Chapter Four 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.

A soft churring woke Emma the next morning, that and the soft bumping of a hard little snout under her jaw. The events of the previous day came back in a rush when her eyes flew open to see Nefret's face inches from her nose. The tiny creature squeaked and fell off her mother's chest, landing on the other body Emma only now noticed was in the bed next to her. The infant dino froze as she realized she landed on her mother's mate, lifting her tiny head to stare at the giant male. Considering herself lucky for not getting attacked, Nefret crept carefully across the golden expanse of male chest underneath her.

Katashi grumbled and twitched as the tiny infant's talons pricked his skin as she inched across his bare chest. He stirred enough to lift the her off of his chest and set her on the floor before turning on his side to face where Emma lay next to him. Still only marginally awake, he reached out and wrapped his hands around her to tug her over to him. Emma squeaked, but held herself still as twin heads popped up to watch the interaction. Forcing herself to relax, she allowed Katashi to wrap around her and rest his head on top of hers. The short tuffs of her hair tickled his nose so he rubbed his chin over her head to smooth them back down. Emma giggled into his chest and he rumbled back at her.

'I should seriously wake him up, he's going to be so embarrassed!' Emma considered it for all of half a minute before deciding to simply return to sleep herself.

The minute her eyes slid closed, the terrible twosome climbed back into the 'nest' to attempt rousing their mother again. Hunger gave them bravery as they slinked up behind their mother's languid body. Resting their forepaws on the squishy surface under their mother-mates head, the two nuzzled into his hair. Their talons tangled in the squishy mat as they attempted to rouse the male, and in their struggle to free themselves they only got hopelessly tangled in the warmth keepers.

Katashi came fully awake at the noise and movement, instantly alert and scanning for the disturbance. His arms tightened around the small figure he currently held, tugging her tightly into the protective curve of his chest. She came to full awareness at that, beginning to struggle against his hold as the rough movement tugged on her thigh wounds. The twin terrors, now completely tangled in the sheets and making pathetic peeping noises, continued to weakly thrash in attempts to free themselves and come to their mother's assistance.

Katashi released Emma quickly, sitting up and scooting to the side of the bed as fast as he could. An embarrassed red tinge crept up his neck, and his shoulders hunched over as he placed his elbows on his knees. Muttering apologies in a multitude of languages, all Emma could pick out were a few words in English.

She sat up as well, her tee shirt twisted up around her waist. Embarrassed, she tugged her shirt straight and whistled at her errant children. The girls stopped their struggle with the sheets and peeped pathetically up at her, only their snouts visible. Her burst of laughter caused Katashi to turn his head and glance at the source of her amusement, causing him to begin chuckling as well.

Emma soothed her two girls, murmuring praise and reassurance as she unwound the sheets from around their spindly bodies. The poor pillow Katashi had used the night before was in foam pieces from the tender care of the girls' talons, and Emma made a mental note to replace it. The sheets had faired a little better, but here too were signs of the girls' affection. Long rips were torn into the cotton sheets, the quilt having been mostly spared since one or the other of them had pushed it onto the floor.

"I'm going to have to order more sheets and another pillow," Emma managed to get out through her giggle fit. Her sides hurt from holding in the majority of her laughter, not wanting the two predators to be startled. "Wanna help me pick 'em out Hamada? Or do you need to go terrify some of the new recruits?"

The fierce commander of the ACU had reappeared while Emma had been untangling the mass of baby dino and cotton. His shoulders straightened and he stood from the edge of the bed to gather his discarded shirt and uniform, "Apologies again for the imposition Ms. McGovern, and for this morning's incident. It was completely inappropriate and will not happen again. I will assign your security detail at once. Have a pleasant morning."

Without looking at her, the commander quickly tugged on his boots over bare feet and strode quickly to the door leading to the outside. It connected to another door through a short hallway so that there was no straight shot for an infant carnivore to escape into the park proper. Emma stared after the commander for a solid minute until Nefret butted her hand.

"Right then, no sense trying to figure that man out. Are you hungry girls? Thought so, Let's see if they stocked with you two in mind." Emma eased herself to her feet carefully. The wounds stung as the movement pulled against the glorified superglue Katashi had sealed them together with. "Come on little beasties, food for everyone will make the day better!"

Emma hobbled over to the kitchen and pulled open the fridge. One side of the duel doors held common staples for people; milk, eggs, lunchmeat, etc. The other side held neatly packaged containers of red meat, each one dated and labeled. Pulling out a container each for her charges, plus a prepackaged fruit salad from the 'people-fridge', she hooked an ankle around one of the barstools and dragged it over to the island. Hitching a hip up on the stool, she cracked open the seal of the meat container and gave the command for the girls to come. They both crouched in front of her on all four legs, tiny heads cocked back with their mouths open. Emma smiled at them and tossed a hunk of the raw meat into each little maw. With her other hand she popped the lid of her fruit salad and plucked out a piece of pineapple for herself. Thus the three broke fast, Emma alternating between each infant and herself. Once the bowls were empty and the little ones were no longer interested in more, Emma placed the re-sealable meat bowl in the sink and washed her hands.

The twosome followed her as she went to the orderly stacks of boxes that were her things. Seeing them neatly labeled and stacked in order of what she might need the most. The small box on the top read toiletries and Emma toted it into her decently sized bathroom to unpack it. Her twin charges followed after her, their talons clicking on the tile. Seeing that their mother wasn't going to be up to anything interesting, they quickly curled up together on the fluffy rug in front of the bathtub and went promptly to sleep.

As she unpacked Emma kept a close eye on them, but other than relocating to their 'nest' of blankets in the living area, they seemed content to remain near her and not cause a fuss. When they became restless and hungry again Emma pulled another container of meat from the fridge and fed them. As she had finished unpacking and the little monsters seemed to be unwilling to settle down for another nap, Emma decided an excursion into the paddock couldn't hurt. Checking her watch, she realized that she had plenty of time until her training session with Nenet and so began the arduous task of getting ready for her day.

After a quick shower and redressing of the wounds on her thigh, Emma pulled on her high-legged sleeveless wetsuit and the khaki/polo uniform that covered it. As hard as she tried, the laced boots she usually wore simply couldn't be tied. Giving up with a sigh she slipped her feet into thong sandals and whistled for the girls. A crash sounded from the bathroom before the two little beasties stuck their heads around the doorframe. Since Nefretari was covered in pink powder, Emma determined that she must have crawled up on the vanity and knocked over her meager cosmetics. Grinning she slid the doors leading into the paddock open and stepped out into the humid heat of midday island. The girls crept out after her, crowding around her ankles as they touched down into the grass. Flexing their talons into the ground delighted them for a few moments until they realized that their inattention had allowed their mother to wander away from them. They quickly scampered to catch up to her, the infant awkwardness still in their steps.

Emma grinned as she heard their progress catch up to her, their awkward gait causing more than a few plants to be uprooted. As the two scampered behind her, Emma explored the perimeter of the enclosure. Other than being planted with ferns and a myriad of trees, there were tracks worn into the vegetation wide enough for a single adolescent or a human and her two infant dinos. In the far eastern corner was the water feature that Emma had seen yesterday. As she approached it she could see that there was a small strip of sandy beach that led into the cool water. Delighted, Emma slipped off her sandals and stepped into the water. She could see where the filtration system was built into the waterfall feature on the back wall of the enclosure. Testing the water showed that it was fresh and not salt water and her delight was even more than it was when she found the beach. The twins crept to the edge of the water and dipped their snouts into the water to drink. Emma stood up to her knees and waited to see if the two would attempt to swim to her.

Nefretari paced back and forth on the beach, chirping at her. Nefret made brief forays into the shallows, but always turned back before her head could slip under the water. Emma patted the space in front of her and called them, wanting them to at least attempt to swim. Nefretari finally plopped into the water and dog paddled her way towards her mother, her little head held high. Her long tail acted as a rudder and her strong hind legs provided propulsion as she plowed through the few feet to Emma. Bumping into her lower leg, she chirruped as Emma scooped her up into her arms. Emma cooed at her, telling her how brave she was and what a good swimmer she was going to turn into. Nefret watched her sister getting attention from their mother and plowed into the water to join them. Not as coordinated in the water, her little head slipped under a few times before she got the hang of it. Emma struggled not to laugh and called encouragement to her other charge, scooping her up when she reached them. Nefret sneezed as she cleared the water from her sinuses, then tucked her head under Emma's chin and thrummed.

"What brave girls you are! So proud of you, you're both just so brave!" Emma kept her voice pitched high and soft as she waded out of the water, both her charges in her arms. When she reached dry land she placed the twins down on the beach and laughed when they immediately rolled in the sand and covered themselves. Watching Nefret wallow around on her back with all four feet up in the air caused a bubbling feeling of pure joy in Emma, the complete innocence and trust these infants placing in her to keep them safe a bit overwhelming. Checking her watch, she realized she needed to go to Nefret's training session, but had no idea what to do with the girls. "Come on terrors, let's go see if there's something inside that can help."

Emma searched through three storage spaces before she found what looked like Kevlar dog harnesses with chain leashes. There were four of them, and each bore a symbol on the back piece. Other than a few claw marks, the harnesses seemed intact. Pondering for just a second Emma called the girls over and fitted each of them with one of the Kevlar harnesses. The girls seemed highly affronted with these bindings their mother had placed on them and proceeded to roll around and try and bite them off. Failing at that they flopped on the floor and peeped up at their mother pathetically. Emma bit back her laughter hard and clipped a chain leash to each of them, giving the up command she started to walk to the door. The girls protested by making her drag them a few feet before grumbling as they got to their feet and followed her.

It was clear to Emma that they hated the harnesses, but she was unwilling to take them out of the paddock without something to tether them to her. She was sure that their imprinted need to remain close would probably render the harnesses moot, but they were still infant predators and every safety precaution should be taken. If the big cat cubs at the zoological park she interned at could learn to accept it so could the girls.

Going through the internal door, she waited until the girls were through before she shut it. Her ID badge and keys to the apartment were hanging on a hook in the catch-hall so she picked them off the hook and put them in her pocket. The ID badge she clipped to the collar of her polo before opening the other door and stepping out into the ally that ran between paddocks nine and eight. The girls crept out after her, their typical crowding of her ankles confirming that the harness/leash combo was probably over kill. A startled ACU squad member radioed over his walkie that he had a trainer with two assets on the move and requested back-up.

Emma grinned at the poor guy before her sharp ears picked up Commander Hamada's voice on the walkie asking who/what was out of containment. Emma made a clicking noise at the girls and they went off down the alley towards the aquatic section of the park, the poor ACU member trailing behind them. They only met with other ACU members in the restricted spaces between paddocks, but when they had to emerge into the public stretch of the park Emma paused to pick up the girls. Turning to her nervous shadow, she asked if it would be possible for him to clear a path to the mosasaurus tank. He nodded affirmative and edged past her and her two charges to emerge into the public crowd. Emma started to follow but was stopped by a hand on her elbow. Startled, she turned to meet the broad chest of Commander Hamada mere inches from her nose.

"Uh…. hello Commander Hamada! The girls and I are just headed to Nenet's training session. As you can see, I took proper precautions and put these harnesses on the girls so that there shouldn't be a problem…."

"Trainer McGovern, I have no problem with the girls or you taking a walkabout. Thank you for the harness foresight. I do not believe that the director wants the assets seen yet, so hold just a moment." The commander stripped off his uniform shirt and draped it over the twin infants she held, leaving him in a white tank top and his uniform pants.

Emma was struck by his scent coming off the shirt collar now under her nose, sandalwood and sunshine and something that was pure Katashi. The girls offered no protest, mothers-mate smell something they already knew. The dark navy of the shirt blocked the view of the girls nicely, although it did make people curios about what they were hiding. Commander Hamada placed one of his large hands on her lower back and escorted her after his coworker, his stern gaze keeping people at a distance acceptable to both of them.

"Commander, I wanted to say sorry for this morning. I should've set an alarm or something. The girls have to get fed pretty frequently…"

"Emma please, the fault lay with me. I too should have set an alarm, let us simply call it even and begin again?" The Commander's hand was pleasant on her back, the weight of the girls reassuring in her arms, and the sun warm on her face. Combined all these sensations placed her in a seriously happy place and she smiled up at the Commander.

"Sure Katashi, that's cool." Emma caught the micro smile on his face as the girls thrummed under their shirt tent, their heads resting on each of her shoulders. Seeing Nenet's tank in the near distance, Emma asked if Katashi would like to stay for the training session.

"You want me to watch over the little beasts while you train?" Katashi surprised himself with the offer, since the assets were typically things he only concerned himself with when they presented a problem.

"Ohmigod, would you mind terribly? I was planning on simply locking the access door and letting them roam, but if you can help keep them distracted I would seriously be in your debt!" Emma's upbeat voice was echoed by her charges chirruping along.

"Perhaps you could repay this debt by allowing me to bring you dinner tonight?" the Commander wouldn't meet her eyes as he asked, his hand on her back tensing as he waited for her answer.

"I would like that Katashi," Emma waited until he met her eyes to smile at him, bumping her shoulder against his chest. "Hope raw meat doesn't set you off your food, the girls eat when I do."

"No Emma, the eating habits of the tiny monsters will not bother me." Katashi reached ahead of them with his free hand to open the access door to the training dock, "Sergeant Jenkins, thank you for the notification. I will take over from here. You are relieved for meal, be back here at 1530 to assist in escort back."

The young sergeant saluted his commander and took himself off to the barracks for lunch and a quick nap. The commander shut the door after them, sliding the bolt home to ensure that nobody would come in while the girls were running loose. Turning to Emma, he removed his shirt and was pleasantly surprised when the girls leaned away from their mother to rub their heads against his chest. Emma grinned, then placed the girls on the rubber matting of the tank's training deck. Unclipping the leash from the harnesses, the girls were free to explore while Emma went up the steps to the drop deck.

Katashi went and sat on the steps she went up, mostly to prevent the girls from following their mom up but also to keep an eye on Emma. He had noticed the limp she tried to hide and determined he would carry the girls back to the enclosure, monsters willing. The girls crept over to him, whistling to catch his attention. Noticing his gaze, the girls crept up to put their forepaws on his knees and he was never more thankful for his combat pants. As much as he might silently complain about the heat, he knew that the Kevlar woven combat pants protected him from the talons of the assets he worked with just as much as his long sleeved shirt and combat vest. Luckily, his vest was stored in the response vehicle and he wore his shirt with the sleeves rolled up above his elbows which helped cut the heat.

Emma watched out of the corner of her eye as Katashi let go of his strict 'commander hamada' persona and stroked the tops of the girl's heads. She smiled at them and dug around in the spare toy box to pull out a thick rubber ball about the size of a small soccer ball that was left over from when Nenet was small. Calling for the girls' attention she tossed the ball over Katashi's head and the two tore out after it. Katashi tracked them with his eyes before relaxing back against the staircase.

Emma stripped off her shorts and polo, laying them next to her sandals on the bench. The sun warmed her exposed shoulders and she zipped the neck fully up to secure the attached Velcro. Stepping down into the salt water of the drop deck, Emma sucked air in through her teeth at the coolness of the water. She looked out across the tank to see the triple ridges of Nenet's back as she glided through the water towards the deck. Since the deck sunk into main tank and was clear acrylic seven feet thick with a lower front edge that allowed Emma to interact with her charge, it was easy for Nenet to see who entered her domain.

Emma leaned over the waist high lip of the drop deck to tap the surface of the water, pleased when Nenet pulled up parallel to where she stood. Looking into the massive animal's deep brown eye, Emma marveled at her luck to get to work with such a creature. Nenet burbled under the water, causing bubbles to rise up to the surface. Emma placed a hand on the cool hide above Nenet's eye, stroking it for a few minutes before stepping back. Beginning the training/enrichment program with the breeching command and progressing through the sixteen other commands she knew and introducing the next command she wanted her to learn.

The entire training session took a little over an hour, and when it was over Emma used the pressure guns to reward her for her attention and signaled the team in the tower to release the days selection of live fish for her to hunt. Emma watched for a minute before wading out of the drop deck and back onto the main deck. Grabbing a towel out of the bin by the bench, she briskly rubbed her hair and the rest of her body, taking extra care over the still sealed claw marks on her thigh. The soggy bandage she threw in the trashcan, wrapping the towel around her waist. Checking in with the twins and Katashi, she saw him on the floor tugging the ball from Nenet to throw again. Nefretari rode his back, play growling as she hooked her talons in his shirt and had tuffs of his short hair in her mouth. Emma burst out laughing and came down the steps barefoot to help remove her wayward child from the commander's back. Katashi looked over his shoulder at her as she cuddled the infant dino in her arms and softly scolded her.

He caught his breath as the wetsuit clung even more tightly to her form, her damp hair sticking up in odd places from where she had rubbed the towel over it. The lean muscles of her arms held the infant in her arms effortlessly, but the towel hid her lovely legs from his view. She stood with one hip cocked, the weight off her bad leg as she shifted the hatchling into the favored 'toddler-hip' hold. Nefretari hooked her forepaws over her mother's shoulder and put her head down on them. A bump on his forearm showed that Nefret has returned with the ball and was waiting for him to throw it again. Obliging her, Katashi tossed the rubber ball again as Emma set down her burden. Nefretari chased after her sister, colliding with her and causing them both to crash into the mats.

The two humans chuckled at them, Katashi gaining his feet and stretching. Emma admired the stretch and pull of his expansive muscular under his thin tank top. His caramel coloring was rich from all his time in the tropical sun, his black hair and warm dark eyes made her mouth dry for a moment. Stepping forward she lifted her hands to run through his hair, having to stretch up onto her toes to do it. His hair smoothed back into place, Emma went to step back only to find his hands on her hips, pulling her back into his body. She rested her forearms against his chest to prevent her wetsuit from coming into contact with his tank.

"I would like to see after that leg wound if you do not mind, Emma." His deep voice rumbled through his chest and through her athletic form.

"Um…. yeah? I mean, yeah okay. There's a bench up on the top deck…" She hated how breathy her voice had gotten, but his micro smile was back so she quickly forgot about her embarrassment.

Katashi released her and followed her up the stairs. Emma reclined on the bench and allowed the towel to release from around her hips. Katashi knelt next to her hips and ran gentle fingers down the three sealed marks. Their exposure to the saltwater had caused them to become red and puckered, Katashi traced a calloused finger over the marks. Emma sucked air through her teeth at the tender care he exhibited as he examined the marks her little monster had left on her. Katashi was satisfied with the wounds, letting Emma sit back up and rewrapping the towel around her waist.

"I am pleased that the dermabond held. I would ask that you remain out of the salt water, but I know that you will not." Katashi followed her back down the stairs, watching as she picked up Nefretari and covered her with her discarded uniform. The towel she dropped into the hamper and she slipped her feet back into her sandals.

"Commander would you mind toting Nefret back? I figure with me flashing this much leg and you looking like…..well some Asian Adonis nobody will notice that we're carrying two infant dinos." Emma smirked over at his as the back of his neck flushed. He bundled Nefret in his shirt and picked her up to hold in front of him. Her nose poked out of the shirt along his forearm, just her nostrils showing.

Katashi stared down at the warm bundle in his arms and the corners of his eyes crinkled in amusement. He followed Emma to the door and slid the bolt back so he could pull the door open. The young sergeant jumped up from the bench he was sitting on to join up with the pair coming out of the 'Trainer's Only' door. Sgt Jenkins moved out ahead of the pair and asked for the few guests milling around to step aside.

A few leering college kids crowded in behind the trainer in the high-cut wetsuit, cat-calling and elbowing each other. One got close enough to attempt to smack a hand against her ass, but a low hissing from the bundle of clothes over her shoulder and glowing amber eyes made him think twice and run quickly in the other direction. Emma laughed at the look on the Commander's face as they rounded the bend into the ally that would lead them back to the enclosure.

"Don't worry Commander, Nefretari took care of it." Emma smiled as they entered the lock-out hallway. Placing the girls down, Emma removed the harnesses and hung them and her ID badge/keys on the hooks. Opening the inner door she let the girls into the main apartment before turning back to Katashi.

"I'll see you tonight?"

"Yes, I will be here at 1930 if that is acceptable?"

"That's perfect, see you then!" Emma leaned up to press a quick kiss to his cheek and shut the door before he could respond.