An Angel of Music: Family Ties by Dracona Dragillin This is part 2 of the series. Gargoyles belongs to Disney but the rest is mine. Please send e-mail! Hannah drove up toward Maine. Aunt Mary and Uncle Jack had invited her and her "boyfriend" up. Hannah laughed silently. She had told them that her "boyfriend" was strange looking but she knew that they'd be surprised when they saw Eric. Hannah was in love with a gargoyle. It had been a year since their first kiss. She laughed again when she thought about them crashing into that tree. And then that kiss afterward, Hannah was ready to give herself to Eric but he always refused. Hannah knew that he wanted her just as much but he was so afraid of hurting her. And now she was driving with Eric's sleeping stone form, in the back of her truck. After a few hours, Hannah noticed that the sun was getting low in the sky. She exited the highway somewhere in New Hampshire. Soon she found an unpopulated woodsy area. Hannah got out of the truck. She removed the straps and tarp that kept Eric safe from falling off the truck and being seen. And she waited. The sun set and Eric awoke with a loud roar. He got off the truck and enfolded her in his arms and then wings. She laid her head on his T-shirted chest. A few months ago, she convinced him to wear something else other than the loincloth. Now he usually wore a black T-shirt and a pair of jean shorts, specially altered to fit with his wings and tail. "Good evening, love," Hannah said. Eric smiled down at her and kissed her forehead. "I still have my doubts about this, Hannah. What if they don't except me? They could find a way to separate us." "Don't worry about it. I'd run away first. I'm a senior in high school. I'll simply take a high school equivalency test, to get my diploma. Eric, I'm not leaving you." "I'm a gargoyle. We're natural protectors and worriers," he joked. Hannah was still surprised by his sense of humor. "Come on," she teased, "don't be so scared. My aunt and uncle don't bite...much." Eric laughed and they got into the truck. ------------------------------------------------------------------- They reached the farm around eight. Hannah got out of the truck. "I'm going to go in and get them ready." Eric leaned over. His fingers touched her face. "I love you," he said. She smiled at him and made her way over to the house. Just as she was going to ring the bell, Aunt Mary opened the door. "It's about time you got out of the car. Well, what about the boy? Is he that shy? Bring him in." "I can't just yet. I have to tell you something. Eric isn't human," she blurted out, "He's a gargoyle and I love him." Aunt Mary marched past Hannah and went to the truck. She opened the truck door. "Young man, are you going to hide in that truck for the rest of the night? My roast is getting dried out and the gravy is getting congealed." Eric got out of the truck. "Greetings, madam." Aunt Mary gave him a writhing stare. "You are to call me Mary or Aunt Mary. Now get your luggage and get inside." Eric meekly obeyed her. He grabbed both his and Hannah's baggage. All three entered the house. Eric let the two women go in first. When he was inside, he asked, "Where would you like me to put these bags?" "I wasn't sure if you two would share a room. So I made up two rooms. But if you want to share, that's not my business." Both Hannah and Eric blushed. "Aunt Mary!" Hannah cried out. "Two separate rooms will be fine. Hannah and I haven't reached that part of our relationship." "Yet," Hannah added. She then shot a look at Eric whose face was very flushed. "Besides," Eric continued, "I do not require a bed to sleep." "Do you sleep standing up?" Aunt Mary asked. "Yes, during the day I turn to stone and enter a deep sleep. I awake each night by shedding my stone skin." "As long as you're polite and clean up after yourself, I don't care what you do." Then, Aunt Mary showed them to their rooms. "Dinner will be in a half an hour. I'll call you when it's ready." With that she left them alone. ------------------------------------------------------------------- When Hannah walked into Eric's room. He was sitting on the bed, writing in his notebook. Hannah had to admit that she and Eric made a great team. She'd write music and Eric would come up with great lyrics. Or he'd write lyrics and she'd come up with the music for them. They inspired each other. "Come on in, Hannah." Hannah walked over to the bed and sat down. She leaned on him. Eric's arm went around her. Softly he kissed her. Hannah never felt more comfortable, loved and safe than she did with Eric. When they were finished, Hannah turned her attention to the lyrics. "What are you writing?" "I'm not finished." "I'll show you mine if you show me yours." "Hannah!" Eric's face was turning red. Hannah laughed and kissed him. Their kiss deepened. They both were starting to feel very dizzy and warm. Eric felt Hannah's hands flow over his back. She heard him give off a small growl. Eric's hands were rubbing her back, and then her stomach, and then... There was a knock on the door. Eric and Hannah quickly broke apart. They then heard Aunt Mary's voice, "Stop messing around in there and get down to dinner." "We'd better get down there before she sends a SWAT team to come and get us," Hannah panted. "Fix your hair first." Hannah looked into the mirror. Her hair was a mess. Quickly she neatened herself up and they both went downstairs. ------------------------------------------------------------------- They reached the table to find that someone was already there. A man, in his fifties, was doodling on some paper. Hannah walked up to the man and kissed him on the forehead. "Hi, Uncle Jack. Are you drawing the next issue?" Hannah turned to Eric and explained, "Uncle Jack draws comics for a living. His famous is NitroMan. NitroMan is a superhero who has the ability to blast things with his thoughts." "Sounds interesting," Eric looked worried. Uncle Jack then looked up at Eric. "Can you really fly with those things?' Uncle Jack gestured to Eric's wings. "Sort of, it's more like gliding than flying, though." "Good, you can teach me to fly and I'll teach you how to roller blade." Eric was now totally confused. He gave Hannah a questioning look. "Don't worry," she said, "Uncle Jack is the sweetest most innocent person I know. He's like a big kid. It's his way of accepting you for the way you are. He does that." "Don't just stand there! Sit down." They both obeyed Aunt Mary's command. "Jack dear, put your sketch book. We're going to eat." "OK darling." Uncle Jack got up and pecked Aunt Mary on the cheek. He left and returned in a matter of minutes. When he returned, they started dinner. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Hannah sat in the sunshine, strumming her guitar. Aunt Mary was painting on her easel. "You truly love him and that might hurt you. No, I think that he'd never hurt you but small minded people, like your parents, will." "I know but I don't know why. What's wrong with Eric?" "There are several reasons. They fear what they don't understand. Those people will look at him and will only see a monster. They do this to keep their world defined. They want a nice safe world were everything is either black or white. And another reason is jealousy." "Why should they be jealous?" "By embracing love, you found a happiness that they will never find because they were too scared to reach for it." Aunt Mary added a few strokes to her painting. She looked down at her niece. "I know what you're thinking. I'm happy for you and I accept him. He is a very nice person. Can he really glide?" Hannah nodded. "Then, tell Eric to take you Uncle for a flight. Jack will love that!" They both looked at each other and started to laugh. ------------------------------------------------------------------- "Welcome to my island. I used to call it Narnia when I was a little girl and make up stories about this place." They were sitting on a cluster of flat topped boulders in the middle of a lake. "Everytime we came up here on vacation, I'd escape from my parents and brother. I'd swim across the lake to here." "Your aunt and uncle own all of this property?" "She's a moderately successful artist and his comic books have usually sold well. Being a kid at heart, he knows what his audience wants. They put most of their money into the land. I think they own over a hundred acres up here." Hannah paused for a moment. Eric noticed that a dark sad look crept into her eyes. "What is it, Hannah love?" "If you were to meet a female gargoyle, would you...well would you..." "I'd never leave you! I love you." "But if she were the last female and you the last male, wouldn't you two be obligated to mate?" "So we can produce only a few offspring that have no one to mate with. Inbreeding doesn't work well with our race either. I won't leave you!" He saw that she wasn't convinced and wouldn't be. Eric grabbed her and jumped into the water. The cold water surrounded Hannah. She kicked away from Eric and swam to the surface. When Hannah breached the water, she took a deep breath. Eric finally surface and grinned at her. "ERIC! I'm going to get you!" Hannah put her hands on his head and with all of her strength, shoved him under. She swam away laughing. Eric resurfaced right next to her and splashed her. At this time, both of them were laughing pretty hard. They spent the next hour splashing and swimming. ------------------------------------------------------------------- The next week went by wonderfully. Eric took Uncle Jack gliding. But another of his talents was discovered. One night Hannah and Aunt Mary sat down to try a duet. Aunt Mary had some piano skills but rarely played. After they finished, Aunt Mary turned to Eric. "Let's see if you have any musical talent. Sit down beside me, Eric, and I'll try to teach you how to use this thing." Eric sat down and she found out that Eric was a quick learner. For the next week, she taught him how to play. Soon, his abilities surpassed her own. So a week later, Hannah and Eric played a duet. They had done a few songs with Hannah doing all of the singing. Eric then suggested a duet that needed two voices. "I can't do two voices at once," Hannah protested. "I'll sing with you," stammered a very nervous Eric. The three humans then received a shock. Eric's voice was a beautiful resonant tenor. When they finished, Hannah was shocked to see tears in her Aunt Mary's eyes. She was about to say something when Aunt Mary interrupted her. "Apart, I'd say you both were geniuses but together you both are pure magic." With that, she left the room wiping her eyes. ------------------------------------------------------------------- It was the night before they left. Both Hannah and Eric were very reluctant to leave this paradise where they didn't have to hide all of the time. They were all sitting around drinking coffee and discussing the future. "I still think you two should start a band. As shy as you are, Eric, you've a lot of talent." "Aunt Mary, that's impossible. We can't..." But Eric soon interrupted Hannah. "What if we were to start a band? We can record songs by ourselves and keep it private. That way I can perform with out anyone minding." "Even if we got that small chance and get famous, how are we going to do concerts?" "You will but I won't. We can always get a guest performer for concerts." "Besides having a mysterious unseen pianist and backup singer will make people more curious. And curious people stay interested longer," Aunt Mary added. "And what happens if the press finds out?!? They might try to take you away from me." Hannah's face was very worried. Uncle Jack, who sat silent through this conversation, spoke, "He can always hideout here. If the press tries anything, I'll let Aunt Mary deal with them. We both have plenty of money to support another person." "I can't take charity," Eric objected. "Charity nothing! I'll have you fixing up this place and doing chores for room and board," Aunt Mary announced, "Once the recording companies hear you, they won't mind who or what Eric is. In fact, they'll go to great lengths to protect his secret." Hannah thought for a moment. "What are we going to call this band?" Eric smiled. "What about Apollo's Lyre?" "After that scene in Phantom of the Opera. But isn't that where Christine breaks the Phantom's heart?" "He learns the truth. I'd rather learn the truth than live in ignorance and then have my world shattered by the truth." As Hannah listened to Eric, her face turned pale. She walked out of the room when he was finished talking. Eric quickly followed her outside of the house. She collapsed and started to cry. Eric knelt down next to her. He wrapped his arms around her. "My love, I never meant to hurt you." "You don't think that I love you. You don't trust me." "I love you. During the Apollo's Lyre incident, Christine admitted her love to Raoul and started a new life. That's why I chose the name. I love you and I want to share my life with you. Together we can have a new life without the lies, just you and me." Hannah's tear-filled eyes looked up at him. She kissed him softly and he kissed her back. The End That was Part 2. I hope you liked it. Please e-mail me! Stay tuned for "An Angel of Music: Apollo's Lyre", where Hannah and Eric form the band.