure wavered on the ledge. He circled lower, fearing the worst.
The words, "kyrie eleison," rang out like the deep barreled clang of cathedral bells. The figure wavered one last time, and then stepped forward onto the air. The creature gasped, arched his wings behind himself, and dove through the air towards the falling figure. As he grew closer, her screams pierced his desperate heart like icy needles. He plunged, faster and faster. When he was within reasonable distance, he reached his arm out as far as the tendons would allow for, and caught the girl's wrist with his massive talon.
In one liquid motion of heroism, the creature flung open its bat-like wings and rose upwards on a draft. The girl's eyes were closed, which was probably for the best, lest she continued to scream at his beast-like appearance. Even though the sensation of falling had ceased, she continued to wail. He hoisted her up towards his chest, wrapping his arms tightly about her. He cooed at her, trying to silence her panic and fear. He continued to soar upwards to the nearest building.
As soon as he was able to find solid ground upon a rooftop, he floated downwards, still carrying the girl close to his heart. The sounds of his talons were not heard as he plodded down upon the rooftop, for her weeping drowned all other sounds. Again, he cooed, reassuring her that she was safe, and not to cry any further. He pleaded with her as he rocked her against his body.
In a brave, yet concerned gesture, he peeled the shivering girl away from his body, held in her one massive arm, and used his free "hand" to move the tendrils of hair from her face.
She was magnificent. Ethereal even. His heart panged him, and he moved his "hand" away from her face to touch his chest. Still holding her in one arm, he bent down, laid her gently on the asphalt rooftop. He stepped back, still touching the beautiful pain in his heart.
"Please," he whispered. "Please, please stop crying."
The girl rolled onto her back, clasped her hands over her heart, and trembled in the autumn moonlight. He gazed at her again, sucking in his breath to prepare for ecstatic agony when looking upon her face. He cocked his head to the side, and admired her auburn hair as it splayed out around her like a darkened halo. He noted how satin her skin looked, and white, like fresh snow. His eyes drank her into his being. He noted her lips, knotted and pursed and whispering something. He crouched down alongside her, eyes still transfixed on her lips, which were drained of warmth and color.
"Please. You are safe. I ….. I saved you from falling. Please, please stop crying," he pleaded. "Please. Please open your eyes. Please. Let me know that you alright. Please."
Her brow furrowed, and her eyes tightened. He sighed, and looked up at the moon. He wondered to himself how he was able to find someone who so freely emoted how he felt. He stared deeply into the night, trying to imagine what kind of sorrow she suffered; pondering what kind of trauma could be so deep that one would be willing to take their life for it. It soon became apparent that he could feel eyes boring into his soul. He turned to look back at the girl. Her eyes were opened, piercing him with an aquamarine stare, a frigid shade of light blue. The pang in his heart increased, and he tipped backwards, sucking in his breath, as he moved away from her.
She bit her lower lip, and sat up in a fluid gesture. She began to inch away from her rescuer. Distancing herself from him, she leaned back on her hands and breathed deeply. Her bosom rose and fell as his form engulfed her vision. Then, to his surprise, she drew her knees up towards herself, and leaned forward. One hand touched the ground whilst the other touched her chest. Her fingertips pressed into the soft milky flesh above her heart. She opened her mouth as if to speak, but nothing escaped her lips.
He watched her speechless form as her icy eyes continued to puncture the very fabric of his being. His heart continued to ache with empathy, longing, and intrigue. A chilling breeze wafted over the two, and the girl shuddered. She pulled her legs towards herself and wrapped her arms about them, hugging the heat closer to her. He made an awkward hesitant gesture towards her, wanting to comfort her from the seasonal change in weather. Crouching, he leaned forward extending his talon-like hand, and in mid-movement thought better of it, and pulled his hand back to himself. He cursed under his breath, criticizing himself for acting so directly. She continued to stare at him, lips parted, as if trying to speak through silence.
Unable to bare the awkwardness any further, he rose from his crouching position and stood, making his way towards the ledge of the roof. His talons could be heard lightly tapping and scratching the asphalt. He kept his eyes on her the entire time. He wanted desperately to hear her voice – to hear her say anything. He imagined that her voice would be like silver; reflective, revealing, with words that would coil about her tongue and lips. Her lips. His eyes fixated on them. They remained pallid and leached of color. He desperately wanted to see those lips flushed with blushing warmth. He desperately wanted those lips to touch his. That same beautiful pain rose up again inside his chest. He sucked in his breath and briefly leaned into the pain. His hand clasped over his heart, as he felt her presence, her being, ripple through him in waves. He staggered backwards momentarily, till the back of his arched feet clipped the lip of the rooftop. He braced himself against the brick ledge. Once recovered from her beauty, he flung back his wings with a rushing sound of wind in a sail.
She watched him back away from her. She eyed him intently, unable to discern reality from dreaming. "Could this be heaven?" she thought. "Could this be a real angel?" She watched the creature tenderly touch the flesh above his heart. She heard him sigh. "Why does he suffer so?" she wondered to herself. Then, without warning, the creature had flung his massive wings open. Ambient light from the city played shadow tricks up and down his form. She was in awe. This creature – this being – this angel was by far one of the most breathtaking things that she had ever seen in her life. It was if the storybook beast had come to life, and was the reluctant would be rescuer of the damsel in distress. Just like a fairytale, she watched the masked and unsung hero linger in the night.
He arched his wings high above himself and without looking, jumped up and backward, and landed on the top of the ledge. He looked as if he were preparing for a backwards dive. She watched him as he watched her. Neither one of them could speak to one another. Neither one of them was capable of expressing what they were feeling, and sharing between one another. He couldn't bare the agonizing silence any longer, and wanted desperately to flee from the uncomfortable circumstance he found himself in. He looked at her one last time, drinking her into his memory. He turned, the rush of air currents rippling over his leathery wings, and he turned to jump from the building. As he felt his body tumble forward into the jump, he thought he heard a slight scurrying sound behind him. It was too late though. His body fell forward, plunging him into the night below.
He easily caught the upward draft after falling for four stories. The air current pushed him upwards, and he glided into the skyline of buildings. He climbed higher and higher, until he was a good fifteen feet above the rooftop he had just leapt off of. He glanced down to look at the girl again. To his surprise the girl was on all fours, with an arm stretched out before her, in a hesitant gesture. He furrowed his brow in confusion. Had the girl been reaching out to him? He circled above the rooftop.
She had lunged forward right as the beast fell from the building. Even though no words escaped from her, her body language spoke loudly. She was indeed reaching out for him. She had extended herself towards him in a gesture that spoke of her longing for his presence. High above, she heard the kite-like sounds of wind in wings and went from being crouched on all fours to kneeling. She gazed backwards and upwards at him. She bit her lip as she saw him rising further and further away from her. Out of nowhere, as if compelled by unseen forces, she pleaded to him with her body. She rose up on her knees, and stretched her arms out above her. Her fingers traced through the night, and beckoned him to come down to her. She pulled her hands back down towards her chest, and repeated the motion several times, continuing to beckon him to her.
Like a moth to a flame, he felt compelled to return to her. He folded his wings back behind himself, and began his decent back to the rooftop. He watched her as he descended. She remained kneeling, looking up at him. Before either of them knew it, they were once again in each other's presence. He stood before her kneeling form. In a gallant manner, he folded his wings down so they draped across his shoulders like a cape. His white hair haloed his face. From her position, she looked up at him, and bravely reached out towards him. Uncertain as to what was going to happen, he mirrored her gesture, and took her small soft human hand in his. He could feel her start to rise, and as a gentleman, furthered his gesture to help her to her feet. Soon enough the two were standing before each other, hands clasped together. His heart raced at the sensation of her touch. Her heart fluttered like a moon-white dove. He gazed down at her, feeling himself become woozy and intoxicated by her presence. She stared back at him as wave after wave of emotions crashed over her. She tried to find her voice. She desperately wanted to tell him something.
"Thank you," eventually escaped from her lips. He clasped her hand tightly in his. Just as he thought, her voice was like spun silver. Though nothing could have prepared him for what she said next.
"Thank you, my angel," she caressingly spoke as she stepped forward into him. Their hands parted and rejoined around one another in an embrace. She rested her head on his chest, listening to the wild beating of his heart. He held her close, readjusting his wings in such a manner so they wrapped protectively about her.