Red had grown. His body was stronger, his reflexes sharper, and his mind more confident. But even with all the training, all the experiences he had gained, a part of him still carried the wounds of his past. Joy couldn't be more proud of his hatchling, placing a gentle hand on the console as he looked over towards the memories. Most of the fear and anger filled ones are now pretty much gone, replacing with mostly happy, including some small bits of sad and disgust orbs on the shelves. It was at least a start, even if they weren't all yellow happy orbs.

Fear paced nervously. "We look stronger, sure, but what if we're still that same scared hatchling?"

Anger growled. "We're not that hatchling anymore! We're not letting that creep push us around again!"

Joy tried to reassure them. "We've made friends, we've learned to fight. We're different now." He said, doing his best to uplift the atmosphere in the room.

Disgust scoffed. "Yeah? Let's see if the bully got the memo."

Red was out on his own, perched on the castle wall, lost in thought. The night air was cool, the city below alive with lights and sounds. He had a sense of freedom now, a sense of purpose. But some things still lingered.

And then, the past came back to haunt him.

A shadow loomed behind him, and before he could react, a strong shove sent him tumbling forward, nearly slipping off the edge. He caught himself just in time, claws digging into the stone as he turned around.

The bully. Older now, bigger—but still the same sneering expression.

"Well, look who's all grown up," the bully taunted, stepping closer. "You think just because you've got a little muscle now, you're not that same sensitive runt?"

Red's wings tensed. "Leave me alone." He growled, his fangs gritting in frustration and annoyance.

The bully smirked. "Oh? You actually talk now? What a surprise."

Inside, Anger was boiling. "We should deck him now!" He snarled, his hair flaming up from his usual rage.

Fear shivered. "But what if he—"

Before the thought could finish, the bully grabbed one of Red's wings. Hard.

"G-GAH!" Red winced, his body freezing up as the painful memories rushed back, feeling his eyes slitting from his old fear, Joy looking worried from the pile of purple orbs coming in.

"Bet I could break this again," the bully sneered, tightening his grip. "Goliath wouldn't want a broken gargoyle in his clan. He might just banish you."

In Headquarters, everything was in chaos, an alarm going off in the mind, Fear running about, flailing his arms and was in full panic. "He's going to do it again! We won't heal right this time!"

Sadness whispered, "I thought we had moved past this..."

Anger snapped. "ENOUGH!" He roared, pushing Joy aside, grabbing the console sticks and pushing them hard, his hair flaring up further with the flames.

Red gritted his teeth. "I said... GO AWAY!" He roared, his eyes glowing white.

The bully laughed. "Or what?" Pain lanced through Red's wing as the bully twisted it.

And that's when Brooklyn snapped.

With all his strength, Brooklyn punched the bully right in the face, fist slamming hard into him

The older gargoyle stumbled back in shock, clutching his jaw.

Brooklyn stood his ground, his breathing heavy, eyes burning with fury. "You will never touch my wing again," he growled. "I am not a frightened hatchling anymore."

For a moment, it seemed like the fight was over. But the bully wasn't done. The bully cricked his neck, flexing his shoulder muscles, making Red's face go pale a little. "Oh, you'll regret that..."

He lunged, tackling Red to the ground. His taloned foot pressed hard against Red's stomach, knocking the wind out of him. His claws wrapped around Brooklyn's throat, squeezing, cutting off air.

Brooklyn gasped, claws scrambling against the bully's arm. Stars danced in his vision as the alarms went off again in HQ, pretty much everybody afraid for their hatchling's wellbeing. Joy himself was struggling to find anything positive about this moment, his ears flattening.

Inside, Fear was screaming. "We can't breathe! We can't—"

Disgust gagged. "This is disgusting! Get off us!" He growled from the bully pressing his foot into Red's stomach.

Sadness murmured, "Is this really how it ends?"

Red's struggles weakened as the world blurred around him, rasping heavily.

"Maybe you should've just stayed quiet," the bully mocked, leaning in closer. "You were better that way."

Then—

"GET OFF HIM!"

A blur of movement. The weight lifted off Red as the bully was yanked away.

Red coughed, sucking in air as he felt hands—Olive's and Blue's—grabbing him, helping him sit up.

Lexington's voice was frantic. "Are you okay?" He asked in worry, Red nodding weakly, rubbing his throat which stung greatly.

Broadway glared at the bully. "What is wrong with you?!"

Brooklyn's vision cleared just in time to see Goliath standing there.

And he was furious.

The bully tried to speak, pointing at Brooklyn. "He—"

Goliath cut him off with a thunderous growl. "Enough."

The air was thick with tension.

Goliath's eyes burned white as he loomed over the bully. "You have harmed one of your own," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "You dishonor the clan."

Red watched as the bully's confidence faltered, feeling his own ears flatten, not used to having someone such as the leader defend him.

"You are not above consequences," Goliath continued. "And you will not touch him again."

Within HQ, Fear let out a shaky breath. "We're safe..."

Joy smiled softly. "Finally."

Olive and Blue stayed close as Goliath handled the situation.

Red exhaled, still feeling the ghost of the bully's grip on his throat, but something was different now.

He wasn't scared anymore, not of him.

He had fought back.

And that meant everything.

Blue and Olive had smiles on their faces while putting both their hands on his shoulders, signaling their connection as brothers. A Trio that would never be broken, Red accepting their gestures with tears in his eyes, happy to have them by his side even further now. They would always be together.