Disclaimer: "Gargoyles" and everything pertaining to them belong to Disney and Buena Vista, not Clan Le’Femme. We make no claims to them. The characters of  "Lisette" and "Joshua Erickson"  as well as any one else not found in the regular series belongs to Lisette and may not be used without the author’s permission.

Description:  The time comes for Lisette, the young halfling, to resist the call of paradise and rejoin the world once again.

Traverse City, Michigan

 Out of all of the places that she had visited in her lifetime, this had to be one of the most beautiful.  With the perfect sandy beaches, the clean bay water where she could see the water floor hundreds of feet down, the gorgeous lakes and streams, the lovely town, and the fading colors of Autumn that covered the abundance of trees, it was easy to see why.  It was true that in her relatively short life, Lisette hadn't visited that many locations.. but this had to be the most beautiful of them all.  It was a new paradise for her.. a chance to escape the memories of the past and recuperate from the more recent ones.

 Immediately after arriving in the new city, Lisette had rented a room from one of the upscale resorts located right on the bay.  From her beautiful and ornate terrace, she watched the amazing sunsets where it seemed as though the bright ball of light disappeared into the cool waters at the edge of the horizon. Unwittingly, as the sun dipped beneath that same horizon, she always expected to see a cloud of steam rise up where the hot sun's surface seemed to melt into the water beyond.

 It was indeed the perfect place to relax and recuperate.. well, almost.  Even here in this place of wonder she couldn't abandon the instincts that her dead gargoyle clan had instilled in her--the need to protect all that lived there.  By day she was just another 'fudgie', as the natives of the beautiful city had dubbed the many tourists that visited their territory.  On the other hand, by the full light of the moon Lisette cast her spell of transformation, once again changing her form into that of a gargoyle, giving the fudgies and natives a rash of new stories to tell.. of monsters coming unexpectedly to their aid when they needed it most.  In that way she would soar over the large city and patrol it and the surrounding areas--she would protect the city.  Then again, Traverse City being the town that it was, it was no wonder that she was kept relatively free from action, with only an occasional mugging or robbery to fill her nights.  Once more, another way to aid her healing.. the healing of her emotions and thoughts... or to escape from the real world.  After all, what was she really doing here?  Escaping her past, recuperating, or just using both of these excuses to sneak out on her sworn duty to protect.. to stay in a place where there was no real need of her talents instead of being someplace where they were desperately in need of them...

 Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Lisette slowly slipped on a flowing white satin robe over her white bikini.  Still being damp from her swim a few minutes before in the resort's indoor pool, the satin instantly stuck to her tanned skin.  Sighing, Lisette ignored the uncomfortable dampness and stepped through her glass doors and onto the wooden terrace beyond.  It was time for her favorite part of the day--sunset.

 Standing in anticipation, Lisette felt the cool Autumn wind rifle through her pale blond hair as the sky slowly began its transformation.  Before her very eyes, the light blue, cloudless sky of the glorious day began to darken into different shades of yellow, orange, red, purple, and then into the dark blue of night.  Watching the large sun, Lisette smiled as it slowly dipped over the horizon and disappeared under the dark waters of the Grand Traverse Bay.  "Beautiful," she murmured, her soft French accent causing the word to sound in a way that it was never heard before.

 Without even thinking, Lisette quickly cast her transformation spell and in an instant of green mist she became a gargoyle once again.  Clad once more in her white loin cloth and halter top, Lisette stretched out her pale blue wings and experimentally flexed her muscles.  It was amazing that from such a small spell she would gain such unheard of strength and power.  In this form, she was truly a force to be reckoned with.  Satisfied that all was as it should, Lisette quickly dove off of the balcony an soared out over the dark waters.

As the wind whipped through her tangled hair, Lisette was unable to keep the smile from lighting up her face.  The soft breeze, although somewhat cool, felt refreshing on her bluish skin and the sound of the waves rolling in the water before was a soothing lullaby to her ears.  Grinning, Lisette rose up into the clouds and then went into a dive, pulling up at the last minute so that her talons dragged in the cool water.

 Laughing in a mixture of delight and glee, Lisette couldn't help but wonder why she had avoided changing her form for so long after she had woken from her mystical sleep.  After all, what had happened to her clan had happened.. there was nothing that she could do about it.. and nothing that she could do about Joshua.  Still, that didn't keep the hurt from hurting.  Sighing, Lisette thought back to all that she had left behind and lost... Craigen, her clan... Joshua.  Why did her thoughts always lead back to him?  She had only known him for a short time.. only a day.  Yet, somehow he had influenced her so much that she couldn't help but not think of him.  He had said that he thought that he was falling in love with her.  With her.. of all people, that kind
and loving person had said that he could possibly love her.  And when she had used her magic in front of him, she had only expected horror and disgust.. and instead she had received only more love.  To top everything off, Joshua risked everything for her.. he gave his life protecting her.  Someone had died protecting her when that was supposed to be her job.

 Within the first week that Lisette had been in Traverse City, she had quickly looked up Joshua in the phone book... and was happy yet sad at the same time to discover both a number and an address.  Joshua wasn't lying when he said that he lived in Traverse City, Michigan.
Actually, that was the reason that she had chosen this place out of the rest of the cities in the world... because Joshua had been from here.  After a few nights of debating, Lisette finally gathered her nerve and went to his house during the dark of the night.  His house was beautiful, located on the top of one of the many hills that overlooked the city and the bay.  On nervous feet she had walked through that house.. empty of all inhabitants.  With tears in her eyes, she had fingered the many photos that filled the beautiful home.. pictures of a smiling Joshua and his family.  Happy photos of a happy time.  She didn't even know if his family knew yet of their son's death.. Joshua had guessed that they were somewhere in Australia.

 Troubled, Lisette wiped the single tear that had trailed a wet trail down her blue cheek and changed directions until she was flying high over the bustling nightlife.  She had many choices of places to go on such a clear and beautiful night.  She could continue her patrol further inland to the south and view more of the city--the Grand Traverse Mall, the bustling stores and shops that were bound to still be doing business, the large and beautiful homes, the quiet neighborhoods.  Then again, she could also head to the east and sit atop the beautiful Grand Traverse Resort, the tall building that dominated the Traverse City skyline.  A modern wonder that was lined with glass and light made a great point from which to view the city.  Instead, Lisette found herself turning away from all of these sights as she soared over the city and headed west.  Soon, her favorite spot of all of those to be found in the city came into view.

 Smiling, Lisette wondered at that.  When she had the choice of seeing the beautiful wonders of the area and the quiet and peaceful streets, she instead chose a quiet and isolated street that crested along a curve in a downward spiral to the right that overlooked the more wooded western side of the city.  As graceful as a ballerina dipping in her partner's hands, Lisette glided down to the hill and landed softly in the green grass.  Sighing, Lisette stepped away from the black topped road and a little way down the side of the hill, away from the prying eyes of any people who happened to drive down by this route.  There, she settled down onto the soft bed of grass and drew her knees up against her body.  Even though she felt no cold in her gargoyle body, Lisette wrapped her pale blue wings around her shoulders and shielded her body from the gently blowing wind.

 She knew why she had come here, to this isolated yet beautiful spot--she needed to think without the chance of being interrupted.. without the chance of suddenly being called into action.  Shocked, Lisette sat straight as that thought twisted in her mind.  She chose this spot so she could have time to herself?  So that she wouldn't have to help another?  Shaking her head, Lisette felt her confusion build.  Could this be?  Was Lisette turning selfish?  Then again, that was why she came here.. to think on that very topic.  For even though Lisette was decidedly half human, she was in no way gargoyle.  Therefore, she did not live by the rules that the gargoyles lived.. she didn't need to devote her life to protection.  Still, any chance of living a different sort of life was trampled down in her younger years when she was raised in a beautiful chateau that housed a brave clan of gargoyles.. her clan.  How could their sense of protection NOT be instilled in her?

 But if that was the case.. if this idea of protection was so much a part of her, then why was she beginning to run from it now?  The thought of losing the one thing that she had left of her clan.. the one thing that they gave her filled her with horror.  She couldn't lose her need to protect... she couldn't!  But that was what she was doing here.. wasn't it?  True, at first she just wanted to see the place that Joshua had lived.. but now?  Why had she stayed as long as she had?  She was not needed in this beautiful place, not when there were so many other places out there in the world where they were being overridden with violence and crime.  She was needed in those places.  She just doing nothing but sheltering herself from the world in this beautiful place.

 Sighing, Lisette knew it was true.  "I must leave this place," she whispered, her soft voice surprising herself.  It had been awhile since she had heard her own voice.. a while since she had spoken to another person.  That was something that needed to be fixed as well.  "But not yet..." she continued quietly, a puzzled frown creasing her full lips.  It was true.  Even though she knew that she should stay no longer in this place, she also felt that there was one thing more yet to be completed by her.

 Suddenly, a screech of tires and the roar of a loud engine broke her solitude.  Surprised, Lisette turned quickly and watched as a pair of headlights came over the hill.  Sighing, she was about to turn away when she noticed that the vehicle was traveling at a high rate of a speed.. a VERY high rate of speed.  With growing horror, Lisette quickly jumped to her feet and stepped back into the sheltering of some nearby trees as the vehicle attempted to make the sloping right turn.  Attempted could be the only word for it as the vehicle, a truck, it seemed, flew past the turn and roared down the side of the hill before colliding with a large oak tree.

 Gasping, Lisette quickly brought her hands up to her face to shield it from the shards of metal and glass and the explosion that was sure to follow.  When none of that happened, she slowly lowered her hands and proceeded to stare in amazement at the wreck.  The truck no longer had a front end, now only an accordion of twisted metal.  Suddenly, the overwhelming stench of fuel filled the night.  As the fumes burned in her eyes and caused her to gag, Lisette quickly jumped into action.  She may be relatively new to this modern world, but she did know that where there was fuel and a wreckage, fire was soon to follow.

 Spreading her wings, Lisette quickly allowed a cool breeze to lift her into the dark night sky and propel her towards the truck.  As she landed gently on the metal roof, a small spark caught her eye towards the front of the truck.  Gasping, Lisette quickly reached down and grasped her razor sharp talons along the cold edge of the roof and pulled back with all of her strength.  With a loud screech of ripping metal, the roof gave way under her gargoyle strength and pulled back like an open sardine can.

 Climbing over the sharp metal, Lisette looked quickly down into the truck and scanned the compartment.  Sitting in the driver's side of the smashed vehicle was a young man, unconscious, with his seat belt holding him up and his face cushioned against an inflated air bag.  Knowing that she needed to act and fast, Lisette nonetheless sat and watched in amazement as the boy's features shifted until they resembled Joshua's.  Blinking quickly, Lisette watched as the vision disappeared.  While the likeliness remained, it was quite obvious that the young man she observed was not the man in question.  Instead, he looked somewhat similar with dark blond hair covering his head as opposed to Joshua's brown with the same strong jawline.

 Shaking her head, Lisette turned and saw a young woman sitting in the passenger seat, a seat belt holding her up with her head lying against a smashed window, blood running down her face and staining her blond hair.  Gasping, Lisette closed her eyes against the sight of the large quantities of blood.  She had to hurry.

 Wasting no more time, Lisette quickly reached into the truck, wary of the sharp steel, and reached for the young man.  Leaning forward, she quickly snapped through the thick material of the seat belt and then hefted the young man out of the truck.  Being extremely gentle and wary of hurting him further, Lisette gently cradled the human in her arms and glided a distance from the truck before gently laying him on the ground.  Just as she was about to turn away, a hand reached out and grabbed her own firmly.  Startled, Lisette turned back and looked into the hazy eyes of the young man.

"Jenny..." he whispered quietly before his eyes rolled back in his head and he went unconscious once again.

 Sighing, Lisette realized that Jenny must be his companion that was still in the truck.  Turning quickly, she rushed back and jumped onto the roof of the truck, heedless of the sharp edges this time.  Knowing that time was of the essence, Lisette quickly reached inside of the truck and shredded the young woman's safety harness.  With a grunt of exertion, she quickly pulled the woman from her seat and lifted her in to her arms.  Turning quickly, Lisette jumped off of the truck, her wings stretched out to glide them to safety when a loud roar filled her ears.  Gasping, Lisette didn't even have time to react as a ball of flame shoved her forward through the air and tossed her hard to the ground, the young woman shielded protectively in her arms.

 Groaning, Lisette slowly rolled herself off of the girl and looked in shock at the inferno that was the truck.  Suddenly, a wave of pain washed over her, starting at the base of her wings.  Crying out, Lisette knew without looking that the delicate membranes of her wings were in tatters... she could FEEL the stickiness of her own blood as it pooled beneath her burnt back.  As the tears of pain washed down her face, Lisette knew that she would be traveling no more on those wings that night, and with the last of her energy, Lisette changed back into her human form.  As the green mist formed around her once more, Lisette felt her singed loin cloth be replaced by an equally singed pair of shorts and a tank top.  Gasping, Lisette wondered how she could of
thought the spell so easy before as the magic drained her of everything and as a darkness greater than anything she had ever known crept over her watery eyes.

 Groaning, Lisette slowly began the difficult climb up from the black hell of unconsciousness.  Ever so slowly, she felt the battle move in her favor as her eyelids slowly beat against her smooth skin before raising upwards.  As the light rushed her eyes, her eyelids snapped shut reflexively.  Move cautious this time, Lisette slowly peeked one eye open and then another, slowly allowing her eyes to adjust to the harsh glare of light.

 "John, look!  She's waking up!"

 Wary of the strange voice, Lisette focused on her surroundings.  From the pale decor of the room, the noisy yet hushed sound, the gleaming machinery, and the anesthetic smell, it was an easy guess as to her location.  "Why.. why am I in a hospital?" Lisette whispered slowly, pausing to lick her cracked lips.  Turning her head slowly, Lisette focused on the two people that were in the stark hospital room.

 "It's alright honey.. you're gonna be just fine," a woman with long brown hair murmured quietly as she left her position at the door and stepped closer to Lisette.  She was dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a Central Michigan University sweatshirt.. yet, the plainness of her outfit did nothing to dilute her obvious beauty.

 "You don't remember?" the man asked as he too stepped forward and wrapped his arms around the woman.  From the way that he looked at her, it was obvious that she was his wife and he her husband.

 Squinting her eyes, Lisette stared at the man's wavy blond hair--blond with soft streaks of silver down the sides.  He and the woman looked familiar somehow...  Shaking her head, Lisette focused on his question.  "No.. not really," she murmured quietly.

 "There was an accident," the woman spoke up quickly, her bright blue eyes shining with tears.  "Our son, Eric, lost control of his truck and it hit a tree..."

 As the woman spoke, the memories of the night slowly returned to Lisette's head.  "An explosion," she murmured quietly, a thoughtful frown pulling at her lips.

 "Yes," the man continued quietly.  As he talked, Lisette couldn't help but notice the lines that filled his young face.. lines of worry.  "Someone called 911 and the paramedics found our son, his girlfriend, Jenny, and you lying on the ground beside the burning vehicle.

 At his words, pictures of the young man's glazed blue eyes and the girl's hair matted with blood, Lisette felt some of the color drain from her face.  "Are.. are they alright?" she asked quickly, her voice trembling.

 "What?  Oh.. oh yes, Eric just had a mild concussion and was released the next morning.  Jenny had a severe laceration on the side of her head, but she's going to be released tomorrow," the woman answered quickly, a brief smile lighting up her face.

 Smiling herself, Lisette began to nod her head slowly when the woman's words pierced through the foggy haze that filled her head.  "How long have I been here?" Lisette asked quickly, shock filling her voice.

 "You've been unconscious for three days.." the man said quietly, worried about how the girl would react.  "You were burned pretty badly on your shoulder and back," he said quickly, deciding to push right ahead.  "But the doctors say that you should be out of here in no time and that there will be no permanent scarring.  Sighing, she seemed to contemplate his words.  "What were you doing there?" he asked again, his eyes shining in curiosity.

 Groaning, the man's wife elbowed him sharply, obviously annoyed that he had asked the question.

 Smiling, Lisette shook her head slowly.  "It's all right.. I was going for a walk when I saw the accident..."

 "You pulled my baby to safety, didn't you?" the woman asked, the tears slowly sliding down her cheeks.

 Embarrassed by the woman's tears, Lisette slowly nodded her head.  "Yes.. I managed to get.. Eric," Lisette said, remembering the young man's name, "out of the truck, but it exploded while I was getting Jenny to safety."

 Smiling, the woman quickly rushed forward and took Lisette's hand in hers.  "We've been waiting for you to wake up so that we could thank you for what you've done," she whispered fiercely, her face twisted with emotion.

 Not knowing what to do or how to respond, Lisette turned pleading eyes on the man.

 "I'm sorry.. we.. we just lost other boy a few weeks back," the man explained, trying to hold back his own tears.

 "We never would have made it if we had lost both of them!" the mother cried out fervently, her eyes shining.

 Nodding her head knowingly, Lisette smiled sadly at the two.  "I'm just glad that I could help," she whispered honestly, a small thought tugging at the back of her mind.  Turning, she focused her bright blue eyes on them.  "Who are you?" she asked, her voice stronger.

 Smiling, the woman blushed at that.  "I suppose that we did forget to introduce ourselves," she replied, her voice light.  "My name is Kathy Erickson and this is my husband John."

 At the woman's words, Lisette felt her world crashing in on her.  It all made sense now.. the boy's looks.. the mother and the father.. they all resembled her Joshua.  And they had lost a son recently.. Joshua Erickson...

 "And what's your name?" John asked, a small smile on his face, not aware of the turmoil that the young woman was in.  "You had no identification on you..." he said, trailing off as a guarded look entered Lisette's eyes.

 "Ah oui.. uh, my name is Talia Seul," Lisette replied quickly, saying the first name that popped into mind.  It was fitting somehow.. for Seul was the French word for alone.

 "You.. you are French," Kathy said numbly, the accent that she had been trying to place finally clicking.  "Our son died recently in Paris.. his name was Joshua," she said sadly.

 So it was true.. standing before her were Joshua's parents... she had saved Joshua's little brother from being killed...

 "Well, I suppose that we should let you rest," John said quietly, finally noticing the haunted look that the young woman wore.  "Thank you once again for what you did.. we can never repay you enough."

 Smiling, Lisette forced the tears that were clouding her eyes away.  "It was my pleasure," she murmured as the two people slowly backed from the room.  As soon as they were out of sight, Lisette quickly focused her thoughts on her hotel room and then vanished in a flash of green light.

 Once safely in her own room, she quickly changed out of her hospital greens and into some of her own clothing, wary of the aching burn on her shoulder and back.  "A day of stone sleep will take care of that," she reminded herself and she quickly set about the task of packing.  It was time to go.. her deed here was done.  In some way, her coming here had been a resolution to her feelings of dread.. to her feelings of guilt.  Joshua had given his life to protect her.  Now, she was able to repay him in some way by saving the life of his brother.  It was time to leave the protection of the beautiful city and offer her skills to those who needed it.  But to where?

 Shaking her head, Lisette slowly drifted over to her balcony and watched as the sun began to rise over the horizon.  Closing her mind to everything but the soft wind and the sound of the waves crashing on the pure white beach, Lisette let the sounds and rhythm speak to her--speak through her.  "It's time to head East," Lisette murmured, a small smile playing on her lips.  "Not to far East though.. in the United States.. perhaps.. the state of Pennsylvania?"  Nodding her head slowly, Lisette somehow knew that was where she had to go.  She knew that was where she was needed next.

 Smiling, Lisette hurried back to her bags and quickly finished her packing.  For some reason, she had the feeling that soon enough, she would no longer need the name Talia Seul... alone no longer.