Previously on gargoyles: Xanatos: Owen where are you going? We have a fight on our hands! Owen: I'm truly sorry Mr. Xanatos, but this is one battle I cannot afford to take part in. "–the Gathering part one.
Owen walked out the door of Xanatos' office toward the elevator. Guilt washed over him like a tidal wave as he plunged back to the earth. What do I have to feel responsible about? Did I not make sure that Avalon made Manhattan where Goliath 'needed' to be? He would let neither Tatiana nor Oberon take the child, at least not after that nightmare world I laid before him. He smirked, then frowned. I can't believe the Goliath threw away the Phoenix gate! So much for "time cannot be changed"! As he exited the building a cool breeze mused his hair he sighed and resumed his thoughts In any case standing up to Oberon would be suicidal! If I wanted to stay here with the mortals awhile longer, than I can't go back, not for a long while.
Owen entered a café where he ordered a strong cup of black Columbian coffee. The surly blond waitress set it down next to him leaned over, excessively, so her breasts brushed the table, and asked, "Sir, can I get you anything else?"
"No, thank you."
"Are you sure?" She battered her eye lids, and her lips formed a perfect moue.
"Yes, quite." Although, he mused, it could be fun...
"If you need anything at all...anything... feel free to...ask." To Owen's dismay Oberon's sleeping spell swept across the room in swirls, and the waitress slumped over forward flipping the coffee table and Owen's cup went flying. Owen sighed, and exited the café. As he headed down the street, Owen realized that it was obvious that he could not return to the Eyre building, possibly ever, nor could he sit on the curb and do nothing. He sullenly changed direction again and headed towards Elisa's apartment building.
He tried the door. It was locked. Owen sighed in resignation, whirled in to Puck, and walked through the door.
"Robyn! I need you! Where...Oh," Puck stopped over Elisa's sleeping form. Her cat woke with such a start that she turned into a woman. Well, a female figure at least. The figure before him was tall, at least for a fey. She had long red hair, and green eyes, she was young looking but, an age far greater was sensed. She yawned and sighed in recognition and said, "Puck, I thought we agreed, after the little Mirror fiasco, that I would no longer cover for you as Owen. It's not that I'm not glad to see you!" she hastily added.
"Robyn, I think I screwed up."
"So? This is new how?"
"I got myself emotionally attached to the human, David Xanatos."
"By emotionally attached you mean that you..."
"Have a great respect for."
"Had me worried there for a moment! What happened?"
Puck sat down in a chair by the couch where Elisa slept, "Well..."
When he finished he sighed and waited. It was no use rushing her. After long pause Robyn got up went to Elisa's fridge and poured a glass of cheap wine. She sat opposite of Puck and took a long sip before answering, "Puck, remember the day I was banished?"
Shimmering effect
"Wait do we have to have a flashback? I remember it quite clearly considering you never let me forget it."
"Yes, now that you protest we have to."
more shimmers
30 thousand years ago...
"Puck cut that out! Put me upright this second, and loose this magic energy, or else you'll find out what power really is!"
"But, I though you said that Lord Oberon wouldn't let you hurt me." the little puca beamed. His white hair was cropped around his ears shaped around his deception angelic face. He only came about waist high, but he was only 3 thousand years old.
"No, I said that Obie wouldn't let me tie you to an iron bar for a week. He said nothing about a little discipline. It hasn't killed anyone yet."
"So, why should I be the first?"
"That's exactly why you need to put me down now! Otherwise you might be." When Robyn started to use twisted logic, Puck almost always immediately did what he was told. This was not one of those times.
"Are you threatening me?" Puck cocked his little impish head. "You know what Oberon told you about threats 'don't use them on me, and don't use them on my son.' He mimicked Oberon perfectly.
"No Puck, threatening would be if I had said 'I'll drag you by your ears from here back to the castle, and tell Obie all about those nasty pranks you pulled last week'. I was merely making a point." Puck inhaled sharply, he knew that tone. That tone held power, it was rumored that she won a fight against Oberon using that voice. In truth, it was a tie, they argued for three hundred years straight, but when they paused for a breath neither could remember what they had been discussing.
"So, Puck, what are you going to do?"
After a moment or too, Puck tipped his teacher right side up and set her gently upon the ground, and released the magic bonds. Then logic hit him like a ton of bricks, she could have routed herself up but why hadn't she?
"Madam Robyn?"
"Puck, you needed to do it, I won't always be around to undo what you do. I have to make sure you can undo every spell you do. That's why new spells are so dangerous. If you can't undo the damage, don't do it in the first place. Now which rule is that?"
"37," Puck sighed, "I thought the whole point of being a puca was to break the rules"
"It is. But you need to know the rules, and why they are there before you can break them."
"Can't I learn from a far?"
"Mm...Let me think, no. Now today where going to work on your transformation spells today. Puck, pay attention! Tune into the basics here." Puck turned into a hare and hopped off, straight into the mortal realm, again.
"Damn you!" Robyn leapt in the portal just in time to see the glamourèd puck run off into the woods.
"Puck! Puck comes back! Shit! Obie is going to kill me!" Robyn thought of the possible out comes, " I can see it now, 'hi, Obie I lost your son. He's running around the mortal realm half-trained. Doing who knows what kind of mischief he can get him self into'," She added, "Oh yeah, and he's a hare. No... Not a bunny a hare.' Oh shit! This is great just great...
"Robyn, you'd lose your head if it wasn't attached! A simple tracking spell is what you need. Think and you'll succeed" the rhyme was optional, meaning that it was necessary. The magic trail of Puck lit up in a warm green color. She followed the trail and was very disappointed at the fact that Puck had let her straight in to a burrow of rabbits, not hares. "Puck, Puck, Puck. You never could tell the difference could you?" she transformed her self and slipped in. the burrow contained about fifty rabbits and Robyn sighed. One of these things is different, one of these things just doesn't belong, now eenie meenie miney mo. Hah there you are you dirty hare! Robyn pushed the very stubborn hare out of the hole, transformed herself and forced Puck to do the same and simultaneously sent them both back to Avalon.
"Why did you do that? I thought you said I'd have to undo it!"
"I changed my mind. I can do that, you on the other hand cannot. Why didn't you do what I told you?"
"I did you said turn into a basic hare."
"No, I said turn your attention to the basics here."
"No you didn't."
"You're right because this whole thing never happened."
"What 'never happened'?" A very stern voice behind Robyn, "it wouldn't have anything, by chance, to do with you taking my boy out into the mortal realm now would it?" before Robyn could respond, Oberon continued, "Because that would be breaking our truce, now wouldn't it? It would mean that you have broken your word, again, and by order of our truce, I now have the authority to remove you from our isle, permanently," and with the flick of his wrist Robyn Goodfellow disappeared from Avalon soil never to be seen in that realm again.
Oberon grabbed the sputtering Puck away from the smoking hole in the ground where Robyn stood, and stormed off.
Flash forward
"That was interesting," Puck poured sarcasm, as a flash of empathy towards Demona arose, "Now what does that have to do with my problem?"
"Well, remember I could have explained to Obie that it was your entire fault, several years later. But I didn't so as to protect you." Puck snorted and Robyn glared and continued, "Personally, I believe I was quite lucky, because I got to keep my powers, be free of Obie, and protect the interests of my pupil. All and all things turned out for the better didn't they?" She tossled his hair, absently.
"Yes." Puck swatted away her hand.
"But that was a decision I made on my own. I could live with it. I want you to be happy Puck, but you must also think of the boy Alexander. I must also warn you that he may not be as kind to you as he was with me. He still recalls what you told Will."
"It was not my fault that poor excuse for a bard twists words around worst then me! Look what he did to the story of Macbeth! That's not the point anyway. Robyn, what Lord Oberon is doing, it's wrong, but you know how powerful he is? Who am I to stand up to him?"
"Who are you?" Robyn seemed to be enraged, her eyes glowed with a burning hatred, "Who are you? You are a puck damn it! It's your job! And you are not going to back down with out a fight. 'How can I stand up to Obie?' you say, 'who am I to fight?' you whine 'I could not possibly defeat him," Robyn's knuckles turned white, and the glass seemed to creak under the pressure. "Look at Xanatos, he with out a second thought stood up to him, and fights. And he is mortal for the love of Obie! He fights even at the chance that his worst fear would come true! He could die! He has nothing next to Obie! How can you afford not to Puck? How could you live with your self if you don't?" she stopped and breathed a few calming breaths. "However, Puck, I can't make this decision for you no one can. It is your life, your choice, and I am one to talk of duty, but ask yourself three questions Puck before you make your choice; do you care for this human, do you have the guts to face Oberon, and are you prepared to deal with the consequences if you fail? "
After a pause, of either contemplating the options or how his mentor said Oberon and not Obie for the first time in his life. Puck meekly asked "Mentor, will you help me?"
"Puck, my dear, I stopped being your mentor the day you left for Obie's service. Think of me as a friend." Her shoulder's sagged and a glimpse of her true age showed, "Unfortunately, unlike you Puck, Obie hates me with every fiber of his being, and if I even appeared to be at your side all the worse for you. I want to. Desperately. But I would only raise the stakes and make things all the worse for them and you, dear."
"So, you would have me fight one you would not?"
"Yes," then grasped for an explanation, "I don't think you fully understand why, though, and I neither have the time to explain further nor you to listen. Yet, know this my former pupil, if I can with out further endangering you, I will help. The stern mentor, Robyn Goodfellow, is no more. She died on Avalon thirty thousand years ago."
"But..."
Robyn recovered her vigor and her anger in a flash. "Go Puck you haven't much time...the force field is down."
"Teach, I..."
"Go! Unless you want to stay here?"
"Wait, I need to..."
"What?"
"How should I convince Oberon?"
"How should I know! Explain with visuals! GO!"
"Will that work?"
"Probably not... just... GO NOW!" Robyn barked, and with a nod Puck vanished. No smoke, no effects, just gone.
After slowly finishing her glass of wine. Robyn looked at the bottle quaffed it, threw away the bottle and sighed to no one in particular, "Puck, you'll be the death of me someday. Little bugger always was a nuisance.." A small note appeared at her feet she read it, shook her head, and turned back into a cat, curled up and slept.
Owen appeared at the castle doorway. "I'm afraid my Lord there is one nuisance left." Xanatos coming to, said, "Owen, I knew you'd come back." Owen stated blandly, "Mr. Xanatos it was against my better judgment, I assure you, but nevertheless..." –the Gathering part two