Claire lowed in surprise as Rey dug her claws into her back. She had not been expecting a battle, especially since her lightsaber injury was not yet healed. Rey knew that the Queen was not in peak form, so she cut through the bandages, hoping to find a weak spot. When the cloth fell away, the wound became visible. It was no longer deep, but it was a tender spot, nonetheless. Claire anticipated Rey's intention and kicked her snout. She chomped down on her wing to compensate, not realizing that she was putting her face in range of her tail. Claire slammed her spikes into Rey's snout, and she howled in pain. As soon as Claire's wing was free, she used it to beat her opponent's side. The softness of her feathers was deceptive, for underneath their white mass was sturdy bone. Rey fell over, dazed, and grabbed her shoulder. It seemed to be dislocated. Claire snorted and pinned her to the ground with her front feet.

"That was a warning. Don't try anything else, unless you want me to fight for real."

Rey whimpered. From the sidelines, George Binks stomped his foot.

"Fight back! Fight back, you coward!"

While Rey squirmed in the sand, Owen skittered down from Claire's frill in panic. Jar Jar hadn't noticed him sitting there, and it surprised him that he was able to hang on during the fight. Quickly, the rodent hopped over to the dragon, who was waiting to be called into the fight.

"Change me back," he commanded.

She looked down at him with surprise.

"What?"

"Change me back. Make me human. I want to help."

"Not until Claire asks."

"She needs help!" he insisted.

"She's doing fine without us," the dragon said breezily, "Don't get involved."

The rodent balled up his paws in frustration.

"Goddamn it. Don't let this go too far. I don't want to take any risks."

Rey finally managed to overpower Claire. She slapped her with her tail, then charged her once again. As the two of them clashed, the dragon wandered away casually.

"I'm sure she's fine. Call me if anything goes wrong, okay?"

The rodent stared at the dragon in disbelief. He tried to run after her, but he soon realized that her strides were much larger than his. He turned back to the battle, hoping that his wife had the upper hand. When Claire began to scream in pain, he winced.

"Jar Jar, does your father have any weaknesses?" he asked desperately.

Jar Jar looked at the Gungan who was standing on the other side of the brawl. He shook his head dolefully.

"No. Hesa have no weaknesses."

"Are you sure?"

Jar Jar nodded.

"Moole faddur is strong. My not. Wesa losen dis battle. Mesa sorry, Owen."

He bared his teeth.

"Don't use my name."

They jumped back as Claire was tossed to the ground, sliding towards them through the sand. She got up so rapidly that it seemed as though she had never fallen in the first place. Rey dodged her next attack.

"This is a disaster!" the rodent shrieked, "I don't know where E- is going, but we need her help. She said to call her, and I don't know how. What are we gonna do?"

Jar Jar covered his eyes as Rey's claws made red lines down Claire's side.

"Wesa gonna die!"

Right then, with a quick swipe of her tail, Claire jabbed Rey's belly. She roared in pain. Instead of saliva, she spat blood. It began pouring down from her mouth as she coughed. Claire removed her tail-spikes from Rey's body and stepped backwards. The poor dewback fell to the ground, moaning in pain.

"I'm sorry," Claire said in a businesslike tone, "You left me no choice. I know you didn't want to do this, and I'm prepared to heal you once I've taken care of Jar Jar's father."

As she turned to George Binks, he pulled out the lightsaber. Jar Jar found himself staring at the glowing blade. He began to walk forward, almost as if he was in a trance. He nearly kicked Owen in his stupor, and this managed to snap him out of his momentary daze.

"Congratulations, Queen Claire," George Binks cooed patronizingly, "You beat a big, fat animal. In a few minutes, two reptiles will have been slain."

Claire snorted aggressively.

"I have news for you. Dinosaurs aren't reptiles, and I'm part mammal!"

She charged forward. Binks tried to make a swipe at her, but she was too fast. Her horn hit the back of his knees, and he fell to the ground, dropping the lightsaber. It rolled through the sand and stopped at Jar Jar's feet. He bent down to grab it, but the rodent got to it first.

"I've got it, Claire! Keep the Gungan where he is."

Claire pinned him to the ground with her foot. He sneered up at her with unbridled rage and began to pound the earth with his fists.

"FOOL! I WAS GOING TO SAVE THE FRANCHISE!"

Claire pointed to Rey, who was still coughing up blood.

"You call that saving the franchise? You're actively trying to kill it, I'd say."

Jar Jar wasn't paying attention to their exchange. He was watching the rodent try to carry the lightsaber hilt, which was slightly larger than he was. He grunted and dropped the weapon, panting heavily.

"Um, Claire? Little help, please?"

She nodded.

"One second."

Her eyes began to glow white, and suddenly, Rey stopped coughing. She took a few deep breaths, then stood up and wrapped her tail around her feet in shame.

"I'm sorry."

"I know," Claire said gently, "I only have enough magic to change one person right now, and I need Owen to carry the lightsaber. In a few hours, I'll have enough energy to restore your shape as well. You'll have to be patient."

Rey nodded, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Thank you. I know I don't deserve this."

Claire shook her head.

"It's not your fault. Don't let yourself believe that you're responsible for this. It's my job to fix the mess I've made. In order to do that, I need help."

She turned to Owen.

"Are you ready?"

He nodded rapidly.

"Yes, yes, yes! Change me now!"

She cast another spell, and suddenly, a human man was standing in front of Jar Jar. He spun around to make sure that he was fully changed, then smiled.

"God, it feels good to be back to normal."

Claire rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. Get the lightsaber so we can scram."

He turned around and began to reach for it. In the blink of an eye, Jar Jar snatched it out of the sand and held it so that the blade was pointing at Owen. He stumbled backwards in shock.

"What the-"

"This is mine," Jar Jar hissed.

Owen gulped.

"Jar Jar, give us the lightsaber . . ."

He shook his head.

"No."

Claire stared at him with worry.

"Jar Jar, what are you doing? . . ."

He glared at her.

"I am taking my lightsaber. I am a Jedi."

Owen frowned.

"You're not a Jedi, Jar Jar."

George Binks sneered from under Claire's foot.

"He's right, you know. You can never be a Jedi, because you are a coward."

Claire pushed him deeper into the sand.

"You're a terrible father. Don't listen to him, Jar Jar. You faced a bar full of angry drunks to get us some cash. That was a brave thing to do. I know there's goodness in you, deep down inside. You don't need to be a Jedi to be a hero."

Jar Jar tightened his grip around the hilt.

"Yousa lying. Yousa lying because yousa scared of moole power."

Claire tried to lean forward, but realized that she couldn't move without letting go of her prisoner. Rey picked up on this fact, and ran over to take her place. When Binks was secure, Claire began to walk towards Jar Jar slowly.

"Jar Jar, please. I know you're scared. I can tell because of the way you're speaking. This isn't you. You wouldn't do this to your friends."

Jar Jar sneered.

"You aren't my friends."

Owen held up his hands and risked taking a step forward.

"Listen, Jar Jar. I may not like you, but I know for a fact that Claire tolerates your presence. I think she might even enjoy your company. If you hand over the lightsaber now, we can go back to the way things were. The Queen is very forgiving."

Jar Jar looked at Claire, who was mouthing a silent plea. He turned back to Owen, scanning his face for any trace of insincerity. Jar Jar wasn't sure whether his eyes were showing hostility or if he was simply imagining things, but he didn't want to take a chance.

"Owen."

He gave a barely-perceptible wince.

"Yes?"

"I'm calling you Owen."

He nodded.

"Okay . . ."

Jar Jar smirked.

"I can do that, now that I'm a Jedi."

Owen said nothing. Jar Jar lifted the blade to his throat. He raised his hands defensively.

"Jar Jar . . ."

"Say it."

"Say what?" Owen choked.

"Say that I'm a Jedi."

"Jar Jar, this isn't-"

"SAY IT!"

A bead of sweat trickled down Owen's temple. His Adam's apple was dangerously close to the weapon. As he swallowed, it nearly brushed up against the tip of the blade.

"You . . . You're . . ."

Behind him, Claire was breathing rapidly.

"Say it, Owen. Just say it."

He closed his eyes.

"No. I can't do it. You are not a Jedi."

Jar Jar roared in fury. As Owen stumbled backwards, he lifted the lightsaber and swung it at him. It missed his throat, but sliced off his right hand at the wrist. He screamed in pain and fell to the ground. Claire ran forward.

"NO!"

Jar Jar lifted his lightsaber, preparing to finish the job, but a loud noise made him hesitate. A dinky little ship landed behind him, kicking up a cloud of sand and dust. The dome roof opened with a shrill hiss, and the dragon hopped out with a big smile on her face. She skipped over to the group merrily.

"Hey, guys! I salvaged some of my money and underpants from the inn and bought a vehicle. It only has one seat, but if one of us leaves to get help-"

She broke off when she registered the scene in front of her. She looked at Owen, who was grabbing his wrist in pain, then at Jar Jar, who was preparing to behead him. She blinked twice.

"Um . . . Did something happen while I was away? . . ."

Without missing a beat, Jar Jar sprinted between her legs and got into the ship. He jammed the buttons in panic, desperate to escape. Somehow, he managed to take off. The ship soared into the sky, out of harm's way.

As he stared down at the group, who were now as small as insects, Jar Jar felt his stomach twist. He had made his getaway to avoid the dragon's wrath, of course, but it didn't help that he had just realized how much trouble he was in. For the past few minutes, he hadn't been himself. The hatred that burned in his heart was unlike anything he'd ever felt before. It was as if all of his anger was surfacing at once, and his emotions gave him sick, twisted power. He had betrayed his friends without hesitation. He had attacked Owen, and it was very likely that his injury would be fatal. The worst part was that he had enjoyed it. He wanted to make Owen suffer for the things he had said. At the time, it had seemed fair, but now, it just seemed cruel.

Thinking his heart had no room for extra sorrow, Jar Jar pretended not to notice his father's followers closing in around the gang. He left the planet's atmosphere, heading for nowhere in particular.