Chapter Five 10
Title: Project: More Teeth
Author: Divine Dark Angel
Summary: If the I-rex had been prevented from killing her sibling, if someone had stepped in and stopped IGen and the people of Jurassic World from isolating them and had gotten them properly socialized, if they had been trained to know what they are…how would life be different for the I-rex sisters and the rest of the park?
Rating: M for mentions of death and a mature relationship.
Pairing: Owen/Claire, Oc/Katashi Hamada
Disclaimer: All characters that you recognize belong to and are copywrite of Universal. The recognizable plot items and other such things are also copyrighted to Universal. I am simply playing in the rich world they have created for us.
Emma stripped out of her wetsuit in the bathroom and placed it over the rack to rinse out later. The glass door of the shower allowed her two white shadows to observe their mother apply bubbly smelly stuff all over her body and into the long fur on her head. Emma quickly ran a hand over her limbs to make sure that there weren't any stray patches of fuzz that the wax left behind. Satisfied that she was still smooth as one of her whales, she rinsed off and stepped out onto the bathmat. Wrapping her hair in one towel and another one around her body, she moved over to the vanity to root around for her after-sun lotion. It smelled like coconut and hibiscus and she absolutely loved it. After slicking the lotion all over she wiped her hands off on the towel and let her hair down to finish air drying. She would have to flat iron it later or it would be a puffy mane straight out of the lion king in this humidity.
The girls warbled at her and sniffed her ankle before sneezing and giving her a baleful look. She giggled at them and moved into her main living area. Singing to herself she danced her way over to the closet and sorted through her meager 'good clothes'. The girls warbling became silent, and she heard their talons clicking on the tile as they stalked into the kitchen. A yelp alerted her to the fact that she was not alone in her apartment as she thought and she whirled to block her nude body with the closet door.
A male voice she recognized from brief conversations yesterday caused her to stick her head around the door to see Owen Grady sitting at her kitchen island, a plate with a sandwich and a glass of water in front of him. His attention was directed to the two predators sniffing at his boots, watching them warily to make sure that they didn't take a chunk out of them. Emma growled under her breath, yanking her silk robe off a hanger and making a mental note to get the locks changed.
"Mr. Grady, how so very nice of you to stop by and raid my fridge. I so appreciate it when people come into my domain and don't tell me they are here!" Emma's sweet voice proceeded her around the door, the short silk robe hitting her mid-thigh. Patterned black with soft pink cherry blossoms, the robe had been a gift from an ex-boyfriend that had been spared the fire the rest of his 'gifts' had fed simply because she adored it. It wasn't something she would usually greet guests in, but since she had just danced naked in front of this guest she figured it wouldn't hurt.
"Oh, hey Emma! Yeah, I still had my key and figured I'd wait for you to get back from training. Didn't even hear you in the shower, my bad." Owen grinned at her, "Nice moves by the way, pretty sure the commander would love to see that!"
"Nefret, bite him." Emma giggled at Owen's panicked look, "They aren't trained for that…. yet. I appreciate you NOT mentioning this to Katashi, I don't think you'd walk away from it. Girls, venit."
The girls came over to her, vocalizing with whistles and clicks. She chucked each of them under the jaw and walked over to the 'dino-fridge'. Removing two of the containers, she took a seat next to Owen and popped them open. The girls crouched in front of her as she began the now routine meat toss game. Each one caught more chunks than they missed now, and Emma was pleased to see their coordination improving.
"They're doing very well for it being day two. The raptors couldn't catch anything until they were almost a month old. My partner and I had to grind everything up in a blender and feed them with a turkey baster. Which reminds me, don't use the green blender." Owen watched the feeding routine for another minute or two before asking what commands they knew.
"They're reliable with venit, autem, decendit, and manere. That's come, up, down, and stay in English. I train my animals in Latin, that way they won't ignore them as chatter when I'm with other people. Our next command is going to be 'inveniet': 'find'. I'm going to wait until they're a bit older for that, since I need to order a few things from the big cat trainers back home."
"I might have some things you can use? I use a pig now, but before that we had some hard rubber cylinders with holes in them that we hid in the enclosure. The raptors want things that run and aren't' interested in the tubes anymore. I have a few that are about this big," he held his big hands about a foot apart, "on three different colors. They can see in color, just so you know. Blue can choose the correct target every time, she knows the primary colors and some of the sub shades. Delta and Charlie are a little less reliable, they're at about seventy-five percent. Echo is the worst at it, she's like fifty-fifty. I think she just gets impatient and doesn't want to actually think about it. We also have Kevlar blended harnesses we used when they were about your girls' size, I think we left them in a cabinet around here somewhere…."
"Yeah, I found them earlier when I took them to training with me. Turned out to be overkill, I ended up carrying them. They're really not fond of 'em though, so we're gonna have to practice with them. I'd like to get a look at your tubes, that sounds like it would work for the seek-and-find games. Nefret likes to play fetch, I need to order a few more big game balls for her. Might stock the water feature with some smallish fish and let them try and hunt those…"
"Yeah, that'd be a good idea. You have at least a year before you should be too concerned about having to really work them. The raptors were the size of Dobermans until they had a growth spurt at a year and a half, then they were about the size of a miniature horse. They're almost full grown now and blue's head is taller than mine when she's fully alert. Your girls are gonna be what, Rexy's height?"
"Taller, and fifteen meters long. Projected full growth in six to seven years, the good doctor altered their genes to make them grow faster. That man infuriates me, always looking at the bottom line instead of what's good for the animals." Emma's eyes narrowed as the two girls waddled off to collapse into their nest of blankets, noses tucked under tails.
"Yeah, I've seen the type. Burns my ass almost as much as my superiors trying to militarize my girls." Owen grinned at her, seeing the embarrassed look on her face. "I know the rumors Emma, but over my dead body will my girls be sent off to fight in a goddamn war that has nothing to do with them. It's bad enough my old pod is being used to find mines and enemy submarines, there'll be hell to pay if they try and take the girls."
Emma had to realign the view she had held for the last three years of the trainer in front of her. When she was hired, she had been introduced to all the other 'asset handlers' and Owen had flirted with her. She knew about his dolphins, everyone in the large marine mammal training game knew everyone else if only by name. He was respected in his training techniques and was rumored to ensure that his charges weren't sent on missions he knew would result in losses. When Emma learned that he was here to train the raptors and that IGN was involved she cut all ties with him and avoided the trainer get-togethers that she knew he'd be attending. Now Emma felt like shit for assuming that the water-cooler gossip she'd heard about the guy in front of her was complete bullshit.
Looking at her two charges asleep together in their pile, she wondered how Owen had felt watching his girls do the same things she now watched hers do. "Owen, I-I'm sorry. For all the stupid shit I said yesterday and avoiding you like you had plague, and listening to those stupid hippies at the breakroom meetings, and thinking you'd ever put your girls in danger, and-"
Owen held his hand up at her in a stop gesture, "Dude, Emma, don't worry about it. I know the truth and my team knows the truth and that's the important part. It's cool."
Emma blinked and nodded, "Thanks, appreciate it. Any ideas on how I'm gonna get the two to sleep outside?"
"Um, are you gonna camp outside? 'Cause that's the only way you won't damage the bond. The girls lived in here until they were around two. They get a little more independent at that age and will make their own mini nest out in the paddock. I left the door open for the six months after they chose to move outside, but they usually stayed outside. Helps that you only have the two, although I hear that they're trying to make a male to put in the habitat with them."
"I'm sorry, what?! The fuck do they think they're doing?! Are they trying to actually breed these animals in the 'wild'? Where would they put them? This island is only so big!" Emma's tone change caused Nefret to poke her head out and whistle, and Emma dropped her voice down to a whisper in an attempt to let the baby go back to sleep. "Seriously, what fuckery do those idiots think they're doing? Even if, and it's a big if, they hatch a male successfully who says the girls will even accept a male into their territory? Shit, they might not even be content sharing their territory with each other!" Emma ran hands through her short hair in frustration. If the girls had been outside in the enclosure, she would have paced the apartment. The girls picked up on agitation easily, so Emma had to fight with herself to remain calm. The sleeve of her robe slipped off and bared her nude shoulder reminding her that she was having a conversation with a guy in nothing but a thin silk robe. The flush crept up her neck and down her chest, barely visible under the dark tan she sported from laying out in the drop tank.
Owen chuckled and realized she was becoming uncomfortable, "I'm gonna head out, we have night feeding at 2000. Takes me twenty minutes to get across this damn park, and I'm hoping our 'guests' are already enjoying the restaurants and pool. People move like molasses around here. I'll catch ya next week?"
"Yeah, Owen. Come by whenever, not like I'm going anywhere. If I'm not here check the tank." Emma walked him to the door, opening the interior door to find Katashi with his hand raised to knock. "Ohmigod Katashi! Owen what time is it?"
"Uh…1930-ish I think? Shop-talk took longer than we intended. Hey Commander! That smells amazing, can't stay! See ya next week Emma, I'll ask one of the dudes at the raptor compound to drop those toys by!" Owen squeezed by Katashi's still form and waltzed out of the exterior door, waving over his shoulder as he went.
Emma's green eyes were narrowed at his retreating back, her robe sleeve sliding off her shoulder again. Katashi's eyes traced the exposed skin, noting the soft swell of her breasts and perked nipples from the chill in the hallway. The silk clung to her athletic figure, hugging her waist and hips before ending in the middle of her thighs. Katashi swallowed, his grip on the thermal bag's handles tightening.
Emma's blush was back in full force, a hand rising to tug her sleeve back up and try and flatten her hair down. Self-conscious was a feeling Emma didn't feel often. She knew she was an attractive woman, her body lean and toned from all the training she did in the water as well as her morning jogs around the employee track. The lovely amber tone of her skin flattered her green eyes and set off the wild colors in her hair. Naturally a blonde. Emma had started dying her hair silver when she lost a good friend to complications from type one diabetes. The purple was added when a friend's son passed from SUDEP (sudden unexpected death from epilepsy). She wore minimal make-up, usually only eye-liner and mascara with a red lipstick, and only when she was going out. It wasn't practical to wear a full face of makeup when she was likely to be in the water for most of her day. Raccoon eyes were only cute on the actual animals, and Emma wasn't fond of trying to get the black smudges out of her wetsuit.
A square jaw was offset by a set of full lips and a nose that fit her face well. Her eyes saved her face from being otherwise unremarkable, and she played that feature up by wearing her hair short to bring attention to them and soften her chin. Katashi's eyes were locked on hers now, holding them as she scrambled to think of what to say.
"I'm sorry Katashi, he was here when I got out of the shower. He still has his key and I thought I was alone and Ohmigod it's so damn embarrassing and I would never have danced around naked if I'd have known he was in the kitchen and then this was the fastest thing I could find to wear and then we got to talking and I forgot what I was wearing because I got so involved in training plans for the girls and time got away from us but nothing happened because even though he really loves his animals he's still so damn cocky and has nothing on you…I mean uh, I like you much better because you don't look at me the way Nefret looks at the meat container and I can't tell you how much I really like that about you and…" Emma's panic mounted as she babbled, eyes pinned to the collar of Katashi's deep blue polo.
"Emma, stop. I know how Mr. Grady can be. It is okay, but dinner is becoming cold and we should eat." Katashi used his spare hand to gently turn her around and guide her to the island and allowed her to resume her seat on the barstool. His hand burned from the heat of her through the thin silk robe as he unpacked the thermal cooler he carried. "I hope you enjoy pad thai, it is the only recipe of my mother's that is not likely to give you horrible heartburn."
Emma's eyes widened as she saw the containers emerging from the cooler, "You made all this? It smells amazing!"
The girls had woken from their nap when Owen left but remained in their nest as their mothers-mate laid out their meal. Since their mother was flushed and emitting pheromones so strong the twin girls knew it was likely to end in mating, they wisely remained in their nest until called for. Instinct controlled these behaviors in most infant predators, from lions to panthers to wolves. The males would kill cubs who interfered in mating, so they stayed away when mating behavior began. Being neither hungry or playful, the girls were content to lay in the warm blankets.
Katashi glanced over at them, eyes crinkling as he observed them observing their 'parents'. "Your terrors are watching us. Perhaps they too would like some pad thai?"
Emma glanced over her shoulder at the girls in their blankets. They stared back at her before cuddling back together and closing their eyes. "It seems not, I'm not sure they should eat anything other than the meat prepped for them. I dunno what their diet would be in the wild because I have no idea what the mad scientist modified."
She leaned one arm on the island and put her chin in her hand. Watching Katashi made her mouth dry, his broad shoulders flexing as he plated the food and poured glasses of sweet plum wine. He slid the plates across the island then came around and handed her a pair of chopsticks as he took the chair next to her, sliding it closer to her than Owen had. Emma realized how hungry she was as the tangy sweet smell of pad thai hit her nose, but she was hopeless with chopsticks and couldn't get the rice noodles to cooperate. Katashi watched her struggle amusedly for a moment before he produced a fork and held it out in front of her.
"Something that the proficient Ms. McGovern is bad at? This is something I did not expect." Katashi's dark eyes were warm as she glanced up at him sheepishly. Placing the chopsticks down on the counter, she reached for the fork. Katashi held it father from her than she could comfortably reach, causing her to place a hand on his thigh for balance. The sleeve of her robe slid down again, and this time he leaned forward to place a kiss at the back of her neck. She let out a small gasp, fingers closing around the fork and brushing his as she pulled back. Katashi met her eyes knowingly, pretending to not be affected by the sight of her bare shoulder. He expertly applied his chopsticks to his plate of pad thai, chewing calmly and taking sips of wine. Emma watched him with eyes glazed for a few moments, mesmerized by the dexterity of his hands on the glorified twigs.
The smell lured her back to the noodles, which her fork tames easily. The first taste had her letting out a contented moan, one that Katashi felt in the pit of his gut. Ignoring the fact that she was practically naked was going to kill him, of that he was absolutely sure.
'I should have insisted she dress before dinner; my self-control is not going to last if she insists on being vocally appreciative of my food.' He kept eating, watching her out of the corner of his eye. She was expressive with her enjoyment, eating like one who truly loved good food. Her little moans and sighs as she consumed her meal sent tingles through his body, the warmth of her hand on his thigh radiating out from that one spot until his whole leg was on fire from her touch. His eyes followed her as she lifted her wine glass to her lips and drained the remaining wine from the flute.
"Would you like more wine?' Katashi attempted to rise, but her hand on his leg prevented him. She shook her head and smiled up at him dreamily, blinking her eyes slowly. "Why Ms. McGovern, are you inebriated?"
"Um….maaaayyyybbbeee?" Emma dragged out the syllables of the word, leaning in to put her head against his upper arm, "Ah don't….."
Katashi waited to see if she would finish her thought, but she was staring out across the kitchen. He nudged her with his shoulder, asking her wordlessly to finish her thought.
"Drink. Ah don't drink. At least not often. Never with a guy Ah'm not seein'." Emma rolled her head so she could gaze up at his face, "Am Ah seein' you Commander? Ah'd like to see under this really nice polo ya wearin'…."
Katashi's face warmed and he hoped she was tipsy enough to not notice. The soft twang in her voice caused the tingling to travel the rest of his body, not only his thigh. He tilted his head so he could look in her eyes, seeing them warm and open. She didn't seem so intoxicated that she was incapable of remembering what they discussed, so he answered.
"I would enjoy being exclusively in your company Ms. McGovern. Since I intend to be head of your security detail, it would be advisable to be close…." Katashi was cut off by the pressure increasing on his leg as she used her hand as leverage to close the distance and press her lips against the side of his jaw. He turned slightly to tug her off her seat and into his lap, the silk robe sliding open as her legs slid around his hips. He had to lock down hard on his libido as she pressed into his body, sliding her hands under his polo. She tugged up on the shirt and pulled it off his head, running her fingers over his chest as soon as the shirt hit the floor. Her gaze travelled over the exposed skin, taking in the tattoo over his heart and the complete lack of hair on his chest. A strangled groan escaped his throat as she shifted forward on his lap to press kisses along his collar bone. His arms wrapped around her, one around her lower back the other around her shoulders.
Katashi knew he had to slow her down, their relationship was nowhere near ready for this. Had he known her reaction to alcohol he would have brought something else, but he could not argue with the decisions made. He tightened his arms and snugged her tightly to his body, using is hand to press her head into his shoulder. Breathing slowly allowed him to slow his heartrate and regain control of his reaction to her. The pliant way she relaxed into him was reassuring, knowing that she would never allow someone to hold her thus if she did not trust them. Instant attraction aside, Katashi wanted to build a relationship with this woman and a quick fuck was not the way to do so.
He's watched this in other trainers, seen them respond to each other the way he was sure animals did. Reading body language was a vital part of their job descriptions, keeping them alive when working with large predators. This resulted in fast relationships built mostly on mutual lust, satisfying but short. Katashi stroked his hands up and down her spine, the expression on his face pensive. He believed that Emma was special and wanted to pursue her on both the biblical and emotional level, a feeling that grew with every minute spent in her company.
A soft sigh from the woman in his arms brought him out of his thoughts. He pressed a soft kiss to the soft mess her hair had dried to and slid his hands under her ass so that when he stood she was supported against his chest. She was so petit her feet dangled at his knees as he carried her over to her bed. Placing his knee on the mattress, his hand slid up her back to cradle her head as he eased her to the bed. The robe was gaping even further open now, showing the upper curve of her breasts. With great restraint he tugged the quilt up to cover her and went to clean up the kitchen. A soft sigh from the woman on the bed caused a twinge in his chest, but when he turned to check on her the dark eyelashes fanned on her cheek.
The twins crawled over to him, peeping and keeping their heads down. He had seen this in other carnivore hatchlings when they approached their keepers for food. Not wanting to wake Emma, he went to the fridge and pulled out the last two containers of meat. The hatchlings knew what this meant and assumed what Emma called 'feeding crouch'. Katashi cracked open the containers and set them on the floor in front of the girls. Turning away from them, he quickly loaded the dishwasher and put the leftovers in the 'people-fridge'. When he finished, he saw the girls were staring at him still in the 'feeding crouch'. The bowls of meat were sitting in front of them untouched, and Katashi rolled his eyes.
"You are spoiled infant monsters. You must learn to feed yourselves, but I will assist you just this one time." Katashi sat on the floor and parceled out the meat evenly to both hatchlings. "Now you go outside and eliminate your waste. Then you may come back in to sleep in your nest. No waking your mother-monster, no shredding bed linens."
Katashi slid open the doors and walked the girls outside. He did not have to wait long, as the twins did their business quickly in the chilly night air. He realized his shirt was still on the floor of the kitchen, and made a note to retrieve it when he had the girls settled. They came back inside and he shut and latched the door. The girls went immediately to their nest of blankets and burrowed in to get warm. Katashi ensured that they had enough bedding to achieve warmth then returned to Emma.
When he placed his knee on the mattress, she opened her eyes and blinked sleepily at him, "Are ya stayin'?"
"I am not sure that is a good idea amoure, my control is near gone." Katashi's soft voice caressed her ears, a deep rumble in his chest. He brushed the hair out of her eyes, and traced his finger down her cheek.
"It's dark outside sugah, jus' stay here. Ah'll put mah sexy footie pajamas on an everythin'll be fine." Emma tried to get up, but Katashi put his hand on her shoulder and pushed her back down. He slid into bed with her, tugging her into his arms quilt and all. She murmured and threw one shapely leg over his hips. She lay her head above his heart and laced her hand with his to rest on his abdomen. Had she been more awake she would have appreciated the chiseled musculature under her fingers. As it was, his warmth and heartbeat soothed her into a complete sleep.
Katashi waited until he was sure that she would remain asleep before slipping out from under her and tucking the quilt around her shoulders. He pressed a soft kiss to her temple before slipping his shirt back on and grabbing his cooler. Quietly, he slid out of the inner door and paused to engage the lock on the outer door before pulling it shut. The expression Emma called his 'micro-smile' was firmly fixed to his face as he walked back to the ACU apartment complex, not even feeling the chill in the air.