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Take bread away from me, if you wish,
take air away, but
do not take from me your laughter.
Do not take away the rose,
the lance flower that you pluck,
the water that suddenly
bursts forth in joy,
the sudden wave
of silver born in you.
Goliath's first waking thought was that it was raining.
To be clear, waking up in a thunderstorm was not a horrible way for a gargoyle to regain consciences, waking up in the middle of a battle took that honor, but it certainly was not pleasant. To be stretching and yawning awake while the rain lashed and lightning crashed caused a gargoyle to be put on edge mere moments after waking. True, the wet and cold didn't bother his kind physically, but the bright lights and loud noises were an assault on the senses, making even the most stoic member of any clan nervous. Almost to prove his point, Brooklyn wrapped himself up in his wings and glared at the sky. "Lovely," he grumbled.
Lexington yelped as lightning struck, and a crack of thunder followed a split second later, and he and Bronx scrambled inside. Goliath heard a laugh and looked around to see Elisa standing on the inside of the clock tower, a brightly-colored item draped over an arm. She let the two figures run past her, threw what looked like a towel after them, and leaned out of the door. "Come on, guys, hustle! Unless you want to catch a cold?"
Brooklyn didn't need any more encouragement, and he ran inside. "Hey, Elisa! Thought you had the night off?" he asked as she handed him a pink beach towel from her arm. Even the short time he had been outside soaked him. "I did, but I saw the forecast and figured you guys would be staying in tonight," she explained. "Thought I would join you. I brought pizza."
"Pizza! Thanks, Elisa!" cried Broadway, and he went past her, barely pausing for a beach towel with a blood red-sunset on it. Hudson followed, delaying by the door to look at the sky as another roll of thunder made the building shake.
"It's not a night for flying, that be sure," he said, smiling at Elisa when she passed over a blue towel for him to use.
Goliath finally made his way inside, stopping next to Elisa. She chuckled. "You look like you went for a swim," she said, handing him a white towel, the biggest one. The Trio cried out as Bronx shooked himself dry, soaking them again in the process. Hudson and Elisa laughed at their dismay, but Goliath just smiled, mostly at the human next to him. The night was ruined, but having her here made it better. She turned back to look at him, and he quickly used the towel to cover his face to act like he was drying it.
"I say tonight is a night for pizza and a scary movie," she said.
"Agreed," Goliath said, brushing his wings with the towel. "Although I think I will be staying with my book."
"Whatcha reading?" she asked as they made their way down the stairs. Broadway had found the pizza and was passing out plates to the others. Lex had found a box and was inspecting its contents. "A book on twentieth-century poetry. Interesting how poets have been ignoring the rules of poetry in their writings this century."
"Wait until you get to e. e. cummings," she said with a grin. And Goliath knew that grin. It was a grin full of humor. She didn't find his ignorance funny, but his discoveries of modern time idiosyncrasies amused her so much.
"The Hobbit," read Lexington. He turned to Elisa. "For Goliath?"
"Actually, for Broadway and Hudson, if they like," she replied. She saw the look on Hudson's face. The book was thicker than he usually liked reading. "Hey, wizards, dwarfs, dragons, and halflings. Should be right up your alley. Plus, there is an old cartoon movie you could watch. Frankenstein is for Goliath."
"Tremors. Huh, haven't seen this one," mused Brooklyn as he inspected the cassette tape.
"It's good. Funny, too," explained Elisa. She reached over the pizza and got two styrofoam containers and handed them to Goliath and Hudson. Chicken cacciatore for Goliath and lasagna for Husdon. Hudson hummed in appreciation and gave her a small hug. "You spoil us, lass."
"So is it funny or scary?" asked Brooklyn. "A horror movie can't be funny."
That playful grin was back on Elisa's face. "Just wait."
My struggle is harsh and I come back
with eyes tired
at times from having seen
the unchanging earth,
but when your laughter enters
it rises to the sky seeking me
and it opens for me all
the doors of life.
"What was my first arrest?"
Hudson had his old chair, Elisa, Broadway, and Brooklyn had the old couch, forcing Goliath to stand to eat. Lexington perched on a corner of the sofa over Elisa's left shoulder while Brooklyn sat to her right. Elisa took a bite of her pizza and thoroughly chewed as she intensely considered the answer to Brooklyn's question. Her eyebrows shot up, and she covered her mouth as she gave a reply. "Not gonna answer."
Brooklyn scowled at her for her non-answer. "Why not? Really bad? International drug dealer?" he asked.
"Computer hacker?" asked Lexington.
"Cat burglar?" asked Broadway.
She smiled and laughed. "Come on, guys, I was a uniformed cop. I didn't have the adventurous life I have now."
The Trio pressed for answers, Elisa chuckling and shaking her head as they peppered her with more guesses. Goliath gave them a small growl, and they stilled. "If Elisa does not want to talk about it, don't force her."
"It's fine," she said, laughing, the mirth making her eyes dance and her voice lighten. "It's more embarrassing than anything else." And as she turned to the Trio to start her story, Hudson gave him a look. A knowing look. Goliath was so protective of her, and he was sure his old friend knew his true feelings. He returned to his food to avoid looking at him.
"My first week of work, I'm in a patrol car, driving around," she started. "And I happen to see someone run a stop sign."
"Oh the horror," replied Brooklyn in a monotone tone. Broadway elbowed him for the interruption, but Elisa took the opportunity to take a bite of pizza.
"So it's a little old lady," she said, mouth full. She swallowed and continued. "Probably in her 70s. White hair, thick glasses. Her grandkids in the back of the car. The works. And I'm going to let her off with a warning. Just going to check her license real quick. And I'm glad I did because she has fifteen parking tickets. Fifteen. Her license is suspended, she shouldn't even be looking at a car, let alone driving one."
Lightning flashed, and thunder rolled at the same time outside, and everyone jumped. Elisa took another bite of pizza and waited for the noise to die down.
"So I could have arrested her right there and then, but I just think its best to get her home and let her family sort it out. I have someone at the station call her son and explain that he needs to come down and get his mom and kids. But when I try to explain it to her, she just doesn't understand," Elisa continued. "No, Mrs. Murphy, you can't leave. No, Mrs. Murphy, you're not under arrest, but I can't let you drive away. Why? Well, your license is no good."
"Why did she ignore the tickets?" asked Broadway.
"She thought they were advertisements," Elisa explained. "I don't think Mrs. Murphy could see very well. Probably shouldn't have been driving in the first place. So she is getting angry and starts trying to push past me. Trying to take her keys back. And then the insults start."
"Insults?" Lexington asked.
"Oh yeah. I'm stupid, she will have my badge, I'm a woman so I shouldn't even be a cop, I'm a bitch." Elisa glanced at Goliath. "Excuse my French."
"French?" asked Hudson as she finished her pizza.
"An expression meaning excuse my rough language."
"It was her language, not yours," Goliath replied, getting upset that someone had insulted Elisa. Why? This was years ago. He offered to take her plate, and she nodded in appreciation.
"Well, she's getting agitated now, and my training had taught me that I should be putting handcuffs on her now, I shouldn't be nice anymore. But, her grandkids are in the backseat, crying, there is a crowd watching us, so I'm still trying so hard to be nice and wait until her son gets there."
Elisa paused and started rubbing her eyes. Goliath thought she was getting upset until he noticed that her shoulders were shaking. She was trying not to laugh. When she continued talking, she had a wide grin on her face, and her voice was light with laughter.
"So she started hitting me with her purse. And she must have had bricks in it because it hurt," she stopped talking and let out a laugh, Brooklyn and Hudson joining her, Lexington and Broadway grinning. Goliath felt a smile on his face. "Her grandkids jump out of the car and start hitting me too, protecting their grandmother from the big mean cop."
Brooklyn was now the one trying not to laugh with his shoulders shaking, Hudson, Broadway, and Lexington chuckling at the thought of Elisa getting hit with an old lady's purse. Bronx was standing in front of Elisa, tail wagging at her mirth, and she climbed onto the floor to start petting him.
"So Mr. Murphy shows up finally, with his mom and kids beating on a cop, the crowd either trying to get her to stop or laughing and cheering her on. And at this point, I could arrest her for assaulting a police officer, but I'm just glad he's there. He finally gets her to stop and was trying to explain to her that she can't drive anymore when something falls out of her purse."
"What is it?" asks Broadway, the Trio leaning in, wanting to know what happened next, food forgotten.
"It's drugs. She had marijuana in her purse. Not a horrible drug to have mind you, and not enough to sell, but that's something I can't ignore. Now I have to arrest her." Elisa paused, clearing her throat, trying so hard to finish her story without laughing. "And as I'm putting the handcuffs on her, reading her rights, she turns to me and says: can I have a warning?"
And the group loses it then, even Goliath letting out a loud laugh, and when the lightning and thunder come this time they don't even notice it.
My love, in the darkest
hour your laughter
opens, and if suddenly
you see my blood staining
the stones of the street,
laugh, because your laughter
will be for my hands
like a fresh sword.
Tremors, it turns out, is a movie about underground monsters eating people. Elisa has to explain several times that it's not real, even as the giant creature is fully revealed on screen. The Trio loved it, thoroughly engrossed. Goliath did not like the coarse language, but he allowed them to enjoy it. He picked up Frankenstein, which seemed to fit in with the horrible weather outside.
At one point, she was getting more popcorn and passed it onto the Trio before making her way to sit with Goliath on the stairs. He wrapped his wings around himself to allow her to lean over his shoulder to look at the book. He tried to ignore her breath as it tickled his ear. "I'm glad you like it," she says.
"How do you know I like it?" he asked. Not that he denied it.
"You get a smile on your face when you like a book," she explained, and he tried hard not to blush. How much attention was she paying him if she noticed a detail like that?
Thunder rumbled outside, not as loud as before, and Elisa shuddered and leaned closer to his warmth. He unwrapped his wings and enveloped one around her to share in his heat. A character in the movie screamed, and the others groaned as he met a horrible death.
"If I remember high school English class correctly, Mary Shelley came up for the idea for this book on a night like this while with friends."
"Seems fitting," he commented. "You were right; tonight is a night to stay in and enjoy good food, a good story, and good company."
"So I'm good company?" she asked, tone light and teasing. How was she always doing that? Making him feel so disarmed with only a few words.
"You will always be good company," he confessed, and now it was her turn to blush.
"You little asswipe! You don't knock it off you're gonna be shittin' this basketball... pardon my French!" yelled a character in the movie, and Goliath growled lightly at the language. Elisa giggled at his sour expression. "Why does cursing bother you so much?" she asked.
"It's... vulgar," he tried to explain. "Generally we don't use that kind of language, so the only time we heard it was when a human was using it to describe my kind. Although the way humans curse in modern times would make a Viking uncomfortable."
Elisa snorted, and he gave her a look. "Just trying to imagine a Viking blushing," she explained as she sat on a lower step to be beside him, and he chuckled.
"They were an unruly bunch, but I'm sure even they could blush."
"I guess I just don't notice the language anymore. The joy of living in New York City."
Elisa glanced at the TV and quickly got up. "This is one of my favorite parts," she explained, and she joined the others on the couch, grabbing a handful of popcorn. The Trio shifted to allow her back between them, and Goliath folded his wings into a cape again, breathing deep to keep her scent with him a little longer. He turned back to the book as a soft roll of thunder reached his ears.
Next to the sea in the autumn,
your laughter must raise
its foamy cascade,
and in the spring, love,
I want your laughter like
the flower I was waiting for,
the blue flower, the rose
of my echoing country.
It is after midnight, the movie is over, the storm has passed, and Elisa is standing by the door looking at the dark sky. Hudson and Goliath joined her. "Will you be leaving lass?"
"Yeah, I should. It's getting late," she said, glancing at her watch. "Or is it early? I can't tell."
"Can we expect you tomorrow night?" Goliath asked. Hudson gave him a look, but Goliath ignored it. And if Elisa saw it, she ignored it too.
"No, sorry, I have tomorrow night off, so staying home," she explained. "But would you like to join me for dinner?"
The question was directed at him and him alone. Hudson eyeridges shot up at that, but now Goliath was just acting like the older gargoyle didn't exist.
"I would love to," he said, and Elisa grin was big and bright, and he couldn't help but smile in return.
"Awesome, we'll have steak," she said and leaned in to kiss Hudson on the cheek. "I expect a book report on The Hobbit in a week."
Hudson's look on his face made Goliath laugh as Elisa quickly made her way down the stairs. The Trio waved at her, saying good night, and she waved in return. "'Night guys, see you soon."
Goliath watched Elisa as she went down the ladder feet first. With her gone, the Clocktower seems dark and cold, although he knows that is not true. He turned to see Hudson looking at him. "What?" he asked his mentor in a low rumble.
"You need to tell her how you feel, lad," Hudson said, folding his arms along with his wings. Goliath shook his head.
"It is not that simple old friend. Telling her would mean nothing."
"Loving someone means something. Not telling her now means there will be a time that you won't be together. Time you can never get back. I miss my mate every day, but I am glad for the time we had together."
Goliath closed his eyes at that. Hudson was right, of course. He missed his Angel of the Night as well, but would not trade the time they had together for anything. "And if she does not want to be with me? Leave the clan when I confess my feelings for her?" He opened his eyes and looked at Hudson. "I can stand her not being mine, even live with her finding a human to love instead. But I can't live with her not being here."
Hudson gave him a small smile and then placed a hand on his shoulder. "Alright, if that is how you feel, I will not push you. But don't be quick to let her fall into the arms of another." And with that, he walked back down the steps to his old chair.
Goliath sighed to himself and made his way to the pile of books he read in the Clocktower. He hated keeping the books from the library, but he didn't want to risk the books being checked out before he finished them. He picked up the book of poetry he had been studying and opened up to the poem that he had read last night. Somehow he wished he could say these words to Elisa directly.
Laugh at the night,
at the day, at the moon,
laugh at the twisted
streets of the island,
laugh at this clumsy
boy who loves you,
but when I open
my eyes and close them,
when my steps go,
when my steps return,
deny me bread, air,
light, spring,
but never your laughter
for I would die.