Claire and June stood on opposite ends of the peak, glaring at each other hatefully. They were poised, tense, and ready for battle. The storm swirled around them like a whirlpool in the sky, cracking with flashes of lightning every few seconds. Claire stretched out her stubby toes as far as they could go, feeling the grainy texture of the rock as she curled them back into her feet with a deep scratching sound.

"This ends here."

The spinosaurus flicked her tail sharply.

"So it does."

Claire lowered her head, displaying her glimmering horns, although there was no chance that her performance would intimidate the blind dinosaur. She slid her tail-spikes across the ground, hoping that it would be enough to get the message across.

"You took everything from me: my friends, my family, my child . . . I'm not going to let you take another life."

June chuckled.

"Oh, you stupid, stupid animal. Has it ever occurred to you that maybe you can't defeat me? What if I'm too strong? I'm five times your size, after all. You're nothing but a cow awaiting slaughter."

Claire snorted.

"I'm not a cow. My name is Claire Dearing, and I'm a stegoceratops."

June sneered spitefully.

"Are you ready to die, Claire Dearing?"

Claire stamped her left foot twice, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"I'm ready to avenge my baby."

"Very well. Enjoy your final moments while they last."

Claire trumpeted and reared up on her hind legs in order to slam her front feet against the rock. The impact made the slate shatter, sending deep cracks snaking out in jagged patterns. June hissed in reply, scratching the stone until she made sparks with her claws. When another bolt of lightning snapped across the sky, both dinosaurs charged.

Claire hardly even felt herself moving. It seemed as though the world was turning in slow motion around her, like temporal molasses. Even the flitting of a hummingbird's wing could take an eternity. Her feet slammed against the ground noiselessly in this decelerated world. The only sound came from her heart, which pumped blood at a steady, unfaltering rate.

Pup-pup. Pup-pup. Pup-pup.

She closed her eyes. The sight of the raging spinosaurus was replaced with absolute darkness.

Pup-pup. Pup-pup. Pup-pup.

She was at peace. There was nothing to disturb her in this world of nothingness.

Pup-pup. Pup-pup. Pup-pup.

She could allow herself to dream. No one was here to judge.

Pup-pup. Pup-pup. Pup-pup.

What's the outside like? Are there more butterflies?

Pup-pup. Pup-pup. Pup-pup.

I want to see the world, someday. Can you take me?

Pup-pup. Pup-pup. Pup-pup.

"I would have taken you, Flower. We would have seen the world together."

Pup-pup. Pup-pup. Pup-pup.

I love you, Claire!

She lifted her head and opened her eyes as she charged forward at full force.

"THIS IS FOR FLOWER!"

She leapt up at the spinosaurus, who had her mouth open in a vicious roar. There was a moment of silence, then a heavy, abrupt impact that seemed to shatter time itself.

SHORK.

Silence.

Emptiness.

Claire felt nothing. Her first thought was that she must be dead, but slowly, her senses began to fade into existence. The very first thing she noticed was the warm liquid trickling down her frill. It didn't take her long to figure out that it was blood.

. . . But it wasn't hers.

As she became aware of her situation, Claire realized that she was, in fact, standing inside of June's jaws, with one of her horns poking through the roof of her mouth. She tugged herself away from the monster and stumbled onto the cold, hard rock. June, having been petrified with shock, began to scream in agony, spewing blood all over the ground as she shrieked. Claire had said the magic word, of course, so she began to change as she limped away. When she was able to stand upright, she turned to look at her defeated opponent. To her surprise, the animal lying on the ground was no longer titanic.

June was about the size of a german shepherd, and she was, in fact, a young child. She had somehow shrunk down to her weakened form, probably due to the fact that she was dying. The dinosaur lay on her side, slightly curled, with blood pouring out of her mouth. She was choking a little, but mostly, she was crying. Her tears cut through the blood on her cheeks, making thin, purple lines.

Claire began to turn away, but something stopped her. The way June was sniffling reminded her of Flower. It was a crazy comparison to make, but the more Claire thought about it, maybe they weren't so different after all. Both Flower and June had been mistreated in their short time on Earth, but while one chose to take it on the chin, the other was forced to express herself violently. When all was said and done, both children were just lonely little dinosaurs that couldn't find a place in the world, as big and diverse as it was. Would anyone ever show the lost children even a scrap of kindness?

Claire walked over to June slowly. The child must have heard the sound of her bare feet, because she shrunk away from her fearfully. Claire kneeled down beside her and ran her hand along her side. June whimpered in terror and shut her eyes tight. She thought that Claire was planning to finish the job.

Part of Claire's job as Park Manager was making tough decisions. The pressure of her word being law was always present, but for the most part, her choices never affected her personally. Now, however, she was faced with a decision that would ultimately result in a single, cruel end: no matter what she chose, she'd lose her humanity.

Claire lifted her hand from the shivering child and closed her eyes. She ran her palm over her own stomach and felt something slip out from beneath her skin, as if by magic. Shortly after, she felt herself changing into a stegoceratops for the very last time. When she was sure that she had made up her mind, she pressed the Lilylotusdrop against June's wounds. As soon as it touched her, the blood that stained the stone around her body disappeared, and the hole in her snout sealed up like sewn fabric. When her deepest injuries were healed, her eyes began to glow. Her clouded, green pupils turned pitch black, and she stared at the world in amazement. Her gaze fell upon Claire, and she inched backwards, wondering what her next move would be.

There was a moment of silence.

Then, Claire closed her eyes and turned away.

"I guess this makes us even, then."