"Bitter Sweet Occurrence" Ryley Breen at rybreen@theberries Admin Normal Admin 2 2001-11-07T16:45:00Z 2001-11-07T16:45:00Z 8 4595 26193 JTB 218 52 32166 9.2511 800x600 0 0

"Bitter Sweet Occurrence" Ryley Breen at rybreen@theberries.ns.ca

Note: I have already read several stories centered around the cartoon Gargoyles and have loved everyone. I especially like the ones where Elisa and Oberon's children are included (especially Puck).That comedian among immortals is always good for a laugh or two. In the following story I will explore what may happen in a future episode that would change Elisa and Goliath's relationship forever. This takes place after the final part of the series "Hunter's Moon" (mostly because of the fact that it gives me more freedom to write). Well I hope you enjoy what I have written and I would appreciate any thoughts you may have on it. Oh and if you like it please email me and tell me what you think. If this were on television (which if Buena Vista checks out this home page it may someday be) it would show scenes from "The Mirror" episode" where Elisa is seen as a gargoyle as well as scenes from"Hunter's Moon" showing Demona with the praying gargoyle as well as the tablet. Well enough of the chit chat, on with the story.

"Bitter Sweet Occurrence"

Night was falling in New York and the creatures of the night both good and evil arise from their hiding places in the shadows. Most of these creatures are considered to be law breakers but there are a few that strive to uphold the law and protect. It is true that the people of this city now see them as a menace to be wiped out, these creatures of myth and legend protect this city regardlessly. Some would think that these winged warriors of the night must be very lonely but fortunately they have human friends that believe in them and would do anything to protect them. This fact has yet to be given limits but in the coming days/nights Elisa Maza is about to discover for the first time how much she is willing to sacrifice for her friends, for her Gargoyles.

Sunday 6:55pm New York

"Why is it that I feel like a cat in a dog pound?" thought Elisa to herself as she walked up the stone stairs to the ramparts.

She had been uncomfortable that Goliath and the rest had returned to Castle Wyvern. She'd been even more surprised that Xanatos would allow them to live at his corporate headquarters. With all the trouble that they had caused them in the past,Elisa half expected Xanatos to be laying some sort of villainous scheme to get revenge on them. Goliath seemed to trust Xanatos's promise of the Castle being their home once again and that was enough to relieve her worried mind.

"Then if I trust Goliath's judgment why am I upset so much"asked Elisa as she reached the top of the steps.

It was probably because of the way he had been acting the past couple of nights. She had seen a rage in him that she had never seen before. Goliath Had been acting more and more like Demona in his growing hatred of humans. She hoped that it would fade away in time but it still worried her.

"Well no time to ponder that now, I'd best put on a cheerful face or Goliath will worry" thought Elisa as she watched the sun set.

As the pitch dark blackness of night began to once again cover the city a sense of foreboding rose around the tower. A feeling of impending eruption of power, a feeling of awe as the sounds of crumbling stone filled the air.As Elisa watched this she couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement fill her being.

"No matter how many times I see this it is just as magnificent as the first time" thought Elisa with a slight snicker.

Goliath sprang from his stone sleep with a mighty roar. Elisa wondered how many people may have heard that down below at the base of the Xanatos building.

Goliath smiled as he saw Elisa standing behind him. He was so happy that she was alive and not dead. The night before had been a roller coaster of emotions for him. First filled with happiness that Angela was survived the attack by the Hunters, then overrun with rage at the destruction of the clock tower and Elisa's apparent death, then overjoyed to discover that she'd survived.From here on he promised that he would never allow his emotions to endanger her again.

"Glad to be back in your home?" asked Elisa as she walked up and patted him on his muscular back.

"Yes, to walk along the walls of the place where I hatched and to know that it is once again mine" said Goliath as he gazed over the courtyard.

"Well the others seem to like it, Broadway is already gone to the kitchen and the others are giving Angela a guided tour of her ancestral home" remarked Elisa as she saw the last of them skitter into the castle.

"Yes, perhaps now our lives can return to normal" , said Goliath with a chuckle, "whatever that is" .

"Well don't be too happy Goliath, you still have a bit of a problem" ,remarked a voice from the stairs, "you still have to deal with the anti-gargoyle frenzy that is sweeping the city" .

When they looked to see who had said that they frowned as David Xanatos came up the steps. They were still a bit cautious around the multi-billionare, even though he had probably saved their lives the night before.

"As you know thanks to the broadcast by the rogue member of the "Hunters" , every person in the city will be coming after you" he said as he stood not a foot away from Goliath.

"He's right you know, now it will be much more dangerous for you out on patrol" Elisa said as she looked at Goliath's grim face.

"I suppose you are right. I'll be sure to inform the others of this too before they go anywhere" sighed Goliath.

"Speaking of patrol I'd best go on patrol myself, people might begin to wonder why a cop is hanging around the Xanatos building so much" said Elisa as she walked toward the staircase.

"I'll come with and we will patrol together" suggested Goliath as he put his hand on Elisa's shoulder.

After nearly loosing her before Goliath refused to risk it again.

"I don't think that would be wise Goliath.Given the current crisis it would be better if you were not seen with Detective Maza" ,interjected Xanatos, "if anyone sees you two together they may label her as a traitor and give her extra trouble" .

Goliath let out a low growl at this statement and probably would have begun yelling at Xanatos but fortunately Elisa stepped in.

"Goliath, as much as I hate to admit it he may be right" , said Elisa holding Goliath by the shoulders reassuringly, "Don't worry, in a little while this will all blow over.Besides, I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself" .

With that she trotted down the stairs and was gone. Little did the fair Elisa know that on this night she may live to regret her choice.

*********************

The interior of Demona's house was a complete mess that night. She had torn it apart the night before after her defeat at the hands of Goliath and his clan. She had been so close to finally getting her revenge on the puny humans, then Goliath had to go and ruin it for her. Demona was also mad at the fact that Goliath had apparently returned to his naivete on the human race. If he had kept this up a bit longer Goliath and herself could have been reunited. The thought of having a potential companion being ripped from her grasp infuriated her. It had been a while since Thailog had died and she once again felt the emptiness of solitude creeping into her soul.Since her defeat she had begun to plan her next attempt at destroying humanity(Is that all she ever thinks about?). She could thing of nothing until she remembered an article from yesterdays paper.

There was a new exhibit at the museum of natural history that intrigued her. Apparently the museum archeologists had uncovered a priceless artifact from Norway.It had been identified as the mythical sphere of Titania. "Hmmm, this has definite potential" thought Demona with a slight grin. According to legend it was a source of incredible power and almost limitless in its applications. If she could retrieve it from the museum who knows what she could do. She might very well be able to achieve her ultimate goal, the complete destruction of the human race. As that thought passed through her head another one brought itself to the surface and a sinister smile came across her face.

"I could even get rid of that pathetic human Elisa Maza and retrieve my beloved Goliath" thought the rogue gargoyle.

"Yes that is what I'll do and then the world will be free of the cancerous human race"exclaimed Demona.

Without another word she jumped out the window towards her destiny. Then again when it comes to destiny and Demona you know it can't be good.

**************************

"Halapania" sighed Elisa as she came to an intersection.

It had been rather difficult adjustining back to the night shift timetable after being posted to the day shift for awhile. Truth be known she kinda liked the day shift while it had lasted. To feel the sun's warmth all day instead of just at dawn and dusk as was the norm. Don't take it wrong, she liked the night shift and all but some nights she wondered why she even bothered.Already she was beginning to feel her stamina begin to wear down, Elisa almost thought that she would fall asleep at the wheel. She had already had three plastic cups full of coffee but even that was losing it's effectiveness. It was already three AM and and she had another another three or four hours to go. Unfortunately her inner desires got thrown aside as Elisa saw the all too familiar shadow of a female gargoyle glide by in front of her.

"I wonder why Angela left the castle, she should know that it is pretty dangerous to be seen right now" , thought Elisa.

As she pulled over to the side and looked up her jaw dropped to the ground in shock. The look of shock quickly fled from her face and one of worry and bitterness replaced it.

"Demona!" moaned the young Detective.

"What are you up to now" thought Elisa as she sped off in pursuit of the Demon. She followed Demona for a few blocks until she saw the winged form land atop the roof of the museum.Elisa knew that it would take Demona only a matter of minutes to find what she was looking for, given the fact that Demona usually planned her crimes rather carefully. She was then faced with the choice of calling for backup and risk Demona escaping or go in now and risk possible death. In the end there was only one true decision, she had to go after Demona now or else risk her getting away with a possibly powerful artifact and adding more fuel to the anti-gargoyle fire.

When she finally got inside the museum she could easily hear the sound of Demona trashing the security systems and glass cases.

"Not being to smart are we Demona?" mumbled Elisa as she took out her handgun.

It wasn't hard finding Demona with all the noise, she seemed to be in the Norse section of the museum.

"What could she possibly want with a bunch of Norse artifacts", wondered Elisa, "surely the artifacts here don't have any magical abilities or she would have stolen them sooner" .

Then she remembered her eventful trip to Norway and a sense of dread saturated her body. When Avalon's magic had sent them there they were pitted against the Norse god Odin. At first it seemed that they would be able to keep the bearded goat bay but he proved to be far more cunning then they realized. Odin soon took her hostage and told Goliath that if he wanted her back that he must hand over the eye of Odin. From there on in things became very strange but soon came to an end. The thought of something like the eye in Demona's possesion was reason enough to pick up the pace and hope that she wasn't to late. As she approached the doorway of the Norse wing if the museum she could hear Demona beginning to chant something. The smell of brimstone and the sensation of power filled the air. Elisa peeked into the room to see Demona holding a large sphere-like crystal glowing in her hands.

"Uh-oh"whispered Elisa as she gazed upon the crystal sphere.

It was like looking into the sun and not having to turn away after a bit. It didn't take a genius to know that this thing was powerful and if Demona got away with it the whole world would be at risk. At first glance the only visible option was to try and grab it away from Demona and get away from her as quickly as she could. Unfortunately there was another option that her sense of logic urged her to do. It told her that she should go back to her car and get back-up but by then Demona may escape.

"It's amazing how seldom I listen to my logical side" thought Elisa with a grin. Taking a deep breath she decided on the first course of action. At nearly break neck speed the unique detective ran toward Demona and rammed her shoulder into Demona's back. The gargoyle sorceress, stunned from the blow stumbled forward and had thrown the sphere into the air. Elisa jumped as high into the air as she could, not wishing the unknown energies in the orb to be released. As it was about to land in her hands a small feeling of dread swept over her body. It was if her entire body was nothing but a skeleton swinging in the wind. It could only be described as being her own self-preservation instincts screaming a warning, but the warning had come to late. Energy blasted from the magical antiquity as wave crashed onto Elisa's skin.Suddenly the energy changed shape became a long cylinder of energy and was directed at Elisa. Elisa, completely unprepared for the onslaught,screamed a glass shattering scream as pain filled her entire body. This was far more painful that anything that she had ever been through beforehand considering what she had been through the last couple of weeks it frightened her. As the darkness of the museum began to surround her and cover her she began to cry at an inaudible level.

"I'm dying" , thought Elisa as her thoughts became harder to form, "and I'll never see Goliath or the others again" .

Then she lapsed into an unconscious state and Titania's sphere dropped from her hands and rolled to Demona who was slowly recovering her senses.

****************************

"Uhh what happened" moaned Demona as she got to her feet.

Her back was aching from the blow that her unknown attacker had dealt her. As she gathered her thoughts she felt a smooth pearl-like round surface bump into her taloned feet. Looking down she saw Titania's sphere glowing at her feet, seeming to beckon her to pick it up. Wondering what had happened she gazed around the room and froze the moment she saw the glowing and floating mass of energy in the air. It was like a cocoon, a cocoon that would soon open and release its gift of beauty. When she took a closer look her eyes widened in delight.

"Well, well maybe this night is turning out better than I planned" , sneered Demona, "I get to gain unimaginable power and destroy the focus of Goliath love all in one night" .

Suddenly the magic surrounding the unconscious human began to grow brighter and shot off small lightning bolts of energy. At that moment the devious smile that was once on Demona's cruel face changed to one of fear. Something was happening,something quite disturbing. Not knowing what was about to happen, Demona grabbed the sphere off the ground and ran to the sun roof which she had used to gain access.

"I don't know what's happening but I'd best get out of here" thought Demona as she gazed back to the doorway leading to the Norse exhibit.

All that she could see was the light of the magic growing brighter by the second. Not wasting another minute she jumped onto the roof and flew away. Had she looked back she would have seen light bursting out of almost every window then vanish.

**************************

Dave Sampson had worked the beat for quite a while and came to believe that there was nothing he couldn't handle. He thought that the rumors of mysterious happenings were nothing more than stories that the other cops told to keep life interesting. He was completely astounded when he saw what had happened at that old abandoned church a few nights ago.Gargoyles, things that he thought were nothing more than foreboding waterspouts, fighting it out with mercenaries in high-tech gear. He hadn't seen much of it since he was mostly occupied with keeping a crowd of people away from the battleground. The entire crowd was out for gargoyle blood after the WVRN news team had blamed the gargoyles for the destruction of the abandoned clock tower and damaged the lower floors of the building. Of course Dave knew that there was absolutely no evidence of this, which upset him a bit. The only thing linking the gargoyles to the explosion was that they were in the same spot as the explosion and were seen flying away from the tower. Even at the protests by one Detective Maza and Captain Chavez,the Mayor ordered that a Gargoyle assault team and equipment designed to deal with the threat would be created. Sampson knew that the Mayor was only doing this so that the public wouldn't go hunting for the gargoyles themselves. "I hope that they at least give these Gargoyles a chance to explain themselves and not shoot first" thought Sampson. Suddenly his radio came to life and brought him back down to earth.

"Car 102, car 102,break in and possible arson at the museum of natural history. Please investigate" spoke the dispatcher.

"This is car 102, ten-four" spoke Sampson as he put his siren on and sped off to the museum.

For a moment Dave wondered what he would find when he arrived.

******************************

Elisa's eyes opened slowly as life returned to her limbs. As her eyes focused she immediately wondered what had happened to her. She tried to get to her feet which was no easy task considering she ached all over and found it hard to think straight. After a bit of straining she was able to get to her feet and immediately noticed that something was different about herself. No sooner did she look down then she saw taloned gargoyle feet where her previously five-toed feet had been. She was shocked at what she was seeing and leaned against a wall for support.

"Halapania, not again"moaned Elisa.

Once more she was in the tan brown and black gargoyle form.Her scarlet red coat was gone and as she felt her back she discovered that her black T-shrt had been rewoven to accommodate her Brooklyn-like wings.She had once before been transformed into a gargoyle by the trickster of Oberon's children. Now Elisa was once more a Gargoyle but this time she had some mixed feelings about it. Half of her was saying that she should try to find a way to return to her human form, while the other half said to accept this new form and hold on to it for dear life. It wasn't at all easy to think at the moment so Elisa was unsure if she should trust her thoughts. She wasn't sure what she was going to do until she heard the sound of an approaching squad car.

"Can't allow myself to be seen" ,thought Elisa" it would only worsen the public image of gargoyles if one was seen fleeing from a crime scene and make things harder for Goliath and the rest. Slowly she made her way to the front door and hoped that she would be able to get away before the cops arrived but she wasn't very optimistic. The pain in her legs was almost overwhelming, she felt that any second that she would collapse. As she approached the doorway she could hear the squad car come to a screeching halt outside.

"Damn" she muttered.

Now she would have to try and escape from the police and if he gets much as a glance of my current gargoyle body then the shit will really hit the fan. Summoning up all her strength and folding her wings over her shoulders Elisa bolted out the entrance way.

***************************

As Dave approached the museum he was temporarily blinded by a flash of light and he felt as though someone had taken a mug shot of him.Miraculously it disappeared a split second later and all was dark once again. It didn't take long for his eyes to readjust to the change in light and this was good because otherwise he may have accidentally driven himself off the road.

"What was that" gasped Dave.

It looked like someone had set a gas truck on fire but only a green light was produced by the blast.Curiosity and anticipation fueling his spirit Sampson floored the accelerator. As he approached the museum parking lot he saw what appeared to be a female gargoyle flying away from the scene of the crime.

"Oh boy"sighed Dave. He hoped that that was the only one because from what he heard these things could take on an entire S.W.A.T team. For a minute the thought of getting some back-up here flashed through his mind but with such flimsy grounds for such a call he decided against it. As he pulled up to the front doors he saw yet another gargoyle like figure bolt from the front door. Not wasting a second Dave went off in pursuit of the figure seeing as how it was the only lead to the perpetrator.

"That's weird, I'm barely breaking a sweat and I can catch up fairly easily" , pondered Sampson, "I thought these things were supposed to be tough" .

As he began to gain on the creature he noticed that it seemed to be struggling with every stride.

"Hmmm, it being injured would certainly explain why it is so easy to keep up with it" , thought Dave, "must be pretty bad" .

Suddenly he was yanked back to reality by the fact that he saw the gargoyle begin to stumble and slow down.

**********************

"Won't....m-make...it" mumbled Elisa as she struggled to stay on her feet.

She felt terrible but even so she knew that she had to continue to run or she would feel more than her share of pain from being a laboratory specimen in some military lab. She was barely maintaining any distance between her and the cop and she knew that she couldn't keep it up for very long. Somehow Elisa had to lose the cop behind her without hurting him.Maybe I can get back into the museum and hide in there until he leaves.

"I'll have to push myself to the max if this is going to work" thought Elisa.

Drawing on her dwindling stores of energy she put all her might into one final burst of speed. Unfortunately her new body was quick to inform her that it was completely void in terms of energy as she soon collapsed with a thud onto the green grass. Even though Elisa knew it was futile she tried to force herself back to her feet but her limbs twitched and spasmed in response. She could hear the officer coming up behind her and repeatedly tried to move but it was no use. Once again the blackness stripped her of her vision and every car horn and every alarm began to fade away. The last thing that she saw was the officer bending over her with a concerned look on his face.

********************

"Uh-oh whatever was wrong with this gargoyle, I have a funny feeling it just got a lot worse" thought Dave as he gazed down on the feminine form before him.

He kneeled down to take the pulse of the bestial beauty that was laid out before him. The pulse was fairly strong for now but he could feel it slowly weakening.

"Better call this in before this one bites the big one" , mumbled Sampson as he took out his radio, "Car 102 to dispatch,I have a injured suspect in need of immediate medical assistance" .

"Roger car 102, please describe the suspect and estimate the persons injuries"squawked the dispatcher over the radio.

"I don't quite know how to say this but she's a female gargoyle and I estimate her injuries to be severe electrocution and muscle strain" , spoke the officer with an unsure look on his face, "there may also be some severe bruising" .

"Car 102 please repeat the appearance of the suspect, I don't think that I heard you right" spoke the dispatcher in an obvious tone of puzzlement in her voice.

"You heard me, and injured five foot nine female gargoyle" , said Dave as he continued monitoring the gargoyle's condition, "I know it sounds crazy but that's all I see" .

"All right car 102, the ambulance is on the way please keep the subject alive until it arrives" said the lady dispatcher.

Dave was a bit upset that she had referred to the gargoyle as "Subject" as if it were some sort of laboratory specimen. True he wasn't in any position to argue with her, seeing as how the second the beautiful gargoyle was stabilized she would probably be sent off to some research facility.

"Oh well, there's nothing much I can do about it" thought Dave.

The most he could do was perhaps file a strong protest against such action. Looking down on at the face of the suspect Sampson couldn't help feel as though he had seen her once before. It took about five minutes for the ambulance to arrive and the gargoyles pulse was weakening. When the medic from the ambulance got close to enough to see the winged woman his jaw dropped to the ground. This was perfectly acceptable given the fact that only a select few people have ever seen a gargoyle up close before. Unfortunately time was of the essence if they wanted to save this one.

"Quit gawking man, this... lady needs some serious help" yelled Dave as he grabbed the medic by the shoulder.

This snapped the awed man out of it and he began to survey for himself the state of the bizarre form before him. The man was still shocked at the sight of the taloned beast but appeared to be able to do his job.

"L-looks like severe electrocution all right we had better get to the hospital fast." said the medic as he began to run to the ambulance to get the stretcher.

After getting her into the ambulance and calming down the startled driver they were on their way.

As the medic finished putting an I.V into his patients arm he turned to Dave and asked" Do you have any idea what happened to...her" .

"Not a clue but from what I remember there was a flash of light that came from the museum when I arrived" said Dave not taking his eyes from the unconscious gargoyle.

"That could mean electrocution but nothing in the museum could generate that much power unless the...lady somehow did it to herself" spoke the medic with a questioning look as he placed an oxygen mask over the mouth of the gargoyle.

"Nah I don't think so, she seemed plenty concerned about her life when I saw her" , said Sampson, "I guess we won't really know what happened at the museum until either I look at the security video tapes or she wakes up".

They arrived at the hospital five minutes later and could see that some of the top doctors in the hospital were waiting for them. They put the limp form onto a gurney and raced her into the hospital. Sampson could hear them fire back and forth medical terms and also terms of amazement at the rare find before them. Soon they rushed her into an intensive care unit and would not allow Dave to go any further.

"Officer Sampson" said a voice from behind him.

When he turned around he saw Captain Chavez hobbling up to him on crutches. After the attack on the prescient house the Captain was banged pretty good so it was a surprise to see her walking around much less involving herself in a case like this.

"Captain, I thought you were supposed to be taking it easy" said Sampson with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"When I heard over the police scanner that a live gargoyle was on its way here how could I resist coming down here to see it" said Chavez, who was apparently looking around for the gargoyle.

"If you are looking for the gargoyle the doctors have it in the intensive care unit" said Sampson looking in the direction of the door that he had seen the doctors wheel the strange creature into.

"How badly was it injured?" asked Chavez with a slight look of concern on her normally calm face.

"It looks although it somehow got a couple hundred volts shot into it but it should be alright" replied Dave as returned his gaze to the Captain.

"Hmmm, I'm going to get the riot control team down here. If word gets out that there's an injured gargoyle here there is no telling what may happen" said Captain Chavez.

"Right, I'll stay here in case the gargoyle wakes up" said Dave.

With no more than a nod they went their separate ways, unaware of a mysterious figure in a trench coat had been listening in on their conversation.

*************************************

Owen sighed as he finished the latest court document concerning Mr.Xanatos' rescuing of the gargoyles a few days ago. It may end up costing Xanatos Enterprises quite a bit in the way of investors if they should happen to believe that WVRN broadcast. He knew that his employer would manage to find a rather convenient excuse for his actions but that would at most keep the majority of the investors with the company. Suddenly the phone rang and when Burnett looked at the phone he saw that someone was calling him on his secured line.

"Hmmm, Mr. Xanatos didn't notify me of any special projects being staged tonight" he thought to himself with a eyebrow raised.

He considered calling Mr. Xanatos at the Wayne Foundation party but decided against it. No doubt they were having a good time and besides he didn't want to disturb him without just cause. Owen picked up the phone and hoped that this wouldn't be a waste of his time.

"Mr.Burnett you wont believe what just got wheeled into the hospital" , said the in informent," they just pulled in a living gargoyle" .

"Are you sure?"asked Burnett with his usual unmodulated tone of voice.

"Without a doubt sir. It was a female gargoyle and this may sound funny but it kinda looked like that cop Maza" said the informant excitedly.

"Very good. I shall inform Mr. Xanatos of the situation, you just keep an eye on the gargoyle"ordered Owen.

"Hmmm, what a delicious diversion! Who knows what games the trickster Puck could make of this development" thought Owen as he reached for the phone once more.

Suddenly three shimmering silhouettes appeared before him and soon were revealed to be the Weird Sisters.

"An assignment we have for you" said the black haired one.

"One that you must not fail to do" said the blonde.

"To find Titania's sphere you must" said the silver haired.

"To fail is to lose Oberon's trust" said all three in unison.

Upon the conclusion of the rhyme a green mist enveloped Owen and when it dispersed Puck was in his place.

"You three are definitely one of the more bizarre of my sisters" , spoke Puck in a sarcastic manner, "but then again that's hardly uncommon to a Fey" .

The sisters made no response to this only continued their gaze at Puck.

"Yeesh, daddy must have really socked it to you three after your run around with Goliath's clan" , said Puck with a small smirk, "I bet he has you cleaning his castle as small monkeys".

The three sisters merely stood there, like stone statues, which is exactly what they acted like most of the time. This time the comical changeling did react but instead of a smile it was a frown.

"Fine be that way. I would only be too happy to accept this assignment" , said Puck, "there is just one small problem, I am forbidden by Oberon to use my abilities except in the teaching of young Alexander" .

"Your powers are now free......" said the blonde.

"But only temporary they are to be....." said the black haired one.

"For you are too wild....." said the silver haired one.

".....even for an Oberon child." said them all.

Then in a flash of light all three of the mysterious maidens vanished.

"One thing I must admit they do make up terrific rhymes", said Puck, "Well I had best get to work before daddy has a fit"

*********************************