So I've had a couple horrible months. And I know, everyone has. The whole world is one big depressed lump, right? I feel like all I do is whine about being depressed and sad and not being able to focus on this story. Haha. So I'll try to stop and write more.

Raptor Heart
Periphery
Chapter 10: Pounce

Tony headed back to the resort after arguing with Jarvis. He called Simon, who said he was in the control room and to come on up. Tony glanced around the room as he stepped inside. His next task was to figure out who exactly knew about the dinoman. He was nosey and bold. But he couldn't exactly just go up to the half raptor man and ask him if he was a half raptor. That would involve him admitting how he found out. And that he totally crossed the line and snooped and he was so totally dead. Jarvis had been right. He should have never snooped in the first place. Or at least, he should have stopped the very second he found out the winner of the contest. Simon was going to be pissed. He was going to break up with him and then he'd never sell Tony the island. Tony just needed to figure out who knew and get them together with the raptor man and then ease drop until they said something and then he could just happen to walk in and act surprised and pretend he didn't know. Yes. Totally a plausible plan that couldn't in any way backfire on him.

So the people who knew for sure were Simon and Tim. Tony hadn't met Tim yet. At least he didn't think he did. It had been a couple years since he had actually been to the island. He was pretty sure the new doctor was new. And hacking into the cameras showed the doctor on his way to the airstrip with Claire. Which left Simon for now. But Simon was too busy with work. Tony hated work and wrinkled his nose when Simon tried to introduce him to the people in control. Tony smiled and nodded and forgot everyone immediately when the man with the funny name that started with an L started talking about a security breach he detected. Simon's attention turned to the man and Tony quickly snuck out.

"That was close." Tony whispered to himself as he slipped into the elevator and the doors closed. He leaned back against the wall and breathed out. "Almost got caught."

"This is exactly why I warned you not to snoop." Jarvis said into his ear.

"I remember no such conversation." Tony said as he ducked out of the elevator on another floor and snuck through the halls. He hacked into the cameras again, checking on the whereabouts of everyone. His next target was going to be Claire. By her own words, she knew everything that was going on on the island. She might very well know about the human raptor. Or she probably knew nothing. She seemed like the type to totally miss something cool going on right under her nose. But whatever she did know, Tony needed to find out. He waited until the tour group left the control room and was well into their trek through the lab. He was momentarily jealous, watching the adorable baby triceratops bounce around the room. That was supposed to be his baby! He was supposed to win her! Well… to win the chance to name her.

"Sir, is more snooping really a good idea?" Jarvis cut in.

Tony rolled his eyes as he cut off his display. "Fine! You win! I'll stop!" He threw up his arms. "Just as soon as I locate Miss Dearing…"

"She's still in control."

Tony nodded. "Cool. Thanks. You could have just said that in the first place." He'd ended up on the roof, hiding in a corner. He donned his suit and walked over to the edge. Then he jumped off and hovered just outside the control room windows. He smiled and knocked on the glass gently.

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

She was going to kill him. That's all there was to it. She was going to kill him. She strode across the room and opened the window and demanded that he get inside. "Right now, Mr. Stark!"

Tony let out a laugh as he flew in the window. He landed and took off his suit and smiled at her. "Miss Dearing! I was just looking for you."

She turned around, shaking her head. She was going to kill him. She rubbed at her forehead. Her headache had returned and it was even worse. She breathed out and turned towards Simon. "Mr. Masrani, why don't you show Mr. Stark…"

"Excuse me." Tony said stepping forward.

Claire clenched her jaw as she turned around. "Yes, Mr. Stark?"

"I'd rather take a tour with you." He said with a straight face.

Claire blinked for a moment and then quickly recovered. She forced a smile and nodded her head. "Yes, of course. I would be… honored… to take you." She glanced at Simon again. "Perhaps…"

"Great!" Tony clapped his hands together and then darted forward. He grabbed Claire's hand and started tugging her towards the door. "Just the two of us! A personal tour from the big boss lady. I am totally honored that you took time out of your super busy schedule to..."

Claire cast one last desperate look over her shoulder at Simon. He just smiled at her and waved. Smug bastard. The tour started off fine. She snagged a park jeep and ushered him in. Then she pulled out of the parking lot and headed into the park. She turned on her tour guide mode and just tried to keep talking. For nearly an hour, she talked. Random facts about every exhibit they passed. Not only about the cost and profitability of each exhibit, but also about the dinosaurs themselves. Names and anything she could remember, anecdotes or stories, just whatever came to mind. She figured the more she was talking and in her own element, the less time he had to annoy her. But, as they were walking towards the monorail, she got a phone call. It wasn't anything important, but the few seconds she spent answering it had thrown her off. And had given Tony an opportunity.

"So Owen Grady. What's so special about him?" Tony asked bluntly.

Claire was momentarily stunned into silence. She slipped her phone back into her pocket. She blinked at him and just stared at him as he stared right back. A million thoughts ran through her head but she couldn't figure out what Tony was after. "Uh… he's… hardly as special as he thinks." She finally stuttered out.

He stepped closer. "Really? Nothing at all? I've seen his shows… it's like… he can talk to them or something?"

Claire frowned. "Talk? To the raptors, you mean? Yes." She nodded her head. "He talks to them."

Tony tilted his head curiously. "He does?"

Claire nodded. "All the time. It's actually rather annoying." She said in a moment of honesty. "He talks to them and acts like they understand. He pretends to have these real sounding conversations with them while ignoring whoever he's with. It's kind of insulting, too."

"So…" Tony stepped closer. "You don't think he really talks to them, then?"

"He does talk to them." She corrected, frowning. "I just said so. He talks to them like people talk to their pets."

Tony tilted his head. "But does he really talk to them?"

She honestly had no clue what he was driving at. As far as she was concerned, there was nothing special about Owen Grady. Yes, he was good at his job and very perceptive. But so was she. And she considered herself better. "So how's the penguin?" She asked suddenly, forcing a smile on her face.

Tony stopped mid-word, his mouth still open. It took a few seconds for the question to actually sink in. And when it did, Tony closed his mouth and blinked at her, still looking confused. "I uh... what penguin?"

"The penguin you mentioned earlier." She prompted. "The one you needed to talk to Thor about."

Tony looked completely baffled and he didn't answer.

Claire's smile softened, a little more genuine. Then she let out a laugh and shook her head. "Look, Mr. Stark, I don't know what your fascination is with Mr. Grady, but I assure you, he's just a regular, annoying guy. He's really good at entertaining and putting on a show. That's his… special gift, I guess. He's really good at his job. But he's nothing special."

"Okay…" Tony nodded his head slowly. "But what about the truth?"

Claire rolled her eyes and threw up her arms. "You are impossible!"

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

He glanced at his phone and checked the time. This was taking forever! He didn't exactly have anywhere to be. At least not at the moment. His schedule had included attending the unveiling. So he was actually exactly where he was supposed to be. But whatever it was, it was running late. And if he'd known it was going to be late, he would have hung out a little longer with Owen and the girls. He barely had any time with them as it was.

"Zach!"

He turned and waved at the doctor. "Tim! Finally!" They were standing inside Rexy's control room. Zach had been waiting nearly 10 minutes. It really wasn't that long of a wait, but Tim had been bragging to everyone that was within hearing distance that he was unveiling some big new feature and he wouldn't give any clues, except to tell everyone to be at Rexy's enclosure. "Okay, what's going on? What's the big secret?" Zach asked rather impatiently.

Tim smiled in answer. "Sorry, running late." He said, avoiding the question. "The JP crew's tour of my lab took longer than I anticipated. They… are a handful."

Zach smiled. "I heard things weren't quite going as Claire planned."

"No, they are not." Tim said, shaking his head. "But you'll see soon enough. Good luck with them."

Zach frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Your tour." Tim answered as he brushed himself off.

Zach frowned again. He had no clue what Tim was talking about. After the unveiling, he was scheduled to head back to the twins paddock. Then after that, was Owen's next show, then the party. No where in the itinerary did it mention a tour of any sort. "What tour?"

Tim paused, looking confused. "Uh… aren't you taking them to see the Indominus Rexes?"

Zach's eyes widened. "What?"

"I… could be wrong." Tim shrugged. "That's just what they said."

Zach was at a complete loss for words. Being forced to give a tour with no prior knowledge or time to prep… it sounded just like something Claire would do to him. He turned away and pulled out his phone. He hit her number and put the phone to his ear. "Aunt Claire!" He said her name the second the line clicked on, not even giving her a chance to answer. "You're making me give a tour?"

"Yes." She answered evenly.

"Why?" He whined.

She let out a soft chuckle. "Zach, that's 80% of the job. Tours and demonstrations and sucking up to people with money."

"Exactly, my boy!" Simon's voice called in the background. "You'll do great."

Zach hung up and shoved his phone back into his pocket. "Don't suppose you want to take over my tour for me?" He asked hopefully as he turned back to Tim.

Tim shook his head and turned as one of the workers approached him. He smiled at the man. "Hey Reese. You ready?"

The man breathed out a sigh and shook his head. "No! This all makes me nervous."

Tim smiled and reached out to clap him on the shoulder. "You worry too much. It'll be fine."

"You say that." Reese stepped closer to Tim. He clipped a small microphone to the doctor's shirt collar. Then he turned to Zach and gave him one as well too.

Zach blinked and then just stared for a moment, his mind still on the prospect of a tour. His eyes widened as he looked down at the tiny microphone. "Me?"

Tim nodded. "Yep. Zara said to include you, capitalize on your current fame."

"Oh…" Zach shook his head. "I don't wanna intrude…"

Reese rolled his eyes but the man didn't look upset. "Too late for that." He mumbled.

Tim shrugged and shook his head. "Anyways, you aren't intruding." He turned to Reese again. "So… are you guys ready?"

Reese nodded his head. "We are. We have Lowery keeping tabs on Rexy's location and I've got control of her killswitch."

Tim wrinkled his nose and shook his head. "Don't call it that."

Reese shrugged. "Whatever. I'm ready to take her out if she becomes aggressive in any way."

Tim smiled and nodded his head. "Good. Then we're all set." He looked at Zach. "Now come on." He headed out and Zach followed. The two approached the growing crowd outside Rexy's main viewing window. Tim weaved through the crowd, smiling and waving at a few people.

Zach continued to follow. He smiled shyly and waved, feeling completely out of his element. But the crowd around them all hooted and hollered and clapped.

Tim stepped out in front of the crowd and raised his hands. "Alright everyone." His voice was amplified over the speakers. "I'm Dr. Tim Murphy and this is my new associate, Zach Mitchell." Cheers ran through the crowd and Tim smiled and lifted his hands. "Say hi to the crowd."

Zach smiled and waved awkwardly again. "Hey." He still didn't understand the fascination.

Tim laughed and clapped his hands together. "Now, for the reason we are all here…" He started.

"Yes, get on with it!" Ian called from the front. "We've been here for hours!" The group around him were a mix of smiles, laughs, and eye rolling. The large group had just arrived only a few minutes behind Tim and thus far they'd manage not to kill each other.

"I'm trying to, uncle Ian." Tim nodded his head. "I want to introduce you all to someone new." He turned towards the viewing window and waved his arm.

Inside, just a few yards from the window, a large steel box was lowered into the paddock. The cables detached and one of the sides fell open. For a moment, it was dead silent. The crowd pressed closer to the window to see what it was. Everyone held their breath and waited. Then there was movement. Across the paddock, the trees swayed and Rexy's large head poked out. She lowered her head and inhaled deeply, looking curious.

Ian's eyes widened and he let out a gasp. He stumbled backwards and flailed for a moment before he fell. He twisted his leg and landed hard on the ground. "Shit!"

"Ian!" Sarah turned.

"Dad!" Kelly and Lucas bent down over him.

"My ankle." The old man wailed out.

Tim cut through the crowd and bent down. "Don't move. It might be broken."

Ian's eyes narrowed into a glare and he pointed angrily at the viewing window. "She did that on purpose! She busted my other leg!"

Alan let out a laugh and shook his head. "You scared her."

Ian's eyes widened. "I scared her?!" Tim called the infirmary and they sent an ambulance. They got Ian loaded onto a stretcher and started loading him into the back. "This is ridiculous!" Ian snapped as Sarah climbed in behind him. "I'm fine! I don't need to ride in an ambulance! Why do you guys even have a real ambulance? Are these even real paramedics? Hey! You! Did you go to school for this? I bet all you know how to treat is heat stroke!" Kelly laughed loudly as her dad's voice faded once the doors were closed. Lucas crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. Alan smiled and Billy poked him.

Zach had been concerned when the older gentleman fell. He'd also been a little scared. He was going to be left alone with the group soon. He watched the scene play out but it was clear Ian was well taken care of. Zach's attention was back on the movement in the paddock. A few others pressed in around him with wide eyes and gasps. Stepping out of the metal box was a tiny dinosaur. It was a baby T-Rex, Zach quickly realized. And it seemed like Rexy, too, had realized. She stepped out of the curtain of trees and lowered her head.

"Okay, okay, okay." Tim returned to the front of the crowd and clapped his hands. "Let's get back to the show. I'd like to introduce you all to Riley. She is about 2 months old and this is the first time she's been out of the nursery."

Rexy inhaled again and swayed her head side to side as she took another step closer. There was still no sign of aggression in the old girl, just curiosity. She bent down, closer to the ground, as she edged closer. She was moving slower than anyone had ever seen her, like she was trying not to scare away the tiny baby. But little Riley, she didn't seem to mind the presence of her larger counterpart. She let out a tiny squeal and looked at the ground. It shook a little as Rexy moved and a few leaves and brush along the ground fluttered. Riley let out a tiny roar and pounced on a fluttering leaf.

The crowd cooed and as Zach looked around, he knew in minutes the servers would be flooded with new pictures and videos.

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

Zach stayed at Rexy's enclosure for nearly an hour, watching the two dinosaurs. Riley kept hopping around, pouncing on anything that moved. At one point, that included Rexy's tail. Rexy didn't seem bothered by any of it. She seemed intrigued still. Her head swayed as she kept Riley in her view the whole time. Tim talked a little, about Riley being a genetic clone of Rexy and some other boring stuff that Zach thought maybe he should be listening to, because one day he wanted to work on the island. And he kind of liked the idea of working on Rexy's team. As much as he loved the raptors and the twins, he had apparently weirdly bonded with Rexy. He wondered if he could be involved in all three teams.

But he had a schedule to keep. He had to be responsible and do things instead of hanging out, watching Rexy and Riley all day. Even if that was what he wanted to do. Because Rexy had just touched noses with Riley and it was just too cute.

"Alright." He clapped his hands together and tried not to shake. He'd never led a tour group before. He'd never really been in charge of anything like this before. But since he knew the twins the best and was the one who designed their enclosure, he was deemed the expert. He guessed he was. And he really needed to get used to being the center of attention. He just didn't have to like it. "Uh…" He fumbled for a moment and cleared his throat. "Okay… I… uh… so we're… uh…." He sighed and shook his head as he stared at the expecting faces. "I have no clue what I'm doing!" He admitted loudly and threw up his arms.

He was standing in front of the twins paddock, with Alan, Billy, and Ellie. He'd been told exactly 20 minutes ago that he was still leading the smaller than anticipated tour group. After Ian's incident, Zach had called Claire again, hoping to talk her out of it completely, or to reschedule. When she still didn't budge, he called Simon. And yet, there he was, about to give a tour he was not ready for. He was glad that the loud guy was still at the infirmary and the one with the children had opted for the petting zoo. He had no clue what he'd do with a bigger group. He had no clue what to do with just three people. And at that moment, he'd give anything to be back at the bungalow, hiding under the blankets and pillows on Owen's bed.

Ellie swept towards him, a smile on her face. She wrapped her arm around his shoulder. "It's alright." She said gently. "Just take a deep breath, okay?"

"Stop coddling the boy." Alan said, shaking his head and earning himself a slap on the arm from Billy, as well as a glare from Ellie. "He's an adult. Get on with it."

Zach shook his head. "They sprung this whole thing on me a couple weeks ago."

"Sprung what, sweetie?" Ellie asked.

"Coming back to the island." Zach said. "I haven't been here in almost a year… well… the end of last summer. I guess it's been like… 9 months. Tim told me I'd have to give you guys a tour while I was at the unveiling. I've had no time to prepare and I've only been at the paddock once. And that was yesterday. And… you guys…" Zach trailed off and sighed.

Ellie let out a laugh and patted him on the back before pulling away. "Forget that we're… well… us." She said with a smile. "Just… tell us about the dinosaurs and about designing the paddock. Talk to us as if we're… your employees… like we need to know about the place we're assisting in." She turned and glared at Alan before he could even open his mouth. "And you, be quiet! I remember a young boy, fresh out of college, stuttering over every word the first time he had to make a pitch for funding a dig site."

Billy's eyes widened and he smiled. "Really? I'd like to hear about that."

Alan shook his head. "Nope. She's lying. Never happened."

Zach watched the small group of old friends. Ellie laughed and Billy joined in, with Alan glaring at them the whole time. He breathed out and nodded his head. He stood up straighter. Just talk about the twins. He could do that. "Okay. So… velociraptors, as you know, are pack animals. And the T-Rex was always thought to be solitary."

Ellie nodded her head. "Every skeleton found was alone."

Billy snorted and shook his head. "The ones we met on Isla Sorna weren't solitary."

Alan shook his head. "They were not." He mumbled under his breath.

Zach nodded and continued. "I talked with the head of Rexy's team. He told me that Dr. Wu talked about trying to create a new T-Rex, but it always failed. Tim looked at his files and he thinks Wu never actually tried. All his attention was on his secret projects… project." Zach corrected. "On the Indominus Rex. He didn't seem to care about the welfare of the existing animals, just on his experiments."

Alan let out a sharp laugh and Billy elbowed him before he could interrupt.

"What I'm getting at…" Zach held up his hands as he continued. He turned and opened the doors. "... is that when Ida was created, there were two of them. That's it. Two of them, isolated and shoved in a tiny paddock together." He led the group inside. "When Ida ate her sister, Wu dismissed it, thinking the species was developing as solitary, like the T-Rex. But he was wrong. Rexy wasn't solitary by choice, it was forced upon her. And last year, when I was on the island with them, I saw how she fit right into the raptor pack. Rexy bonded with them. Rather fast, too."

"You were really on the island?" Billy asked as they walked down the hall.

"By yourself?" Ellie added.

Zach nodded as they stopped at the back doors. He opened them and walked out towards the fence. "I wasn't completely alone." He half lied. "One of the guys from control stayed, too. He kept all the island stuff going. I pretty much just watched the eggs."

Alan eyed him for a moment. "You just watched the eggs." He repeated skeptically.

Zach nodded as he turned towards the fence. "Hey!" He called out loudly and waved his arms. "Yeah, I watched the eggs." He turned back and crossed his arms. He leaned against the fence. "There were five eggs in the beginning, but only two survived and I was afraid the same thing would happen, that one would kill the other. So I did what Owen told me he did with the raptor eggs. I carried the eggs around and talked to them. When they were born, they knew my voice, they'd already bonded with me and trusted me. More than I realized…" He admitted softly as the ground started to thunder. He turned as the twins stepped out of their trees.

Each let out a call before they raced over. They stopped a few feet from the fence and stared at the strangers. Minnie lowered her head and flared her nostrils as she inhaled deeply. Indigo stood up taller, on her back legs, looking over the fence at them.

Zach lifted his hands at them. "Stay back!" He called loudly.

"Interesting." Ellie said in awe, stepping closer to the fence. "They seem curious and cautious, but I see no sign of aggression."

"It's really extraordinary." Billy said as he joined her at the fence. He pressed against the metal and looked around the bars. "I can't believe they're manmade."

"It really is remarkable." Ellie agreed.

Alan let out a snort and shook his head. "It is ridiculous, is what it is." He grumbled out. "It shouldn't have happened in the first place. They shouldn't exist."

Billy rolled his eyes and shook his head. "You could have gone back to the hotel if you were just going to be grumpy the whole time."

Alan shook his head. "Need to keep close to you in case I have to save you again."

"Save me?" Billy piqued an eyebrow.

Alan smacked him in the back of the leg with his cane.

Zach smiled, watching the two bicker back and forth. He couldn't help but draw parallels to his own relationship. He hoped that would be them in the future, still together after so many years, still driving those around them crazy. "Okay, okay." He smiled and shook his head. "Anyways, the raptors, the twins, and Rexy, they all bonded and formed a new pack. We didn't want to separate them because… well… I still think the Indominus Rexes need the family unit to function. I think that's what drove Ida crazy. She tried to bond with the raptors in the wrong way and it backfired. She tried to force a relationship."

There was another squeal and Indigo was trying to edge closer to the fence. Minnie hung back and let out a distressed sound.

"Indigo!" Zach snapped. "I told you guys, stay back!" Minnie nodded her head and chirped loudly. Zach smiled. "Yeah, good job, Minnie. You listened. Indigo!"

"They can't… get through the fence… right?" Billy asked, stepping closer to Zach and peering through the bars at the dinosaurs.

Zach shook his head. "No, they can't…"

"Of course they can." Alan said. "Just the second they turn on you."

Zach shook his head again. "No. They've shown no sign of aggression. And they haven't climbed out. They haven't even tried for months. And even that was a mistake. They thought they were playing."

"Playing?"

"Yes!" Zach insisted. "They are safe."

Alan shook his head. "You are just as crazy as John Hammond."