THE ROOM WAS DARK, the light above your head flickering with a faint buzzing. The shadows were long and moved, as if alive. You crept through the silence, your breath and faint footsteps the only noise. Well, aside from the pounding of your heart in your ears. You could have sworn it was loud enough for others to hear.

You eyed the darkened corridor wearily, your legs heavy with hesitation. You glanced over your shoulder; the door was still left ajar. You could leave, the sunlight peeking through the crack almost welcoming you the longer you stared.

But a strong feeling urged you to move further, despite the anxiety racing through your limbs and tightening your chest. You bit your bottom lip, hard enough to make it throb, before tiptoeing down the hall, the door on the far end barely illuminated by the flickering light behind it.

The journey through the space felt never-ending as you crossed, muscles tensed in the need for flight. Even when your hand rested on the knob, your heartbeat didn't let up.

You twisted, pushing it open a crack. Fluorescent light spilled out from the crevice, inviting you in. Slowly, you continued to press it open until you could pop your head through to check it out.

The area was large and circular, with a small, glass skylight in the center of the ceiling to allow small traces of sunlight in. The ground was made of earth and thick foliage, small trees and large ferns dotting the room. The center had a small clearing with small holes dug and a few scattered dog toys.

You were concerned as you began to find scratches lining the metal walls, and crumbs of rotten meat hiding beneath shrubs. The hair on the back of your neck began to prickle and stand on end, the intense feeling of something watching you washed over you.

Your common sense took over and you went to shut the door, only for an orange creature to streak from the undergrowth, racing right past you and making a beeline for the open front door.

You cursed, chasing the small animal. You couldn't imagine the consequences if it escaped into the park.

But the thing was incredibly quick, making it to the doorway before you were even out of the corridor. You tripped over your shoelace as it came undone, landing on all fours as you helplessly stared at the animal.

Fortunately--and unfortunately--a boot-clad foot stomped in the crack, startling both the creature and yourself as the hefty man you had followed here stepped in. The animal darted away from him with a loud hiss, aiming for a corner behind a trash can.

"My, my, what do we have here?" a nasty smile spread across his face as he clicked the door shut behind him. "You're Grady's sister, right? You're not supposed to be here."

"I--" you began, stumbling for the right words as you sat up. "I just--"

"You could get into a lot of trouble for breaking into this confidential Jurassic World lab. This animal was sectioned off for experimental purposes, and you almost unleashed it onto the park."

His loud footsteps seemed to echo in your ears as you scrambled to your feet, your heart pounding in your chest. What would he do for your trespassing?

It was then when another loud hiss broke the tension, drawing both your attention as well as his toward the corner. The critter had emerged from its hiding spot, its lips peeled back to reveal needle-like teeth. Its yellow eyes were locked on the man, claws raised.

It was a velociraptor. Like the ones your brother trained, except this one was... different. Its body was a vibrant orange, with brown and black stripes and a lighter underbelly. It seemed much larger than Owen's raptors had been as younglings. Perhaps it was older?

"Calm down, boy," the man huffed with a heavy eye rolled. He glanced toward you, taking another step toward you. Only, the raptor, who's head only reached your knee, moved in between you.

The animal definitely didn't like this man, you could tell. It barely paid you any mind, its focus entirely on him. The man growled.

"I fucking hate this one. Nothing but a feral failure," he told you, seemingly throwing the confidentiality out of the window. "Mixed his DNA between the various species of raptors the original park had made. He's been nothing but feral since, refusing to imprint with any of our staff."

That simple sentence sparked hope in your chest; if you could be of help, then he wouldn't get you into trouble, right? And who could ever harm you again with a velociraptor as a pet?

"What if I..." you began, "What if I bonded with him? Would you still get me in trouble? I could help, I could feed him, I--"

"I mean, you are a Grady. If you're anything like your brother, you'd be the one to be able to do it."

He tapped his chin, eyeing you intensely. Then he released a sigh, "I'll give you a month. If it doesn't work, I'll report you for trespassing and I'll tell Owen."

"Deal!" a smile blossomed on your face; you had always envied Owen for his work with such majestic and dangerous animals. He had never let you be too close because of your dangerous fascination and the deadliness of the animals themselves. "I'm Y/n Grady."

"Call me Hoskins," he shook your hand, his grip firm to the point of hurting. His beady eyes were unwavering as he seemingly challenged you.

Unfortunately for him, a Grady never refused a challenge.