Claire and Owen trudged through the jungle for a very long time. It was hard to walk in high heels, but Claire didn't have much of a choice. It was better to stumble every so often than to have a stick go through her bare foot by accident. Owen rode on her shoulder, slightly ashamed that he didn't have to actively participate in the hike. He muttered random words of encouragement as Claire descended into the valley like some sort of rodent life coach. It was the least he could do, even if it got annoying at times.

When they reached the base of the mountain, Claire took a fifteen minute break from their journey. Determined to make himself useful, Owen scurried through the jungle and came back with a bunch of grapes. Claire asked him where he got them, to which he replied that they had been growing on a nearby tree. Claire informed him that grapes grow on vines, not trees, and he had no explanation for this oddity.

They continued their trek until noon. It was then that they reached the perimeter of the temple. Owen had been braiding Claire's hair (after she taught him how), but he snapped to attention as he saw the structure silhouetted against the bright light of the sun. They wandered closer to the building and looked around. It was large, ominous, and somewhat neglected. There were many tall trees growing out of its walls, and Owen promptly climbed a tangle of roots to get a better look at their surroundings.

"I don't see anything. You?"

Claire swayed back and forth dreamily.

"No . . . But I think we should go this way . . ."

She started drifting towards a wall, pulled by some unseen force. When she got closer, she noticed the stegoceratops carving that she had been looking for. She ran her hand over it with wonderment.

"This is it. This is why we're here."

Owen slid down from the roof and landed on her head.

"Alright, so . . . what now?"

Without thinking, Claire leaned forward and pressed her nose against the carving. Suddenly, the ground began to shift beneath her feet, and she was carried down into the ground by an ancient elevator.

"Cool," Owen mumbled, "Did you know that that was going to happen?"

Claire shook her head.

"Absolutely not."

The sound of grinding stone intensified as they descended into a dark chamber. Soon, they were far enough that it would be impossible to climb out. Claire mentally scolded herself for being so stupid. If there was no way up, they could be stuck underground for a very long time.

"Owen . . ."

"You could always fly out."

Claire frowned.

"My condition is not a tool," she said icily.

Claire stumbled as the platform reached the ground and stopped abruptly. She stepped down from the stone and stared into the darkness.

"Well, I guess we'll have to wait for our eyes to adjust-"

Suddenly, a row of torches illuminated the tunnel. Claire watched them ignite with a hanging jaw.

"Okay then."

She stepped forward slowly. The sound of her heels clicking against the stone floor echoed for a very long distance. As she walked down the tunnel, the torches in front of her were lit by some sort of magic. Owen watched them with bright eyes.

"I know this is kind of serious, but this shit is worthy of Indiana Jones."

Claire flicked his nose.

They continued to walk until they came to a dead end. Attached to the floor was a strange relic. It appeared to be some sort of flower-shaped chalice. Water dripped into the cup from the ceiling, making no sound whatsoever. Claire bent down to examine it and saw that each drop disappeared as it hit the bottom of the cup. She noticed a needle behind the carved flower and reached out for it.

"Claire, what are you doing?" Owen whispered furiously.

Claire pricked her finger. She held it above the flower and let her blood drip into the clutch of petals. Suddenly, they were blinded by a piercing light that came from the wall ahead of them. The rock was splitting into a doorway. It crumbled away to reveal an open field.

"Woah . . ." Owen gaped, "How did you know to do that?"

Claire blinked.

"I have no idea."

She stepped into the field and stared at the sight that lay before them. The landscape was normal enough, but it led to a sheer drop. Beyond this cliff was a series of round mountains that peeked out from a deep, misty valley. Connecting these formations were dozens of rope bridges. Claire frowned in confusion.

"How did we not see all of this from the mountain?"

Owen pointed to the sky.

"Because we're still underground."

The sky was, in fact, a magic ceiling. It glowed blue, just like the real thing, but there was a certain falseness to it. It was almost like the roof of a theme park attraction: made to look like an open space. The only difference was that this "ceiling" spread out for miles.

"Claire . . . This is really weird."

"Says the talking jerboa."

Owen frowned and crossed his arms. Claire smiled sassily and made her way over to the first bridge. The structure swayed in the wind forebodingly, warning her that danger lay ahead. Claire took a deep breath and prepared to step onto it.

"Woah, woah, woah! Hold on!" Owen said sharply, "You can't just cross this bridge!"

Claire frowned.

"Why not?"

"Haven't you ever seen a jungle exploration movie?" Owen stressed.

Claire blinked cluelessly.

"What are you getting at?"

"The little wood bits could snap in half at any moment, and we'll fall to our untimely deaths."

Claire scoffed.

"Owen, there's a big difference between fiction and reality. As long as I'm careful, we'll be fine."

Owen tugged her hair as she made another attempt to move forward.

"Ow!"

Owen dropped her hair.

"If you're going to do this, you should crawl on your belly."

Claire rolled her eyes and got down on all fours.

"Alright. Happy?"

"Very."

Claire inched forward on her stomach like a polar bear would slide across ice. She could feel that the wood was strong enough to support her weight, but Owen was partly right about it being dangerous. The gaps between the planks were the perfect size for ensnaring high heels, and Claire once again felt a secret regret that she hadn't chosen better footwear. Of course, she hadn't had much time to think it through, because she hadn't been expecting any of this to happen in the first place.

"Eep."

Claire blinked. After a brief pause, she inched forward once more.

"Eep-eepeepeep-eep-eep!"

Claire frowned in puzzlement as Owen started making small chirping sounds. He was looking over her shoulder with fear and trembling like a leaf. After a second, Claire's face broke into a sassy grin.

"Oh my god. You can't be serious . . ."

Owen held onto her hair with white knuckles.

"I can't help it! It's so high, and I'm so very, very small . . ."

Claire grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and stood up.

"You afraid, little mousey-wousey?"

Owen shrieked.

"Claire, don't!"

She let him dangle over the side of the bridge. He covered his eyes and whimpered.

"Eeeeeeeee . . ."

"Oh, don't be so chicken. I won't let you fall."

Owen shook in terror and made small peeping sounds. Claire's face softened, and she placed him in her palm.

"Owen, you know you can trust me, right?"

He held onto her fingers like they were life preservers.

"I just don't like being up so high . . ."

Claire bit her lip as he continued to shiver. She stroked his ears gently and kissed him on the forehead.

"I won't tease you anymore. I promise."

Owen whimpered and crawled up to her shoulder, tucking himself under the strap of her tank top. Claire smiled and nuzzled him with her nose.

"We're going to be fine. You don't have to worry about a thing."

On her very next step, she fell through the plank.

Claire screamed at the top of her lungs as the wood splintered, and with a quick drop, she found herself hanging by her armpits. She started hyperventilating as her feet kicked below the bridge uselessly. Owen squeaked and pulled on her hair.

"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!"

"Ow! Owen, let go!" Claire hissed, "I'm perfectly fine. I can climb back up-"

Suddenly, she felt a wave of nausea.

"Oh, no. Not now . . ."

Owen's eyes went wide.

"What 'not now'? What are you talking about?"

Claire gulped as she felt herself becoming heavier and heavier. Quickly, she pulled herself back onto the bridge and wiggled forward on her expanding belly.

"Claire! You're changing!" Owen squeaked.

"I KNOW!"

She bounded forward, trying to strike a balance between covering a wide distance and not falling through again. Unfortunately, she snapped a second plank. This time, she was saved by her ever-growing frill, while the rest of her body dangled over the misty valley.

"Agh! Owen, help!"

She realized, of course, that there was nothing he could do. He was much too small to hoist her up, and she wouldn't have been able to reach him, even if he was human. The planks on either side of her head grew tighter as her neck swelled, and she began to choke. Owen squeaked shrilly.

"Claire! Oh god! Claire!"

He scurried to and fro helplessly. When Claire made loud choking sounds, he pulled on his ears and hopped around in panic.

"Claire, Claire, Claire, Claire, Claire!"

"Agh-gh-gh!"

Owen froze. With a twitch of his whiskers, he began to nibble at the suspension ropes.

"Whagh-hllr-doogck?!" Claire choked.

"You can fly!"

Claire's eyes went wide.

"Nogck-cank!"

The rope began to unravel. Owen climbed onto Claire's face and grabbed her horn.

"You can do it, Claire. Just focus on making yourself change faster. I believe in you."

Claire heard the rope snap. All of a sudden, she was in free fall. She screamed at the top of her lungs and tried to flap her plates. They clattered together noisily, but didn't provide any lift.

"GROW THEM FASTER!" Owen shrieked.

"SHUT UP! I'M TRYING!" Claire hissed.

Her plates began to buzz more quickly. It wasn't enough to lessen the fall, but it was a start. Claire closed her eyes and focused on her flight. She could feel Owen digging into her scales with fear. She snorted and tossed her head.

"Loosen your grip! You're hurting me!"

Owen didn't do as he was told. If anything, he held on tighter than before. Claire gnashed her teeth in fury. The anger made her forget that she was supposed to be flying. She screamed and beat her plates in pure rage. They were tumbling through mist now, and everything seemed to be grey. Claire tried to flap her plates in spurts, but it was no use.

"I can't fly! I've forgotten how!"

Suddenly, Owen climbed down her face and kissed her with his little jerboa lips. Claire's eye twitched.

"I thought it might help!" Owen squeaked.

"Owen, I don't understand you!"

Funnily enough, it did seem to help. Claire felt her faux-wings fluttering daintily in the humid air. Of course, she was fully changed now, so that might have had something to do with her success. The two of them were already falling at a terrible rate, but Claire estimated that they had enough time to slow to a stop.

Just as this thought entered her head, the ground became visible through the mist. Claire shrieked and tried to pull up, but it was too late. They landed on a tall tree, which bent over halfway before catapulting them over the canopy. Claire grunted in pain as she bounced off of a tall rock and rolled down a hill. Owen clung to her face, trying not to be crushed or impaled. After a series of painful collisions, they finally came to a stop.

Claire moaned as she sat up, rubbing her head woozily.

"That's gonna bruise for sure . . ."

As she rolled into a seated position, Claire froze in shock. She stared ahead with her mouth agape, utterly flabbergasted. Owen slid down from her beak and hit the ground hard. He got up swiftly and put his hands on his hips.

"Ow! Thanks for catching me, dodo! What's the big id-"

She turned him around with her front foot. After a beat, his eyes went wide.

There, staring back at them, were over five hundred stegoceratopses.