I don't own the gargoyles and you know it. Don't sue me I'm broke J. This
is a sequel to Learning to Live Again. Special thanks to Richard
"RogueWarrior" Marchinko for the insperation for Raina's dad Jake Marks,  
as well as the terminology used in this story. Again this story is for
mature audiences due to language. Comments, flames, & abject worship can be
sent to me at waffle@micrord.com EnjoyJ

	Second Chances by Montanna 

	Raina Star trotted up the stairs to the top of the keep. Her roommate
would be waking up soon. As she reached the battlements, she  began to jog.
The toe of her cowboy boot caught on a loose flagstone just as she rounded
the turrent. She heard a sickening pop as she fell. She knew what would
happen next. A few blessed moments of numbness followedby absolute agony.
Her ankle was, at least, sprained. At worst, it was broken. Lovely! She
thought. I'm stuck on the top of my Keep with a blown ankle and no way to
get help. She would just have to wait till Onyx woke up to help her down
stairs. 
	Jake Marks turned his radio down as he eased his black Camaro down the
driveway to his daughter's keep. He hadn't seen Rain or Cade since they
were babies. His ex-wife had made her opinion on his life as a Navy Seal
very clear. He was too wild to be a good father and she wanted him to stay
away. Of course the fact that she had become a hippy while he was 'in
country' hadn't helped his marriage. Now that Raina and Cade were grown he
felt the need to see the pups he'd left behind. Nobody said that bein a
knuckle dragging, wild ass, frogman made for a stable homelife he thought.
He arrived at the keep and made his way inside. His baby girl had done
allright for herself if this place was any indication. He watched the sun
set through the huge window in the great hall. Hearing a muffled roar, he
made his way up the stairs.
	Onyx awoke to the sight of his Raina sitting on the cold stone floor. She
looked shocky and he quickly made his way to her. She smile weakly up at
him. "Hi Onyx…"
	"What happened?"
	"That damn loose stone got me. My ankles sprained."
	Onyx didn't wait for the rest of her explanation. He ripped open her
pantleg and removed her boot. Her leg was already bruised from her knee to
her toes. Raina's ankle was easily the size of a large grapefruit. He
lifted her into his arms and turned for the stairs…
	Jake reached the top of the stairs intime to see a large black… something,
lift his daughter up. He was about to grab his gun when Raina saw him.
	"Daddy? Wha…"
	"What the hell's goin on here Raina Marie?"
	Onyx decided that introductions could wait and said, "Her ankle's
sprained. We can sort everything out down stairs."
Jake followed the creature downstairs, his mind sifting through facts
before him: a) this was a gargoyle, b) he obviously lived here, c) his
daughter, his baby girl, didn't seem to mind that he was carrying her, and
that meant, d) he could be trusted. Jake always trusted Raina's judgement
when it came to people and there intentions. The kid had a knack for it.
	Onyx laid Raina down on the couch and covered her with the afghan lying
over the back of a nearby chair. He propped her ankle up on a pillow before
turning to Jake. "There's an ice pack in the freezer."
	Jake was half way to the kitchen when he heard his daughter and the
creature talking.
	"Helluva way to me my dad huh Onyx?"
	"Don't worry about it Raina, I'll explain everything to him once you
settled."
	After packing her ankle with ice, dosing her with Tylenol, and watching
her drift off to sleep, Jake turned to the gargoyle. "You mind tellin me
what the hell is goin on here?"
	Onyx sighed, "You want the long or short version?"
	"Long."
	"My name is Onyx, and I was genetically engineered a few years ago by a
very rich man named David Xanatos. My purpose was to replace my father
Goliath, and not have any problems with the way Xanatos did business. Let's
just say I turned out to be a little too much like Xanatos." He sighed
again; "I battled with both of my Fathers and finally butted heads with an
immortal female gargoyle known as Demona. After that last fight I managed
to glide to an old farm somewhere in New York before I crashed. Raina saved
me." He smiled. "I would have left as soon as I was healed but I found a
threatening note on her desk. I decided to stay with her until the threat
had passed."

	11 months ago….
	Raina glanced over at her guardian angel. He was jumpy after he found that
damn note. She scowled. Why did the fruitcakes always have to mess with
her? Raina looked at him again, he was handsome, and she had to admit it. A
wicked smile suddenly graced her face. He would make a great hero for her
next novel. She grabbed a notebook and began jotting down notes.
	Onyx felt the human looking at him again. Why did he feel so compelled to
protect her? Unbidden, his father's words came back to him, Gargoyles
protect… Great he thought, now I'm turning into Goliath. But still looking
after her felt good. It gave him a purpose other than making money. In the
month that he had lived with her they developed a bond. With a start he
realized that she had made him a part of her clan! Quietly, and without
fuss, she gave him a sense of belonging that he lacked before. Onyx made
the decision; he would leave his past as Thailog behind and create a new
life with this special young woman.

Present…
	"I was no saint before I met Raina, but she seems to inspire the best in
everyone she meets. Except for Martin Sloar. He is certifiable. He was
determined that Raina had to be punished for the books she wrote and he
refused to stop until she was dead…"

10 months ago…
	Martin Sloar's eyes widened. It was she, that tramp that wrote those
books. He adjusted his position in the shrubbery and eyed the exotic beauty
as she left her fortress-like home. He couldn't get past her security
system. So he would wait outside until his chance to strike appeared. He
heard a roar and looked on in stunned amazement as a huge black creature
swooped down to greet his target. She was in league with demons! She would
have to die. 
	He had to wait a week for his chance to kill Raina. It came on a sultry
night when he had almost given up hope of ridding the world of the slut.
She was walking along the bank of the lake near her home. There was about
10 minutes until sunset so he made his move. Stalking her from the tree
line, he waited about eight minutes before he made his move. He rushed at
her, hoping to startle her badly. Unfortunately for him, Raina had studied
several forms of martial arts through the years. Seeing the thin blond
madman coming at her with a knife, she threw herself to the side. Glancing
at the setting sun, she figured that she had about a minute before Onyx
woke up. Then things went from *FUBAR to *TARFU. Raina screamed as she felt
the knife bite into her back. As her cry echoed over the lake it was joined
by a roar from the top of her keep. Sloar looked up in time to see a huge
black shape drop out of the sky like an avenging angel.

	Present…
	"I beat the hell out of him, I would have killed him on the spot, but
Rainy was bleeding and telling me that she wanted him to rot in prison. So
I tied him up and helped Raina back inside. I stopped the bleeding and she
called the cops. Sloar kept babbling to the police about demons from hell
attacking him." Onyx grinned. "His lawyer was planning on using the
insanity plea but I let him know that he was safer in jail." Onyx's eyes
glowed for a moment. "Then Raina and I sat down for a long over-due talk.
Once I told her about my past, I expected her to tell me to get out of her
home. Who would want a genetically engineered freak in for a roommate? She
told me I wasn't goining anywhere and that was that."
	Jake looked at the warrior before him. Onyx had protected his daughter,
and that counted for a lot in Jake's book. Holding out his hand he said,
"Thank you."
	"Well if this ain't a Kodak Moment."
	Both turned to see Raina awake. She grinned and said, "Dad if you want to
call Cade his number is by the phone. All three of you might as well do the
Male Bonding Bit."
	Jake shook his head, his little girl had grown up, and she definitely had
some good friends.