A few years after the release of information on the supernatural entities that did in fact exist in the world and those who lived beside human beings, The DYAD Institute was put together to become a safe haven for those of the supernatural. They were a community of many who focused on the protection, medical and psychological care of those in need in the supernatural community and the humans affected by them.
When young children born of part supernatural and part human began dying early in life, DYAD created a cloning program to see the effects of supernatural and human biology when they are combined. The first tests failed but when it succeeded the results were seven clones who all ended up with the supernatural gene that had been encoded in in their genome (the were gene). However, each clone received the animal that their were-surrogate mother would become.
The clones were advised of their origin from the beginning and when they reached the age of 18 they began to work with the DYAD institute to create a better life for the supernaturals out in the world. They work in the labs, in security, in finding and housing those in need, or simply by keeping tabs on other supernaturals as they live their daily lives.
Cosima sat back in her seat, fingers slipping beneath her glasses to rub sleepily at her eyes. Delphine had given up an hour ago, her head resting easily on Cosima's lap as she slept. Her blonde furred ears twitched slightly as a low rumble started in her chest only to immediately settle when Cosima let her fingers rub her head softly.
Looking down at the werewolf resting in her lap, Cosima had to smile at the sleepy twitches that happened every few moments. Delphine really was a giant puppy. She let out a little groan when she glanced at the clock and realization seeped into her bones as to why Delphine was sleeping in wolf form.
"It's the night of the full moon and exactly midnight. Just perfect." Cosima sighed and stretched, letting her bones crack with their own ache of the calling. Every were-being felt the call of the full moon but she, like her siblings, was born into the life and could completely control her inner animal spirit. Delphine, on the other hand, had been changed a few years prior. "Poor puppy still can't resist the moon call."
"Of course she can't, she's sleeping." Looking up, Cosima let a sleepy smile slip onto her lips when she spotted Tony leaning against the wall in all his wolfy glory. "You know her control is even worse when she sleeps through these nights."
"And what about you, huh wolfman?" Her tone was light, teasing as he easily lumbered his way over to them. When he kneeled down to place a tiny affectionate lick to her cheek, Cosima leaned into his warmth. He slipped an arm around her back and nuzzled his cheek against hers for a moment.
"Nah, you know how I do. Gotta let that freak flag fly sometimes." Tony pulled back after a moment with a grumble. "Alright, goat girl, let's get the puppy off to bed." Cosima shot him a look and he huffed, rolling his eyes back at her. "Cos, legit, you're gonna fall out of your damn chair. Let's just go home for the night and the science will be here tomorrow."
Cosima sighed, long and heavy, before nodding. He was right; even if she hated that the fact put that stupid smirk on his face. She wanted to kiss it away but instead, she simply helped him get Delphine off her lap and into his arms.
"Do you think she'll wake up?" Cosima's voice was slightly worried, her eyes roaming over Delphine's face. She looked so small and content curled up in Tony's massive furry body but Cosima knew better. If Delphine woke up in a full moon daze, they'd have to keep her restrained and contained. The wolf spirit inside of Delphine had been shoved inside, pressed into her from a bite she didn't ask for, and because of that it was wild. They were working on her control and most days, Delphine could keep the wolf inline. Most days, Delphine could feel how the wolf spirit connected to her and how it really was her but having to tame a spirit a person didn't grow up with was a long difficult journey.
"Let's hope not." Tony's reply was gruff, a low rumble coming from deep in his chest. His wolf knew it would be bad if she did, the full moon was the one time Delphine had almost no control of herself, and he hated restraining her until the haze of instinct cleared. "Now shift, my nerdy little goat. It'll be faster on foot if you shift and it'll give you a break from all that damn control you're usin."
A little grin hit Cosima's lips then and she stretched her arms a little. "Okay, but I'm taking these clothes off first. Delphine destroyed her outfit, again, since she was already asleep when she changed." When she got a little nod from Tony, Cosima stripped down and folded her clothes into her bag. She heard a slight appreciative rumble from behind her bringing out a low chuckle as she peeked over her shoulder. "Keep it in your fur, wolfboy."
Then Cosima took a deep breath and let go. Her shift was different. Instead of a wolf, her mother had passed down the were-gene for an angora goat. Body changing, shifting into something akin to a satyr without the human qualities, Cosima felt relief rush through her as she shook out her fur. Her dreads stayed, falling between her horns, and her glasses perched on the edge of her now elongated nose.
"There's my nerdy goat." Tony received an affectionate eye roll for that one as Cosima pulled on a long open front vest and wove her horns through her favorite beaten up beanie. Then he got pinned with a stare, one that he could read from a mile away. "What? Are you serious?"
"Tony, I will not be walking around with the only sane were on the full moon not wearing clothing." DYAD always advised were's in their animal form wear some sort of clothing to show the humans that they weren't wild and uncivilized. Nights of the full moon were the most important time to show this as some were' did lose their control. Cosima didn't want to deal with those look full of a mix of disgust and fear.
With a deep sigh, Tony set Delphine down on the couch behind him and pulled on one of the few articles of clothing that fit him like that: a pair of baggy shorts that were tight on his legs and a sleeveless flannel shirt that had seen better days. He then gently wrapped Delphine in a blanket he snagged from the back of the couch as he picked her back up.
"Are you happy now?" Cosima's smug smirk answered that question quickly.
Out on the streets, they found themselves surrounded by a mix of creatures. The DYAD Institute campus housed more supernatural beings then they really knew what to deal with and most days, it looked more like a college quad than the open yard of a scientific institution.
Cosima smiled at a few that passed them before grinning wide when she spotted a familiar spotted were-hyena swaggering her way towards them.
"Oi oi, Cosima." The goat found herself wrapped in a tight hug for a few moments, huffing through her nose when Sarah pressed an exaggerated kiss to her forehead. "How are my two weirdest clones?"
"Trying to take the puppy home." Tony's voice rang out from behind Cosima as his head nodded down to the fluffy package in his arms. "She passed out and shifted so I wanna get her settled in at home so she's not too freaked out when she wakes up."
Sarah nodded quickly before pointing to the doors. "That's sort of what I'm doin. Helena's already down in containment. I guess she shifted and forgot she had been sleeping off the last mission. Completely freaked out when she couldn't find me, Rachel had to have her locked down for a while. It's now up to me to calm her down and break her out."
Cosima's eyes widened for a moment, her hands flying into the air. "So that's what I heard!" Her clones looked at her for a moment, brows raised in an almost creepily exact manner. "Right after Delphine passed out, some guys ran past the lab and they were shouting into their phones. I figured something big was happening but then Rachel texted for me not to worry about all the noise so I dropped it. Figured I'd let her handle it."
Tony nudged her back a little before he turned to Sarah. "Not to rush this little powwow along but I'd like to get Delphine home like now." Sarah nodded and waved them off, running towards the building as Cosima shook her head in amazement.
"It's a wonder that Helena still can't keep her beast tame. I mean, I know she's a little out there but her animal spirit fits her like perfectly. You'd think she'd, like, want to control her shift more than she does."
"I dunno, babe, I think Helena just likes to feel wild. It's dangerous and she's a little crazy but it fits her in a way." Tony understood the want, the need, to be in that state. His wolf state fit him more than his human one did and he wore the fur any chance he could get. Her lack of control, however, was not something he really got but he knew that different animals gave off different feelings.
"Well whatever the reason, I wish Sarah would train her in some way. I mean-"
"Cos, babe, not that this isn't thrilling but can we like, talk and walk or wait till we get home cause uh."
Tony nodded down at Delphine who was now twitching and growling lightly in her sleep. Cosima's eyes widened after a moment and she nodded, gripping Tony's bicep with one hand as they power walked towards the apartment.
The walk was filled with a sort of tension that wasn't nearly as thick as the tension outside of their own little world. When they passed the gates of the institute and headed towards the apartment complex more towards the wooded area near the outskirts of town. Tony was never one for being stuck around a bunch of nervous humans but staying at the Institute's homes were not something Cosima wanted at all with all their time spent in the labs. The apartments built by DYAD near the woods were the perfect solution. They were inhabited by supernaturals and gave them space to run free in the trees when the need arose.
As the moved quickly through the city, people stared and gave them a wide berth. Most simply avoided them, some gave then smiles and easy nods, but a select few always pushed Tony's buttons. The comments slung towards them, the sneers, all of it pissed him of each time he walked through those streets. This time, though, he was focused entirely on the wolf in his arms and the petit goat clinging to his side.
The world was theirs to move freely through and yet humanity always seemed to want to have the upper hand. If you asked Tony, humans were more feral than any supernatural he'd met.
A soft squeeze at his side brought his gaze down to Cosima who had settled her head onto his arm, her eyes flickering to Delphine every few seconds. That was something else that no human ever seemed to understand. Those who couldn't control themselves were not exactly at fault. Delphine would get looks, fearful and worried, when the full moon came around. Their darling little scientist was full of light and she really was a big puppy even without the wolf inside of her, yet people still thought of her as this wild beast at the moons peak.
It wasn't her fault. The wolf that had bitten her had been crazed, old in age and wounded after a fight. He'd bitten her and run, leaving the poor girl frightened and bloody on the road. Delphine had already been with DYAD at that point so she knew exactly what had happened, knew what would happen to her.
She never said she hated it. In fact Delphine worked hard with Tony on her control and how to communicate with the wolf inside of her. Still, the looks and the words thrown their way got to Delphine more than they got to Cosima or Tony.
"Hey little goat." Tony's voice was a whisper, light on the wind. Cosima lifted her gaze from Delphine and focused on him instead, tilting her head just a bit in question. "What do you call a wolf who has to hide his fur from the world?"
Cosima's brow furrowed, a soft grunt escaping her nose a moment later. "What, Tony?"
"Lucky, cause he's got his two ladies to get him through his furless days."
The following bleat of laughter followed by Cosima burying her head into Tony's arm as her shoulders shook in mirth brought a giant wolf grin to Tony's face.
That grin stayed there until they wandered into their apartment and he finally set Delphine down on the bed. By the time Tony had shed his fur and changed into his usual lazy attire, his binder under a tank top and a pair of boxers, Cosima had shifted, changed, and was working on making food for them.
He walked up behind her and slid his arms around her waist, busying his nose into Cosima's neck. The resulting chuckle from the girl in his arms still held a slight goat like nature, one that she covered up by biting her bottom lip quickly.
"Del seems completely zonked, I left her unrestrained and just locked the doors. If she wakes up, we'll be able to contain her before she does anything." Tony was whispering, like his words might wake Delphine or disrupt their general peace.
"Well, when she does wake up we can feed her and then maybe go for a run, okay?" Cosima turned in Tony's arms, leaning in to give him a quick kiss before simply resting her forehead against his.
"Promise, ya goat nerd?"
"For my big bad wolf and my puppy? Of course."