Deep in Greenwich Village, down where tourists often go,
A group of kids comes walking from the Rocky Horror show
They're heading back towards campus through the city in the dark,
They plan to take the subway and then shortcut through the park.

Three things are most perilous:
The cliff of fatal height,
The wild, untamed jungle,
And Manhattan streets at night.

Now one among the students has a shifting, nervous eye,
And as they walk he looks about and fidgets with his tie
Wiser than his fellows, he fears what they may meet,
And scans the narrow alleyways that run beside the street.

Of three things be wary:
Of the dog that does not bark,
The long deserted alley,
And the stranger in the dark.

Now from the alley comes a gang of thugs of dreadful size
And all but one among the group are taken by surprise
The single nervous student gives a yell and turns to run
But standing there behind him is a mugger with a gun.

Three things soar most swiftly:
The bird that flies alone,
The bullet from a pistol,
And the flesh that once was stone.

A roar comes from the rooftops where six eyes are glowing white
A trio of winged figures like embodiments of night
The ugly scene below them they have taken at a glance
'Twixt muggers and their victims now they land in fighting stance.

Three things never challenge:
First, the tiger in a cage,
The instincts of a mother,
And the gargoyle's righteous rage.

The blue one grabs the pistol, which he crushes with a grin
The red one laughs a challenge and the melee then begins
When it ends, the only things left in that shadowed street
Are three triumphant gargoyles and the sound of running feet.

Three things are as certain as that night will follow day:
A fire burns,
A river flows,
And a coward runs away.

The nervous student stares at them, aghast at what he sees
He knows that he should thank them, but instead he turns and flees
The gargoyles exchange glances and they heave a weary sigh
And then they climb the nearest wall and soar into the sky.

Three things trust with life itself:
The sun's unending light,
The air you breathe about you,
And defenders of the night!

Back to the Gargoyles filk
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