Disclaimer: I AM THE GREAT AND POWERFUL OZ! ALL WILL LOVE ME AND PER…ops, that's Galadriel…ahem I AM THE GREAT AND POWERFUL OZ! curtain is attacked by Bronx, the garg-dog, IGNORE THE GIRL BEHIND THE CURTAIN IGNORE THE… aww, forget it! I own nothing
With a roar-like yawn, the little one awoke from her stone sleep; shards of stone shattering off of her body and on to the blanket Gabriel had placed under her to catch them. She looked up to see her friend, and another man, watching her.
Van Helsing couldn't help but smile. His little one always awoke with the odd combination of a roar and a yawn. Carl jumped back as she did, and backpedaled quickly as she ran forward, spreading her thin wings as she and wrapping her tiny arms around Van Helsing's legs.
"Little one," he said. "I'd like you to meet my friend, Carl."
She smiled shyly at the friar and Carl smiled back. Despite Van Helsing's assurances, he had been expecting a monster rather than this frightened little angel.
"It is a pleasure to meet you." He said, and reached out his hand. She shook it timidly. "What is your name?"
"Gargoyles don't need names." She said softly, as if afraid of her own voice.
"She told me that too." Van Helsing explained. "I've just been calling her "little one" or pet names. It seems to be what their kind does."
"Doesn't that get confusing?"
The child only shrugged and reached up for Van Helsing to lift her. He obliged, scooping her up and holding her up high above his head. Carl could hardly believe what he was seeing; the brooding, dark, tragic Gabriel Van Helsing spinning around with a little creature in his arms.
"Shall we have breakfast?" he asked her, and carried her to the kitchen when she nodded. He sat her down on the counter and began rifling through his cabinets for a frying pan. He set it down on the stove and pulled a box of eggs out of a small icebox. The gargoyle pointed at the eggs and then at herself, smiling shyly.
"Of course you can help." Van Helsing handed her an egg and lifted the pan so that she could crack it on the side. She tapped it once and beamed proudly as it hit the pan. The second egg did not crack so well, but he was able to pick most of the shell out. Van Helsing cracked the final egg himself and set the pan on the stove. After a few minutes, he flipped them onto a plate and set them at the table. The gargoyle leapt off of the counter and sat herself at the table.
"Sunny side up, just the way you like them." He declared, setting down a glass of milk, a napkin, and utensils. She lifted the fork carefully, not accustomed to using it, but recognizing its purpose. Glancing first at Van Helsing to make sure that she was doing it right, she cut into the egg with the side of her fork and began eating.
Promising to be back soon, Van Helsing and Carl excused themselves to the next room.
"So," the friar began, still thoroughly amused by the scene in the kitchen. "What do you need my help for?"
"Well," Van Helsing lowered his voice. "For one thing, I know nothing about raising a gargoyle."
"Well I could name seven ways to kill a gargoyle but I know absolutely nothing about taking care of one."
"Quiet!" He glanced back into the kitchen, but his little one had not looked up from her eggs. "You have access to the Order's records, you could find out. Besides, there is something else I need you for."
Carl sighed.
"Why do I get the feeling that I'm not going to like this?"
"You and I both know that I could be called away on assignment at any moment. My missions are too dangerous to take a child on and…"
"…you want me to look after her while you're gone. Van Helsing, I hate to break it too you but you're not the only member of the Order who has duties. My hours are not what you'd call regular. I just couldn't be responsible for her."
"You're right." he said, his shoulders sagging.
"Besides" Carl said lamely. "I don't think you would want her running around my laboratory with all of those explosives and sharp objects about."
Van Helsing knew it was hopeless. He could not take his little one with him, and he could not leave her here. Maybe he should have just told Jinnette the truth. But how could he? The cardinal had been vague on the matter. He said that he would think about what Van Helsing had said, but that could mean nothing at all. No, he could not trust the child's safety to the Order.
"I'll help you research at least." Carl added. Suddenly he sat up; a look of excitement spread across his face. "Of course, why didn't I think of her before?"
"Who?" Van Helsing asked, but the friar was not paying attention.
"If anyone would know, it would be her! And I bet she would be willing to watch her when…"
"Carl!" The friar looked up as if he had forgotten that Van Helsing was still in the room. "Who, in the name of all that is good and holy are you talking about?"
"A friend of mine. She's sort of an amateur expert if you will, on the subject of Gargoyles. If anyone could help us, it would be Stella. She's developed a bit of a mania on the subject. Something to do with a missing records and a conspiracy."
An image occurred to Van Helsing, a female Carl, shuffling around dusty tomes with a fevered absentmindedness. It was not a very comforting thought, but he was running out of options.