poeticandvaguelysweet

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

PROMPT #259 - Growing Pains

ANON: Would you write a fic with Maise being the 9-year-old baby we got to meet wanting to be held all the time by Claire or having a great connection with Claire and after she grows up she is conflicted because she wants to know about her other mom but doesn’t know anything

I didn’t proof read this so lmfao

AO3

GROWING PAINS

It had never been in her plan to have children. Claire Dearing was career-focused, driven and single-minded on her goals. She didn’t have time in her plan for marriage or babies, dating rarely found a space in her busy schedule.

When Jurassic World crumbled, the park she’d helped build for ten years no longer allowed to reopen and her career portfolio was practically in shreds, Claire knew she would have to redesign herself. Somehow Owen, his cabin and a scared nine-year-old girl hadn’t been on the cards until they fell into her lap. There was no other choice but to take this path in order to protect Maisie from an uncertain future and Claire was certain, despite her uncertainty that she would make this choice over and over.

It was a lot to adjust to. Owen back in her life, co-inhabiting as he built a cabin, nothing but the wilderness surrounding them. She wasn’t good with kids, had never been, even when Claire was a kid herself she struggled to relate to those her age.

Maisie, it turned out, was easy. Owen would argue it was an instinct Claire refused to accept that she had. Maisie was small, scared and desperately concerned those feelings would continue forever. She would tuck herself against Claire as tight as she could, small head resting against her breast as they curled up on the queen bed set into the back of Owen’s trailer. The hardest part was finding movies that made her giggle and steered clear of an emotional message that would re-trigger the tears they’d just dried on her cheeks.

She was surprised to admit how much she loved those warm moments, Maisie’s soft hair under her fingers, her warm breath, the closeness and comfort she provided. She didn’t think she wanted kids, didn’t factor them into her plan and now, more than ever, Claire was thankful the plan had been scrapped. 

So much changed when they took Maisie in. Their lives rearranged themselves as the world opened up to the young girl, expanding into unknown territory for them all. Maisie took it exactly how they expected, with wonder. It overwhelmed her with endless new things and the overbearing need to adapt. She clung to them in response, seeking out infantile comforts in a need to soothe herself.

There wasn’t a day that passed where Maisie would curl up in their bed, ready to spend the whole night there or slide up beside Owen as the fire burned, her head drooping against his arm.

He carried her way too much. Claire wasn’t sure how to parent but that was one thing she knew was a possible problem. Owen was quick to scoop the nine-year-old off her feet, not often but enough that he earned an eye-roll from Claire whenever he did.

‘They’re only little once.’ It was evident how much he was enjoying this, the warmth on his face all-encompassing. ‘Soon enough she’ll get sick of us. I just want to enjoy this while I can.’ He was a nurturer, she knew it, tucked away behind that tough exterior was a man who just wanted to love and protect at all costs. Claire found it suffocating when it was wholly directed at her, but with Maisie, it felt different somehow. 

‘Did we ever talk about kids?’ Claire asked arms crossed over her chest as she watched him close the trailer door softly, Maisie securely tucked in for the night. 

Owen hummed, ‘yeah, I think once. Briefly.’ Back when they were still living in a hotel room in Costa Rica when her life had catastrophically gone to shit. He didn’t seem to crumble as much as she did. 

‘I didn’t want them.’ Claire mused.

‘I could tell.’ It was the way she knew absolutely nothing about her nephews that tipped him off, beyond the hard exterior and the impossibility to date her. 

‘Maisie’s different.’ He could have argued with her, could have pointed out that deep down she was always soft as a marshmallow on the inside, that she was too scared to let herself be vulnerable enough with a person to ever get to a place where she could have a family. He had long since learned not to pick a fight with her at every second, it felt counterintuitive to start one now.

It felt as if she had always been with them. ‘She is.’ He’d never met a funnier, smarter kid than Maisie and he was proud to be the soundboard for her jokes and questions.

Claire was quiet, gaze caught in the fire as her hands fidgeted in her lap. ‘Do you think she could be happy with us?’ She asked, foot bouncing in the dirt. 

Owen leaned over, his large hand covering her knee. ‘Claire.’ He waited until her eyes met his. ‘She’s pretty happy considering.’

‘I just want to be what she needs.’ A wall came down, showing Owen a vulnerability he hadn’t seen before. ‘She mumbles mum in her sleep and I don’t know if she’s dreaming or –’ She just wanted to be a good mom. Claire stopped herself, not willing to continue the thought.

Owen squeezed her hand. ‘I think the good thing is that you’re worried.’ 

Claire’s bottom lip wobbled, head nodding as she agreed with him. ‘I just don’t want to feel like this all the time.’ A tear slipped free, overwhelmed by her concern as Claire swiped it away. She was used to being sure of herself, confident and carefree. So much of her time now was spent worried about Maisie, nervous she wasn’t adjusting, concerned she didn’t laugh or have enough to eat. ‘It’s exhausting.’

‘Says every parent on the planet.’ Owen chuckled, arms wrapping around her as he pulled her in. ‘I don’t know much about this either, Claire. We’re all learning. It’ll get easier.’ He kissed the top of her head. ‘For what it’s worth, I think you’re a great mom and I’m sure Maisie would agree.’

[...] 

Claire had some regrets.

Not cherishing her parents when she had them.

Distancing herself from her sister and nephews.

Failing to call Lowery before she let Owen into the Indominous Paddock.

Falling for Eli Mills lies.

Giving Maisie her grandfather’s photo album.

In the moment it felt like a good idea. In fact, Claire wasn’t certain that she would ever make a different choice if given the opportunity. Benjamin Lockwood’s album was hers to have and Claire was not going to be the person to step in the way of that. 

It had taken months for the damage at Lockwood Manor to be assessed. The dinosaurs had either moved on or were captured in an attempt to relocate them and finally, a team had been allowed access. Owen and Claire were eternally indebted to Zia for getting herself into the manor for a second time, collecting things she thought Maisie might need and getting them to the girl and the adults protecting her.

While Maisie fawned over long-lost teddies and a few items of clothing she had likely already grown out of, Zia handed over the album. ‘I found this too.’

It wasn’t theirs to keep. Maisie already knew she was a clone and it had been a miracle so far that she hadn’t asked too many questions they didn’t know how to answer. 

There was nothing in the album that could hurt her.

She carried the album around like it was a stuffed animal, shuttling it from the trailer to her favourite tree, to a little spot on the front deck of their yet-to-be-completed cabin. She poured over the pages and the pictures, small descriptions in her grandfather’s handwriting.

Tucked under Claire’s arm, Maisie studied a picture of Charlotte Lockwood, identical to herself. She was a smart girl, they didn’t need to tell her what a clone was but Claire could feel the cogs turning in Maisie’s head.

‘We’re the same.’ She muttered, voice uncertain, a little scared.

Claire ran a hand down the back of Maisie’s head. ‘I don’t want you to think about it like that.’ She told the girl. ‘She’s your mom. Ok? It’s nothing different or scary or complicated.’ They didn’t know exactly how Maisie came to be, how she became Charlotte Lockwood’s clone but that was not something for the girl to worry about. 

Claire wouldn’t have been shocked if Maisie had the book memorised in a matter of weeks. It was the only thing on her mind at any given time, questions and statements spurting from her mouth without warning or warrant.

‘Do you think my mum liked jam on toast?’ Maisie would ask as she took a bite of her own.

‘I think my mum and I would go on adventures.’ As Claire walked her down the forest path, their own game of I-Spy folded in Maisie’s hands.

‘Was my mum really smart?’ As Claire rattled off an equation. 

‘My mum would let me ride a bike.’ When Claire and Owen said no.

Claire flinched every single time but she never missed a beat in responding to Maisie with support and positivity. They gave her honesty, where they could, from what little they knew of Charlotte Lockwood’s life.

Logically, she knew it shouldn’t hurt, that the girl was just exploring who she was. No one could guide them with this, there was no parenting book for clones. She didn’t know how to navigate this, Owen had no wise remarks. They were letting Maisie lead the way.

[...]

At times, the quiet of the cabin reminded her of Isla Nublar. Long gone was the smell of the ocean and a tropical breeze, but the serenity felt all the same. The birds chirped in the trees outside and the air was fresh even if the smell was different.

After four years the cabin had become home and Claire was surprised with each passing moment that she found herself living there. It made her laugh at times, the ridiculousness of it. Never in a million years would Owen have been able to get her out here … but Maisie … Maisie was the key.

The thought of their shared thirteen-year-old made the girl appear, her steps thudding through the cabin as she approached Claire at top speed before dropping something hard and heavy on the kitchen island.

‘What is your problem?!’ Maisie screeched, cheeks flaming red with her anger. ‘You’re tracking me?!’ Her bike seat tipped onto the chopping board where Claire had been prepping dinner.

‘Maisie.’ Claire signed.

The AirTag had been Owen’s idea. A backup safety precaution. 

‘You can’t just–just stalk me like that!’

Claire braced herself against the kitchen island, her eyes on the bike seat as she tried to take a deep calm breath. ‘We’re not stalking you, Maisie.’

‘You definitely don’t trust me.’ The girl growled. Everything seemed to be turning upside down in the last few months. Claire was hesitant to blame puberty as Maisie grew cagey, pacing within her confines. They’d always had suspicions that she wasn’t sticking to the rules of her boundaries and beyond sticking the AirTag to her bike they had never sought out an alternative to her own answers.  

‘We just want you to be safe, Maisie.’ They had put a lot on the line for her safety, sacrificed their lives and families. She missed her sister, especially when Maisie started to test her. ‘Anyone would have done the same.’

Maisie scoffed, rolling her eyes in a fashion that had become common as of late. ‘Charlotte Lockwood wouldn’t put a tracker on my bike.’ She argued, the words cutting skin as they slid past Claire. ‘You’re not my mother! You can’t keep me prisoner here!’ She turned, brushing past Owen as she stormed out of the cabin.

‘What just happened?’

Claire lifted the bike seat from the island briefly before letting it hit the surface. ‘She found your bright idea.’ She snapped, tears burning in her eyes.

‘Claire.’ He reached for her, Claire shaking off his hand as she pushed past.

[...]

The cabin had been left in disarray, panicked parents dropping everything to chase after their kidnapped ward. They had collapsed when they returned home, shifting around the mess for a night, too exhausted to deal with it in the moment.

Clean-up was quiet, Owen Claire and Maisie working efficiently as a team as they always had. In her attempt to run away Maisie had left the side door to the cabin open and it hadn’t been closed in the days they were done. She was sifting through her damp things assessing what had been damaged by the blown-in snow and what was salvageable as Claire did the same with the floorboards and Owen rehinged the door.

‘Did you know?’ Maisie asked, body dropping to her bed. 

Claire looked up. ‘Know what?’

‘That Charlotte Lockwood made me?’ She held Lockwood’s album in her lap, fingers tracing over the cover. ‘You told me just after I got this that she was my mother. But, I remember there were so many things you and Owen didn’t know about her. Did you know that?’

Claire sat up, straightening her shoulders. She could feel Owen watching them, trying his best to act busy in the doorway. ‘I didn’t.’ Claire answered simply. ‘You were so young, Maisie. I didn’t want you to think that you weren’t wanted or loved. I just said the thing that felt right in the moment.’ She exhaled shakily. ‘I didn’t want you to be scared or uncertain of yourself.’ A shrug, her hands smacking against her thighs. ‘It just worked out that it was the truth.’

‘I don’t think I’ve said it before.’ Maisie started, not quite able to reach Claire’s eyes. ‘But, you’re a good mum.’ Claire gave her a watery smile. ‘I should have said it more.’

‘Oh, Maisie.’ Her voice caught in her throat. ‘You don’t have to say anything you don’t feel.’

‘But you are a good mum.’ Maisie answered simply. ‘You’re both good parents.’ She turned to look at Owen who wasn’t hiding that he was listening. ‘You took me in, you taught me about Charlotte Lockwood, you came to rescue me.’

‘Which we’re still going to talk about, by the way.’ Owen levelled Maisie with a warning look the very same she got every time they had a talk about her behaviour. She wasn’t completely off the hook for running away.

She nodded, accepting what was coming. ‘Can we have that talk after we see if the AirTag on my bike still works?’ 

#clawen #claire dearing #owen grady #jurassic world #maisie lockwood #despite the odds

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

#258 - Paper Rings

I know, I know, I know. I have 400 prompts in my inbox but this little moment wouldn’t leave me today after that new clawen shot was released. Every single time I see that little gold ring on Claire’s hand I have heart palpitations.

title inspired by Taylor Swift.

AO3

PAPER RINGS

It was remarkable what Owen could make out of nothing. She had seen him at work before, in the brief period they had spent together between their first disaster and their second. But this, the three of them living out in a cabin with nothing else to do beyond the odd job. He was good with his hands, he had infinite knowledge of how to make things, in the least, he had the tenacity to try.

He was always fiddling with something; his knife whittling at a piece of wood, his hands teaching Maisie to defend herself, his fingers twisting a piece of wire into art. 

That was how she found him, back hunched as he sat by the fire, nothing but tree tops and stars above his head.

‘Maisie’s asleep.’ Claire announced, lowering her body onto the bench beside his. They’d had an incident, only a week ago, where a herd of ankylosaurs rolled through in the middle of the night, a little too close for comfort. Despite an ever-blooming love for dinosaurs, the encounter had rattled Maisie and she had been struggling to fall asleep since.

‘She alright?’ He asked, tilting his head to look at her. 

Claire shrugged, offering him an unsteady smile before he turned his gaze toward the wire in his hand. ‘We’ll see in a few hours.’ It wasn’t uncommon for the eleven-year-old to climb into their bed rattled with worry. ‘What are you making?’ Claire asked, knowing sometimes the answer was simply nothing. He had a habit of winding things into nothing, fidgeting for the sake of it.

He lifted his gaze to her again, left hand holding up a small gold loop, the wire braided around itself.

Her heart skipped a beat, slight panic flaring at the base of her neck. He wasn’t, was he? ‘Owen,’ she laughed nervously trying to push through the lump in her throat. ‘Did you make me a ring?’

His eyes darted away from hers. ‘Ah, no. I was just—I just, you know.’ He gestured with his other hand the way he just fiddled with whatever he found. ‘It is a ring though, isn’t it?’ He grinned in the light of the fire.

‘It is.’ Claire answered, meeting his eye despite the rising anxiety within her. There hadn’t been time to think when they directed Maisie into the nearest vehicle and shuttled her away. The last few months had been about survival, the future unknown and Claire was only realising now that she hadn’t stopped to take stock of what she wanted from this rekindling of their relationship. ‘I like it.’ It was small, delicate, understated and had come from Owen’s hands. ‘The question is, does it fit?’ Claire extended her right hand, fingers dancing in front of him.

Owen took her hand gently, large fingers holding onto hers as he shakily slid the gold band over her right ring finger. 

Claire could swear she felt a zap of electricity when the handmade ring closed around the flesh of her finger, settling there like it had always belonged.

Her throat was dry, her heart pounding as she lifted her eyes from their hands to his face. They had talked about marriage once, briefly, the two of them awkward and noncommittal about what they wanted in life.

She felt it now. How right this was, Owen was it, the only man she could ever imagine hiding away with, leaving the world they knew behind to protect something more precious than their own lives. When the storm passed and they felt safe enough to leave their little portion of the woods with Maisie, she wanted to marry him. It surprised her how little she cared about the fanfare and the wealth of it all. Claire wanted her sister and the very same ring Owen had fiddled into making by the fire.

‘Perfect fit.’ He beamed at her, lips pulling up in a self-satisfied grin.

Without asking, she knew he wanted it all too. The life together, the ring on the correct finger. 

Claire raised her hand to his face, cupping his cheek before she leaned in and kissed him. Her kiss was gentle at first, thankful, appreciative until Owen slid one hand into her hair, the other tugging at her waist.

‘We should probably take this inside before Maisie wakes up.’ Claire muttered, breath warm against Owen’s cheek as her hand threaded through the hair at the nape of his neck.

Owen dropped his head to her shoulder, arms loosely hanging by her sides. When she was right, she was right. He grumbled, the sound vibrating against her as Claire took a moment to revel in the man. For a moment there, in San Francisco, she almost lost him. There was no one else she would rather be hauled up with in the woods. She wouldn’t be there at all if it wasn’t for him.

Behind them, the rickety board in the deck creaked. ‘Claire?’ Maisie called, ruffled pyjamas and messy hair trembling in the light by the door. ‘Can I just sleep with you?’

‘Oh, sweetheart.’ Claire pulled herself up from Owen’s embrace, her hand on his shoulder keeping her steady. ‘Of course, you can.’ She pulled away from Owen, his hand catching hers as it slid from his shoulder. He held on as long as he could, large fingers wrapped around her palm, his thumb rubbing at the thin gold band now snug around her finger.

One day they were going to have a conversation about that ring when Maisie was settled and the nightmares were kept at bay, when the people who posed a threat had gone and the walls that kept them locked in had completely dissolved. She was going to talk to him about that ring. 

#clawen #jurassic world #claire dearing #owen grady #claire and owen #despite the odds

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

I need you. Okay.

JURASSIC WORLD: Claire + Owen + moments

#clawen #jurassic world

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

#clawen #jurassic world

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

Jurassic World Dominion, 2022 dir.  Colin Trevorrow

#owen grady #dominion

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

new clawen fic when……

When I can ……….

I just started a new job in the city that is a 3hr commute every day and I literally only get an hour or two at home to eat dinner/talk to my family before I have to go to bed Mon–Fri. I barely have time to even look at my phone let alone write fic.

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

It still really annoys me that they had Maisie be so mean to Claire. Like I’d be all right with it if they had a nice moment together at the end where they could finish their heart to heart from the beginning. I just wish that they had Maisie just think about Claire and Owen once after she was kidnapped. She’s lived with them for 4 years and didn’t mention them once. I don’t know whether ‘one-sided’ is the right way to describe it but Claire was going around saying Maisie was her daughter and was literally prepared to die for this child, and Maisie didn’t really seem to care. It just would have been nice to have another scene between them, which also I think would have made Maisie a more complex character rather than just a rebellious teenager, so you would know as an audience that they are going to be ok. As a final movie I just didn’t expect to be left with these questions about what happened after. It’s not just enough for me to infer what Maisie looking at Claire at the end meant, I would’ve like them to actually talk. It feels like their story and dynamic was sought of given up on. The scene at the plane Alan and ellie got to have their moment together with dialogue, we got Ramsay and Ian exposing biosyn with dialogue, and then Kayla got dialogue so why wouldn’t they do the same for Claire, Owen and Maisie. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I feel you, pal.

Although, I remember being 14 and would have DIED before I apologised to my mum for anything. And yet, there were a lot of outside things that were influencing me that would not have been influencing Maisie. I wish there was some resolution there. It just seemed so weird.

#Maisie Lockwood

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

Do you know why Isabella Sermon didn’t do alot of press for Dominion? Considering she’s a pretty relevant character and had a decent amount of screen time? I would’ve loved to see Bryce, Chris and Izzy doing press together.

I just figured it’s because she is a child. And where, yes, her character was relevant to the story in a big way, she wasn’t the stand out star.

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

I love you, man. I love you, too.

Steve & Eddie co-parenting Dustin in Stranger Things 4

↳ bonus

#stranger things

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

What is your view on Charlotte Lockwood having given birth to Maisie? I’m a sucker for continuity so I wasn’t the biggest fan of the change and thought that if they had resolved the conflict between Claire and Maisie (the whole ‘you’re not my mother’ thing) then I would have felt a bit better about it. For me I just felt like we just needed one line from Maisie to Claire saying she didn’t mean what she said and I would have been happier with the whole movie. I am certainly not asking for Maisie to call Claire mom but a sorry would be nice 😂

For the sake of Maisie being happy, I was glad she came from a person rather than a test tube. For the sake of the movie it felt like it came out of nowhere and was just a soft play because they had no idea how to explain this kid. I remember a lot of people coming out of the cinema, when Fallen Kingdom came out, being confused about who Maisie was and what her purpose was … which goes to show the movies weren’t 100% sure themselves.

The story 100% should have been Maisie finding her place in the world as a clone, with the people who chose to protect her. There was opportunity there for a classic teen arc and I’m confused why they skipped over that?

#maisie lockwood #dominion

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

‘We were just about to go find our friends and then get the heck out of here. You want to come with us?’ Owen offered to the tearful girl shaking in front of him. She had wrapped her small fingers tightly around two of his, holding on like she didn’t know how to let go. 

Maisie nodded, giving the okay with a sniffle but when he started to walk away, her hand still in his, she didn’t follow. He turned back to her, wondering what had kept her glued to the spot. Her eyes were wide, fearful and surprised. Like she had caught herself on the brink of forgetting something very important. ‘What about my sisters?’ She asked, small voice bouncing off the walls. 

~~

In which Maisie Lockwood isn’t the only successful clone. 

Instragram: justy_olive

#I think about this from time to time #maisie lockwood

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

“One more minute, then we’ll send you home with your folks.”      ↳ Jurassic World: Dominion [2022]

#clawen #maisie lockwood #dominion

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

This gives me Maisie coming home to see her baby sibling vibes.

#maisie lockwood #clawen #Maisie hc

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

“One more minute, then we’ll send you home with your folks.”      ↳ Jurassic World: Dominion [2022]

#maisie lockwood #clawen #dominion

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

HC - Claire getting ready for work post JW in some of her favourite outfits from the island and Owen whistling low and pulling at her hips. She quickly figures out which skirts are his favourites and they’re always the ones she used to wear around the park

I do love this. Owen’s not the kind of guy to shy away from celebrating his girl. He’s always physical about it or vocal. Never misses a morning to tell her she’s stunning/beautiful/breathtaking regardless of what she’s wearing.

I think she would toss a lot of her island clothes purely for the fact that she’s trying to step away from that woman. But I mean, there’s always an outfit or two you can never part with and Owen would find himself in situations where he’s like oh my god, I can’t believe I get to zip this skirt up or take it off. Or where he’s helping her pull her hair out from under the collar of a blazer that completely knocked him for six one day. Never thought he would get close to this form of Claire and yet, he knows she’s so completely different now too. It’d be a bit of a mindfuck to comprehend.

#clawen #answered #clawen hc

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

i love owen and claire, but sometimes i think that now that they are "free", they are going to start having problems again in their relationship? because i guess they will have to look for some actual job, and really decide where maisie is going to go to school and where they are going to live for real, or if one of them wants like to have more alone time, or if owen wants to have more kids and claire doesn't or viceversa, or if claire wishes owen propose to her...etc

I mean, sure, could totally happen. It could also give them the freedom to actually go and be themselves and take Maisie to do things that bond them all tighter.

I guess the fun with the series being over now is that it really is all up for speculation. I’d like to think they live happily ever after, they still have plenty of dinos to save and the entirety of Maisie’s teens, visits to Karen and the boys and idk whatever other family they have left over.

It would totally take them a bit to adjust to a new normal, I don’t think they would burst right out of the gates and into the world on day one. Would probably discuss starting Maisie at the beginning of a school year and just start with small steps. They’re careful people. U know. I think Owen and Claire have also gotten to a place where they have realised they’re better off together rather than alone. If they survived 4 four years in close quarters they can survive anything.

#clawen

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

Missing your posts and writing! Thanks for all you do for clawen!

🥰 I just started a new job last week with a big commute and am trying to adjust before I get back to fic but I want to pump out a few more when I have the chance 🥰