A Lupine Kinship?
A/N: Most likely a one shot based upon current working on a story of Jane Rizzoli and Maura Isles. Slightly A/U and because Jane is a werewolf and technically met Maura during Jane's Boston PD Academy training. This being from 5x17 "Bite Outta Crime" time frame and potential Spoiler Alert just to be safe.
Setting: Jane and Maura are discussing "wolf boy" (or "McGruff" as he is officially referred to in the episode) in the M.E.'s office. The doctor wonders if he may be an actual werewolf due to Jane being one, but both Jane & Lupine disagree
"I cannot believe you would even suggest such an idea!" Jane exclaimed. "Think of it yes, but to actually suggest it? In a Boston PD interrogation room of all places! They record EVERYTHING and you suggest I just waltz in there as Lupine?" A low rumble emanated from within her throat, which Maura interpreted it to be Lupine's agreeing with Jane.
"I would never have either of you risk exposure," Maura gently sat down beside Jane who had plunked herself unceremoniously down on the doctor's office couch. "I was merely suggesting that you Jane go in there and using your combined senses to see if perhaps he could actually be the same as you. He could very likely be a person of kinship to Lupine."
Jane rubbed her eyes and sighed, choosing not to speak. Maura simply rested a comforting hand on Jane's forearm nearest her in a gesture of apology. She knew Jane was trying to organize her thoughts and possibly even conversing with Lupine in their unique symbiotic existence.
Only Maura truly knew of Jane's "condition." Even then, it was never originally intended by either Jane or Lupine for her to know. It was when Lupine had come to Maura's defense in a dark alley just before the detective transferred into Homicide from the Drug Unit. The wolf had stopped the attempted rape and assault on Maura and engaged in fighting the attacker. Part of the dagger blade of his knife had broken and remained imbedded in the wound inflicted upon the wolf's right shoulder. Certain metals and metallic compounds were toxic to Lupine and moderate to occasional severe allergy to Jane. The blade remnant that night had nearly immobilized Lupine, but the wolf endured its strength until the after the attacker fled and ensured Maura's safety. Then Lupine had suddenly collapsed in pain and before Maura could react, she saw the wolf's form ripple and shift into a raven haired human female with a matching wound in her right shoulder accompanied with a serve allergy. Despite her severely weakened state, Jane resolutely refused Maura's advice in getting treatment in a hospital and insisted that the doctor herself treat the wound and allergic reaction to the metal.
From there their friendship only grew and with Maura's knowledge of human physiology and research into wolf physiology assisted both Jane and Lupine maintaining the best possible health and symbiosis. Not even the other Rizzolis, not Frankie, not, Tommy, not even her own mother, knew. To Jane and Maura's knowledge, no one within either of their social circles was a werewolf and even Lupine wondered if there was no one else like "them." Maura had studied samples of DNA she had obtained from both Jane in Human form and Lupine in wolf form. No specific genetic markers in either sample explained relationship of the woman and the animal.
Perhaps it's time to look back into it. Maura found herself thinking as the memories passed through her immediate thoughts. With the advances made in DNA research since then, perhaps something can be discovered.
Looking back at Jane, Maura found her to be still contemplating her suggestion and could hear the minute, faint rumblings within Jane's throat, often indicating the wolf's responses to the human. "If I may," Maura gently spoke. Jane turned to her.
Using Jane's subtle facial cues and silence as indicators to continue, Maura inhaled deeply. "You have displayed partial and subtle shifting in the past, mainly when you had me treat the injury to your shoulder. When you were unconscious after I removed the blade fragment, I discovered how your incisor teeth are slightly different from normal human teeth. Also, you have only shifted your human hands into paws on occasion."
"But that's far more difficult to do ever since…" Jane's voice trailed off and Maura did not require further elaboration.
Ever since Hoyt, the unspoken words passed through all of their thoughts. Despite Hoyt being truly gone from their lives, the permanent ramifications he had inflicted upon them, primarily to Jane and Lupine continued after all of these years and likely remain for the rest of their lives.
"Yet it's still possible," Maura's gentle voice broke the tense silence, "which is far better than no longer possessing the ability or being capable."
Jane's eyes fell downward to view her palms and the back of her hands. Clenching them gently into fists, her eyes closed as she responded. "Even if it were just a partial shifting, the cameras would still catch it."
Dr. Isles took another deep breath and waited for a moment. "I will be in the observation room. I can switch off the cameras and audio so it wouldn't be recorded."
Detective Rizzoli immediately shook her head. A low rumble accompanied her response. "That wouldn't be enough," she stood up, taking a few steps away from the couch. "They have a back up system that's operated from an another location to prevent that very thing. What you're suggesting… they've tried it. Coercion, you know, that sort of thing. Bad way for a cop to lose their badge."
The doctor simply nodded, remaining seated on the couch. "But I'd still do it for both of you."
Jane turned to regard her friend. Her eyes soft and Maura noticed a subtle shift within them to indicate Lupine too was regarding her. "Me too," her voice was slightly gruffer than her normal low tone, indicating the wolf also spoke.
Maura slowly arose and took the few steps separating them. While keeping her attention on the detective, she kept her eyes lower than looking into Jane's directly. This was Maura's method in showing respect to Lupine's "alpha wolf" tendencies. While Lupine did not assert an alpha tone to their present discussion, but the wolf was deeply touched that she would display her respect to its nature. Neither Lupine nor Jane taught Maura the alpha wolf tendencies in their symbiotic nature and were surprised when she initiated her method of respect when they first initiated their friendship between Maura and the wolf. When they formally met after Jane shifted back into Human form, the doctor had actually knelt down so she would be lower when looking directly into Jane's eyes when assuring both Human and Wolf of her promise of keeping their existence secret. It never failed to move either of them beyond their individual abilities to express in Maura's respect for them both and the instinctual nature the doctor possessed when dealing with their sensitive nature.
"It was simply an idea and I was hoping that you might possibly find another who would be as you. It may be possible he is," Maura softly spoke. "Who knows, perhaps a majority of those who have the symbiotic existence as yours are mentally unstable or clinically insane."
Jane simply nodded as she turned slightly away, appearing to contemplate some art sculpture nearby; however, Maura knew the detective was actually reexamining various thoughts in her mind. The doctor slowly returned to her desk and withdrew her medical bag, checking the standard and personally added inventories of supplies she normally carried to crime scenes. "McGruff's" file was extremely thin, containing very little information. "We don't even have a name for him," she inadvertently thought aloud.
Jane turned in Maura's direction. "No, he hasn't spoken a single word. No wallet or id and fingerprints came up negative in AFIS. Nina's currently searching through the nationwide Missing Persons database since nothing came up for either Boston or Massachusetts."
Placing the file down upon the desk, Maura reached for her bag, only to have her hand intercepted by the detective's. Her hand was slightly altered in a vague, elongated version of a wolf's paw. Ever since Jane's first encounter with Charles Hoyt, Lupine's front paws never truly shifted into complete wolf paws. The scalpels Hoyt had stabbed through Jane's hands in that basement not only severely damaged both human and wolf physiology, but the combination of several metals composing the scalpels had nearly killed Lupine with their toxicity. It took over an entire year for Jane to be reunited with Lupine and even longer before regaining the ability to shift from human to wolf. That year without Lupine was the most vulnerable Jane had ever been and felt as if a part of her soul along with some other type of her being Jane was unable to articulate were missing. If either woman were to guess, it quite possibly would have been the most human Jane Rizzoli had ever experienced in her life.
Looking up into Jane's eyes, Maura noticed they too subtlety shifted to display some of Lupine's features while maintaining overall Human appearance. "We'll go in before you," Jane's low, extra gruff tone of voice spoke in a slow, yet steady pace. The wolf was speaking along with its human symbiant and Maura found herself holding her breath as she often did whenever the human and wolf combined their speaking.
"We will maintain complete Human appearance," their low voice continued. "Yet we both will combine our senses and try speaking in order to determine if we may detect any Lupine characteristics. If he makes any eye contact, we will briefly try to display our combined features as we allow you to see."
"But…" Maura began only to be suddenly stopped by feeling the coarse yet gentle furred pawish hand touch the side of her face. It was an extremely rare, intimate gesture Jane/Lupine shared with their Human Friend; however, it's tenderness also combined their firm determination to ensure Maura would have absolutely no doubts of their intentions and matters of their heart.
"Do not worry," their combined voices whispered as the pawish hand gently stroked her cheek. "We know the angles of the camera views and while it is likely our eyes may not be detected, we will take extra care to position our head so our face cannot be seen."
The M.E. briefly closed her eyes as she gently brought her hand up to gently cover the pawish hand with her own. Reveling in the combined touch on her cheek and beneath her hand, she inhaled deeply before opening her eyes. "Again, I would never have either of you risk exposure. As your friend, I just want what is best for the two of you and I imagine despite our friendship, it can become extremely lonely for you Lupine." The pawish hand gently stroked her cheek in a pattern the doctor secretly enjoyed and a slow smile formed, revealing Jane's unique incisor teeth. "Even if I were to find a lupine relative or friend," the husky voice whispered, "I doubt I could ever be close to them as I am with you."
Jane's opposite hand, retaining complete Human form gently touched the doctor's other cheek as the raven haired woman stepped in closer to Maura, but not completely embracing her. They slowly drew Maura's face closer, yet in a lower position in an alpha wolf characteristic. Deeply inhaling through the nose, they sniffed along the doctor's hairline, drawing in their Human Friend's scent. Maura's eyes drifted closed again as she felt Lupine's sniff on her upper forehead. She likewise inhaled deeply, smelling the natural scents often emitted by the wolf nature combined with the gentle lavender of Jane's traditional shampoo.
A low rumble vibrated from deep inside Jane's throat and Maura suddenly felt arms wrap around her and hands drift to her upper back. The doctor gently brought her arms around the detective returning the brief hug before the two women parted. The detective's eyes had already shifted back into normal human eyes and Maura caught the final glimpses of black fur receding into Jane's hand as the pawish form resumed into a more human hand shape. "We should go," Jane nodded towards M.E.'s black bag.
Maura slowly sighed as she turned away from the one way-viewing window looking into the interrogation room as Jane slowly arose from her seat, heading for the door. Nearly 25 minutes of nothing but silence coming from the man restrained to the table's ring by an extension chain added through his handcuffs. He glanced up into Jane's face various times throughout that time span, yet displayed zero notice or interest to the subtle signs both Jane and Lupine revealed.
"What do you think?" a low voice queried after closing the door to the observation/monitor room.
"Looks like my hypothesis isn't valid," Maura turned in Jane's direction. "It appears my original one is the most likely in which he may have some psychological issue or perhaps a brain tumor. However, without a proper MRI, it would only be speculation. Yet we need to get him into a stable mental state before even trying to run a proper examination.
"What is your 'extra instinct' sensing?" Maura asked, referring to Lupine. In settings of potentially being recorded or in public and Maura desired to hear of Lupine's point of view, she referred to it as Jane's "extra instinct." Due to the doctor not enjoying to rely on "gut instinct" or in her personal terms of "listening to my intestines" or "my intestines do not speak," everyone else who would hear it simply chalked it up as another one of Maura's "Google mouth terms."
A small ripple flashed through Jane's eyes before responding. "He's definitely hungry," the dark haired woman turned towards the window, "and could use a good bath." Her nostrils twitched, blowing out a deep breath. "But he emits no other signs beyond what I can sense. I believe you can help him better than any of us. His left wrist appears to have been injured and though he tries to ignore it, he is in pain."
Maura nodded, glad to have a confirmation on what she suspected of the man's left wrist being injured as she wrote a few short notes. "What type of food should I get him?"
Jane waved her hand slightly, but displaying a gesture in which only her friend understood. "Let me take care of it," she paused before twisting the doorknob. "Can you wait a little bit before going in? I'm going to get him something to eat."
Dr. Isles simply nodded as Jane exited the room.
"Hey," Jane's voice suddenly broke through M.E.'s thoughts.
Looking up from her book, Maura found Jane entering in her office carrying a bag of take out and a large package of beef jerky. "I figured since we missed lunch, I might as well pick us something up," she handed the doctor one of her favorite salads.
"Thank you," she placed a bookmark in the book, setting it aside before opening the container.
"Animal-list tick?" Jane sounded out, trying to read the book's title upside down.
"Animalistic behaviors," Maura clarified. "Brushing up on what types of psychological issues and mental disorders or illness that can cause a person's behavior to resemble that of a wild animal."
Nodding towards the package of beef jerky, she asked. "Is that for…'McGruff?'"
Jane smiled slightly as she unwrapped her hamburger. "Perhaps, but I mainly got him a hamburger," motioning towards the take out bag beside it. "Who knows, he may scarf it down as a certain other animal like nature I know!"
Maura chuckled as she heard a distinct, rumbling growl erupt from Jane's throat and a slight ripple of Lupine's annoyance pass through her eyes.
