Whoops. Almost forgot to post. Too busy writing. :) Lots of stuff coming... snapshots, The Missing Years, a one shot and more of this, of course!

Chapter 10

Sunday evening and Owen found himself on Main Street. If there was one downside to this whole fake dating thing, it was the amount of time he was now spending in the main park. He wasn't a fan of hanging around all the visitors, finding it generally too crowded for his liking. But, it was also the only area on the island, outside of the employee cafeteria, to eat out. It wasn't that he didn't like cooking (he did), but it was nice to go out some nights and drink a beer and watch a game or play pool.

He'd originally suggested to Claire that she come out to his place for their Sunday meetup, but she'd insisted that they meet in the park. Something about how if the point was that others were supposed to see them out in order to keep up their story, then they had to choose public places. There was some truth to her request, but after the week he'd had, he'd been hoping to escape the hustle and bustle of others and have a more relaxing evening. He also wasn't really sure how they were supposed to talk about confidential matters when surrounded by others.

Owen realized he should've expected that Claire would have a plan. That she would've thought all of this through. She did and she had.

She'd met him at the base of the Innovation Center and they'd chosen a restaurant together. He was a bit amazed she'd been willing to do so without a reservation. Actually, what surprised him even more about the evening, was that she didn't seem to be in a rush. They'd had a leisurely dinner, where they hadn't actually talked about the dinosaurs at all. Owen had tried to bring up Hoskins and indicate he had something he wanted to discuss, but Claire had just brushed the topic aside with "later." Confused, he'd followed her lead.

As he'd listened to her talk, there was a point where it sort of "clicked" that the dinner was really just a dinner and that she had a plan for them to talk after. He'd relaxed after that, and found himself getting caught up in the conversation. He listened as Claire gave him an update on her nephews, and he could tell that she had been taking an active interest in their lives. Owen was a little surprised just how easy it was to talk with Claire, when both of their defenses were down. Unlike their first date, when everything either one of them said seemed to set the other on edge, this time, with no expectations, he found them both relaxing and the laughter and conversation flowing.

After dinner, Claire suggested they go for a walk through the botanical gardens. He'd raised an eyebrow in surprise, but she'd just shrugged. "It's usually quite empty this time of night."

"Right, because it's dark," Owen reminded her.

"There's lights along the trails," Claire replied. "And I think it's prettier at night."

"How so?" Owen asked, following after her as they started walking towards it, choosing to skip the monorail.

"Well, like I said, it's a lot emptier at night," Claire started with. "And while it's not the right time of year now, in the early summer is the only time you can see the Dragon fruit cacti flower. They're a night flower."

"Were those around during the Jurassic era?"

"No. But they're pretty and grow well in this climate, so there are a few throughout the park."

"What else?" Owen reached out, and rested his hand on her back, guiding her as they weaved around a few groups of visitors.

"This one's going to sound a little stupid," Claire said. "But the way the lights are set up in some areas, the Christmas-style twinkly lights, it reminds me of chasing fireflies with my sister when I was little."

Once they passed the guests, Claire moved a bit farther from his side again, and as his hand drifted across her back, he slid it down her arm, grasping her hand lightly in his. She looked up at him in surprise and he just gave a slight head tilt towards the few employees who were watching them.

"Good memory?" Owen asked, bringing the conversation back to the topic.

"Yeah," Claire smiled, her gaze wistful. "One of my favourites. My sister's six years older than me. She didn't want to play with me a lot growing up, so the times she did…"

They walked in silence for a few minutes, passing a few more guests along the way. As they entered the gardens, Owen followed Claire's lead, as she seemed to know where she wanted to go along the paths.

He waited until they were out of sight of anyone else, before bringing up what he'd wanted to discuss. "So, Hoskins," he started. "He's been hanging around a lot lately."

"What's he doing?" Claire asked, their pace slowing as they wandered the garden paths.

"I wasn't really sure, at first," Owen said. "But, the other day when he was here, he was asking me about my training methods. Why do I train the way I do. Why don't I use negative reinforcement. Stuff like that. And it got me thinking, and the common theme to all of his visits recently is how specific he's been about everything we do with the raptors. He's asked about how long I was able to stay in the cage with them. And their individual behaviours. All stuff that is, to some degree, in the reports I submit. Except, the reports are more 'this is what happened' and he seems to be more interested in the 'why.' 'Why this and not that?'"

"Do you think he's researching for the new hybrid?" Claire asked. "What you're doing with the raptors could be used on a different dinosaur, right?"

"Yes and no," Owen admitted slowly. "I mean, there are general trainer philosophies and such. The bigger ideas, like how to use positive or negative reinforcement. Those sorts of things, of course, are transferable. But the more specifics… that's not so easy to say. A lot of what I choose to do is based on how the raptors have responded to earlier training. It's based on their personalities and their intelligence. I couldn't walk up to a Triceratops and repeat what I've done and get the same results."

"Do you think–?" Claire started, before cutting herself off. "No, couldn't be."

"What?" Owen stopped on the trail, turning to face her.

"It's nothing," Claire tried to dismiss it. "This isn't an area I know about, anyway."

"No, tell me," Owen insisted.

"It's just… well, we think Hoskins knows what the hybrid is being made of, right?" Claire confirmed and Owen nodded. "Well, maybe he has reason to believe that it will be useful."

"You're thinking that it might be… part raptor?" Owen said. He hated that he was finding himself agreeing with her. That it felt like some pieces may be clicking into place.

"It could be he just doesn't know," Claire tried to backtrack. "He may just think it's all interchangeable."

"Yeah," Owen agreed. "And, to be honest, normally I'd say he's dumb enough for that. But, well, we think he's working with Wu. And probably others. Even if he was too stupid, some of his comments… I think he's probably being coached on what to ask. I find it hard to believe he's really been reading studies on training methodologies."

"Part raptor," Claire breathed out slowly, and Owen took the opportunity to start walking along the trail again, Claire falling into step beside him. They walked for a bit before Claire spoke up again. "Do you think the Indominus?" Owen looked over, but she was already shaking her head. "No, that doesn't make sense. The thing was gigantic. It looked much more like a T. rex."

"Doesn't mean there wasn't any," Owen reminded her. "But, that thing really didn't look like any dinosaur. I mean, sure, the T. rex is closest, but that's mostly because of size and also being a theropod."

"I still haven't been able to get any more information on it," Claire said, frustration creeping into her voice. "I don't get why they're still hiding it all."

Owen wasn't sure what to say. He didn't understand any of the politics between the lab and people like Claire and Masrani or even InGen. He knew everyone was technically under the Masrani Global umbrella, but who worked for what and how information was shared had always seemed overly complicated to him. And as it was not something he really needed to actually know or understand, he preferred to just ignore it and stay in his own bubble.

"You know," Claire's voice interrupted Owen's thoughts, and he looked over, surprised by the determined look on her face. "I've been playing by the rules so far. But, I think I might know a way to find out."

"You know how to break rules?" Owen gasped in mock surprise, letting go of her hand and dodging away from her. He was about to tease her some more, but his gaze landed on the lights hidden in the trees around them. He spun slowly in a circle, taking in the small clearing they had stopped in. When he was facing Claire again, he nodded and simply said, "Fireflies. Yeah, I see it."

o-o-o

The following morning Claire started her day off as usual, by heading down to the control room after her check in with Zara. This time, though, she had an extra goal for her visit. She'd meant what she'd said to Owen the previous night, it was time to think about pushing the boundaries and maybe breaking (or at least bending) a few of the rules. If they didn't want to offer up the information, then she was going to do what she did best, and use the resources available to her.

Mondays were always the quietest day at Jurassic World, with many guests generally booking travel that had them heading home on Sunday, so they'd be back in time for the work and school week. While there was constant changeover everyday, there was always a bit of a lull on Mondays, and the whole park staff usually breathed a little easier, knowing they'd have a bit more time to catch up on everything from the hectic weekend.

The control room was no exception, the atmosphere much more relaxed and casual. As Claire worked on the weekends, she already knew how the previous days had gone, so there usually wasn't a lot of new information during her Monday round. Today was no different.

After having her regular check in conversation with Lowery and Vivian, she waited until just the right moment, distracting Vivian will a question about something on the screen, to slip a piece of paper to Lowery.

She wasn't even facing him, but she could tell the immediate change in his posture, and she quietly lifted a hand, gesturing for him to stay quiet. Thankfully, he seemed to get the message. Finishing up with Vivian, she turned to him, and she could see the piece of paper was sitting under his cup, mostly tucked out of sight. His gaze darted between the paper and her a few times, before he slightly raised his shoulders in question.

"Lowery, on the weekend they were having some trouble with a few of the gyrospheres. I know they took them temporarily out of circulation. Can you get me an update on their status? How long before we can get them back into rotation?"

Lowery looked a little surprised by her question, obviously expecting her to say something about the paper she'd passed him. "Sure thing," Lowery said slowly, his confusion apparent.

"I've got a lot of site visits today, so I might not make it back after lunch. If you could just send me a quick email when you find out?" Claire asked, and this time, she looked specifically at the note, hoping he'd pick up on what she wanted.

"Okay," Lowery nodded. He pulled his drink closer to him, sliding the paper over with it. "I'll get back to you as soon as I can."

"Thanks," Claire smiled at him gratefully. She knew he always liked the idea of conspiracies, even if Lowery didn't actually believe in them. She imagined he'd be fascinated by her request to dig into the Indominus files and see what he could find out.

Lowery's job didn't require someone with a particularly computer savvy background. But he kept his fingers on the pulse of the company, always in the know about the latest gossip, and always seemingly more connected than she could imagine. He seemed to be one of those people who others just trusted, and as he was quick to do favours for people, they all seemed to owe him something in return. Claire was hoping he'd be able to use a few of those for her and that he'd want to. She had a feeling the whole idea would intrigue him enough that he would.

o-o-o

Owen was getting used to looking up from his training to find Hoskins strutting around the paddock. But today, he was surprised when the footsteps he could hear climbing the paddock stairs sounded different. The gait was more measured, not what he was used to', and there was a bit more of a light metal clang to each step, not the heavy footfalls he associated with Hoskins, or really any of the people working at the paddock.

However, he was still in the middle of a staring contest with Blue, and so he couldn't risk looking away to see who had arrived. Whoever it was, they stopped at the top of the stairs and at least had the insight not to interrupt him.

"Come on, Blue," Owen said, staring at the raptor while he held the rat up high. He could see Blue's gaze darting between the rat and him and he knew she was debating if the task he'd asked for was worth the treat. "I said back up," Owen commanded her again, shaking the rat slightly. Blue growled, but didn't move.

Charlie was hovering just to Blue's left, and at Owen's command took a few steps backwards before looking up at him in a way that Owen interpreted as hopeful, her own gaze on the rat.

"This isn't for you, Charlie," Owen admonished, and Charlie let out a whine, backing up a few more steps. "Blue, are you watching your sister?" Owen said. "If you don't back up I may actually give it to her."

Blue's gaze darted briefly towards Charlie and she let out a snarl, before returning her focus to Owen.

"Okay, this is your last chance," Owen said, standing up straighter. He clicked the clicker he held and commanded again. "Back up!"

Again, Blue didn't move, her stance lowering and becoming more defensive. Owen held her gaze for another few seconds, before sighing and turning towards Charlie, who had, again, backed up a few more steps.

"Here, Charlie," Owen tossed the rat at the raptor, and he watched, amused, as Blue tried desperately to leap for it, but was knocked out of the way by Charlie jumping from behind, having predicted Blue's action. Charlie gobbled the rat down in a single bite, not daring to hesitate as Blue immediately charged towards her. "That's what happens when you don't want to listen," Owen shrugged, when Blue looked up at him and whined. "Think about your actions. We'll try again later."

He slipped the clicker into a pocket on his vest before wiping his hands on a rag he had tucked into his back pocket. Finally remembering the arrival of a visitor, he turned, surprised to find Claire waiting for him.

"Hey, this is a nice surprise," Owen said, walking towards her. He used the few steps between them to give her a quick look over. While he did (really) appreciate the casual look she'd had on a few occasions, her boss look still got to him. The way she exuded control and confidence, with everything always looking perfectly in place, from the razor sharp cut of her hair to the lack of scuff marks on her shoes. It was a look that both pulled him in while also making him feel out of his league. He looked down at his hands, rubbing at them a bit harder with the rag, but knowing he wasn't going to really be able to get them clean, not until he had a chance to use the sink. He shoved the rag into his back pocket

"You really weren't kidding when you said they only sometimes follow your orders," Claire said, looking past him into the paddock where Blue was angrily pacing back and forth.

"Blue's just being stubborn," Owen said, following Claire's gaze. "I'll give her a short break and we'll try again." He looked back at Claire. "What's up?"

"I had a break in my schedule," Claire said, averting her eyes from him and Owen's curiosity was sparked. "I've been visiting a bunch of paddocks this week and was near, so thought I'd stop by."

"Yeah?" Owen said. "Have you heard anything from Lowery yet?"

"Not yet," Claire sighed. "But, his email on Monday did say he thought it'd take a few days." She took a step forward, closer to the paddock railing. Owen followed her, resting his hands on the railing as he looked down into the now empty area, Blue having disappeared into the jungle cover. "Does it ever sort of creep you out how they can just disappear so completely?"

"I'm used to it," Owen said with a chuckle. "But, yeah, the first couple of weeks after we transferred them out here were interesting, to say the least. They were also a lot smaller. One moment you could hear them crashing through the jungle and the next… silence. It was a bit unnerving at first. We'd end up calling for them to come out, just wanting to confirm they were still here. Still alive. However, we let them be more now. It's good for them to have downtime. And to have time where they don't feel like they're always under a microscope."

"Yeah, that sounds nice," Claire said, wistfulness creeping into her tone.

"Bad day?" Owen asked, a bit curious.

"Regular day," Claire shrugged. Her phone beeped and she pulled it out and read a message, letting out another sigh. "I've got to get going." She turned towards the stairs, and Owen followed, walking down the steps beside her.

"You know," Owen said, as they headed over to her car. "You should come by my place later. Spend some time in the hammock and just decompress for a bit."

"Your place?" Claire asked, pausing by her car. "That's not so public. Doesn't really help us out."

He glanced around, confirming no one was in hearing distance, but dropped his voice a bit lower anyway. "It doesn't all have to be for show," Owen shrugged. "Besides, people apparently saw your car at my place last time. It'll still get around. It wouldn't be a bad thing for people to see that. It's been over a month. We probably should be stepping it up a bit."

"Stepping it up?" Claire looked a little tentative at the idea.

"While these visits are good and all," Owen explained, "It's a little weird that our dating only ever seems to be in public."

"Well, we're not actually dating," Claire said, her own voice a whisper.

"I know that," Owen groaned. "But if we want others to believe… Anyway, just think about it. Might be good to add some variety. To change things up a bit. Not just meet up because your calendar tells you to." Claire's gaze shot to her phone at the comment, and Owen burst out laughing. "Seriously? You've got us scheduled?"

"I'm organized," Claire defended herself weakly. "I told you that my schedule's packed. I wanted to make sure I actually had time for this."

"Well, thanks, I guess," Owen said, still laughing. He pulled her car door open and watched as Claire climbed in. Ducking down, he said, "I wasn't kidding about the hammock. Think about it." Claire looked at him and nodded slowly. Deciding to take his own advice on stepping it up, Owen dropped a quick kiss on her lips before she had a chance to realize what was happening. Standing back up, he grinned down at her, and said loudly, for anyone around, "See you tonight." Shutting the door, he watched as Claire shook her head at him, trying to look mad, but the smile playing across her lips told him otherwise. He stood there watching as she drove off, waiting until she was out of sight before turning back to the paddock. Time to go and try to deal with Blue again.

o-o-o

Considering Lowery's first email to Claire had mainly consisted of an update on the status of the broken gyrospheres with an extra line at the bottom that said "your other request will take a few days," she probably shouldn't have been surprised when the latest one just said "I've got something." She checked the email for an attachment, but there was nothing there. Glancing at her schedule she realized she'd have to wait until she made it to the control room after lunch to ask Lowery for more information.

Of course, the anticipation meant the morning seemed to last forever. Meetings and work she'd normally find engaging and rewarding just felt like a waste of time. It all felt like it was just designed to keep her away from the control room and away from the information. She really hoped that Lowery wasn't going to disappoint.

By the time she made it to the control room, she was ready to throw her phone out the window. She'd made the mistake of texting Owen that Lowery had an update. She thought he probably wouldn't see the message until lunch (at the earliest), but most likely the end of the day. However, apparently whatever he was up to that day had him in and out of his office, as he had been sending her texts asking if she had talked to Lowery yet every half hour or so, even though she'd told him she wouldn't find out until after lunch.

As the elevator doors opened into the control room, Claire saw Lowery glance over at her, before turning back to his desk and fiddling with the couple of books he had propped up. She decided to approach her visit as normal, moving over to stand between him and Vivian, asking for an update.

She watched as Lowery pulled out one of the books and was about to ask him what was going on, when she saw him slide an envelope out of it. She hid her grin over all the cloak and dagger actions that she and Lowery were apparently now engaging in. Turning towards Vivian, Claire asked for a few more details about why the ACU and vet team were out in the Gyrosphere valley. As Vivian answered — a Stegosaurus needed some dental work — Claire set her phone on the small desk space. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lowery slip the envelope under her phone.

Claire rushed through the rest of her visit, eager to read whatever Lowery had slipped her. She confirmed that the ACU and vet visit wasn't impacting the gyrosphere experience and got an update on the number of kids in lost-and-found (she never understood how so many parents managed to lose their kids each day). Scooping up her phone and grabbing the envelope with it, she left the control room with her usual reminder for them to contact her if anything happened and that she'd be back at the end of the day.

The moment the elevator doors closed, she tore into the envelope, pulling out the contents. There was a sticky note on the top that just said "you owe me" in Lowery's chicken scratch. Claire pulled it off, crumpling it into a little ball, as she separated the pages beneath, surprised and a little disappointed to realize there were only two. She had been hoping for a treasure trove of information. Two pages felt very anti-climatic. However, as she skimmed them, she realized that it wasn't about the quantity.

The first page was a breakdown of the Indominus' DNA. While the Indominus was definitely based on the T. rex (95.7%), it was the remaining 4.3% that was interesting. There was a list of eight different species. The first few she recognized, as they were sort of the Jurassic World "go to" species for filling in the breaks in the DNA. However cuttlefish and tree frogs were both new, and there was something about frogs that had her pause briefly, sure there was a previous connection her brain was trying to make. However, it was the line "Velociraptor — 2.4%" that made her breath catch. Raptor? Why would they have been using raptor?

Flipping to the second page, she saw it provided the reasoning behind the various species. The cuttlefish genes had been used to allow for an accelerated growth rate. The tree frog genes to help it adapt to a tropical climate. And the raptor genes were used to help augment the T. rex predator features. Claire shuddered briefly. She didn't understand why anyone would want an animal to be more fierce than the T. rex. Sure, she got it from a business standpoint. But, in her opinion, the T. rex was plenty scary, and if the goal was to remind people how small they were, you didn't need a creature that would be happy to eat you to do so. The sheer size of the Apatosaurus and Brachiosaurus always made her feel small.

As the elevator doors opened on her floor, Claire stuffed the pages back into the envelope. Walking down the hall to her office, she knew she needed to send Owen a message. Even though they had already started to speculate that raptor DNA might be involved in the new hybrid, she knew he was not going to be happy. She debated what to say, writing and rewriting her text a few times. She decided not to send the details, since it would be easier to have the conversation in person than attempt it over text. She finally settled on: Lowery got the breakdown. I'll show you tonight.

So... thoughts? Questions? Anything? All feedback is welcomed and greatly appreciated.