Chapter Two- The Girl

Brooklyn strolled down the sidewalk, a wallet in his pocket containing some money and a passable fake I.D. He had been right that no one was paying him any attention- except for some girls. He gave them a closed-lip smile and nodded at them, making them blush and look away, giggling.

He was enjoying himself, no doubt about that. But, he was on a mission and that was to find a P.I.T. meeting or a member. He knew he would have had no luck finding either as a gargoyle; but as a human, he had a chance.

He walked about for an hour before coming across a mini pep rally on a corner. People were either coming up and staying or coming and going after stopping briefly. Curious, he walked up to the back of the crowd. He was barely able to keep a look of disgust off his face. It was a Quarrymen pep rally! There were two of them in full uniform, one spouting anti-gargoyle rhetoric while the other passed out pamphlets. Brooklyn wanted to charge up there and knock their heads together, but restrained himself. He would end up arrested for attacking them; whether he would be jailed depended on his age. He knew this from Elisa. He wasn't sure about his age: he could be seventeen or eighteen. So, instead he accepted a pamphlet before walking away, discreetly dropping it in a trash can.

It's hard to resist attacking Quarrymen. I know if I do, I'll end up arrested. That would be bad because I won't get out before sunset. I need to focus on my mission.

He walked about for another hour before seeing another corner rally. He slowed before stopping hardly believing his luck: It was a P.I.T. rally! Again, there were two people, a man and a young woman. The man was talking while the woman passed out pamphlets. He listened to the man, but his eyes were focused on the woman. She was striking: She had bright green eyes and silky jet-black hair that fell past her shoulders. There weren't many people at the rally, so when he accepted the pamphlet, he smiled charmingly at her and she responded in turn.

"Hi, I'm Brooke," he said holding out his hand.

"I'm Amy," she replied, taking his hand and shaking it.

He swept a hand to the talking man. "I like what I'm hearing about gargoyles. I would be interested in learning more."

"You're in luck. We're having a recruiting meeting shortly. Stick around and I'll show you the place."

"I'm not going anywhere."

Brooklyn was led to the meeting place and listened to the recruitment pitch. These people were sincere in befriending gargoyles and he felt completely at ease with them, though not enough to say he was a gargoyle. Instead he signed the recruitment list and was given the time and place of the next meeting. He knew he wouldn't be able to attend every meeting, as some would be at night, but he could show up if a scouting party is organized designed to meet gargoyles.

He returned to the castle, went to his room, exchanged his clothes for his loincloth, and fell asleep on the bed. His first day as a human had been wonderful, but he needed some rest if he was going to stay awake all night. He slept until half an hour before sunset and thought about how to tell the clan about his day. He knew if he tried to conceal his gift, it would be backfire on him and he would lose the trust of the clan. He had to tell them.

He returned to his post as the sun began to set. The last of the sun's rays disappeared and he felt the same pain from this morning, only this time it felt worse probably because he was sprouting wings and a tail as well as other features. He roared to the night at the same time as the clan. He looked up to see Goliath glide down to the courtyard and he followed.

"Goliath, I need to talk to the clan right away."

Goliath heard the urgency in Brooklyn's voice and was a little concerned about what was bothering his second-in-command. He nodded. "All right. The television room in five minutes."

Goliath entered the castle, leaving Brooklyn trembling and trying to compose himself and his thoughts. He waited five minutes before heading for the TV room. He entered to find the entire clan already there.

"Is everything all right, lad?" Hudson asked.

Brooklyn inhaled and slowly let it out. "For a few nights, I've been feeling lonely and wanting companionship. I thought about finding a human who is a member of P.I.T. Owen noticed this and, as Puck, he taught Alex a spell that turns me human during the day."

There were silence and then Angela said softly. "Human?"

Brooklyn nodded; his nervousness evaporating as his excitement took over. "I had a wonderful day! The sun felt so good, better than I dreamed! I walked down the street and no one looked twice at me! I met humans who are P.I.T. members, especially a young woman named Amy!"

Goliath smiled slightly at Brooklyn's enthusiasm. It was clear he enjoyed being human. He had even met humans who respected gargoyles, one of which he seemed to really like. A thought occurred to him. "Brooklyn, how did you introduce yourself?"

"Xanatos thought of that. He came up with the name Brooke Stone."

"Wait. Xanatos knew about this?"

"Owen told him and Fox what to expect if I accepted his gift."

"Of course, Xanatos had to know," Angela said and smiled at Brooklyn. "I'm happy for you, Brooklyn. What else did you do?"

"Well, I went to a P.I.T. recruitment meeting, then came back and slept until almost sunset."

"So, Brooklyn becomes human during the day," said Elisa. Goliath and Elisa were on the tower where Goliath slept as they looked out over the city.

"I hope he didn't make a mistake accepting this gift," Goliath said.

"It sounds like he had a good time."

"He did. I understand how he felt when he was feeling the sun for the first time. I cannot help wanting him to be safe."

There was silence and then Elisa said, "Tomorrow's my day off. Would you like me to keep an eye on him?"

"Please, Elisa."

Brooklyn walked down along the sidewalk in a different direction than yesterday and later, too. He had gone to sleep after his painful transformation and he awoke feeling refreshed and deciding that sleeping in a bed was better than in stone. There was a P.I.T. meeting this afternoon and Brooklyn was determined to be there, but first he decided to have lunch and looked forward to actually eating in a restaurant. He had been so excited yesterday that he didn't eat except for breakfast and dinner at the castle.

He chose a hamburger place and was soon holding a tray with his order, looking for a place to sit. It looked like every table had at least one occupant. His eyes roved again to look again for an empty table and caught sight of a familiar face.

"Brooke!" Amy called, waving an arm.

He smiled as he slid into a seat across from her. "Nice to see you again, Amy."

"Same here. I have to admit I kept thinking of our meeting yesterday and I would love to get to know you better."

"Yes? I thought the same thing myself."

Amy and Brooklyn spent lunch and time before the meeting talking about various subjects. Brooklyn was a little vague when the subject of families was brought up; he simply didn't mention names.

"My mother died a long time ago. I don't really remember her. I live with my father, two brothers, a sister, and a grandfather. We also have a dog."

"I thought you were a little young to be an adult."

Brooklyn's cheeks burned red. "I do?"

"If I had to guess, I'd say about seventeen to nineteen."

"That sounds about right."

"I would hope so. I'm eighteen."

"You are? You seem so…mature."

"Brooke, that's so sweet."

Brooklyn blushed. "So, what's your family like?"

"It's just my father and me. Mother and Father didn't get along and they split up when I was five."

"That's awful."

"True. But lots of couples end up getting divorced."

"Your mother doesn't want to see you?"

"It would seem so since my father has full custody and she hasn't bothered to visit in the last thirteen years."

The two kept up a conversation as they walked to the meeting. Brooklyn learned that while Amy supported gargoyles, her father did not. He told her that his family all supported gargoyles and he did not understand why others don't.

"It shouldn't be hard to see why."

"Well, my father often says that humans fear what they don't understand."

"Your father is wise."

"Yes, he is." Brooklyn saw movement out of the corner of his eye: A red car was tailing them. He tensed a moment then relaxed when he saw the driver was Elisa. Goliath probably asked her to watch over me. I suppose he means well, but I can take care of myself.

Brooklyn was again completely at ease at the meeting. He listened to the passionate speeches that preached tolerance, understanding, and respect. Amy had even stated theat she would love to have a conversation with a gargoyle. She doesn't realize that she already has. I wouldn't mind granting her desire. But, not now. I'll show myself one night, but not tell her I'm Brooke. I wish I could tell her, but I don't want to frighten her or lie to her.

He received the next meeting time and learned it would be to plan a scout party to seek out gargoyles. He left the meeting alone and was quickly heading back home when a car pulled up beside him and the passenger window came down.

"Would you like a ride home?" Elisa asked.

Brooklyn smiled. "I'd love one." He climbed in and buckled up.

Elisa drove to the castle, glancing sidelong at Brooklyn. She had to admit he was handsome as a human. She wasn't sure why his hair was brown as were his eyes since that wasn't how they were the last time he was human. Perhaps, it's to help him blend in, she thought.

"So, how was your day?" she asked. She was pretty sure that Brooklyn knew that she had followed him, but wanted him to know that she hadn't followed him all day.

"Just as nice as yesterday. Amy and I had a good long talk during lunch and before the meeting."

"You seem to like her."

"I do and I wish I could tell her the truth, but I know I can't."

They were at a red light and Elisa put a hand on his shoulder. "I know it's hard, but I don't know how she'll react if she learns her friend is really a gargoyle, even though she's a P.I.T. member."

"I know. I can be myself within reason, of course."

"Right." The light turned green and Elisa drove on. She glanced to see him staring out the window. He seemed to really like this Amy, so much so that he seemed to have fallen for her. Love at first sight, she thought. She wondered if Amy felt the same way.

I want Amy to seem real and took time to think up a little bit of background info. I'll try to make some more effort as the story progresses.