Gargoyles are the property of Disney and Buena Vista. No copyright infringement is intended. Star Trek is the property of Paramount. Also no copyright infringement is intended. This is just a short look at how the Clan, mainly Goliath, got adjusted to being under the same roof as Xanatos. It takes place just after ‘Hunter’s Moon 3.’ I apologize in advance if anybody is offended by the comment about women and clothes. The fact of the matter is, the vast majority of my friends are every bit as bad as that makes them out to be. Adjusting Odd. Yes, Goliath thought as he gazed around his home. Very odd, this feeling. So familiar a place, the castle Wyvern had been his home since he was hatched, yet, so different now. Xanatos had made changes, subtle yet visible to those who knew where to look, that made the castle just different enough to make Goliath uncomfortable. Not, he mused ruefully, that he would need any particular reason to be uncomfortable in this place and situation. Living under the same roof with a man he would have called his archenemy not six months ago, a man he still would not call friend or even ally, was more than enough to make even the strongest man uncomfortable. And Goliath did not fool himself into believing he was strongest man alive. The main hall remained much the same, he saw. There was a weapons cabinet where once a beautiful statue had been displayed, and the great banquet table had been replaced with a newer replica. Understandable, considering the original had been burned when the Vikings sacked the castle a millennium ago, but still it seemed wrong somehow. Goliath sighed and turned away - to come face to face with David Xanatos himself. Xanatos seemed as surprised as Goliath. His eyes widened and he backed up a step. "Excuse me, Goliath, I wasn't aware that anyone was in here. I'll just - ah - come back later." "No," Goliath said. Xanatos' discomfort deepened and Goliath berated himself for the involuntary growl in his voice. "It is your home as much as ours now. More, according to the Human laws. Whatever right I have to be here, you have as well." Xanatos relaxed slightly, though he still seemed on his guard. "I left some papers here which I need for a meeting tomorrow." "I was returning back to the main room," Goliath said. "Before you go," Xanatos said, "may I have a word?" Goliath paused. "Yes?" "Just a couple of little things. First of all, the computers are all on-line. I forgot to mention it, but would you please tell Lexington that the passwords are all Aerie? He can change them if he prefers. And there's an e-mail account under his name. Also, there's a private kitchen that I had put in just off your private quarters and we got Hudson a satellite dish. And, well, Lexington mentioned how much you enjoyed reading so I had the library redone. Most of the books were destroyed in the fire and over time, but I managed to get many of the same volumes that the library originally held. And several new ones too." He smiled, suddenly animated. "Would you believe Lexington is a Trekker? Fox spent the better part of a week getting the entire Star Trek Library. All four series." He chuckled slightly. Goliath wanted to frown. He didn't like the familiarity between Xanatos and the youngest member of his Clan. The dream - vision? - he'd had of a future where Lexington had been corrupted by Xantos' evil was still firm in his mind. Yet Xanatos didn't seem to mean them any harm, and he *had* helped them rescue Lexington from a government research team not a few months ago. And did he say *Fox* had run all across the city tracking down books just because she knew Lexington enjoyed them? Not for the first time, Goliath found himself seriously considering the idea that Xanatos was serious when he said he had changed. "I will tell him," Goliath said. "And I am sure he will appreciate the thought of the library. Every book you said? At least," he said under his breath, " we will be spared from repeated watchings of The Undiscovered Country’ for a while." He hadn't realized he had spoken loudly enough to be overheard until he saw Xanatos fighting back a grin. "Tell me about it," Xanatos commiserated. "Fox has watched The Wrath of Khan about a hundred times. And every times she cries." "Fox cried? At a *movie?*" Goliath asked, surprised. That was perhaps the last thing he had expected to hear about the ex-mercenary. Xanatos seemed to understand his surprise. "I know. It's hardly what one would expect. But then" he smiled, "I always did like a surprise." Goliath smiled ruefully. "You certainly have plenty of that in your life. I dare to say that one day there will be a perfectly ordinary day, without surprises or dangers, and we will all die from shock before we can enjoy it." Xanatos laughed, a deep heartfelt laugh, and for a moment Goliath felt remorse that they had wasted so much time as enemies. Under different circumstances, David Xanatos would have made an ideal friend. Suddenly, as if realizing that they had just had an entire conversation without one shout or death threat and without one punch thrown, or perhaps Xanatos had come to the same realization, they fell quiet. The moment of discomfort was broken by a joyful laugh from out in the hall. "Angela?" Goliath asked. He headed for the door. In the hall he saw his daughter and, to his surprise, Fox Xanatos holding an enthusiastic conversation while Elisa Maza looked on. The detective gave him a wide smile as she nodded her head at the other two women. Elisa looked - happy, Goliath realized. Relieved. Relaxed. It suited her. "Father!" Angela exclaimed. "You should see it, it's fantastic!" "What is fantastic?" Goliath asked. Xanatos stood almost at his side. "Fox? Angela?" Fox smiled. "I remembered how much Angela liked that dress of Elisa's." "You bought her a dress?" Goliath asked. That was what had his daughter acting like a hatchling? "Not just a dress," Elisa said. "An entire wardrobe." David turned to his wife. "I might have known." Fox glared at the two men defensively. "Well, Lexington has the computers and Broadway has the kitchen and we got the game system for Brooklyn and the TV for Hudson and the library for Goliath and we even got a bunch of toys for Bronx and I didn't want Angela to feel left out." She ignored them once again and turned back to Angela and Elisa. "Besides, I have yet to meet any young woman who didn't like new clothes." Goliath frowned. "But her wings..." "Really, Goliath," Fox said in an injured tone, "give me credit for some intelligence. All the shirts and dresses are backless and I have a tailor who can arrange the pants for her tail. It's nothing you can wear on patrol, really," Fox added. "Most of it wouldn't make it very easy for you to move, let alone fight, but they should be perfect for hanging around the castle, or a night out on the town." She smiled and Angela giggled. Goliath glowered. "Perhaps we had best be going, Goliath," Xanatos said suddenly. "I hope you enjoy it, Angela. Later, Fox. Good day, Detective Maza." He turned down the hall. Goliath followed him, more out of curiosity than anything else. "You seemed in a hurry to leave," he said. I was." Xanatos laughed softly. "Perhaps Demona was different, but almost every woman I've ever met, no matter how sophisticated or intelligent, can become incredibly excited when confronted with a few friends and a closet full of new clothes. I really have no desire to see Fox explain the pros, cons and importance of every article of clothing she bought." "I had not noticed that tendency," Goliath said. "Admittedly, clothing is not a main aspect of Gargoyle life. We tend to stick to the basics," he added wryly. "Yes, I had noticed. Loincloths." Xanatos shook his head. "I give you credit for bravery, Goliath. I'd never be able to work up the courage to fly through the city knowing that should anyone happen to look up at just the right - or perhaps wrong - moment they'd- Goliath?" Goliath had stopped a step or two back. "I had never really considered it," he said. "Thanks for putting the thought in my mind." Xanatos couldn't help it, he laughed. "Well, this is a good sight to see." Hudson, the eldest of the Clan, Goliath's predecessor and closest friend, stood before them, arms crossed over his chest. "Let's see if we can keep you two away from each other's throats a little while longer. Perhaps we can ally our Clans yet." "I thought we were allied," Goliath said. "Is that not what this is all about?" "There are no allies where there is no trust," Hudson said. "And there is too little trust between us yet. However, from the smiles on the young ones faces it seems that will change soon enough." "Yes, I saw Angela and Fox," Goliath said. "Angela too? I meant Lexington and Alexander. Those to have taken quite a shine to each other," Hudson chuckled. "You should see them. And Bronx! I haven't seen him so happy since the last hatching!" "Speaking of Lexington," Xanatos interrupted quietly. "I should speak with him about the computers, if he's not busy. And if it's all right with you." "He's not busy," Hudson said. "Owen's in there as well, giving the others a hard time. I give it five more minutes before the whole thing breaks down into a shouting match. On Brooklyn and Broadway's part anyway. I don't think Owen would shout if his life should depend on it. And Lexington is ignoring the lot of them." "I'm surprised he's in there at all," Xanatos said. "I wouldn't think any of them would be ready for such a large confrontation." "Well, they aren't not really," Hudson admitted. "The young ones hold a grudge I fear. And Owen seems to be ignoring that." "You don't seem to be holding a grudge," Xanatos said. "I mean, I know we're not exactly on good terms or anything, but we seem to be getting along all right. For now at least." Nice, David, very well thought out. Could you *be* more awkward? "I'm too old to hold grudges any longer," Hudson said. "Especially not against those who truly seem to regret what they've done. And Goliath, though he'd sooner bow before Hakon himself than admit it, feels much the same. A smart lad, he," Hudson added with a paternal smile. "Surely why I chose him as my second in command. But I'm rambling. The boys are tolerating Owen's presence, and vise versa I dare say, more for the fact that Lexington wants them there then anything. Can I tell you something, Xanatos?" "Of course." "For all their bluster and bickering, those three are practically inseparable. If it makes one happy the other two will bite the bullet and suffer through it. Even if it means that Brooklyn and Broadway must put up with Owen so Lexington may enjoy the child's company. Never let them fool you into thinking otherwise." "I wouldn't have, Hudson." The sound of arguing came through the door. "The last of their patience seems to be wearing out," Hudson sighed. "Best for all if you do interrupt." The three of them entered the room together, for which Xanatos was grateful. On one hand, it made him feel like a prisoner under guard. On the other hand, he wouldn't look like an uninvited intruder. The scene inside was much what Hudson had described. Lexington and Bronx sat on the carpet calmly watching Alexander while on the other side of the room Owen bickered and argued with the other two members of the 'Trio.' Bronx saw him first, then Alexander. He clapped and laughed, drawing Lexington's attention as well. He smiled shyly and stood. "Hello, Lexington," Xanatos said warmly. This young gargoyle had been the only one to make a real effort to make a peace between them at first, despite the hard feelings between him and Xanatos' wife, which he had apparently also put behind him. The fact that Lexington and Alexander seemed to be hitting it off seemed only right. Goliath tensed at the friendliness yet again, but less so this time. And hopefully, he thought, even less in the future. Dreams were only dreams. He had returned from Avalon in this reality. He would be here for his Clan. Whatever had so tainted Lexington's soul in that world would not be allowed to grow in this one. ‘And perhaps,’ Goliath thought as he watched Xanatos and Lexington fuss over Alexander and the computers and Hudson breaking up the argument on the other side of the room. ‘Perhaps our Clans will truly join. Us and Elisa and the Xanatoses as one Clan.’ And Goliath decided he liked the idea very much. ________ End