#jurassic park ocs

[lizisshortforlizard]

Living Dangerously - Chapter 35

Jurassic Park’s animal handlers: none of them ever mentioned by name in Michael Crichton’s original novel. Who were they? What were their lives like on Isla Nublar? Did any of them survive the disaster?

A year in the life of those responsible for the care of the dinosaurs. Many people would kill to have their jobs.

But would they die for it?

Jurassic Park novel/Jurassic Park film (1993)

Viewpoint: 3rd person female oc

Warnings: only mild swears this time (boooo)

Tagging: @heresthefanfiction @ocappreciation @wordspin-shares @howlingmadlady @arrthurpendragon @themaradwrites @starryeyes2000 @kmc1989 (please lmk if you would like informed of my sporadic updates)

Read on Ao3

Chapter 34 | Chapter 36

Should I Stay or Should I Go - The Clash

As the skipper steered away from the dock and out into the fog bank that filled the ocean passage between InGen sites, Lori Ruso only managed to keep sight of Muldoon and Armstrong for a few seconds before they disappeared completely.

In less than a minute, there was no sign that Isla Nublar even existed.

A productive site visit indeed.

She hadn’t made the journey with high hopes, but the sombre man and his that’s-not-my-girlfriend-she’s-just-a-colleague had turned out to be decent people. Lori had no interest in screwing them over, and nothing she had told them was a lie, per se…

But Muldoon’s proposal of a meeting couldn’t have come at a better time. The residents of Nublar had no idea that the ���site visit” was the perfect cover for something else altogether.

Unbeknownst to John Hammond’s company, Ruso had received a rather intriguing phone call several weeks prior. It was from a man who seemed particularly interested in her position as a disgruntled current employee, and was offering her a lot of money for-

“That’s all? Just information?” Lori had shivered as she remembered how tight of a leash Ingen currently had her on. “You really aren’t asking me to do anything more…invasive?”

“No-” Lewis Dodgson had replied. “-I got another guy for that.”

***

”You’re panicking about Kathy leaving, aren’t you?” Lizzy felt compelled to say so.

”Panicking?” Muldoon turned to make his way back down the dock. “Hardly.”

“The raptors are coming-” Lizzy thought of the Scotswoman, the Kenyan and the Texan holding down Fort Nublar by themselves. It sounded and felt like a terrible joke. “-and you think three of us alone can handle more than one of them? What if they all turn out like…her?”

“I think one of us alone could handle three of them.” He called back to her as she struggled to catch up without slipping. “Though I’d rather it doesn’t come to that.”

“You may have to-“ Lizzy gasped, mock-dramatically. “-recruit!”

“Hope not. I’ve been lucky, the Team I ended up getting.” Muldoon admitted. “Never expected to get along with, let alone actively like any of you.”

He about-turned so abruptly that Lizzy misjudged her steps and had no choice but to collide head on to keep from swerving off the edge of the algae-covered boardwalk. He caught her around the waist as Lizzy huffed in surprise.

Muldoon didn’t even sway at the impact, so familiar with the shape of her. “Especially you…”

Lizzy wondered if he was also still thinking about Lori’s suggestive comment. Or if he was planning on doing anything about it.

”Even Tom?” She asked dazedly, spouting the first unfortunate words that entered her head. She could picture Arnold eye-rolling and dry-heaving if he were to snoop on them now, images blown up fullscreen on his monitors for the entire workforce to see. “Not just a pretty diversion if things go sideways?”

Muldoon looked down at her sternly.

“Don’t say things like that.” Then, somewhat reluctantly: “Yes, even him.”

”Would it kill you to mention it once in a while?” She asked quietly.

He only stared at her, and Lizzy persevered.

“He has a problem with male authority.” She didn’t have the guts to utter the words father figure.

“So; I’d like to point out, do you.”

”You know what I mean.”

She could see it, crystal clear. Muldoon couldn’t, not yet.

Tom’s past life, why he was that way, made Lizzy desperately sad. She’d already found her own mentor, someone to stick the broken pieces back together stronger than before. Tom’s mentor, standing in front of her now, remained unwilling. “He trusts you. Can’t you see he so badly wants your approval?”

“Suppose.” He was turning sullen, approaching blood-from-a-stone territory, and Lizzy backpedaled in a hurry.

“I’m not asking you to call him son, play catch in the yard and take him on fishing trips!”

“I should bloody well hope not!” He looked horrified. “It’s still asking a Hell of a lot, Armstrong.”

“Even if it’s me that‘s asking you?” She looked up from under her eyelashes, in a way she knew he found disarming.

Rico’s accident had put her on edge, worrying about things left unsaid in case the worst should happen.

”Hmm…think about it.” He finally said begrudgingly. “Don’t get your hopes up-“

The radio crackling surprised them both.

“-uldoon?” Muffled, no doubt by the perpetual cigarette. “-rmstrong? Come in, for the love of Christ-“

Arnold.

“We’re here.” Muldoon didn’t hesitate to answer, reflexively dropping his hold on Lizzy in case of prying eyes.

“-ig trouble.” The engineer was hurrying, not waiting to start talking until after he’d pressed the call button. “-uge. They’re maaaaad.”

“Why? What’s happening?”

“-need to get back to base…-better hope to God you find Regis before they do.”

“Why?” Muldoon and Lizzy looked sideways at each other. “Who’s they?”

***

”Mr Hammond, I have a, er-“ Regis fumbled nervously with the telephone handset. “-an angry mob situation.”

“Oh, really?” His employer sounded only mildly concerned.

”They know about the deal with that Rico kid.” Ed hissed quietly, trying to remember if he’d locked the office door in his panic. “Operation Backhoe.”

“I am in my car-“ Hammond replied tersely. “-en route to collect my daughter from the airport. This is not a good time, Regis.”

“But-“

“You are public relations. This is your job.”

“These are not the public! These are a bunch of very pissed-off animal hand-…hello? Sir?”

Regis was on his own.

They were drawing closer, he could hear lots of cursing in various different languages, and overriding them, loudest of all, a women’s Scottish brogue.

Oh Christ, no.

Hanmering fists on his door.

“Open up, Ed. We just wanna talk.” Baker’s level voice held a lot more venom than usual.

“Go away!” He yelled back, somewhat childishly.

”Why’d you cover it up, pal?” Armstrong demanded.

Kennedy followed suit. ”Yeah, why’d you lie, brother?”

Regis had a hunch that pal and brother weren’t to be taken as friendly terms. At least his life insurance policy was pretty damn watertight, from the looks of things they’d be paying out soon. Death by misadventure.

His boss had abandoned him, and the only way out was through a crowd of angry colleagues.

You got this, Eddie-boy.

Customer service was his niche. He had faced down plenty of entitled middle-aged women in his career. He could do anything. Time to pacify the brands and pitchforks.

“Okay, folks-“ He spread his hands wide, begging forgiveness as he opened the door. “I can explain.”

***

”Right, let’s make this quick.” Muldoon strode into Regis’ office, with only a cursory nod in Wu’s direction. “Remember, we have a funeral to get to.”

It was in fact a memorial service. The funeral itself had been in Portugal, already missed by several days due to management’s erasure, but the animal handlers decided they wanted to remember Rico in their own way regardless.

Muldoon didn’t agree with funerals. For him, it never make the inevitable goodbye any easier, just prolonged it. And he’d attended far too many in recent years. A stark reminder that he himself was getting on a bit. He had less friends above ground than a decade previous. But his team wanted him there. Lizzy wanted him there. His presence mattered.

That was why this end-of-day “urgent” meeting had wound him up so much. A few more minutes and he was in danger of being late, something he couldn’t stand, not at the best of times. Certainly not now.

“Oh, that’s still going ahead? Uh-“ Regis stammered. “I wasn’t planning on-“

“You’re going.” Muldoon ordered bluntly. “Least you can do. Find a clean shirt and get down to that beach.”

Regis nodded mutely and avoided eye contact.

“This better be good news, Wu.” Muldoon quickly got back to the reason he’d been summoned.

“Seven bouncing baby velociraptors are being delivered to you tomorrow.” Wu announced. Then, somewhat condescendingly: “Congratulations!”

Muldoon could already envision the animal handlers taking the news rather poorly, seeing it as an insult to Esteves’ memory. Stiff upper lip, and carry on. Get back to work.

”Seven?” He frowned. “Were we originally planning on that many?”

”Dr Ruso’s department seems to have had a long overdue stroke of luck.” Wu clarified. “A higher than average number of juveniles survived the last incubation cycle.”

”Out of how many viable embryos?”

Henry Wu cast his eyes to the ground; Muldoon shook his head in exasperation. “You don’t know?”

How many had hatched and suffered before finally succumbing?

“Ruso has the numbers.” Regis waved a hand.

Numbers. Was that all they were reduced to now?

”And another thing, that paddock you’ve had built is far too small for seven juveniles, plus an unexpectedly big one. Is it too late to change the itinerary?” Muldoon criticised, scanning the blueprint on the desk, looking for any labels that indicated a perimeter large enough to house eight (eight?!) adult raptors. “Can’t we move them straight into their permanent enclosure?”

He couldn’t see one. Maybe it was unmarked?

Regis and Wu exchanged a glance.

“That is their, er…permanent residence.”

“You have got to be joking.” Wu looked unhappy, Regis was grinning sheepishly. “That’s a holding pen at best.”

Straight up cruelty at its worst.

InGen hadn’t bothered to consult him. It somehow felt personal, this time. Muldoon wasn’t one to network, ever, but didn’t they know who he was?

He sighed deeply and ordered. “Get me Hammond, now.”

***

Muldoon had seen some remarkable things in his lifetime, but the animal handlers clamouring for Ed Regis’ blood while he wrung his baseball cap in his hands was one of the ugliest.

Baker was telling everyone within earshot he lied, he lied to us over and over.

The handlers began demanding to know what had really happened, Regis had cowered before them, then finally lost his marbles and yelled for quiet.

Why didn’t you tell us?

There followed directly from the mouth of Regis some convoluted; and, Muldoon suspected; untrue in parts, though he couldn’t prove it, tale; about how InGen hadn’t wanted word of the incident getting back to the investors, the paperwork (folks, honest to God, the amount of paperwork, you’ve got no idea) of a foreign worker being injured on a privately-owned island but kicking it- er, passing away on the mainland…

Regis had talked for a long time. Until the anger had subsided and the grief had taken over for his audience. Nobody was level-headed enough to question him further, coming to terms with the notion that whatever he said couldn’t change the cold, hard fact that Rico was dead.

That night had been all sorts of messy, Muldoon recalled. Nobody had really known what to do, himself included. Richardson had vanished, and was no use whatsoever.

Armstrong had been struck practically mute, Baker had a constant stream of tears for hours, soundless crying until raw tracks had been worn into her face. He’d finally convinced her to go to bed for Christ’s sake, pretending to ignore that Kennedy had quietly followed her.

He’d wanted nothing more than to disappear, hide from all of them, even Lizzy, with a bottle of the highest proof he could lay hands on because he couldn’t do this again.

The sports fan would have a tough job getting his respect back, not that he’d had much to begin with.

Especially when he said things like-

”That’s not possible.”

Sensing trouble brewing, Wu had quickly excused himself from the office. Meanwhile, neither Regis nor Muldoon was all that happy about being left alone with the other.

“Why isn’t it possible?” Muldoon ground out.

“Time with the family, I’m afraid. Mr Hammond simply cannot be disturbed this week.” Was the infuriating reply.

Regis was assertive, for once. The lad might be somewhat wary of him, but the trembling of his voice meant that he was clearly more afraid of the park‘s creator.

Although, there was another who was capable of making him sweat bullets…

Muldoon very deliberately reached for his radio and pressed down the call button with a crackle.

“Armstrong?” The ginger head jerked up in alarm, remarkably like a meerkat. “Stop whatever you’re doing and come to Regis’ office.”

”Okay, okay, fine!” Ed looked pained, reaching for the phone. “Please, don’t let her in here.”

His eyes darted to the door, windows, ceiling vent, as if he were afraid of any potential entrance Lizzy might suddenly jack-in-the-box from.

”That’s better. And Regis?” Muldoon waited a few moments until he was certain the US mainland number had been input. “Radio was on the wrong channel. She didn’t hear.”

Ed’s mouth fell open in surprise. But it was too late, the phone was already ringing, and with a click, Hammond’s housekeeper answered.

His mind went blank, his entire vocabulary far out of reach.

“Go on.” Muldoon urged.

Ed considered hanging up before it was too late, then reminded himself that the park warden was actually there in the room with him, and readily had access to a shotgun, and a Lizzy.

So he meekly whispered Mr Hammond please.

“Very good.” Muldoon nodded.

“Hello?” Impatiently. Then irately. ”Hello!”

“H-how are you, John?” Golly, he was sweating in places he didn’t even know he had. “It’s Ed.”

“…who?”

Was he serious?

”Ed R-regis. From Jurassic Park, sir.”

”My grandchildren are here, dear boy.” This time around the moniker didn’t sound quite so sincere. “Twice in one week, Regis? Really? Can’t you handle a bunch of zookeepers?”

”Mr Muldoon wants to speak to you, sir. It’s-“ Ed glanced up. “-quite important.”

The park warden nodded reassuringly again, mouthing very important. He straightened up from leaning on the wall and began to stalk slowly around the back of Regis’s desk. Ed tried to swivel his chair to keep him in view, but quickly ran out of telephone cable.

“I told you how to handle Muldoon.” Hammond was beyond exasperated. “Just keep the bottles stocked and he won’t bother you. Not unlike you’re bothering me now.”

“Uh…” The urge to mutter I’msorrysirwon’thappenagain and slam the phone down before scurrying off to hide was unbearable.

“That’ll be all, Regis.” Came the voice from behind him. “Move.”

***

“That is brilliant.” Lizzy exclaimed.

She found Muldoon’s threat of setting his dog on Regis hilarious.

“He’s scared of me. He’s terrified of you.” He had told the story to cheer her up after the memorial, when the news of seven raptors arriving the very next day was not well received, as he’d expected.

“Move.” She mimicked his stern tone and faintly began to chuckle. The relief and finality that follows the wake began to wash over her. Awkward jokes to break through the gloom.

Lizzy was still hurting, and would be for a long time.

“Drink?” Kathy had brushed her elbow, as she turned to follow the rest of the crowd to higher ground. “Food?”

She’d refused.

“It’s what he would have wanted…” Kathy had murmured softly, trying for humour.

Lizzy just shook her head and her friend gave a sad smile before taking Tom’s outstretched hand and letting him lead her away.

She stayed on the beach long after everyone else had left, sitting cross-legged with her toes buried in the sand, watching the waves roll in and wash back out again until horizon and water were merged, the same exact shade of inky blue.

Goodbye, Rico.

When she’d finally stood up and turned around, Muldoon was just there, still waiting patiently to give her a lift back.

She trudged bare-footed up the beach and slumped into his arms.

“Sorry, love.” He muttered against the top of her head. “I ended up running late.”

Blame Regis.

“At least you made it in the end.” Lizzy said simply, just grateful he’d shown. More effort than some.

Hammond’s absence had not gone unnoticed and would not be forgotten, nor this time forgiven.

On the beach at sunset, Kathy had sang in Portuguese, accompanied by Tom’s guitar, her voice rising like a siren over the soft crashing of the waves. Isaac had stood to give his part of the eulogy, faltered while his shoulders heaved, and Lizzy had gently taken the notes from his hand and read out his words, as well as her own.

She was both sad and grateful to have closure. Mostly, Lizzy just missed him, found it unbearably hard to believe she would never see his face again. Just a kid, someone for whom the awe of dinosaurs had truly never got old, the same childlike wonder on the day of his death as of his arrival to the island.

Gone.

“But I hope your tardiness was worth it.” She shrugged off the last of her remorse, trying to find herself again. “Good news?”

“Not really.” He filled her in.

”Seven?!” She was horrified.

”I, hm-“ He had debated telling her the full story when she was less fraught. No point. “-may have played all my cards in one go.”

”What do you mean?”

“I threatened to leave the park, and go to the press about what’s happening here.” He turned to look at her. “I wasn’t bluffing.”

“You-“ Lizzy shook her head and blinked. “I’m sorry, what?!”

”I think Hammond knew I meant it.”

“Oh.” Lizzy’s expression plummeted. Quickfire shock, worry, then anger. “I didn’t realise that leaving was ever seriously an option for you.”

“I said I felt responsible-“

Lizzy’s stomach dropped from sickening heights.

”Do you, for real?”

Why would he accept any form of blame? Why hadn’t he told her he felt that way?

“Of course not-“ Muldoon replied too quickly. “-we all wish that night had played out differently.”

Lizzy felt his fingers tighten on her hip, and wasn’t sure if she was in the place of a subconscious Scotch glass or the stock of a gun.

“Kinda seems like the sort of thing you should have talked to me about first.”

”Seems like the sort of thing you should trust me to handle.” His hand fell away from her side. “I’ve known Hammond for a very long time. You need to make everything seem like it’s his brilliant idea. He gets the hump if it’s your idea.”

“Uh-huh.”

”I do know what I’m doing.” She was hiding her face, resolutely staring downwards. “Lizzy?”

“Yeah?” She was tired, and it took all the fight she had left to not turn her shoulders and face away from him.

“He compromised. I’m getting weapons that will actually stop a dinosaur in its tracks. About damn time.”

Surely, that would brighten her otherwise terrible, getting-worse-by-the-second day?

“Compromised…” She fixated on the word. “Are telling me you asked for more and didn’t get it?”

Muldoon paused. “The raptors won’t be getting a bigger paddock. Not anytime soon.”

”Well, at least you got what you wanted.” She murmured bitterly. She might need Lori’s help with welfare requirements sooner than expected. “Screw what I want.”

“Listen, I want the best for these animals too.” Enough of the hiding, she would bloody well look at him. “Do you have any idea how concerned I am about integrating twenty-three-oh-eight with the younger ones in such a small space?”

“It’s an ethological nightmare.” Lizzy agreed, her voice flat. “I honestly have no idea how we’ll do it safely. I don’t think we can.”

“Tomorrow’s problem.” He shrugged. “And it will definitely be a problem.”

They both stared out to sea, listening the the water, the seabirds, and the sound of Lizzy’s nostrils flaring as she angrily breathed.

“You could have come with me, you know. Left. Back to Africa.” He said gruffly.

Lizzy blinked. Back? With him? Like…together?

”Oh-…it’s not that simple-“ Her voice was gentler. She reached up and tugged at her own hair in frustration. “I can’t just go. Hammond’s funding the elephant project, back in Namibia.”

Muldoon’s daydream of having Lizzy move in with himself and his daughter was raptured away. He had let himself hope too much.

Her research was in danger of drying up. If dinosaurs existed in captivity who would care about wild elephants when a couple of years down the line they could just make some more?

Extinction was no longer final.

“They really can’t lose that funding.” She explained. “They only get it if I stay here.”

She was thoroughly wrapped up in InGen’s web. A financial decision that had seemed like a godsend at the time but now only made her ties to the company that much harder to sever. Muldoon wondered if her lawyer man had taught her well enough, if she had read her contract in full before she signed the dotted line, or if things were about to get messy indeed.

“Sod it. I bet they’d rather have you than the money.” Tomorrow’s problem. “I know I would.”

“Stop it.” Half-heartedly swatting him away, she was only pretending to be mad, now. “Oh, please. They couldn’t wait to see me out of Africa.”

Peace at last. Muldoon smirked. “I’m sure that’s not true.”

”How many of them have called me, hm?” She demanded. “Or wrote?”

“Well, none. Because you aren’t a soldier gone off to war.”

“Feels like it sometimes.” She reeled off her long list of injuries in her head, not even counting the emotional damage she’d incurred.

And yet, Lizzy wondered, if she was truly free to go, would she really want to leave? She might not be able to return.

No, not yet.

At least, not by myself.

“I can think of at least one person who misses you.” Muldoon added.

”At least one.” She quoted. “Great. That’s…great.”

They stood, watching the stars appear one by one, the odd meteorite whizzing overhead through the clear skies, sauropod lowing and the odd Tyrannosaur rumble echoing over the island.

”But would you go? If you could?” He asked, somewhat awkwardly. “…with me, I mean?”

Lizzy quashed her eyebrow-raise. As if he still doubted her feelings towards him after all this time.

”I would.” A no-brainer really. “Of course I would.”

***

“Weapons, Robert?” The Animal Supervisor sniffed. “Getting rather Lord of the Flies in here, isn’t it?”

The ever-present, ever-demoralising Richardson. Always a joy to be in his presence.

Muldoon recalled a particularly unpleasant conversation with Armstrong’s main antagonist, tacked on at the end of yet another pointless meeting that could have been a memo.

“Isn’t Elizabeth a little above you, education-wise?” Gammon-faced Richardson was belittling as usual. “Remind me, what’s your doctorate in again?”

The portly man really couldn’t resist trying to draw a reaction out of him every chance he got.

“Well, is she beneath me or is she above me, which is it?” Muldoon made the mistake of entertaining his drivel by replying. “Make up your mind.”

“No need to snap, Robert! I’m just saying it's a bad idea to get involved with a woman who has more letters after her name than you.” Richardson preached smugly. “They start having opinions. Thinking for themselves.”

“And that’s a bad thing?” Muldoon shrugged. “All I’m hearing is you still can’t control her, and you don’t like it.”

“Neither can you. That one does what she feels like.”

“At least she respects my orders.”

“When it benefits her!” Richardson countered. “She’ll get what she wants and then drop you, mark my words.”

”Then she’s playing a very long game.” He pointed out. “I’m not sure L-…Armstrong has the patience.”

Nor the capacity for such a detailed lie.

“Ask yourself, what does she see in you, apart from the salary and benefits?” The man just wasn’t letting it go. “And more importantly, what do you see in her?”

Sometimes she does seem too good to be true…

Nope, we’re not doing that. Not today.

”None of your business.”

”Go on. There must be a reason, and it can’t possibly be as stereotypically bland as ‘her mind’.” Richardson had noticed his hesitation, and his tone was loaded with disdain. “I genuinely can’t understand why you’re so useless when you’re around her. You let her get away with murder, Robert-“

”I wasn’t paying into my pension-“ He muttered.

”What was that?” Richardson interrupted.

“I wasn’t planning on living long enough to need it.” He said uncomfortably, though he’d gone with something factual. “But my feelings on the matter have recently changed.”

“My God, that’s nauseating. I suppose there’s ways of getting them to be quiet. At least she’s decent-looking, though that won’t last.” Richardson dismissed him.

Muldoon felt his patience running out exponentially. “Watch your-“

“You’d do well to not get caught doing anything…untoward.” He interrupted smugly yet again. “If I catch you I’ll have no choice but to report you to Palo Alto, and Hammond. Something I will take great pleasure in doing.”

“Nothing to catch.” Muldoon grunted.

”Good. Remember; InGen can separate you, quite easily. I hear she’s wanted over on Sorna.”

How was everybody hearing things all the time? Who ran the Nublar gossip column?

Face it, probably Arnold.

“And they’re even stricter about visitors over there.” Richardson prodded further. “Restricted access for conjugal visits.”

“What on Earth are you talking about?” Muldoon shook his head. “Nobody’s moving to Sorna, and I told you, nothing to catch.”

“At least it’s a warm body.” Richardson hesitated, savouring the moment. “That’s probably good enough for you, given your circumstances.”

Muldoon didn’t have the words or the ability to hold his temper any longer.

He chose to leave the room before he did anything rash. Not that he’d regret it, but because Richardson would likely never recover from what he had in mind.

***

Thanks for reading!

I always choose the chapter titles/songs very carefully. I originally picked Fado Português by Amália Rodrigues, a beautiful sad song which is the one I imagined Kathy sang on the beach, but The Clash seemed more meaningful/ominous from Muldoon’s point of view. “If I go there will be trouble, if I stay there will be double”.

Also I was rewatching Stranger Things S1 while I was editing this. Again.

[rafeandonlyrafe]

escape from isla nublar

words: 2.6k

warnings: jurassic world alternate universe, dinosaurs, violence, brief mentions of gore (but not detailed), illusions of sex but not actually written out, established relationship, soft!rafe, death tw, proposal, mentions of anxiety & panic attacks

a/n: im having a lot of fun with writing aus, so here! take another one!

“thank you so much for bringing me here, rafe.” you coo out, getting onto your tiptoes to press a kiss to his cheek.

rafes arm slides around your waist, keeping you tugged in close as the boat approaches the dock of the island. you squeal along with all the children gathered around impatient and ready to jump off the boat and explore.

“welcome to isla nublar!” the voice of a friendly sounding woman says over the speakers. “please disembark slowly and carefully and enjoy your stay in jurassic park!”

“baby, can i just say-” rafe begins as the crowd shuffles forward, most with bags in their hands or suitcases being wheeled behind them, but rafe has already arranged to have them brought to your room so you can get right to exploring. 

“mhm.” you hum, encouraging him to continue.

“that you've been so chill this entire trip so far. proud of you.” it might sound weird to anyone else, but you've always gotten nervous when leaving your home for too long, worried something bad would happen. rafe saw it on your first trip he took you on where you tried and very much failed to hide your anxiety.

“im so excited there's like no room for nerves.” you giggle as you walk down the gangway. “and the fact that you let me plan everything. you know how much i love a schedule.”

“we are so different.” rafe shakes his head, hand squeezing yours as you step into the concrete, turning away from the crowds heading to the resort and towards the main street and the iconic innovation center.

“opposites attract.” you state, and it couldn't be more true, but rafe loves you more than he could ever envision caring about someone.

as you round the lagoon, trying to see if you're able to catch a glimpse of the giant mosasaurs in its depths, you feel your excitement levels only elevate more.

“oh my gosh, there's the petting zoo entrance.” you turn and pout to rafe.

“isn't that mostly for kids?” he raises a singular eyebrow.

“i mean yeah, but you also get to pet baby dinosaurs. totally worth it.” you tug him towards the entrance.

--

“okay.” you sigh, placing your hands on your hips. “i guess we should slow down so we have things to do for the rest of the trip.” 

“im already exhausted.” rafe chuckles. “how about dinner then to the hotel?”

as tired as rafe is, he's certainly not going to complain about being run around isla nublar when he gets to see the gleaming smile on your face every time he looks at you.

“sounds good… we could go to winstons steak house,” you point in one direction, then the other “jurassic cafe, or the brachiosaurus restaurant.”

“how about whatever is closest.” rafe rubs his hand over his face.

“okay steak house it is.” it's your turn to take rafes hand. 

he barely manages to stay awake through dinner, and by the time you're back at the hotel, he's passed out on the bed before he can change into his pajamas.

--

“what would you like to do today?” you ask rafe. “anything but that hang gliding, you know how i feel about heights.”

“the gyrospheres look fun.” rafe shrugs and looks at the map pulled up on your phone. “or kayaking.”

“why not both.” you toss your phone to the side and cup rafes cheek, bringing your lips together in a kiss.

“you're the best boyfriend ever.”

rafe places a hand on your shoulder and pushes you down onto the mattress, laying you back.

“we can wait a little bit though, right?” the smirk on his face gives him away.

“i think that would be fine.” you giggle, pulling rafes shirt off over his head.

--

“that was actually so fun.” you hum out.

“it was when you let me drive and we could finally go fast.” rafe says. you were halfway through the gyrosphere tour when you handed the controls over to rafe, allowing him to speed through the ankylosaurus herds.

“but we will not be doing that on the kayak.” you hold your finger up.

“yes ma’am.” rafe says, slipping the attendant a $20 bill to move you to the front of the line, not wanting you to have to wait.

“life vest.” rafe says, slipping it over your head while he just grabs his and throws it into the kayak, not planning on putting it on unless something happens.

rafe helps you step down into the kayak, grabbing the paddle knowing he's going to sit in the back and do all the work.

--

“this is so beautiful.” you say, leaning back into your seat as you look at the stegosaurus and it's long neck reaching up to grab the leaves, his feet submerged in the water as you paddle past.

“this might be even better than the velociraptors.” rafe says.

“wait-” you sit up. “whats that sound? is that a radio?”

it takes a second for rafes ears to pick it up, but he can hear the frantic static of voices over a walkie talkie.

rafe continues to paddle, realizing suddenly that you've separated from all the other kayaks and can't see anyone. he brings the kayak closer to the side when he hears the radio as you reach out to pick it up from the muddy bank.

you turn the volume knob up as you try to make out what the voice is saying through the water logged speaker.

“we sent the containment unit out with nonlethal force and they're all dead! immediate evacuation, get everyone inside and back to the hotel!”

“rafe…” you turn towards him, eyes widening in fear.

“im sure it's just some kid pulling a prank.” rafe takes the radio, finding the speech button and pressing it. “what is going on?”

“who is that? this is an authorized channel.” one voice says before another cuts it out.

“whoever you are, seek shelter immediately. the indominus rex is on the loose, currently heading towards-” the radio sparks and then dies out.

“shit.” rafe hits it against his thigh, but it's clearly no use.

“rafe.” your voice is already shaking. “the indominus rex. i don't know what it is, but it doesn't sound good.”

“okay.” rafe stands up and steps out of the kayak, pulling it onto the bank before helping you out. “baby-” he places his hands on your shoulders. “i need you to stay calm. you know this island like the back of your hand. where are we?”

“we-” you take a deep, shaking breath. “we are halfway through the kayak adventure. we should head just west and find the road to the aviary.”

“okay.” rafe presses a kiss to your forehead. “let's go quickly and quietly. im sure they've already contained whatever dinosaur escaped.”

“yeah.” you nod, gulping, not so sure.

rafes steady hand stays in yours, helping you over bushes and downed trees.

“shouldn't be much farther.” you bite your lip, hoping you didn't get the direction wrong.

“hang on.” rafe whispers, placing a finger over his lips. 

before you can fully comprehend what's happening, he's tugging you down under a giant tropical plant, the leaves hiding you as you hear whatever rafe did, the pounding footsteps of dinosaurs.

“that's the stegosaurus we saw earlier.” you remember the distinct marking along its side.

“get over here.” rafe pulls you in tighter, not allowing you to see as he presses you against the stem of the large plant, covering your body with his own.

“it's okay, it's a herbivore.” you say, when you hear the second set of dinosaur footsteps following it. you tense up, and you can feel a panic attack setting in as you pick your head up to see some sort of giant rex running after it.

you both stay still and silent until it's clearly far enough away.

“rafe.” you tremble as you turn into your back, his body still hovering over yours, protecting you, willing to put himself in the line of danger if he needs to.

“it's okay.” his voice is betraying how scared he is as well, but he's going to try his best to not let you see it. “let's just get to the aviary.”

“i-i can't.” you shake your head. “im fucking terrified.” 

“me too, baby.” he says. “but we gotta get under cover somewhere before that thing catches up to the stegosaurus and comes back for us.”

you swallow deeply, eyes closing for a brief minute, gaining all your courage you possibly can.

“okay.” you're up and moving quickly, running towards the aviary. your steps are no longer balanced and cautious, moving quickly through the jungle until you make it through the trees to the grassy plane.

“the aviary!” you point at the large glass dome, just in time to see a helicopter careening into it, smashing a hole that instantly has pterodactyls flying out.

“shit!” rafe shouts, tugging you back into the treeline.

“we're gonna die.” you sob out, not able to hold back your tears as you crumple to the ground.

“no.” rafe says firmly. “i will not lose you.”

he knows he needs to move, especially as the pterodactyls come closer, and he doesn't have time to console you enough to get you ready to move.

rafe reaches down and pulls you into his arms, hugging your shaking form against his chest as he follows the same path of disturbed leaves and muddy footprints back to the river.

“i need you to paddle.” rafe says, glad your kayak is still in the same space. “i know you're scared, but you need to help me here. we need to go fast.”

you sniffle and look up at rafe, your big eyes filled with tears causing his heart to pang out in pain. “okay.”

rafe bends down, pressing your lips together in a soft and caressing kiss before climbing onto the back of the kayak.

you both immediately begin to paddle hastily, not knowing where the next meat eating dinosaur could be.

“the river goes underground then should let us off near main street.” you tell rafe, eyes briefly closing to envision the map in your head before putting your entire focus back onto paddling.

“baby, still.” rafe says softly, both of you pausing as you look upwards, seeing pterodactyls wings flapping over, thankfully not seeming to notice you under the treetops, yet you still wait until they pass over before beginning to paddle again.

“there's the cave.” you say, pointing as the river bends and you head underground, lights strung along the cave ceiling as you paddle underground, able to take a deep breath now that you're under cover.

“are there any dinosaurs in this cave?” rafe questions, helping you move back so you're leaned against him. 

“shouldn't be.” you say, eyes closing as your adrenaline drops now that you're mostly safe.

“go ahead and rest.” rafe hums as he paddles, looking down at you in relief.

--

“y/n.” rafe shakes your shoulder and you sit up with a gasp, looking around, waiting to see the indominus rex charging at you.

“it's okay.” rafe says. “we're just leaving the cave.”

“so that wasn't all just a nightmare?” you sit up, knowing you must not have been asleep that long, but already feeling majorly refreshed.

“im afraid not.” rafe sighs as you grab your paddle to help steer.

“so this let's out…”

“near the resort. we should be safe there.” you squint into the dying sunlight as the kayak leaves the caves and enters into the large man-made lake.

you both quickly steer to the side, glad to be out of the kayak and on your own two feet.

“to the resort.” you say, able to tell that there are still people running from main street in that direction.

rafe is about to toss the paddle back into the boat when a screech comes from overhead and you both look up to see a pterodactyl perched over cave entrance.

“run!” rafe yells, not turning his back from the dinosaur to see that you haven't moved an inch, not leaving him.

the pterodactyl lunges forward just as rafe swings his paddle at it, hitting it in the beak, but it only enrages the dinosaur more.

you move quickly to grab your paddle, joining rafe in hitting at it, keeping the snapping beak away from pecking at your skin.

“baby, go.” rafe grunts out.

“no! im not leaving you.” you keep slapping at its beak and head until it gets annoyed and roars before taking off to the sky.

“fuck.” rafe groans. “i hate dinosaurs. sorry baby.”

“that's okay.” you say with a slight laugh. “i don't think i like them that much anymore either.”

you take off towards the resort, keeping your oars held tightly in your hands, just in case any pterodactyls try something.

“onto the ship or into the resort?” you question, seeing people trying to get into both.

rafe opens his mouth to respond when a roar rips through the air.

he looks around quickly, pulling you into taller grass, not having any other close cover.

“some of the gates must be down.” you whisper.

“why?” rafe questions, not doubting you as his eyes search through the field before you point at the crowd of people, even more frantic as you watch from a distance.

“because there's a metriacanthosaurus.”

the name makes rafe blink harshly before he sees it, the dinosaur flinging people around as it takes advantage of the hoards of people trying to get to cover.

“oh my god.” you cover your mouth, watching as the carnivore rips someone in half.

“don't watch.” rafe pulls you further into the grass, tucking you against his chest.

you close your eyes and focus on his arm wrapped around your shoulder instead of the screams.

“i got you.” rafe whispers, free hand tapping his shorts to make sure the box is still there in his pocket.

“i know.” you press your lips into his neck. “i know.”

gunshots ring out and rafe looks out of the grass to see that the dinosaur has finally brought down and everyone is safely inside.

“okay, let's run.” rafe helps you stand, deciding to head towards the boat instead of the hotel, knowing it's just one step closer to getting you safe.

you take off in a run, entering up the gangway you went down just yesterday morning.

“inside the cabin.” one of the staff says quickly, ushering you through the glass doors into the packed hallway of people, but rafe keeps moving, tucking you into him until you're towards the front of the boat, able to move up a level and find a place to sit down.

“we're okay.” you say as you relax into the sofa. “we’re alive.”

“i love you.” rafe says, head dropping to your shoulder. “im never talking you on another vacation like this again, but i love you.”

“and i thought you were protective before.” you chuckle, breathing out heavily.

“really ruined my whole plan though.” rafe knows that you both just experienced a trauma that will no doubt need to be unpacked later, but you're just happy to be safe inside the cruise ship.

“what plan?” you lift your head up.

“not the best time but-” rafe sits up and pulls a box out of his pocket. “i planned to ask you in front of the waterfall, all romantic and sweet. but i don't want to waste a single moment longer.”

rafe flicks the top of the box up to reveal a glimmering ring. “will you marry me?”

you let out a squeal and jump into rafes arms, “yes!”

sfw tags: @winterrrnight @bejeweledreverie @ladyinbl00d @ethanthequeefqueen @drewsephrry @wearemadeofstardust0

[dazelvel]

What if... Alastor and his lover ate sinners together in their demon forms... 🥺

You know that this is giving?

[dramatic-horsey]

🦴🦖🥩

[werewolffrommystories]

Rainbow Utahraptor for pride!!!

[pls click the image for more detail, I’m really proud of this one haha]

[mildlybizarrecorvid]

Get Isekai'd lol

[princessjadyn15]

Wanted to show off my Sky Kid cosplay I did a couple months ago, I painted the mask myself btw

[helluvahotelcircus]

It is *almost* done!!! I present to you "The Amazing Jurassic Park" franchise in TADC AU! I was having many ideas to do all 4 chapters in a weekend or other days, so it will be interesting. I will also make some surprises, so stay tuned! @endomentendo

Jax's little sister and Kingly belongs to @sm-baby

As well as Able

But with some new clothes and new personalities from the original "Jurassic Park" franchise feature film!

Able with Triceratops and another dinosaur :3

Jingle with a shotgun!!!! 🔥 🔥 🔥

[askmovieslate]

Just picture it, the Raptors pulling out a knife and fork ready for the attack, you'll have Jeff Goldblum trying to pull the moves on Miss Piggy dressed like Laura Dern.

Kermit wearing a hat!

This writes itself, come on guys! It's not like it's gonna be less of a mockery than the last three...four? Five? Jurassic movies have been already, you're sitting on a gold mine and you're just counting the clouds!

[lizisshortforlizard]

Living Dangerously - Chapter 33

Jurassic Park’s animal handlers: none of them ever mentioned by name in Michael Crichton’s original novel. Who were they? What were their lives like on Isla Nublar? Did any of them survive the disaster? A year in the life of those responsible for the care of the dinosaurs. Many people would kill to have their jobs. But would they die for it?

Jurassc Park novel/Jurassic Park film (1993)

Viewpoint: 3rd person female oc

Warnings: some swears, nothing explicit in this chapter, though heavily implied in the first half

Tagging: @heresthefanfiction @ocappreciation @wordspin-shares @howlingmadlady @arrthurpendragon @themaradwrites @starryeyes2000 @kmc1989 (please lmk if you would like informed of my sporadic updates. Thanks for bearing with me on this one folks, the first half of this year has not been a good one mentally)

Read on Ao3

Chapter 32 | Chapter 34

Magic Man - Heart

Daylight streamed brazenly into the room the next morning, the clear blue sky holding no memory of the previous night’s storm.

Lizzy awoke abruptly. As the solar rays blasted her directly in the retinas, she dimly registered it was coming from a different angle than usual.

Odd.

She quickly sat up - ouch!

No, she didn’t.

With a soft groan, she sat up slowly, rubbing her eyes. Christ, her head was thumping.

The fuzzy outline of her glasses, folded on the bedside table next to what was presumably a glass of water, and two aspirin.

Very odd. Not something even sober Lizzy would do.

Her surroundings came into focus, including a digital clock that definitely wasn’t hers, and with it, a jumble of untidy memories. She squinted to read the first set of numbers on the LCD display.

One-zero.

Ten.

As in ten in the morning? That ten?!

Motherfu-

“Oh no, oh nonono-“ she quietly panicked, scrabbling around at her own body under the covers, checking. Still dressed, barely.

Well, that was something.

But she wasn’t alone in the bed. Lizzy already knew whose presence was beside her, she’d know him anywhere. In the depths of the jungle with not even a sliver of moonlight, she’d know him. She’d always known him.

Robert Muldoon.

I’m in Muldoon’s bed.

She couldn’t remember falling asleep. She couldn’t even remember how she got there. Nothing. Shitting nothing!

Lizzy quickly tried to work out how she felt about the situation, and how she was going to get out of it.

Was she embarrassed? Ashamed?

No, surprisingly neither of those.

Maybe a little disappointed that she still had her underwear on…?

Stop that, right now.

Lizzy certainly wasn’t pleased either. The blanks in her memory were worrying. She didn’t do that sort of thing anymore. And she certainly never slept past ten in the morning.

Enough stewing, she had to leave. She had to leave immediately.

She put her glasses on, downed the water and aspirin, and made to scramble off for a hasty exit.

“And just where do you think you’re going?” That very familiar deep voice with the East African twang confronted her.

She didn’t dare turn around to face him, who knew what kind of trouble she was in?

“Hello!” Lizzy hated how frantic she sounded. “What do you mean, going? I just got here! Haha, ha…haaaa-“

She could feel the intense stare on the back of her head.

A beat pause.

“Want to try that again?” Dry as ever.

Lizzy finally looked over her shoulder, offering a far less panicky “Morning.”

“That’ll do.” He grumbled. “Just got here…unbelievable.”

And then he appeared to fall right back to sleep.

Lizzy blinked in disbelief. That didn’t feel like a goodbye. Was she supposed to leave? Not leave? Had she done something? Were there expectations now?

Kathy would have a field day dissecting this one.

“Just a sec, er…what happened last night?” She ventured nervously. “What exactly did I do?”

“Hmm.” He languidly opened one eye to regard the worried set of her mouth. “What do you think you did?”

“No, don’t do that!” She moaned, rubbing her forehead. “I have concerns.”

“Concerns, eh? Oh, dear.” If she didn’t know any better, he was toying with her. And enjoying it far too much. “You really don’t remember?”

She shook her head, wincing, expecting the worst.

“You got extremely plastered and passed out on my bed.” He finally put her out of her misery. “The absolute state of you.”

“Is that all I did?” She asked warily with heavily implied meaning.

“That’s all.” He answered after drawing out the suspense a few moments longer. “ You have my word.”

“Oh, thank God.” Hand on her chest, her heart was pounding. Disaster averted. “Sorry.”

Not relieved that she hadn’t. But because that was something she’d definitely want to remember doing.

“S’fine. We both needed the rest.”

Something about his tone made Lizzy freeze. Now she recalled. She had intervened. Offered a distraction.

Oh, Christ…

She might not have done anything…indecent, but she couldn’t have been far off.

“Eh-heh…you sleep okay?” Lizzy enquired nervously, covering for her awkwardness. “I’m sorry if I snored.”

“…if?”

“My bad.” She scooted to the edge of the bed and started to scan the room for her clothes. “Simon needed earplugs. Sorry, again. That you saw me at my worst.”

”That wasn’t your worst.” Fire-breathing and sloshed wasn’t her worst by a long shot. He would take that any day, that he could handle. The mention of her ex-fiancé reminded Muldoon what her worst could be. How the New York lawyer had made her voice sound after their fraught phone calls. Meek, bargaining, unassertive. Thanks very much, but no.

Lizzy didn’t hear, too busy scouring the room for the rest of her clothes. She registered with dismay that her shorts were hanging off the door handle, where they’d landed when she kicked them off. She’d have to stand up to get them.

“Where are you going?” Distaste in his voice, no doubt at the mention of my almost-husband, Lizzy thought.

“Uh, where do you think?” She wasn’t in the mood anymore. Just let me leave. “Back to my room to unmake my bed so I can pretend I’ve been in it all night.”

“As if you ever make your bed.” When she started finger-combing her hair out instead of getting back under the covers, Muldoon figured he was being too subtle. “You…hm-…don’t have to go…just yet.”

“Come again?”

I don’t want you to leave.

“You could stay. For a bit longer. If you liked.” Too many words. He was nervous. That the answer would be a Hell no.

Lizzy was silent, mulling the idea over.

“If you’re not too angry at me.” He added.

”Nah.” She waved a hand. Not quite at peace with what he’d done, but close enough. Her primary emotion was still plain mortified at her own actions. “Think I made my point. It’s just-“

“There’s no rush.” He reassured her. “You’re- we’re already very late. I’m not even expecting anyone to turn up today. You’re off the hook.”

“So sleeping with the boss does pay off?” Lizzy wondered aloud. “Does last night count as overtime?”

“Careful.”

She gave him a lopsided smile.

“Actually…I do want to stay.” I never want to leave. “Rather a lot.”

“Then stay.”

Lizzy pointed at her shorts, festooning the doorhandle, like an extremely inappropriate Christmas garland. “Let me just-“

”You don’t need to do that, either. Fine as you are.”

Fine as you are.

“Outstanding-“ As she was swinging her legs up from the floor, Lizzy’s gaze fell on the near-empty bottle on the table and her smart comment died on her lips.

Everything came screaming back, the snub from Hammond, the strange man groping her, her screaming match with Ed Regis, the raptor attack on Rico-

Rico…

Oh my God, Rico.

Lizzy felt her breath catching in her throat, forcing air in, in, in, into her lungs in short gasps until she was certain her chest would burst.

Muldoon frowned, stopping mid-sentence. “Remember to breathe, Armstrong.”

She glanced at him, wide-eyed, hand outstretched, searching for something to lean on. She was losing control, failing to do as he instructed.

”You aren’t listening to me, woman. Breathe.”

“Trying-“ She managed to choke out. “Can’t.”

“Right-“ Muldoon wasted no more time. “Come on. You’ve been doing it since the day you were born, one should hope you’d be reasonably good at it by now.”

She didn’t know how or what he had done to move her, because she wasn’t in the room anymore, and her feet no longer felt stuck solidly to the floor as if she was ankle-deep in quicksand.

She was gone, somewhere else; out in the park, and back in time.

Lizzy had a brief flashback to the stinging burn of leather on the back of her knees as she was pulled across the front seats of a Jeep while the door crumpled inwards and the windscreen frosted, the heat and dust in her nostrils and throat, the faint bellow of a charging Triceratops, recalled and forgotten again in an instant.

It only added to her fear, the feeling the world was crashing down, imploding around them.

“Now-“ Muldoon clasped both her icy, clammy hands in his. “Breathe.”

I. Can’t.

“In through your nose when I squeeze, out through your mouth when I let go.” He directed. “You’ve got to slow down, Lizzy.”

Mercifully from Muldoon’s point of view, she wasn’t compos mentis enough to ask how, why, he had known exactly what to do to stop her hurting herself further. It wasn’t a happy tale, one he didn’t have the energy to recount there and then.

Eventually, each breath slower than the last, Lizzy returned, shaky and pale.

She realised she was once again horizontal in his bed, only this time propped up against him.

Safest place on the island! Her brain offered unprompted, wildly cheerful.

Jeez, I really am losing it.

It pained Muldoon terribly to see her gasping for air like that, clutching at her heart. His stoicism paused, he knew normally she found it reassuring, but right then she needed a lot more from him.

He rested his chin against the top of her still-damp hair and murmured “You’re not alright, are you, love?”

Her sharp inhale nearly triggered a second panic attack. The second word he’d said that had made her gasp, for completely different reasons.

Any other time, Lizzy would have melted. But she didn’t have the energy to feel, to do anything other than lean back, still holding hands, and try and match her too-quick breathing to his. Though her heart was thrumming twice as fast, as if she were a prey animal, caught.

Lizzy was trying her hardest to keep the tears in. Fearful that if she started, she wouldn’t stop. Just sob endlessly until she was too exhausted to continue. She’d held it together long enough for Rico’s sake, and now she was falling apart.

“No, I’m not.” She gulped. To admit it, to be vulnerable, to ask for help, was always difficult for her. Lizzy Armstrong was indestructible, indomitable, independent. Or perhaps she’d only managed to pretend she was for an awfully long time. “What gave it away?”

“Not so sure I am, either.” Muldoon confessed quietly. “But we have to carry on, for the rest of them. You and I are the ones they look for to lead.”

He was right. This was the life they’d willingly chosen. They were no strangers to animal attacks. They could both handle it.

In a lapse in judgement, Muldoon added. “Besides, we don’t know for sure that the worst has happened.”

Blast, why’d I have to go and say that?! I know, she knows, he couldn’t have survived the night. If he has it won’t be long…

He cursed himself. It was damn hard to concentrate properly with the object of his desire curled up in bed with him.

“Hang on-“ Lizzy had hissed in pain when he absent-mindedly shifted his hold further down her wrist. “What happened to your arm?”

“Oh-“ She hurriedly tried to hide under the covers, too late. She’d bruised vicious purple. Adrenaline pumping, she hadn’t realised at the time how intent the rich businessman had been on acquiring her. “It’s nothing.”

“That’s not nothing.” Finger marks. “Who do I need to have words with?” The rush of anger, blinding rage was quite something. Whoever has done this had better start running.

Lizzy didn’t mind the distraction, at least her thoughts had stopped racing and she was feeling something other than anguish. Neither did she mind the excuse for him to hold her hands a little longer.

She explained. “Tom dealt with it. Quite diplomatically.”

“Maybe I’m too hard on the lad. I wouldn’t have been so tactful.”

”Didn’t have you down as the jealous type…” she muttered.

Not jealous. Not like when Armstrong’s face had turned terribly pink as she insisted fiercely she wasn’t jealous of other woman he’d been seeing.

He didn’t feel threatened of losing Lizzy to someone else.

What Muldoon felt was envy. That someone who didn’t deserve her, who hadn’t appreciated how good he’d had it, how lucky that New York lawyer was that he had met her first-

But they weren’t talking about him. The Ex. Only a stranger. An entitled businessman who had gotten too handsy and who was already, if he knew what was good for him, far away on the mainland, for daring to touch her.

No, not jealousy.

Envy.

And that manifested as-

”I’m not. Just protective-“ He continued. “-of what’s mine.”

“Yours?” She became incredulous. “After falling off the wagon last night, you’re under some sort of impression I belong to you?”

She’d really better be going.

“I meant more in the sense of-“ Lizzy stood up and his jaw dropped. “Christ, Armstrong!”

“What?” She twisted back to face him, panicking, that there was a gruesome injury on her body from scrambling around in the undergrowth she must have missed the night before.

“You know fine bloody well!” Eye contact was a lost concept. “Turn back around…”

Oh, she knew that tone.

”No!” Not normally self-conscious Lizzy felt very exposed. “Stop that!”

”Stop what?” She saw a flicker of what he must have been like as a young man in Kenya. Before life had happened to him. The side that only she knew existed, and was incredibly elusive.

It only made her fall a little harder.

“Looking at me like that!” Lizzy wondered if she could make it out of the door in time, before she was pushed up against it. “That look’s going to get us in a lot of trouble.”

Why, how hadn’t he noticed last night? He couldn’t have been hammered enough not to notice that. Could he? Unacceptable.

”Hear me out- I’ve suddenly found the willpower to never drink again.” He looked up at her accusingly, as if it was her fault for not thinking of it sooner. “Maybe if you’d started with this angle-“

“I…now who’s unbelievable?!”

“That particular…angle…” With an effort, he met her gaze. “Yes, maybe you’d better leave now, or you won’t be leaving at all.”

Lizzy’s eyes widened.

That nearly did it for Muldoon. “Go, please.”

Lizzy had an epiphany as she carefully backed away, reaching out blindly for her sleep shorts.

Avoiding him because of her own demons when he needed her most wasn’t going to work long-term. She had to stop selfishly disappearing because it was easier. She had to choose to be brave. They were going to get through this together.

“If you’re…struggling, with…wanting a drink-“ Lizzy huffed as she hoiked her shorts up over her hips “-promise you’ll come and find me first. Please.”

“For what?”

“To be a distraction.” She smirked wickedly. “I seem to have an effect on you.”

“…already very distracting...” He managed drag his gaze up to meet her eyes. “What’s that smile for?”

Now dressed, with her hand on the door handle, Lizzy felt safer. He was fast, but not that fast.

“Because I’m not even trying-“ Still, she didn’t feel brave enough to test that theory. “-yet.”

A parting shot as she quickly slipped away.

“You’re going to be the death of me, Armstrong-“ Muldoon groaned and lay back, speaking to the now empty-room. ”But I think I’m alright with that.”

***

Lizzy emerged corridor-side as Tom rounded the corner in just his boxer shorts, almost flattening her. He clumsily halted before the collision, took in the sight of her bare legs with sleepy eyes, nodded appreciatively, then did a double-take as he noticed which room she was escaping from.

The door swung shut with a click as the realisation dawned on both their faces.

Dammit.

Caught.

“Haha ha, ha-“ Tom broke into an enormous foamy grin around the toothbrush sticking out of his mouth. “Hey, alright, alright, alright! Was it like a sneeze, but better?”

“Jesus, keep it down.” Lizzy complained. “Nothing happened.”

“Boring!” He smirked. ”I guess I believe you. Your hair doesn’t look any worse than usual.”

“Well, if you’re feeling brave-“ She jerked her head back at the door. “-ask the man himself.”

”I could...” His face fell. “But then again, I value my life.”

“Seriously.” Her headache had tripled its efforts, the aspirin wasn’t doing its job. “Please don’t tell anyone. I have enough to worry about.”

Tom basked in her imploring expression, making an Oscar-worthy show of weighing up his options, before nodding.

“Obviously I won’t tell.” He reassured. “My snitching days are over, since I actually kind of like you and that Baker chick. You can relax.”

“With you around?” Lizzy tutted. “Never fully relaxed. But thanks.”

“Pretty mega though.” He could still tease her as much as he liked. Not a thing she could do. “Awfully tempting.”

”You want my dinner money? Fine.” Lizzy groaned. “Just keep your trap shut.”

Tom pondered for a moment. Not her money. Perhaps something far more valuable. Maybe a favour involving the ethologist’s Minnesotan best friend.

“I might want something.” He mused aloud, waggling his toothbrush at her for emphasis. “But it can wait. All in good time.”

“I’m far too tired to even attempt to figure out what that means.” She sighed, holding up her hand to silence the inevitable because you weren’t doing much sleeping? comment. “Have you heard anything from the mainland?”

“About Rico?” Tom turned sombre in an instant. “Not yet. But the chopper came in to land hours ago.”

“Huh.” Lizzy ran a hand through her hair, deep in thought.

“I assume, one way or another, you didn’t hear it.”

She narrowed her eyes. “I did not. Heavy rain and all.”

”Doncha mean, ‘we did not’?” The infuriating grin returned. “What base you get to?”

Lizzy just stared.

“Jesus.” Tom was disappointed at her refusal to take the bait this time. “Loud and clear. No bases. Not even a game.”

”Speaking of which..” Lizzy tailed off as she spotted a familiar red-haired head bobbing past the window at the end of the corridor, a freckled face belonging to the island’s resident baseball fan.

”Oh, hey.” Tom pointed. “Ed’s back.”

”Wait right here.” Lizzy told him vacantly. “There’s something I need to do.”

***

2 weeks later

Ray Arnold was dying. Or, at least, he felt like he wasn’t far off. Kathy Baker had dragged him out of his inner sanctum to march across the island on a hike; which, in this humidity, was going to kill him a lot faster than his smoking habit.

“How ‘bout that game, huh?” He wheezed.

“It was fine.” Kathy answered tersely.

Sure enough, the Cowboys had won the Superbowl. And the die-hard Minnesota Vikings fan had lost herself a bet from siding with the Bills. Tom had been insufferable.

”Oh, shit, sorry.” Ray cursed himself. “Yeesh.”

“Just over this next rise…” Kathy promised as the path rose upwards out of the treeline. In the next few seconds they’d have a fantastic view of- ”Oh.”

Nothing.

Dense fog in every single direction.

”Now, how about that-“ Arnold mustered the last of his energy to swagger up behind her.

”Shut up.” Kathy grumbled.

“Look, I know you mean well, honey-“ He couldn’t have cared less about the vistas. He could see them in HD, from any angle, at any time, with a lot less effort. “-but you’re killing me over here!”

“Ray Arnold. You have got to get out of that room.” She insisted. “Get some damn Vitamin D. Enjoy the tropical paradise.”

”I enjoy it just fine from behind a monitor. Anyway, it looks like goddamn Alcatraz from above.” He wiped his brow. “This goddamn never-ending fog.”

“Mia’s gonna whoop both our butts if we don’t start getting into shape…” Kathy dangled a threat in front of him.

The engineer paled at the mention of his wife.

“That’s what I thought.” She nodded, satisfied, and inhaled deeply. “Smell that?”

“Smell what?”

”Fresh. Air.” Her enthusiasm wasn’t catching. “I’m not surprised your senses are dulled. And your lungs must be, like, ninety-per-cent ash at this point.”

“I prefer the term well-done. Lightly cremated. Cajun.” Arnold’s eyes darted anxiously around. “Wasn’t it around here that Rico kid got, er…”

“Might be, I dunno…” Kathy quickly brushed it off, but she knew exactly where they were, and what had happened in the bushes thirty feet downhill to the right of the path. She could still remember the smell of the blood, and the raptor saliva, mixed with sodden earth and moss-covered branches. The whir of the helicopter blades. Rico’s awful rattling and groaning as he fought for his life.

She tried to think of something else. Dwelling on that rainy winter night for too long felt like tempting the fates. Bad luck.

Improving Arnold’s life expectancy wasn’t the sole purpose of the hike, but it was a good enough distraction from other problems.

Earlier, Lizzy and Muldoon had vanished, yet again. The pair giving the same, vacant, I’m a bit busy, over replies to radio messages. Liz, girl, puh-lease. I can hear you in the background when he answers! They were clearly on another super-important, totally-work-related task, no doubt. Those seemed to be increasing in frequency of late.

Even when they were around the rest of the team, the silent communication thing was getting real old. How with a glance Muldoon could make Lizzy beam at some inside joke only they shared, seeing nothing but each other in a room full of people.

Ugh, sickening.

Kathy had given up asking what’s so funny. All Lizzy would do was grin even wider and shake her head. You wouldn’t get it. Kathy was lonely. At least Ray was consistent, his sarcasm predictable and comforting.

Smithsonian job offer aside, it filled her with dread to think she might actually be losing Lizzy ahead of time. Who promised her otherwise, that ‘us girls’ would still hang together whenever possible, but since New Years kept on ditching her for a certain park warden at every opportunity.

Maybe that was why she’d agreed to Tom’s high-risk low-reward Halftime Show bet.

“Hey man, can I ask you something?” Kathy piped up.

The engineer gave an affirmative wheeze.

“Tom said if the Bills lost I had to go on a date with him-“

“Oh, shit!” Arnold yelled, sounding horrified, shocked, scared?

Kathy bristled. ”Jeez, it’s not that big of a-“

”No, girl!” He was by her side in a flash, future emphysema be damned. “Dino just ran across the path behind us! It’s outside the fences!”

“Why were you-“ She turned, about to finish with looking behind us? only to see a sheepish Arnold, with a fresh cigarette poking from his mouth. “Darn it, Ray!”

“Sorry, honey.” Arnold paused, his lighter already on its way upwards from his pocket. “It’s on account of my nerves.”

”Yeah, well…” She gestured at him in exasperation. “What’d it look like? The dino?”

“I dunno.” The engineer spoke around his cigarette. “Kinda…pointy?”

Kathy raised an eyebrow. ”Pointy? That the best you can do?”

“Give me a break! Like…if a greyhound were a reptile, I guess?”

“O-kay…” She muttered. “Narrows it down, I guess…”

Not a herbivore.

“‘bout yea big?” Arnold held his hands apart, measuring.

”Probably just a compy.” Kathy deduced, her alarm ebbing. “They’re everywhere. Can’t keep ‘em in.”

“Dangerous?” Arnold looked edgy.

Kinda big for a compy though…

”Not when you’re with me.” Kathy patted his arm reassuringly. “Scavengers. You’ll be fine, just don’t keel over right here from sucking on those cancer sticks.”

“Can’t promise anything, sweetie.”

Kit was the expert after all. Probably just a compy or whatever, like she said. For watching them all day long, Arnold only knew them as names on a graph, numbered dots on the tracking system. He couldn’t actually pick species out of a line-up.

Now his girl was looking at him expectantly.

”What now?”

”Ya gonna put that out?” She suggested dryly. “Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires!”

”Nuh-uh. Need my fix. If we’re doing this, we’re doing it my way.”

Kathy heaved an incredibly loud drawn-out sigh and about-turned to lead the way back to base.

Arnold cheerfully exhaled a cloud of smoke, visibly more relaxed as they moved off. “Now, spill. About this date-“

***

“Teething problems, dear boy!” Hammond spun his cane hypnotically as he sat in the living room of his bungalow. “Every zoo in the world has had teething problems at some point in its development.”

”Is Gennaro-?” Ed Regis pointed his thumb back towards the door.

He reflected that he felt not unlike the prehistoric insect frozen in time atop the old man’s walking stick. Encased in amber. Trapped. Doomed.

He’d never been in Hammond’s abode before. The only place on the island not covered by a single security camera or monitoring device.

”Donald couldn’t make it.” The creator of InGen sharply cut him off. “We don’t need him today. What was I saying...”

Thank you Regis muttered as María placed a laden tea tray in front of him.

”-Ah, yes! And besides, it isn’t a mere zoo!” Hammond continued pontificating. “Jurassic Park is an experience.”

“I understand that-“

”And they will experience it. The children will experience it.” Hammond seemed almost giddy that his creation had indeed proved to be lethal. “I’m not at all concerned.”

“Mr Muldoon wants to put it down.” Ed offered. “The raptor. Has for a while. He’s been quite vocal about it.”

“That man? Vocal? About anything?” Hammond raised both eyebrows, his already furrowed brow wrinkling deeper. “No. You’re mistaken.”

“And he seems to have quit drinking recently…”

“Has he now? Hm. We’ll see.” Now that actually seemed to concern the older man. “It’s a very stressful job he has.”

“He’s sweet on Mis-…uh, Dr Armstrong.” Regis added. “Who is vocally against euthanasia of the raptor.”

Ed wasn’t quite sure why. That animal was vicious. And the raptor too he internally chuckled to himself.

“Then maybe everything will work out by itself.” Hammond nodded. “But it wouldn’t do any harm to fan the flames of that particular domestic, if you can.”

“You don’t think maybe its the, er-…” Ed gulped before proceeding. “-right thing to do?”

To say the young sports fan was having a crisis of faith after the accident was putting it mildly.

”Euthanasia? Out of the question.” Hammond turned stony-faced and Regis immediately regretted speaking out of turn. “You do realise, that animal, once fully-grown, is of greater monetary value than a court settlement for wrongful death?”

”I, uh-“

”More valuable than a dozen court settlements?”

Regis nodded his head mutely.

“No. I simply won’t have it!” Hammond continued, tapping his cane sharply on the tiled floor to drive his words home. “The boy was just a construction worker.”

Just?

Regis scratched his head, terribly hot under the rim of his hat. ”Mr Hammond, sir, it was actually one of the animal handlers.”

He had left out the part where it had been his idea in the first place, to put the raptor out on display. How Liz Armstrong had goddamn barked at him from the doorway of the staff lodge, the first time she’d laid eyes on him the morning after the accident, standing there with her arms crossed, in her PJs.

Hell, that would probably come back to bite him, calling her a dog. She might eventually forgive him, but she sure as Hell wouldn’t forget it.

But that was a problem for another day. As far as Armstrong was concerned, Esteves was still in a critical condition, deep in the clutches of a coma, lying prone in a San José hospital bed.

She didn’t yet know the boy was dead. None of them did. The other animal handlers were starting to ask when they could visit Rico on the mainland, if he was well enough to come home yet, and Ed was fast running out of excuses.

”You’re misremembering, son. It was only a construction worker.” Hammond’s voice turned appeasing, child-like, terribly persuasive. It wasn’t me, I didn’t do it. “And it was a construction accident. These things happen. With a, er…backhoe, I believe? An awful tragedy.”

Regis’ shoulders drooped. “Yes, sir.”

“It’s quite alright, my boy. The local families never push for lawsuits, they can’t afford it.” He tittered. “And if they did, they certainly wouldn’t win.”

“He was-“ Ed Regis stopped and tried to remember. Esteves was-, had been Spanish, or was it Portuguese? He couldn’t recall. In any case, not local.

“Yes?”

Regis saw then that he couldn’t win either. Like the bereaved family with their compensation money, he’d have to take his helping of guilt and run, since he wasn’t getting any sympathy from his employer.

Don’t bite the hand that feeds.

He sighed in resignation. “Careless, sir. He was careless.”

Hammond looked at him reproachfully. “How many times, dear boy?”

Ed Regis adjusted his baseball cap again with a strained smile. “Sorry, John. You’re right, of course. The boy was careless. And look where it got him.”

***

“Not that this isn’t, y’know, stunningly beautiful-…“ Lizzy pointed oceanward, to the all-consuming fog wrapped around the shore. “But why are we here?”

Muldoon took his time answering her. ”So you didn’t want me to take you to the beach today?”

The ethologist cast her arm around at the waterfront. What beach? No sand, just boulders, as far as the eye could see. Which currently, was only a few metres. Cracking.

A boat horn sounded in the distance.

“We’re here, because as much as I care for you, Armstrong-“

Lizzy feigned an itchy nose to cover her smile.

“-we need to have a chat about your animal.”

“Which animal?” She stopped itching. Her heart sank.

“I’ve given you long enough. The way that raptor acts with you now-“ He shook his head.

The ethologist had been trying her hardest to regain the raptor’s trust after the cage break, but she now clearly associated Lizzy with danger, fear and pain. The dinosaur snarled every time she made eye contact. Lizzy was afraid there was no return, and each failed training session made her heart ache a little more. Their bond was ruined.

I’m trying to help you, clever girl. Why can’t you figure that one out?

”Mm-hmm.” She answered unhappily, staring out into the pale void. The worst part was, as much as she hated to admit it, now she was attached to the damn animal.

You have to let me help, or bad things are going to happen to you.

“We’re at an impasse.” Muldoon was ever-practical. “You know it.”

“Is that why we’re here? If I continue to disagree with you then you’ll…maroon me?” Lizzy was still searching for the reason why Muldoon had driven her to the East dock that afternoon, of all places. “Send me out to sea on a raft with a single bullet?”

“It’s occurred to me I’m not longer capable of looking at this objectively, since your safety, or lack of, is all I can think about.” Muldoon checked his watch. “And I would quite like to keep you alive and in one piece, mostly for my own selfish reasons.”

“It’s a wonder you get anything else done.” She couldn’t resist a dig of her own. You’re not the only one who survived Africa. “What with worrying about me taking up so much of your day.”

“It’s exhausting.” The park warden agreed, deadpan. “Look here, I made a call to Sorna. To someone who knows that animal nearly as well as you do. I thought you should meet her. Maybe then you’ll see sense.”

Now that pissed her off. Nobody knows that animal anywhere near like I do.

The rumble of a small boat engine rounding into the dock echoed through the fog.

Lizzy ignored it.

”Her? You’re speaking to other women on the phone without telling me now?” She was making a poor attempt at hiding her discomfort with humour. She felt blindsided.

“I really don’t want to fall out with you over this, Lizzy.” Muldoon reached out to put a hand on her shoulder. Her bad shoulder.

“Me neither.” She moved away from him and stared at the ground. “But I’m afraid that’s inevitable now.”

”I’ll do what I have to.” He answered firmly. “Even if this doesn’t go your way, we need to make the decision.”

“Then stop talking like you’ve already made it for me!” Lizzy hissed, beginning to lose her temper.

The boat engine suddenly cut out.

“Doctor Armstrong, I presume?” A female voice called from beyond view.

The wind picked up, clearing the shoreline, and Lizzy’s stomach turned over when she saw that the woman stepping gingerly onto the dock was missing exactly one-and-a-half fingers from her right hand as she raised it to the both of them in greeting.

Lori Ruso gave a tight-lipped smile and cast a critical eye over the skyline of Isla Nublar as she shielded her face from the weak glare of a sun determined to burn its way through the low clouds.

“So, tell me-“ She asked coolly. “What’s become of my raptor?”

***

Thanks for reading!

As mentioned, a tough time mentally recently where I have doubted myself and my writing ability A LOT. Lots of oh God I’m Shit moments. Normal service resuming.

[polar-artist]

i am so doing this. any characters, as long as they are SFW. YEAHHHHHHH.

this is gonna take forever, and I'm not gonna draw every single request I get, but I will keep this up until I either can't stand it anymore, or am completely done.

(I MAY TAKE A COUPLE SPOTS FOR MY OC'S.)

[reginaldubel]

regeg pousting

[dramatic-horsey]

The most bloodthirsty chicken of the Jurassic Period :D

[archiepelago]

*puts a fucking dinosaur in the blacksite*

[maisiesbike]

i checked the poll and you guys chose memes for some reason…I didn’t expect that ngl. But the polls are the polls ig.

The new girl is Stefanie, who my mutuals already know everything, and i mean everything, about (im so sorry guys)

The Japanese guy is Ichiro, her ace best friend.

I‘m still going to do some of the other things in the poll. Be prepared.

[empressofmankind]

CROCTOBER 23/31 - "Front page news"

Opening day of Jurassic World, because I haven't made enough art of our unlikely cross-over yet

Inktober masterlist