To Taunt, or Not to Taunt...Part 1
by Inspirationbynight
Disclaimer: I do not own Gargoyles, only this plot and my character Megan.
Author's Note: This fic takes place after school starts in January 1997. Fic #4
To Taunt, or Not to Taunt...
"So what are you reading?" Lexington asked Megan, while Brooklyn was noisily making a point to cover a yawn.
"The Little Princess" Megan answered, swinging her legs through the bars of the balcony. She scribbled a line in her note book titled for her English class and continued to read.
"That's a good book," Brooklyn commented to the surprise of everyone in the library. "Maybe you can pick up a few tips." Broadway gave his rookery-brother a warning look before turning the page to the Tempest and continue reading with Angela.
Megan rolled her gray eyes. "Good advice, you should listen to it," she retorted. Brooklyn feigned an arrow shot to his heart. "You're so mature."
"Look who's talking."
"Saw the movie, not impressed."
"Why do they always fight like that?" Angela asked Broadway in a whisper.
"Because otherwise it'd get real ugly," Broadway answered with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
"It will end up 'ugly' if no one stops them before they hurt each other," Angela said, glancing at the two.
"Are you sure you're ok up there?" Broadway asked Megan from his place on the couch in front of the fireplace.
Megan put her hands on her hips though she was still sitting. "Do I look like a flower to you?"
"More like a cactus, just put your arms up a bit more," Brooklyn said, shifting his wings as he sat on the banister.
"Those are fighting words," Megan warned him. Broadway and Lexington shook their heads and wondered if they should grab snacks when Angela fixed them with a frown.
"Like you'd stand a chance," Brooklyn answered above them.
"I'll push you off this balcony," Megan bluffed.
"Well I can glide," Brooklyn told her mimicking her hands-on-hips pose, talon saving the page of his book.
"Hatchlings, we came to enjoy a bit of reading, not listen to the two of you bicker, especially since you have homework Megan," Angela admonished.
"Sorry Angela," Megan said, facing away from Brooklyn and back to her book, legs still hanging out between the bars.
"Nice going," Brooklyn commented, nudging her with his tail.
Megan flailed her arms and gave out a comical 'aah!' before she caught her balance, having been in no danger of falling to begin with.
"Enough you two," Angela said with an edge to her voice. "Brooklyn, you're in that stool over there. Megan, your homework, unless you would like to borrow the book and take it home."
There was no room for protest, Angela smothered it with a look that would make Goliath and Demona proud if you could get the two of them in the same room together long enough for that to happen.
Brooklyn glared at Megan before gliding down to sit on the stool behind Angela and Broadway. It was eerily quiet for several minutes until Brooklyn felt something hit one of his wings. He picked up the wad of paper and glanced at Angela in front of him before looking up at Megan who dangled a pencil just above him. He caught it and quickly wrote back, tossing the paper upwards.
'Why'd you go and try to push me off the balcony?'
'I was teaching u to glide. Not like you'd fall anyway'
Megan tossed the notebook paper wad back down and quickly took her book up as Angela raised her head. For several seconds, everyone was still until Angela went back to her book. Lexington fought a grin, ducking down into his science magazine as Brooklyn answered Megan.
'Yeah, you flipping me over the rail wouldn't have done that smarty-pants'
'that's right. I would have actually had to stand up to do it'
'are you calling me fat?'
The wad missed her hands and fell on the floor a few feet behind Megan. She paid it no mind as Angela did another sweep of the room, turning in the couch to look at Brooklyn before settling down again. Carefully, Megan scooted back from the railing and grabbed the paper wad. It was quickly filling up with lines and poor spelling.
'ur more like a stick'
'and ur like a tucan'' she wrote, adding a doodle of a smiley face with it's tongue sticking out.
Brooklyn looked at the paper, mouth agape before fixing Megan with a glare and writing.
'this is war'
'oooh I'm scared!'
"How is your assignment coming?" Angela asked Megan unexpectedly.
Megan nearly jumped from the floor but managed to answer in a normal voice, "Good, three more questions."
The paper wad hit her head immediately after the words left her mouth. Brooklyn grinned evilly below her.
'ha! U almost got caught'
'At least I don't live here. You'd be in more trouble than me, so HA!'
'You're aunt would ground you if I told her'
'you'd get sent to the nursery'
'well I can glide where ever I want. You can't even drive.'
'I can still beat you'
Brooklyn scoffed, forgetting he was under watch. 'oh yeah, how?' he wrote back.
Megan almost fell backwards trying to catch the flying note wad and tossed it back, purposely having it go over Brooklyn's head. By now Angela, Broadway, and Lexington were watching the exchange.
'I can stay awake after dawn'
"Oh that's a low blow," Brooklyn said out loud. "That's--" he noticed Angela standing from the couch and walking towards him. "Oh boy," he muttered.
"Don't just stand there rock-for-brains, run!" Megan cried out to him, taking the stairs at uneven steps and running out of the library herself.
"Brooklyn.." Angela began but he too decided to run. Broadway and Lexington laughed while Angela closed the doors of the library again.
With a shake of her head she said, "I give up with those two."
Broadway put an arm around her as they took their seat back. "They're just having fun in their own weird way," he told her.
"You don't think they're...interested in each other do you?" Lexington asked them, doubting his own firm belief that they weren't.
Angela's eyes went wide, never having thought of it. "Some of the humans in Hudson's soaps act that way too,"she pointed out. "It's called a love-hate relationship."
"I was thinking about the age difference," Lexington said. "I don't think her aunt would be too happy about it."
Broadway shook his head. "You guys are reading too much into it. They only go at it whenever Brooklyn's having a bad night. Remember how he was when we woke up?"
"Oh yeah," Lexington said, seeing in his mind's eye how his rookery brother looked bored out of his mind and ready to pick a fight with anyone over anything. It was just one of those nights where the world ganged up on poor Brooklyn and made his life miserable. He smiled at Broadway before going back to his magazine, his own belief that Brooklyn and Megan were just friends reconfirmed.
Once they were outside where they could glide off if Angela gave chase, the two stopped to breathe.
Through their laughter, Brooklyn said, "That was close."
"I know, I saved you, so I don't owe you anything," Megan told him with a smile.
"Great, now we're even," Brooklyn said but shrugged it off. "Did you see how mad she was?"
"Saw it a mile away, which is why I was the one telling you to run," Megan said, reclaiming her breath.
"What, you were going to leave me in the lion's den?"
Megan laughed. "Were you scared?"
"Who wouldn't be?"
Megan sighed, her breath visible by the cold of the outdoors. Now that she was loosing body heat, she felt the cold and shivered. "Well I gotta get home and finish this paper."
"Need a lift?" Brooklyn offered.
Megan shook her head. "I'll grab a cab. Are you coming over tomorrow night?"
"And get my tail served to me at another Scrabble, no thanks."
"You can choose this time."
Brooklyn thought it over in exaggeration before accepting. "And watch out for Angela," he cautioned.
"You watch out, you're the one who started it," Megan said as she walked back inside the castle.
"I'm not the one who threw the first the paper wad," he retorted.
"No, but you threw it back," Megan's voice shouted somewhere down the castle steps.
Brooklyn held back his comment for tomorrow night. Round 9 "...or are we in the twenties?" he asked himself as he sat on the parapets, enjoying the night.