Previously:

"I know you." Micheal answered.
"Maybe you think you do, but I don't." Kyra said coolly.
"What do you mean?" Micheal asked.
"Just that everything changes, including personalities. Demona's living proof of that." Kyra answered.
"Yeah, but you aren't Demona." Micheal stated, laughingly to Kyra's surprise. She kept her face straight and impersonal.
"Maybe not, but I am a warrior, and capable of being just like her if I have to be." she replied.
"I'm willing to take chances." Micheal said, his mean disposition returned, and ordered an attack. The fight didn't last too long, a few lashes of Kyra's tail and swipes of her claws, and every boy was on the ground, except Micheal.
"You should know better than to take chances with a gargoyle, Micheal." Kyra said and went home.

Demona: "She's strong Micheal, too strong for a knife to stop."

"....Hey, there's Micheal." Kirstie pointed over by the annex, "I wonder why he's not coming over here."
"Easy, he knows that I'm due to give him a good punch for doing this." Kyra pounded her fist into her open hand and looked at her leg, wrapped in an ace bandage.

"First we think of what we do when we get her, she won't exactly be too co-operative."
"She never is." Micheal stated.
"How would you know?" Demona asked.
"You didn't think you were the only one who tries to capture her, did you?" Micheal answered.

"Goliath, that could have easily been you or Brooklyn that was hurt." Elisa said.
"I know, I guess we'll have to take extra precautions around Micheal and Demona." Goliath replied.
"It's not that easy anymore Goliath, you've got to make sure that whatever happens the clan has a leader." Elisa told him. "Besides, it's not just Demona anymore, half the city's against you and there's no law to protect you. Until you can prove you're trying to help, you'll all be in serious trouble. And with an eternal demon out there that hates humans and attacks them on sight, I don't see that happening."
"I already did that, Brooklyn is second in command, he will lead if anything happens." Goliath said.
"What if something happens to both of you?" Angela asked, "It could happen, Demona's getting better, and you aren't exactly going to stay young and strong like she will, and there are more and more humans against us every day. Xanatos can't keep us safe forever."
"She's got a point Goliath." Elisa added, "You know I worry about you, you're more than a friend to me, and I don't want to lose you, or any of the others either."
"What else can I do?" Goliath asked.
"Hudson, you're the expert on this stuff, any ideas?" Broadway asked.
"Only one..." Hudson answered. "And it's almost against tradition."

"I think they're both good warriors, they work well together." Hudson answered.
"Goliath, Hudson's got a good idea, they both work as a team." Elisa said.
"Yes, but it's up to Angela." Goliath replied.
"Do you think you two can handle it?" Brooklyn asked, "Demona's going to be after you a lot more than usual."
"I can handle Demona." Kyra said, "Angela?"
"I don't think I'm ready to get that much responsibility." Angela answered. "Besides, I have enough trouble from her as it is."

Burdens of Change

Kyra was waiting for sunset, she was pretty much bored and wished something would happen soon. Goliath and Brooklyn had gone on patrol last night, but they didn't return. She wasn't too worried, they probably lost track of time. Elisa came up after sunset, but Goliath and Brooklyn still had not returned, that started to make Kyra worry, she knew that Goliath never
missed Elisa's visit before her shift started. Maybe something happened, could they have run into Demona?
When Kyra told Elisa that Goliath wasn't back, then they both got worried because Elisa hadn't seen him. Kyra decided to go out and look for them, in case they were trapped or so far away that they wouldn't be back for a while longer, she followed the usual patrol path, but there was no sign of Goliath or Brooklyn. She was really worried, mostly about what this meant. Brooklyn was second in command, but Goliath made Kyra third, in case something like this happened.
Kyra knew she was too young to make decisions and everything else she would have to do until they returned, but since there was no choice, she went back and told Hudson that Goliath and Brooklyn had disappeared.
"Disappeared! How could two gargoyles disappear?" Lexington asked. Elisa came out to the courtyard.
"I don't know, but I looked everywhere, they're just not around." Kyra answered.
"This is serious, if Goliath and Brooklyn don't come back by tomorrow night, we'd better get all our friends to help us look." Elisa said.
"Is that all we can do?" Kyra asked.
"No. You, Angela, Lex and Broadway can go and look again." Elisa answered.
"Ok, if Goliath and Brooklyn don't show by sunrise, I'm going to ask Kirstie and Kiesha to help look the next night." Kyra said and went back out to look. As she left she said, "I wish Aryce could help, but she's too new to have her safely know about you."

As the sky lightened, Angela, Lexington and Broadway came back, but Kyra didn't. At first Elisa was worried, thinking that she'd met the same fate as the ones she was looking for. Then she remembered that Kyra said she would ask her friends to help. Knowing about Kyra as much as she did, Elisa figured that probably meant immediately after sunrise!
Elisa also knew another thing, if Goliath and Brooklyn were missing, Demona had something to do with it, and Demona would try to take over the clan. Demona knew about Brooklyn, though she did not know about Kyra's rank, yet. That simple fact was the only reason Kyra still had her freedom.
Demona thought she had the only gargoyles that would keep her from commanding, if she had learned of Kyra's ranking, she would have promptly captured her as well. Goliath and Brooklyn were not harmed, only kept in separate cells, even Goliath could not break loose. Demona went out to find the gargoyles' sanctuary and take over the clan. She had no idea of the surprise she would have waiting for her when she returned to her lair.
That night, Kyra returned to the castle, this time Kiesha followed her on the ground. Kirstie refused to go, she wasn't big on fighting. They all reported that there was no sign of Goliath or Brooklyn anywhere. There was only one place left to look, and the kids didn't dare go there without the help of the gargoyles. Demona's lair was the last place Kyra hoped they would have to look, but it looked like that was where her friends were. Broadway, Lexington, Bronx and Elisa went with Kiesha and Kyra. Hudson stayed to keep watch in case something happened while they were gone.
Kyra held her breath as she went over to the entrance, she pushed the door open and jumped back to dodge any traps that were set there. Nothing happened, she let her breath out, relieved that she was safe for now. Inside would be another story. Everyone knew Demona would have plenty of traps set to keep from being stopped.
It was dark inside, Kyra lit a torch with her magic and led the way through, after all, she practically knew the place perfectly. The path went in different ways. They split off, the gargoyles went one way, Bronx went with Kiesha. Elisa and Kyra went off together the other way.
Elisa was worried, she didn't know this place as well as Kyra, but she was mainly worried about Goliath. They were much better friends than they should be, since she was a human, and he was a gargoyle.
Kyra was worried about Brooklyn, he was her very best friend, he saved her life and rescued her countless times in the short amount of time she'd known him. They'd been through everything from the first sign of trouble. Even when Kyra had her free spirit removed by Demona's spell, if it wasn't for Brooklyn, she'd still be under Demona's control. If it was the last thing Kyra did, she would save him from Demona as he had done for her many times before.
Kyra was extremely cautious as she turned the corner, uncertain of what lay in wait behind it. It could have been Demona, Micheal, or a robot. It could have even been her friends, but no, it was an empty hallway. Kyra figured Demona should have attacked by now, but there was no sign of danger, even of slight danger. Where was Demona? An even better question was: where were Goliath and Brooklyn?
Since there was no sign of Demona or Micheal, Kyra took a chance and called for Brooklyn, hoping to get a response. There was nothing, as if the building had been completely abandoned. Demona, Micheal, and her friends completely wiped off the face of the earth.
"Great, now what do we do?" Kyra asked. The others came up behind her and Elisa, with a report of nothing found.
"I don't know, but we'd better get out of here before..." Elisa was about to finish when Demona appeared behind them, "That happens."
Kyra got between her friends and Demona, sheltering them with her wings, "Where's Goliath and Brooklyn?" she demanded.
"Why should I know?" Demona fibbed.
"Because you kidnapped them, now where did you hide them?" Kyra was getting angry, her eyes glowed a soft lavender, but it was a deadly glow.
"So, you figured this out too," Demona smiled, "If you want to know, you have to defeat me, something you'll find incredibly difficult."
"Not as difficult as I can make your winning." Kyra said.
"You know I'll win?" Demona was getting suspicious.
"You always win in a way, but this time, even if you win, you lose." Kyra said and they all left.
Kiesha and Kyra met after school the next day. "I can't believe you just walked off and didn't even put up a fight." Kiesha said.
"You don't have to fight to win, Kiesha." Kyra said looking ahead as they walked to the tower.
"What does that mean?" her friend asked.
"It means, I've got a plan." Kyra answered and ran ahead.
That night, Kyra told her plan to the others. Lexington wasn't sure it would work.
"I don't know, there's a few "ifs" in this plan." he said uncertainly.
"I know, but until Goliath and Brooklyn are found, it's either me or Demona you follow." Kyra told him.
"All right, you made your point." Lex replied, "I'd rather be led by the youngest than Demona any time."
"Anything's better than Demona." Angela agreed.
"Any other criticism before we leave?" Kyra asked sarcastically. It was mainly at Lex. Elisa and the other humans never complained, other than Kirstie anyway, and she wasn't there.
"Nope." he said.
"Let's go." Keisha replied.
They left immediately. "I'll scout ahead to see if Demona is waiting up there." Kyra said and glided ahead.
"If?" Elisa asked sarcastically before she and Kiesha took the street route.
Kyra glided slowly towards Demona's lair, stopping on the nearest high spot. The other gargoyles landed on the one behind me. Elisa and Kiesha were right below them. Demona would be extremely unpredictable since the weird sisters no longer watched her. Kyra knew she was probably sacrificing herself by going alone, but her best friend and leader were in there. Angela glided over to her to see what was going on.
"So, what's the situation?" she asked.
"Demona's up there," Kyra pointed to the roof, "Micheal's over by the secret passage entrance, and the gang is probably all scattered around in there."
"Think they've got enough security?" Angela asked sarcastically.
"Go tell the others what's going on, Elisa will know what to do." Kyra told her. Angela glided back and told Elisa about the security in the lair.
"Demona's pretty smart, she doesn't give second chances." Elisa said.
"So what do we do?" Broadway asked.
"Angela, you and Kyra keep Demona busy, I think I can get the others by Micheal." Elisa said.
"Right." Angela glided back to Kyra and told her the plan to get in. They glided together and just in general acted annoying to keep Demona's attention away from their friends. At first all they did was call to get her to look at them, then Kyra dove down, just missing Demona.
They glided a little farther every once in a while, trying to get Demona to chase them. Kyra finally found something that worked, she shot a blast of magic near Demona's tail. That got her immediately, she angrily chased after them, forgetting that Kyra probably brought more than Angela. The girls led Demona away from the building and Elisa led Broadway, Lexington, past Micheal, who was foolishly watching Angela and Kyra glide far to the west. Once the others got in, Angela and Kyra lost Demona in a grove of pine trees and snuck in while Micheal had left to help Demona since she hadn't returned immediately.
They met up and started looking for Goliath and Brooklyn. Kyra had her satchel and pulled out the floor plan of the building, Kyra looked for the basement in the old castle-like building. Since the only danger in the building was the boys in the gang, and they could all easily defeat them, even if they all attacked at the same time with knives and guns, they decided that it was okay to split up to look around. Kiesha, Angela, and Kyra looked around the left side of the basement, Elisa, Broadway, and Lexington looked around the right side.
Kyra snapped her head towards a door at the end of the hall. "Hey, Angela, did you hear that?" she asked.
"Hear what?" Angela asked.
"I heard something over in that room." Kyra answered. "Let's check it out."
Kyra tried to open it. "It's locked." she said, pulling at the handle, then noticing the lock. "From the outside."
"Whoever's in there must be a captive." Kiesha replied.
"Kyra, do you think you could break it down?" Angela asked.
"Are you kidding? Goliath couldn't even crack this door." Kyra answered, "And I don't want to waste my magic."
"Hey, you thinking what I am?" Kiesha asked.
"That Goliath's probably behind this door?" Kyra asked her.
"Exactly. I'll get the other two gargoyles and Elisa." Kiesha ran down the hall as fast as she could.
Meanwhile, Elisa, Lexington, and Broadway were looking around and saw a door at the end of hall on their end. They went to see what was behind it.
"That's strange, it's locked." Elisa said.
"The only reason to lock a door is to keep others out." Lexington replied.
"Or to keep others in." Elisa added.
"Hey this door's pretty strong." Broadway replied pushing on it.
"Too strong for Goliath?" Elisa asked.
"Nope, but definitely too strong for Brooklyn." Broadway answered.
"Elisa!" Kiesha called.
"Over here." Elisa answered.
Kiesha ran up to Elisa. "We found Goliath, he's all the way down the hall."
"Brooklyn's probably in here." Lexington replied.
"Strange, why would Demona keep the two separated?" Elisa asked.
"Probably 'cause together they could break the door Goliath's behind." Kiesha answered.
"Let's go, we'll get Goliath out, then he can get Brooklyn out." Elisa said and they all went to help the others rescue Goliath.
Meanwhile, Demona and Micheal, realized that at least Angela and Kyra, if no one else, had gotten inside and were probably already down in the basement. So they locked the door to slow the girls down and waited for the inevitable escape.
Kiesha came running up to Kyra, "They're coming, and guess what, Brooklyn's not in there, he's all the way down at the other end of the hall."
"Great." Kyra sighed. "Well, we'll get Goliath out first." she said as Elisa and the others came over.
"Yeow, that's gotta be a foot thick!" Broadway exclaimed.
"At least, maybe more, the only door in here that is." Kyra said looking at the floor plans.
"How do you know?" Lexington asked.
"Because this is the only doorway in the building that can hold that width." she answered.
"Then it's the only room that can hold Goliath." Elisa said, "Stand back, I'll have to shoot off the lock."
"Goliath, better get away from the door." Kyra yelled as Elisa got ready. It only took two shots to break the lock. The door immediately was knocked down and Goliath stood where it used to be.
"They'll have heard that... let's move fast." Kyra replied.
"How long have you been in there?" Elisa asked.
"A few days." Goliath answered, "Brooklyn and I were captured on the way back home from patrol."
"Let's go, Brooklyn's way down on that side." Kyra said and they all went to get him out.
After they got to the thinner door, Goliath knocked it down like a wall of tinfoil. Brooklyn came out and Kyra immediately hugged him.
"I missed you! You wouldn't believe the day and night I've just had!" Kyra told him. All of a sudden, she started to feel
foolish about the arguments they'd had for the past month.
"Let's get out of here before we're all captured." Elisa said and they went up the stairs to the main floor.
"Uh oh." Kyra said.
"What?" Kiesha asked.
"The door's locked." she answered, pulling at the handle.
"And look who's on the other side." Elisa said, looking through a hole in the door.
"Who?" Brooklyn asked.
"If you say Micheal or Demona, I'll scream." Kyra said.
"Then we'd better cover our ears because the whole gang is out there with them." Elisa replied. Kyra cursed under her breath and Elisa gave her a warning glare in return.
"How do we get by them?" Angela asked.
"Easy." Kiesha answered.
"What!?! Do you have any idea how hard it is to even sneak past these two, much less fighting your way through?" Kyra exclaimed.
"Yeah, but you just mentioned that it would be easier to sneak past them." Kiesha said.
"Now that is just nonsense, how do we sneak past them if they're right out there?" Kyra said, shaking her head.
"You'll see, there are other rooms in this basement, right?" Kiesha asked.
"Yes, there's a lot of rooms." Elisa answered, "Why?"
"One of them has to lead to the secret passage." Kiesha replied
"Good idea, but which one?" Kyra asked "There must be a hundred."
"We'll just have to split up and look in every one until we find it." Brooklyn said looking around, "Then again, it would probably be easier to risk fighting."
"Come on, there's not that many rooms, besides, who says that there's only one room, there could be more rooms that lead to the passage." Elisa said with confidence, "One door probably even is the passage."
"Elisa's right, after all, they're on that side of the door, what can they do if we find a way out on this side?" Angela said and started looking.
They all split up and started searching every room. Suddenly, Lexington shouted out, "I think I found it!" Everyone ran over to him. "It's dark in there, I can't see anything, but I got a feeling that there's no wall."
Kyra looked hard, she had the best night vision. She couldn't make out anything in front of her and walked far into the room. Kyra felt the side wall and grabbed a torch, lighting it with her magic. There was no wall in front of her. "All right, we're outta here!" she exclaimed and the others went in. A few moments later, they were all outside.
"We'd better get as far from here as we can before Demona realizes we're gone." Elisa said.
"Too late." Angela said, looking at the roof, Demona was up there.
"Way too late." Kyra added, looking at the door, she pointed to Micheal and the gang.
"I'd think it safe to say we are in a lot of trouble!" Brooklyn replied.
"Gee, what gave you that idea?" Kiesha asked sarcastically.
"This is no time for jokes, Kiesh." Kyra said sternly.
"Look out!" Lex yelled and they all jumped away as a lazer beam blasted into the snow where they had been standing.
"Micheal, will you cool it already!" Kyra said angrily, "You know I'm the last person you want having a grudge on you."
"Kyra's right, Micheal. Everyone knows she has a bad temper, especially around you." Kiesha added.
"Tough, she's mine." Micheal said roughly.
"I'm not property!" Kyra was getting really angry. Goliath had to grab her arm to keep her from running up and slapping Micheal's head off. Or his leg... she still owed him revenge.
"Micheal, are you sure you want this girl?" Demona asked, "Even you can't handle that hot a temper."
"I've handled it before." Micheal said slyly, crossing his arms. Kyra knew how he handled it, it was another reason she hated him. Whenever she got a temper spaz with him, he hit her, hard. It never really worked, after a while she had gotten stronger and started hitting him back. Kyra stepped away from the others, about midway between them and the gang. She touched her cheek absently, recalling ghost bruises.
"Yeah, well I can handle you the same way." she said, glaring at him.
"Enough of the talk." Micheal said, avoiding her glare, "Grab her." he ordered, all of the gang attacked Kyra. Goliath was hesitant to help, Kyra had fought the gang before and succeeded.
As usually happened, something went wrong. Kyra was winning, but suddenly, one of the guys snuck up on her. Before there was time to warn her, she was knocked unconscious.
Goliath and Brooklyn rushed to chase the gang boys away from her. They stayed by her, not leaving her side even when Demona shot at them. Elisa warned them not to move her, it was too dangerous. Soon Kyra regained consciousness, she seemed to be fine except for a bump on her head and a trickle of blood on her forehead.
Brooklyn led her to the others. Everything was going perfectly when once again, something terrible happened, Angela and Kyra were kept behind the others, since Angela was the least experienced warrior and Kyra was hurt. Without warning, Demona glided over them and shot Angela, the shot was meant for Kyra, but Angela had moved in the way.
"Angela! Are you all right?" Kyra asked, grabbing Angela as she fell back.
"I don't think so." Angela answered.
"Where did she shoot you?" Kyra really didn't have to ask, there were deep lazer burns on Angela's left shoulder, just above her heart. "Goliath! Angela's been hurt badly!"
Goliath ran from the battle over to them. "Lazer burns!"
"Demona. She meant to get me." Kyra told him. "We've got to get Angela home now, another shot like this and she'll die. This one was an accident, Demona won't come over here again. But Micheal's got a gun too."
"But we can't get away." Goliath replied.
"Yes you can, they want me, not you." Kyra sighed.
"Kyra, you can't!" Angela exclaimed weakly.
"It's the only way to get you to safety." Kyra told her.
"I won't let you." Goliath said, concerned for Kyra's safety.
"They won't hurt me, Goliath, and they won't hurt you." Kyra replied, "Once they see I'm staying, they'll let you go. Especially with Angie hurt."
"I refuse to leave you to them." Brooklyn said, coming up to them.
"You guys are fighting a losing battle, as long as I fight with you, you'll never win." Kyra said sadly, "Now go, get Angela out of here." Goliath saw that he had no choice but to go ahead. Brooklyn argued to stay behind and grab Kyra away after Angela had been taken to safety, but Goliath decided that wouldn't work.
"They'll expect it and be ready... we'll have to try something else. For all we know, she could get herself out by dawn."
Kyra was immediately made Micheal's prisoner. Nipper, who had gone with Kyra and hidden behind a rock outside when the others went in, stayed to keep her company. Kyra wasn't treated like a prisoner, at least not much. She was just put back in the gang with less privileges than she had before. As long as Kyra could go out by the river she didn't mind, much. She needed open space, keeping her locked up would eventually weaken and possibly kill her.
Micheal was aware of this and gave Kyra three hour outside privileges (chaperoned of course) excluding school, basketball practice and games (also chaperoned). Kyra was a different person from everyone else. Not because she was a gargoyle, but because she had the spirit of wild creatures running through her from her Native American background. Each member of her tribe had a spirit from each habitat they easily moved in. Kyra's were: the wolf, for land; the dolphin, for water; and the falcon, for sky. Of course only she knew about the falcon.
The next day, Kyra used her "free" time to take 'Nip' to the aquarium to play with Dulci, it was on the East side anyway. Dulci could sense that Kyra needed more companionship than Nip because of her predicament and tried harder to become a
wild dolphin. She swam faster after the live fish and actually caught enough to stay alive.
An underwater tape player was played in the tank with different sounds made by dolphins in the wild and Dulci reacted to them. When a distress call was played, she swam straight to it. When a danger call was emitted from the recorder, Dulci bolted away from it. When the call that meant food was played, Dulci swam straight to it and was rewarded with a live fish set loose near the tape player, which she caught. She seemed ready to go in the wild, but they had to make sure she would know how to react to human divers and ships.
A small boat was put in the tank and Dulci ignored it until a diver was put in it. Then she swam playfully over. When the diver went in the water, she curiously followed him but stayed out of the way and when a net was dropped she stayed away from it so she wouldn't get caught. It seemed that Dulci was fit to go in the wild. She was released into the Atlantic Ocean a few weeks after her last training session, close enough to the migration routes that her pod would find her. Somehow, three days later, Kyra saw her splashing around a half mile down river from the gang's base, in the delta. She smiled as she realized why Dulci finally tried to be allowed to be set free.
Kirstie, Kiesha, and Aryce talked to Kyra everyday, consoling her and trying to help her forget about Chris. In the classes she used to sit by him in, Micheal was still on her other side. Kyra hated all the changes that happened. She had to lead the clan for one night; after Brooklyn and Goliath were rescued a fight broke out; Angela was injured and close to death, Kyra still didn't know if her friend survived the trip home; and Kyra was captured and stuck with Micheal until she could think of a way out of this mess. She couldn't even sneak out by skipping final class, Micheal walked with her all day...
Kirstie and Kiesha tried to help Kyra think of a way to free herself, but the truth was, she'd need help from the other gargoyles. Another truth was, Micheal was getting on her nerves! If she had her way, he might not live to see her leave.
Nip naturally was there for her. Nip could always tell when Kyra was really upset and went over to lend an ear or cheer her up. For this Kyra was extremely grateful.
Nip and Kyra were walking by the river front. Nip started growling and barking over by a pile of left over snow from the last week. Kyra had been stuck in the gang over a month now. She tied Nip back and checked the snow for what Nip was barking at. She saw a terrible sight, a young Peregrine falcon with a bleeding wing. There were hardly any feathers on the injured wing. The falcon was so weak, it could barely call out as Kyra wrapped it up in a old cloth she got from her satchel and took it to her room. Nip followed, looking at the falcon pessimistically, falcons and eagles are wolf pups' enemies. Even if Nip was nearly five months old and big for her age.
Kyra cleansed and bandaged the falcon's wing and put it in a box so it wouldn't walk around until its wing healed. She decided the poor thing might not live to see the sunset of that day and figured she might as well test her power without the Jewel of Strength. The feathers soon grew back and the wound healed quickly. Kyra fed the falcon and helped him exercise his wings. Within a day, the falcon was gliding and diving like nothing happened to him. He was glad that Kyra had saved him so he became her friend and protector. She named him Perige, because of his species. The bird came in handy almost immediately... Kyra was getting a plan.
Perige followed Kyra everywhere. During school, he waited on the roof of the school and then followed her home. He slept near her and played with her outside. Nip didn't like Perige. She didn't dare go near him, even though she was bigger than him, it was the fact that he was a natural enemy. Micheal didn't like the fact that Kyra had a divebomber with talons and a sharp beak over her all day.
Demona was always near, Kyra knew this well, she even spotted her once. Kyra wasn't afraid of Demona, even though the gargoyless was older and stronger than Kyra. She was smarter and more agile than Demona, not to mention the fact that she knew every street in the city.
Unfortunately, Demona had one thing Kyra didn't, all the time in the world. Elisa and Kyra could only protect Goliath and the clan as long as their lives. Once they were gone, the gargoyles would have to fight their battles alone. Kyra would be around for a long time, she was, after all, a gargoyle, and would live twice as long as Elisa, but after then Angela and Broadway's kids would still be around. Micheal wouldn't be around, but Demona would, still as young and strong as ever.
Kyra's sorcery was strong, because it was natural, but it wasn't strong enough to help the clan after she was gone. She silently vowed to end Demona's terror before it was too late. The first part of that was to get back her jewel so she would have enough power to do so.
Perige circled and landed by Kyra as she thought of a way to get out of her predicament. It wasn't that she hated being stuck in the gang again, she had some friends in it (girls only). Kyra just simply hated being within ten feet of Micheal, that's why she always went to her private hiding place to think of a way to escape, she could never actually escape though, there were too many guards, armed at that. The gang was ready for even an aerial attack, the trio had attempted a rescue twice that week but the guns and Demona's presence discouraged them and they had to give up. Micheal wasn't taking any chances this time, she was really stuck. Kyra was even escorted back after school and practice. It was aggravating, and her body was suffering from the stress... she'd finally decided she'd had enough.
Kyra's hideaway was a rooftop, naturally. It was the hidden gargoyle in her that chose the place. It was so high she could see the Eyrie Tower, but not the castle above the clouds. She missed her friends and wanted to see them again, but it was impossible.
"Kyra! Where are you now?"
It was Micheal, she gritted her teeth and started to call out, but then thought: Why should I tell him? Nip whined and growled from the base of the building, Micheal had found her.
"Micheal, if you touch that wolf, you'll pay with blood." Kyra called down to him sweetly, rubbing the top of Perige's small head. Micheal knew she meant it and backed away from the fierce little wolf.
"You really surprise me sometimes, Kyra." Micheal called up to her.
"And why is that?" she asked, not really paying attention.
"Usually you're so sweet and gentle, but around me you're worse than Demona." Micheal answered.
"That's not really my fault, I can't help it if you catch me in bad moods." Kyra said just as sweetly as when she threatened him.
It was clear that around Micheal, Kyra was cruel and refused to listen to her conscience, it never talked when he was near anyway. Micheal gave up and left her to stare longingly at the darkening sky, Micheal knew Kyra could escape after nightfall if she remained a gargoyle, so he had Demona cast a spell, removing the gargoyle side temporarily. Kyra would need the jewel to get it back. With it back, she and the others would be an easy match for the armed bullies guarding her day and night.
Unfortunately for Micheal, Kyra still had her bad attitude and strength. For some reason, even without her gargoyle half, she remained just as strong as when she had it. Her magic was unremovable, so Micheal warned the guys in the gang to keep their distance unless he ordered an attack on her, in case she was escaping or refused to come to Micheal when he "wanted" her. He still couldn't get her to go to him. She always refused and he knew better than to force a girl like her.
Micheal wasn't the strongest boy in the gang, but he was the one in charge, so he decided which girls in the gang could be allowed with the other boys. Kyra was not one of those girls, she automatically "belonged" to Micheal. This meant that no boys in the gang could go near her unless it was ordered. It also meant that Kyra had to obey Micheal and do whatever he said. She was determined to be her own person, she never even obeyed Goliath when he told her to stay in the castle, unless there was immediate danger that could happen if she left. When Micheal called for Kyra during the night, she knew exactly what for, and refused to leave her special rooftop.
Micheal wanted her for all the wrong reasons, he didn't love her, he didn't even like her anymore, he lusted her. She was the most beautiful girl in the gang, and in most boys opinions, even the school. She was difficult to get though, she had high standards of who she would be with. Micheal decided to cut through Kyra's red tape and get her through force, but she never went near him, especially when everyone else had been "dismissed" to their rooms for the night.
Kyra knew why Micheal wanted her, and that made her hate him even more. The boys in the gang were constantly ordered to capture her and take her to Micheal's room, luckily she outwitted and outran every one of them everytime. She was beginning to have problems though, the boys were getting faster and they were becoming wise to her tricks. She would have to free herself, or be forced to submit to Micheal and give him what he wanted, much as she would hate it.
Kyra was brooding over everything when it suddenly started raining.
"Great." she sighed, "Now I have to go in." Perige cried out and flew over to a small corner of the rooftop, no rain was falling there. Kyra smiled and walked over there. "Good boy." she praised as Perige perched beside her. He shook the water off his feathers and went to sleep. Kyra took one last look at the stars and fell asleep, dreaming of her adventures with the gargoyles.
The next morning, Kyra awoke to see that she was still safe on the rooftop. She wondered why Micheal hadn't taken advantage of the fact that she was a sound sleeper. Then, seeing Perige wide awake above her, she smiled, remembering how Perige hated Micheal coming close to her.
"Did you protect me last night?" she asked, though she didn't have to. Perige looked at her and she immediately knew he had saved her life while she was asleep. Micheal must have tried something, probably came up with Demona, or some of his thugs, to steal Kyra inside, but Perige protected her fiercely. Even Demona couldn't get past those sharp talons and slapping wings.
"Guess it's safe to go down for a while, after all, Micheal needs to sleep sometime." Kyra said. She stretched, and went down to play with Dulci and Nip. It was late Winter, so the days were freezing, but she didn't care. She decided to go for a swim, that way, if someone was out waiting for her, she'd be safe.
Dulci spy-hopped when Kyra swam over. The dolphin squeaked happily to see her friend, she missed Kyra. Dulci sped over to Kyra's side and took her for a ride through the underwater currents. When the ride ended, Dulci nuzzled Kyra. She didn't want Kyra to leave the water, for a reason Kyra didn't know. Micheal's thugs were hiding, waiting for her to leave the river so they could grab her and take her to Micheal. When Kyra swam to shore, Dulci gently pulled her back.
"Sorry girl, playtime's over and if you stay in fresh water too long you'll get sick. I've got to get back to my hideaway before Micheal sends his jerks to find me." Dulci pulled her again. "What is wrong with you?" Then Kyra noticed Nip growling, her fur was bristling slowly, Perige was tense, they were both looking at a pile of boxes and boards. "Micheal's sent them out a bit early today." Kyra said quietly. She searched for a way to escape, but it looked like she was in trouble this time. It was open land, plenty of space to run, but no place to hide. Then she got an idea, "Nip, Perige, get 'em." she said quickly and the animals obeyed, attacking the thugs as Kyra got to shore and ran to safety.
Later that day, the thugs told Micheal what happened. He was not pleased that Kyra escaped again. "How could you let her run off again?" he asked angrily.
"We couldn't help it, she sent the animals on us." One of the boys answered.
"She's getting resourceful." Micheal said thoughtfully, "Go, I have to think of a way to get her without the animals causing trouble." A fierce looking mixed colored mongrel walked past him, he looked at it and got an idea, "Fang, come here boy, how'd ya like to do me a big favor?"
Meanwhile, Kyra was rewarding Perige and Nip for saving her with chunks of meat she got from the school cafeteria. Dulci was given a big tuna that Kyra had gotten from the aquarium when she told them the dolphin visited regularly.
"I don't know what I'd do without you three." Kyra said as Nip licked her hand and Perige perched beside the pup, "You're real life savers." Dulci spyhopped and squeaked happily.
Suddenly Micheal walked over, Nip let out a throaty growl, Perige looked at the boy with deadly eyes and flapped his wings threateningly. Kyra knew Micheal was up to something. She stood to look him in the eye, she was two years his junior, but nearly his height. She thanked whatever deity allowed her to inherit her father's growth.
"Wasn't that a little early for you to be trying to get me Mikey?" she asked, petting Nip. "I didn't even have time for breakfast."
"I never succeeded before, I figured you'd be easier to catch right after you woke up." Micheal answered, eyeing the fierce little wolf, who'd bared her teeth and gums to him.
"Well you figured wrong." Kyra said and walked away. Nip and Perige faithfully followed. Dulci sprayed Micheal and swam away to hunt in the Atlantic Ocean. Micheal spat out water and glared after Kyra.
The next day, school started mid-winter break. It rained, so instead of playing basketball in the snow on the outside courts, Kyra read in the public library. She loved to read horror novels, especially ones about vampires. Vampires were her favorite creatures to read about. Her favorite vampire stories were about teen vampires and vampire take-overs. Whenever a new vampire book came in, she went to the library and checked it out. Everyone knew vampires were purely fictitious, but Kyra wondered secretly if there were vampires, after all, she'd thought the living gargoyles to be figments of over-worked imaginations... then she ended up being one!
Kirstie thought Kyra's fascination with the undead nightly blood suckers was not only gross, but foolish. She believed that nothing pure evil could ever exist. However, Kyra always reminded her that Micheal and Demona existed, and compared to them, vampires were normal people with strange diets. Kiesha, like Kyra, believed in vampires, she loved everything creepy. Spiders, bats, and snakes were on at least as many things she wore as Kyra had black things on in a day.
Everyone almost thought Kyra to be a vampire, all she ever wore was black, red, dark green, and gold. She loved the night and was most active during it. Not to mention her eerie long black hair and pure white skin, and her thin frame made her look gaunt, as if she had been sucked dry by a vampire. Her shadowy, moonbeam eyes added to the effect. In dim light, Kyra could
scare someone half to death!
Of course, Kyra's black hair was because of her Native American heritage, her pale skin was from her European side. Her haunting eyes were mostly silvery violet during the day, so they seemed normal enough, and the shadows were explainable from her long nights. Her frame was thin, but made of muscle and bone, she had a lot of muscle, but it didn't show as much as other strong girls. Her love of the night came, of course, from the gargoyle side. Kyra was, at heart, a night creature.
Kyra's thin frame made her flexible, so she could jump and bend anywhere she wanted, that came in handy during gym and when Micheal's thugs were pestering her. She was double jointed and agile, furthering her aerobic actions. Also, she could balance on anything. That came in handy when she was literally on a tightrope because of the usual pests.
That afternoon, Kyra took a chance and walked by the river, Nip and Perige went with her, and Dulci swam alongside. Kyra knew Micheal would try to catch her while she was on ground level, but she was fast and always came up with a plan when she needed one. Plus, she had her faithful friends to protect her during the day, and she didn't dare go down at night while Demona was out there.
Meanwhile, Elisa was trying to figure out a way to prove Micheal was breaking the law by holding Kyra, but it was nearly impossible, she was already a runaway and therefore had no real place she was being kept from. She was "living" with Xanatos, but he didn't adopt her. Captain Chavez allowed Elisa to "investigate" the problem, with Matt's help. She knew how much Kyra meant to Elisa.
"So, you think Micheal's up to something again?" Matt asked as they walked through downtown.
"I don't think Matt, I know. If Demona's involved, it's got to be big." Elisa answered, "She wants the gargoyles dead, and getting rid of Kyra's help is a big start on that." Elisa and Matt went uptown to Eyrie Tower to ask Xanatos if he knew anything about what Micheal was up to, connections to the boy's family were paying off. But this time.. they didn't. Xanatos called Micheal's parents, but they refused to get mixed up in something that had no legal standing. For once Kyra's ability to sneak away from authority was a bad thing.
That night, the four youngest gargoyles missed Kyra terribly. "I just know she's miserable." Angela sighed.
"How else would she feel?" Brooklyn asked, "After all, she's with Micheal."
"I still can't believe she gave herself up." Broadway said.
"She had to, or Angela might have died." Lexington replied.
"I'm never going to forgive Demona for that, I warned her not to hurt one of the girls, and she's never hurt Angela before." Goliath added, coming over to them.
"Kyra's who she was aiming at." Elisa said, coming outside. "She couldn't help Angela's reflexes."
"Hey, Elisa. Did you get anything out of Xanatos?" Brooklyn asked.
"All he told me was that he didn't know Kyra was still captive. She should have escaped by now." Elisa answered, "Micheal's family isn't going to stop him."
"Micheal must be keeping an extra close eye on her." Angela replied. Cana and Lupus whimpered. Scratch was with Kirstie and Tuma was now Kiesha's. "The wolves sure miss her, and Nip."
Back at Kyra's hideaway, Nip rested below the ladder as Kyra slept on the rooftop. Perige was wide awake, watching and listening for any danger. Below, a shadowy creature crept on four brown legs towards the sleeping wolf. Nip perked up at the sound of the dog's angry growling. She returned it fiercely, showing her teeth and dark gums.
Kyra jumped awake at the sound of the fierce battle below. "Nip!" she exclaimed and climbed down, expecting the worst. She saw a terrible sight, a brown and black mongrel had picked a fight with Nip. "Either that's the dumbest dog in the world, or the craziest." she said and pulled the fierce dog away from Nip, commanding her wolf to stay back. Even though Nip was in an attack mood, she obeyed. The dog was still growling and snapping. "Back down mutt, if Nip wanted to, she could tear you to pieces!" Kyra half-growled.
The dog still lunged at the she-wolf's throat, luckily, Kyra had a tight hold on his collar. "This has got to be the dumbest dog in the history of canines!" Or the fiercest. The thought ran through her mind and stuck, adding itself to another. The dog was as determined to get Nip as Micheal's thugs were to get Kyra. "So, the mutt belongs to Mikey! Then I'll have to give him back, after I get an explanation for this mutt attacking you, right Nip?"
The little wolf barked in agreement. The mixed dog had calmed and was wagging its tail. Obviously her small act of kindness (making Nip stop the attack) had proven her well meaning for him.
Meanwhile, Micheal was starting to wonder what was taking Fang so long. How hard could it be to kill a wolf pup? One of the guys came in and said Kyra had Fang on a chain, and she was with her live wolf! Micheal let her in.
"Finally giving up?" he asked calmly.
"Not even in your dreams, Mikey." Kyra retorted, "Mind telling me what this reject dog was doing fighting with my wolf?"
Micheal acted like the dog wasn't even supposed to be outside. "Fang, how did you get out? I can't believe you attacked this cute little wolf."
Kyra wasn't about to believe that phony excuse, and neither did Nip, she growled with the thought of shedding his blood. "Easy Nip." she calmed the wolf down. "Micheal, I'm warning you, keep your dog away from Nip or there'll be trouble."
"Worried about your precious puppy?" Micheal smirked.
"No, I don't want a dead dog on my conscience." Kyra snapped, "Nip is a wild wolf, she only trusts me because I've raised her, she's a born killer. I'm telling you only once, Micheal, for the dog's health, keep him away." she took the chain off Fang and put it on Nip, leading her out of the base and back to the secret hideout.
Later that night, Kyra stared at the appearing stars. On the other side of the city, Brooklyn stared too. They missed each other more than a forest would miss rain. For without the rain, a forest would be a desert, and that's how Kyra felt inside: like a desert. Dry, barren, and alone. She needed her friends, more now than ever. Of course Kyra couldn't just walk away, there were guards all over the place. Kyra would have to glide away, but for that she needed her wings and to get them she needed the jewel.
Nip wasn't hurt badly by Fang, at the most she was shaken up. She was used to fights, she was the Kappa in the pack. Scratch had been the Gamma, and Tuma was the Omega pup. Tuma was constantly picked on by his siblings, he was their scapegoat. If they got out of hand Cana and Lupus, the Beta members of the family, gave the Omega pup sharp bites, while the two others got away scot free. Scratch fought Nip all the time, trying to make her descend to Omega rank so he could get her in trouble too. Kyra was master of the pack and thought of as the Alpha, so she was always allowed to stop him.
She bandaged the one bleeding wound Nip had, thinking of how the gang was like its name, a wolf pack. But a real pack had two Alphas, a male and female, and Kyra wasn't about to beome Micheal's other half. She took Nip up to the secret rooftop that only Kyra knew the way to get to. Nip spent the night up there, in case Micheal foolishly sent the mongrel back to fight a suicidal battle. Fang wasn't a bad dog, he was just raised improperly. The minute Kyra restrained him and acted kindly, he calmed down and even wagged his short stump of a tail. Fang liked Kyra, she was nice to him and kept her wolf from hurting him.
Kyra could tell that Fang was part wolf. She also saw he had part coyote and part fox. In fact, he seemed to have every wild dog in him, but wolf showed true in him. He had the legs and paws of a wolf; his eyes had an eerie amber gaze, only wolves had eyes like that. He had a long fox's muzzle, making him incredibly strange looking.
Nip hadn't meant to inflict any of the wounds she gave to Fang, she was just protecting her pack member. It was wolf law that the pack protected all members. Nip thought Fang was kind of nice, he didn't fight purposely, but on command. He had ironically nearly been killed by the one he was sent out to kill.
Fang was left outside, without bandages on his still bleeding wounds. He howled in misery and pain. He was being punished for not doing his job. Nip heard his mournful cry and woke Kyra. She heard Fang and looked at Nip, the wolf had a warm look in her eyes. The howl sounded again, Nip looked sadly towards the haunting sound. Fang definitely had wolf in him, Nip understood every part of his cries.
"All right, we'll go help him." Kyra said finally after Nip had looked at her for the fourth time.
Kyra grabbed the chain leash and Nip followed her down. They found Fang huddled behind some boxes, trying to keep out of the cold. He whined as Kyra came over. He was still bleeding and the fight was hours ago.
"Oh you poor dumb mutt... if Micheal doesn't know how to take care of you, why do you stay with him?" Kyra asked calmly as she cautiously bandaged Fang's wounds.
He wagged his little tail happily as the pressure stopped the bleeding and pain. Kyra attached the leash to Fang's thin rope collar and led him up to the secret hideout to get warm. He laid down near Nip and fell asleep quickly after he hungrily ate a few handfuls of meat. He was so thin, he must have not been fed for weeks to make him fierce. All it did was make him pitiful looking. Kyra decided to make him healthy again. She tried the healing power that had helped Perige.
A day later, Fang was much nicer looking. He was lean, but it was muscle, not bone, and he was happy, always wagging his little tail. In fact, Fang was so grateful that Kyra saved his life that he acted like a little puppy around her, following her around and begging for attention, which he always got. It was clear that Fang was no longer Micheal's attack dog, he was Kyra's friend, a new member of the "pack".
Kyra enjoyed watching Fang and Nip play together, they were acting like litter mates, even though Fang's wolf heritage probably wasn't from Nip's pack. Micheal hated it, Fang didn't even go near him anymore!
Nip and Fang were going to the river with Kyra, when Micheal passed, Nip growled, and Fang chimed in with her! That was the icing on the cake, Fang was Kyra's now. That night, Fang and Nip slept close to her. She hoped that if she ever got out of this mess that Lupus and Cana would accept Fang. Then again, she was Alpha, so it really was up to her.
Kyra was getting bored to death waiting for Mikey to slip up his guard so she could escape, but she knew that it would never happen. Micheal and Demona never gave second chances to do anything and technically she was still dealing with both of them, Kyra had escaped once by just leaving, it wouldn't happen again.
She decided if she was going to escape, she would have to play as dirty as they were. She'd hate herself for doing it, but she had to think like them if she was going to beat them. Thinking like them meant she would have to be like them. She shuddered at the thought when it entered her mind, but she passed Drama class with flying colors, if she could play Juliet and Katharine (from Taming of the Shrew) in the same week, she could do this.
She'd have to take her time, she definitely didn't want suspicions aroused. Day by day Kyra started to give in. She didn't let the boys catch her, but she put up less of a fight, as if she was getting tired of all the running and escaping. Micheal obviously thought it was for real because the boys were getting closer and closer everyday. Only Kyra knew she was pretending.
Perige was visibly against her plan, he probably saw a couple of faults. After all, she hadn't planned what to do once she finally allowed herself to be caught. She knew that was a problem, but she was quick when it came to things like that.
Nip and Fang were all for it, they wanted out too, they even kept Kyra's pace when she slowed. They made it look like she was making them give up too.
Finally the day came when Kyra finally allowed capture. It was the second time that day Micheal sent the boys out and during the first time they had nearly gotten her.
About five boys were chasing her and she was about to escape, when she decided to make her move and let them "win". She pretended to trip. When she fell, Nip and Fang stood beside her. The five boys grabbed her and she pretended to put up a fight, but soon "gave up" and went with them, while Nip and Fang snarled and barked. The boys watched Kyra carefully, they knew what she was capable of. But it seemed to have slipped their mind that she was the best actress in the school's history.
When the boys took her in to see Micheal she had all but gone in herself. Micheal was pretty surprised that after three weeks of being his voluntary captive, Kyra was fully surrendering.
"Well, what have we here? What took you so long, Kyra?" Micheal asked smugly.
"I'm sick of running to every single corner of this territory to escape your goons, Micheal." she said, resignedly.
"Micheal? What? No 'Mikey', no 'immature jerk'?" Micheal asked sarcastically, "Boy, when the mighty fall they fall hard." he said, looking her over. She kept a tough looking expression and posture and rolled her eyes away from him.
"Look, you've been chasing after me since you were in fourth grade, you take me now or leave me." Kyra said seriously, although she was fighting a laugh back inside.
"Oh I'm taking you, believe me, it's just..." Micheal faded a little, then got a suspicious look to his face, "You've been resisting me since I first went for you, why give in now?"
"Do you have to be suspicious of every thing I do?" Kyra asked strongly, "And will you stop looking at me like that!" he was smiling that cute little mischievous smile she hated so much.
"Sorry, it's just that it's hard to believe you're finally mine." Micheal came over to her and motioned for the five boys to leave the room, he held her chin and looked her in the eye. "But, as the saying goes, never look a gift horse in the mouth."
He moved forward to kiss her. She moved away an inch or so instinctively, then remembering the plan, she reluctantly allowed it. Inside she squirmed, she thought she was going to burst and ruin everything, but she held true and was grateful when the kiss ended.
"You aren't kidding!" Micheal smiled, "Your old room's still empty, and your animals are welcome to stay, you can go where and when you please." he said. Kyra could tell he was glad to get his way with her.
When Kyra went up to her old room, she smiled slyly, "I'm a better actress than I thought." she said smoothly. She was surprised at Micheal's kiss, if she hadn't reminded herself that she didn't like him, she would have kissed him back. She never thought that someone so bad could be so good when it came to things like kissing. It scared her more than a little, she'd have to make sure that didn't happen too often.
Kyra had a window in her room, so she looked at the stars before she fell asleep that night. The next morning, she went down. There were no guards, as Micheal promised. The plan had worked. If she wanted to, she could just walk away right then. But she had to get her jewel first, or she could be captured again.
Perige cried above her, it was a warning that Micheal was near. "Hush, Perige, he's not going to do anything." she called to him.
She made sure that Micheal could hear her telling Perige that. That bird's going to ruin everything, she thought. Micheal smiled and walked on.
"This is going to be harder than I thought." she sighed. It was time for the second part of her plan, Kyra had to tell the gargoyles and Elisa her plan, so they wouldn't be confused in case they saw her acting. She wrote a note and tied it to Perige's leg, she sent him flying after she told him to go to the castle on the tall tower. She would have sent Nip, since she was the only one who knew the gargoyles, but Perige was faster. Besides, a falcon landing right on the castle could only have been sent by Kyra, and they all knew it.
At the castle, Brooklyn was sitting outside, moping about Kyra being gone. He missed her terribly, everyone did, but he missed her the most. Suddenly, he heard a high pitched call sound above him, he wishfully thought it was Kyra, but he knew it wasn't.
"Hey Goliath, there's a falcon out here. I think it's from Kyra." he called.
"How do you know that?" Goliath asked, coming out with Angela.
"Well, one, it's got a note tied to it's leg; two, Kyra always sends animals to deliver her notes, and three," Brooklyn showed Goliath the note that he took off Perige's leg, "The note is in her handwriting."
"Good points." Angela replied, giggling.
"Let me see this." Goliath unfolded the note and read it: "This note is for Goliath's clan and Elisa only. I'm still stuck in Micheal's gang, but I've got a plan. You'll probably hate it, but I'm acting like I've given up and Micheal's fallen for it. Now I only have to get the jewel and I can escape. I'll need help with that, so I'll send another note when I'm ready. By the way, the falcon's name is Perige, he hates Mikey as much as I do, Kyra."
"Kyra's still making friends with wild animals." Angela sighed, petting Perige.
"We'd better send her a note saying we got hers." Brooklyn replied.
"Good idea." Goliath agreed.
"Can I write it?" Brooklyn asked.
"Of course, but remember; this falcon's carrying it, so make it small." Goliath said and went in to tell the others about the note.
Later that night, Perige returned to Kyra's room. She took the note off his leg and he roosted in the rafters above her bed as she read it. It was from Brooklyn and it said yes he did hate the plan, but if it was working he wouldn't complain. Above all it said he missed her, and so did the others, and he couldn't wait for Kyra to return safely. She sighed and tossed out the note so Micheal would never figure out that she was still on the gargoyle's side.
The next few days went smoothly and according to plan. After a while, Kyra decided it was safe to go ahead and send Perige to the gargoyles with the rest of the plan. She wrote in the note that she needed help now and that Brooklyn and Angela would work best the way the plan was going. She sent Perige early in the evening. He returned with a note that said Brooklyn and Angela would be just outside Micheal's territory and all Kyra had to do was tell Nip to howl and they would go to her.
Kyra looked out her window at the stars, fate was finally giving her a break. She fell asleep smiling and couldn't wait for the next night. But one thing happened during the next day she didn't like, Micheal tried even harder to make her completely his.
It started about an hour after Kyra woke up, she went outside with Fang. Everything went normally as it had gone for the last few days. Demona was hanging around during the day, probably because she suspected. Even if Kyra really had given up and surrendered Demona would have been suspicious, and if Kyra had let Micheal do what he tried that afternoon, Demona still would have been suspicious.
Micheal sent for Kyra to talk about something. She was worried that he had found out about her, but kept the worry covered up. She obediently went to his room and soon after wished she hadn't.
"Why did you send for me Micheal?" she asked cautiously, making sure it sounded right on every word.
"I've noticed a change in you, Kyra. You've gotten nicer towards me and you haven't insulted me for days." Micheal answered.
"Yeah so?" she replied. "I'm in a slump. Give me time." she leaned on a wall and half-glared at him.
"So, since you're mine I can do whatever I want with you, it's the gang's rule." Micheal hinted. Kyra knew exactly what he meant and allowed herself to act normally for a few seconds.
"No way, forget it. I'm yours, but not that much." she said quickly and with her usual attitude.
"Oh yes, you're mine Kyra. All mine, and I'm not letting you slip away again. There's only one way to do that." Micheal advanced towards her. She backed away, she figured it was time to stop the acting there and now!
"Like I said, forget it. I'm not about to do anything like that, especially with you." Kyra snapped.
"Look, you don't have a choice, you surrendered. So you're mine to do with however I please." Micheal said coolly.
The way he said "however I please" sent chills down Kyra's spine, she was afraid, purely afraid for once in her life. She knew what he was going to do, but there was nothing she could do against it. Then she saw it, just outside his window, Kyra silently let out her breath in a prayer of thanks: the sun was setting! She had to get Nip to go outside Micheal's window and howl, so that Brooklyn and Angela would rescue her.
To do that she needed to throw something out Micheal's window to get Nip over there. Micheal kept his eyes on her. She couldn't do it now, she had to get him to look away, but how? Then a feeling sunk in the pit of her stomach. She would have to get his attention on something else, by agreeing to do things his way.
"All right Micheal, you win, but take it slow. Ok?" she said weakly, pretending to give in. She surprised herself, she would have to watch it, or she might actually cause herself to fall in love with him.
"Sure, anything you say." Micheal came closer and kissed her. To make it look better for herself, she kissed him back. She hated it, but she had to do it.
While Micheal's mind was on the kiss, she put her hand in her satchel, pulled out Nip's favorite ball and threw it out the window. Nip trotted right over, and grabbed her ball. The sun was all the way down, so Kyra knew Brooklyn and Angela were awake. Nip climbed some boxes and looked in Micheal's window, she saw Kyra kissing him and growled softly. Kyra made a motion with her hand for Nip to howl. She obeyed and let out a haunting howl deep into the early night. Micheal pushed Kyra away and yelled.
"What's she doing?"
"Nothing, she just doesn't like you kissing me." Kyra answered.
"You're up to something." Micheal said straightly.
Kyra saw two shadows in the sky and she didn't want Micheal to see them, "If I was up to something, would I do this?" she pulled him close and gave him a long kiss. When the shadows disappeared, she let go and stood back. Micheal looked a little dazed, he didn't know how good Kyra kissed before, but he obviously liked it.
Kyra liked it too, it bought her friends time to get things ready to help her escape.
Outside, Brooklyn and Angela had landed by Nip. "Where's Kyra, girl?" Brooklyn asked. Nip looked up at Micheal's window. "Nip, please don't tell me she's in there with Mike after dark." he sighed.
"This is bad, we've got to get her out now!" Angela replied.
"Yeah, but how?" Brooklyn asked, "She's in there with Mike, and we're out here."
"Then we get Micheal out here so Kyra can get out." Angela answered.
"Clever. One question though." Brooklyn replied.
"What is it?" Angela asked.
"How do we get Micheal out?" Brooklyn replied.
Angela looked around, then she saw Demona, "Leave it to me." She said and went over to a tall building, "Go get Kyra, I'll make Micheal come out."
"I hope you know what you're doing Angela." Brooklyn said and went back to the base.
Meanwhile, Micheal was kissing Kyra again, she kept her eyes on the window and her ears alert for any sign that her friends were out there. She could tell Micheal was getting tired of just kissing, he kissed her chin, then her neck, and quickly pecked her shoulder (she was wearing the gang clothes, an off the shoulder, waistless shirt and tight spandex shorts). Kyra knew he wasn't going to wait much longer, his hands were already clutching her shirt. She only had a few seconds to react, he was lifting it up.
Kyra pulled his face up to hers and kissed him long and hard. If she kept that up she was going to be washing her mouth out for weeks. Where are they? she thought worriedly, kisses wouldn't hold Micheal back much longer, even ones like what she was giving him.
Micheal let go of her, "What's your problem?" he asked, "Not that I'm complaining, but every time I try to go farther than kissing, you kiss me even harder than before."
"I told you to take it slow, didn't I?" Kyra answered.
"I was. Usually I don't even wait this long, and you know it." Micheal replied, "Now sit on the bed." she sat, but pushed him away.
"Wait a minute, can't you just control your hormones for two minutes?" she asked.
"We've been kissing for five minutes already, it's time to move on." And with that, he grabbed her and kissed her hard. He moved his hands down to her shirt and was about to take it off when a loud gargoyle scream sounded outside. Angela was
fighting Demona.
Micheal let go of Kyra and stood up, visibly annoyed that he would have to hold off having her for a while longer. He went to the door, "I'm locking you in just in case you decide to change your mind." he said and closed the door behind him.
Kyra scrubbed her mouth with the back of her hand in anger and disgust. He really steamed her! It figured he'd think of locking her in.
"Great," she sighed, pulling her shirt straight, "Now how do I get out?"
"Jump out the window." a voice called from outside.
"Brooklyn!" she ran to the window and looked out, "Are you crazy? Jump out? Nip had to climb boxes to look through the window, it's on the extremely high second story!"
"I'll catch you. Hurry, Angela can't hold Demona back much longer." Brooklyn called. Kyra jumped and as he promised, he caught her. She had forgotten how strong he was.
"Let's go, Angela's trying to get the jewel." Brooklyn told her.
"Oh, never mind, I can get it." Kyra said and whistled for Perige. He flew over and landed on her arm. "Perige, see the pretty black stone?" she pointed to Demona, "Get it from her boy, go on get it!" Kyra dropped her arm and Perige flew quickly over to Demona and snatched the jewel off her neck with his talons!
Kyra called him back and told him to drop it. He did and it landed right in her hand. As she put the jewel on, her gargoyle form returned in a blast of light. Fang ran to her and jumped into her arms, Brooklyn picked up Nip. Brooklyn and Kyra
went to get Angela. After Angela saw she didn't need to divert Demona anymore, she glided off and they all went home. Micheal scowled as Kyra went out of sight.
When they got home, Goliath was very happy to see Kyra safe and free. She told him how she kept Micheal from seeing Brooklyn and Angela. He wasn't happy that she had to kiss Micheal, but he said as long as it worked it was a good plan.
Cana and Lupus ran over to Kyra, she was carrying Fang and Brooklyn had Nip. Cana and Lupus joyfully greeted their daughter and to Kyra's surprise, they did the same to Fang. Nip's scent was all over him since they slept cuddled together to stay warm, so they knew he was a friend. Kyra ruffled Fang's thick fur and he licked her hand.
"Hey, who's the cute little dog?" Angela asked.
"This is Fang, he used to be Mikey's but he likes me because I saved his life." Kyra answered.
"How did that happen?" Brooklyn asked. Kyra told them everything about how Nip and Fang got into a fight because he was sent to kill her and how she nearly killed him and Kyra healed his wounds after Micheal left him out in the cold and unbandaged.
"What about Perige, how'd you get him?" Broadway asked. Perige had flown in and perched high above in the rafters.
"Nip found him before I got Fang, he was shot in the wing, probably by some jerk in the gang." Kyra answered, "I took care of him and now he won't leave me alone."
"Fang's coat is so thick and warm." Angela said as Fang jumped up and licked her.
"Yeah, I think he's got Mexican wolf in him." Kyra told her. "In fact I'm pretty sure there's other wild dogs in him, mainly fox and dhole since he's about the size of a fox and because of his muzzle and legs."
"Yeah, must've been one of Savarrius' experiments." Lexington replied, looking at Fang, "Look, he's got a tag on him, right under his fur."
Goliath looked at the tag, "It's the same kind of symbol that was on Maggie's bracelet, Savarrius definitely made this dog." he agreed.
"Well, he's not Micheal's dog anymore, he's mine. That's the way Fang wants it." Kyra said and snapped the tag and rope off Fang's neck, replacing them with a leather collar, "There, now no one will know he was made by science."
"Good idea, there's enough scare out there with what happened to Derek, Maggie, and the others." Elisa said.
"Hey, Fang, come here boy." Brooklyn called. Fang bared his namesakes at Brooklyn, "Hey!" Brooklyn stepped back in shock.
"Relax, Fang has been spending a lot of time with Nip, and you know she hates you." Kyra explained and laughed.
"You'd better train him not to do that anymore, Kyra. He has to acknowledge the entire clan as allies." Goliath told her.
"No problem, it should be easy, he's a sweetheart." she replied, scratching Fang's brown ear. He still growled a little, "Fang, hush, Brooklyn's a friend, now go over there and apologize." Fang reluctantly trotted over to Brooklyn and licked his hand. Kyra saw him bare his teeth a little, "Fang." she scolded firmly. He came over, head down and whining. "Bad dog." she said sternly.
"It's going to be harder than you thought." Angela sighed.
"Only if I pamper him," Kyra smiled, "Fang, I'm gonna push you harder than I pushed Nip about this. You're going to be a good dog or else." she told Fang harshly.
"Be careful, try not to make him resent you, he looks mean and short tempered." Hudson warned.
"He's not Demona, Hudson." Kyra replied and smirked, "Still, she probably helped train him, so I'll be careful."
"You can start training him as soon as things calm down and it's safe to go outside." Goliath said, "You've still got a few hours before sunrise, if you want to, you five kids can go out together."
"Kids?" Kyra asked sternly. He knew she was kidding.
"Come on, let's go, last one out's a human, no offense Elisa." Brooklyn called from the door. They all rushed out and began a game of sky tag. Goliath was glad to see all five teen gargoyles together again.