Part Three! Yay! At the moment that I type this, it is only a few days removed from my last update. However, that is not likely going to be the time that this is updated. Reason being, I just have SO MUCH CRAP TO DO RIGHT NOW! Track every day, a grounding, just like KrazieShadowNinja, it just sucks right now! That also means that my other project, "Dragon in Paradise", could possibly not be out for a while. – I hate my life. Of course, it IS my decision to do this stuff. Oh well. Enough of my rambling. Here's the last chapter. Thinking caps on; this one could actually make you think a little!

The Many Tails of Mamas Lyoli:The Last One!

"Er, Grandpa? Could ya tell me again exactly WHY we're followin' 'em?", Jake asked, as the two, in dragon form, flew carefully over the tops of the New York skyscrapers so as to not be seen. "I mean, wouldn't it be easier just to let 'em go, and then there'd be no more problems!"

Grandpa must've known that that question was gonna come out of Jake's mouth, because he was already shaking his head, "Were you not listening earlier? We want to remove shapeshifters from this city. If we can get that stone from them, or, get to it before they do, then it will all be over soon. You do not realize how much that would mean to Grandpa."

It must've meant a lot. Grandpa flew faster and faster; Jake was having trouble keeping up. Soon, the two ravens that were Mamas Lyoli and Natalie were spotted. And they were headed toward... the New York Zoo. Why would they be going to the zoo? Suddenly, one of the ravens veered off course, soaring down to the streets. It was the smaller of the two. Natalie. Jake was about to go down after her, when Grandpa pulled him back up.

"Do not worry about her, Jake", he said, "I do not believe that she will be a problem. Mamas Lyoli is the one that we will have to follow." So they did. And soon found themselves in the middle of the zoo.

They touched down where Grandpa thought he'd seen the raven last. They changed back to human, walking slowly until they came to a large oak tree that was apparently was part of the exhibit. However, they had not yet seen anyone or anything... even the raven. That's when they saw the symbol.

It was seemingly etched into the bark of the tree. It was also glowing. Grandpa and Jake got closer to see what it was.

It was a zebra. An etching of a zebra. What could a zebra have to do with anything? Unless if that's what they were to be looking for. Morphing back into dragon form, the two looked beyond the tree.

There were so many animals. Well actually, only three. But still. There was an elephant. A fox. But finally, they saw the zebra. It was off in a smaller corner of the exhibit. Carefully; it didn't seem to realize they were there; Jake went up to it... and quickly grabbed it around its waist. (Which wasn't exactly an easy thing. You try doing that. That is, if you ever see a zebra. I heard there was some wild ones over in New Jersey... just kidding. I pity da fool who believed me.) The zebra jerked quickly, obviously wanting to get out, but Jake had a firm grip. "Haha, we got her! What now, y' old hag!"

But his laughter was soon replaced with disbelief, as her laughing could be heard... but not from the zebra. Jake looked to see Grandpa staring at... the elephant! They watched as the elephant morphed into a raven, and flew away, still laughing.

Jake let go of the zebra, dumbfounded. As was Grandpa. What had just happened? The symbol was a zebra... right? They rushed back to the tree, but the symbol was gone. "Okay, I am, like, SO confused right now. Why was she an elephant and not a zebra, like the tree said?"

"Good question. Maybe we simply misread it. Let us follow her. We will get her."

(End)

Flashback

There was a knock at the door. Who could it be? I hurried quickly to the door. "I am coming, coming! Just a moment!", I yelled, opening the door finally. There before me stood... a tall man, black hair, black trenchcoat, black... everything. "Mr. Shin?", he asked. I nodded. He smiled. "May I come in for a moment?" I let him in. It seemed as if I had no choice. Turning the store's sign to "closed", I pulled the man up a chair and sat down with him.

"Mr. Shin, my name is Art Grint. I am a part of...", he lowered his voice to a whisper, "The Council." I gasped. The Council? As in the magical world Council? Here in my shop? What was going on?

I struggled to bring myself to reply back, "Hello, how are you. What is your reason for your visit?"

Art looked me in the eye. "It's about your partner, Sharon. Sharon Reynolds."

"What has happened to her?"

"It has come to our attention that..."

End Flashback

The two dragons continued to follow the raven, still questioning, still dumbfounded. They were headed toward the other side of the zoo. This time, the raven landed in a clearing. Flying up over the trees, they landed down in the middle, looking for another symbol.

It wasn't hard to find. It was right at their feet. This time... it was a walrus. A walrus. With no water in sight. Okay...

There was a bull and a lion there as well. None of these animals really went together. That's what made it all the more confusing. Still, they would follow the symbol. This time, Grandpa went up to the symbolized animal. Meanwhile, Jake kept a close eye on the other two, just in case.

Grandpa was very close to the walrus now. Jake took his eye off the other two, just to see their supposed moment of triumph. Unfortunately, as fate would have it, that was a bad idea, because as soon as he did, the laughing began again. They whirled around quickly, but... the bull had already become a raven again and was flying off in another direction.

"Aw, hell no!", yelled Jake. They had been outsmarted again! How much longer could this possibly go on?

"Jake, Mamas Lyoli... she is quite wily, as you see. We now know, at least, that this will not be easy. This next time, be very patient. We shall see what happens." Grandpa said. Hey, it was a plan. Why not stick to it?

(End)

Flashback

"... that Sharon Reynolds is not a real person. Your business partner... for three years... was in fact someone else." This got my attention. Sharon, my partner, my friend... was what they possibly called in this country, a mole or something of that nature. But in no way was I expecting what he told me next. "Sharon is not a real person, because she is a shapeshifter. The shapeshifter simply took that identity. Why? We don't exactly know. It was likely because she was hiding. From us, the Council. But we've figured her out. That's all that we needed to tell you. She hasn't been here yet... because we intercepted her on the way here. She could be anywhere. We may need to ask you a few questions over the next few days." I understood that. But I had on question, "Who is she really?" Art stared up for a moment, before looking back at me, "Her real name is...

END Flashback

This was getting old. Mamas Lyoli was just... so hard to catch. Of course, they'd known she would be. But still... if you had gone through this, wouldn't you be at least a little frustrated? So, they continued to follow the raven. All the while, trying to find out where she was going. All the while, trying to figure out where Natalie had gone. And Jake... all the while, trying to figure out why the hell they were following the raven. Dragons could fly faster than ravens, he was almost sure of it! However, he stayed back. Only because Grandpa was staying back. Maybe there was more to this.

The main reason that Grandpa was not advancing on her was because he was in very deep thought. Remembering that day... when he found out Sharon was a shapeshifter. But in his old age, he had forgotten her real name. What was it? It wasn't Lyoli, was it? Lyoli...Lyoli... didn't sound familiar. He hoped to figure it out soon. But enough for now. The eagle...(er..raven. What's this line from?)had landed. And they were now in Central Park.

They were surprised to find this one's symbol in the air... right in front of them. It was a bull. Wait! A bull! That's what she was last time! Could this be it? Quickly, not even noticing the giraffe or rabbit watching intently, Jake speedily flew toward the bull. "Jake, no!", called Grandpa. But it was too late. Jake was unable to see the fact that you could see through the bull. It was a hologram. Jake, thus, dove right through it... before smacking head first into an idiotically-planted tree. He was out cold, for now.

Could this mean that Grandpa was the only one left to fight her? Grandpa whirled around, to see Mamas Lyoli, herself, in place of the giraffe. She was laughing quietly. "Face it, old man", she said, "It is hopeless. Besides, my granddaughter Natalie will have probably found the stone by now. Unfortunately for you, it is almost over. So sorry. So now, if you'll excuse me, I'll have to create another diversion. And with past record showing, it'll likely end in another win by me. Now, I shall see you soon." She turned to leave.

"Wait!", Grandpa yelled. She turned back slightly, acting if she was only interested in a small way. "Before you go, I just wanted to tell you... stop calling me "old man".", he frowned, "Because you already know me."

Mamas nodded her head as if in approval, "Very good... Lao. You finally realized it. I was wondering when you would. That's right, I was Sharon. But worry not, for I never intended in any way to hurt you. Nor did I intend to drag you into this. Until that Harry Jefferson... well, you know the rest. Unfortunately, I can't have any interference. No offense." And she turned back towards the skies and became a raven once more.

"None taken", replied Grandpa. And he was about to begin following her. Until he remembered Jake, who was just waking up. "Huh, yo! Yo, what'd I miss? Did I get 'er?"

Grandpa smiled slightly, "No. You did not. Now, Jake, I need you to do something very important. Find Natalie. Track her down, and once you do, stop her from getting the stone. At all costs. I will continue to follow Mamas Lyoli. I meet with you shortly. And with that, he was gone, leaving Jake to continue to ponder what on earth was going on.

(End)

Grandpa followed her again. But this time she did not go far. She was still in Central Park, though. And Grandpa was in shock at what he saw.

There was the symbol. It was a cheetah. Didn't seem so hard right now. But then he saw them. All of the animals. There must've been twenty of them. He saw the cheetah, of course, plus animals including what looked like a bluejay, a stallion, a lion, another bul, a hyena, a pig, a dog, an alligator, a hedgehog... just to name a few. But Grandpa was ready. "Mamas!", he called, "Nice try, but I've finally figured it out. I must admit, you are very tricky. But this is the end." And he flew toward the...

END CHAPTER

There it is! Now do you see why I told you all to put your thinking caps on? This may be easy, but if it actually IS hard, then I feel smart! If you think you know the answer, simply review this story and include which animal is, and how you know. (If you don't wanna tell how you know, I guess that's okay. Some people like to just guess, not admit that they guessed, and then jump up and down when they get it right, and when I say why, they say they were right. On the other hand, some people don't want anyone else to know.) So, I'll finish this up, and get going on the next fic, which as I said is "Dragon in Paradise". (Thanks to Terra Nova for the ideas:D ) And also, I LOVE the Dropkick Murphys! I just heard them for the first time. They're my heroes. Ok. Peace everyone.

YFWE