Claire lumbered down the mountain slowly. She had no real reason to hurry, now that she was . . . well . . . now that she wasn't human. Everything she had been looking forward to suddenly seemed absolutely impossible. Her future had been blown away like a thin trail of smoke, setting off the fire alarm of misery. Or some such.

Well, how was she expected to come up with proper similes, now that she had lost everything that had ever mattered to her? She had nothing to hold onto. Even if she did, she had no hands to do the holding with. Her job? Gone. Her respect? Gone. Owen?

Owen.

Oh, god! He was still waiting for her at the bottom of the cliff with a broken leg, wasn't he?

Claire thundered down the mountain in panic, only to bump into Owen on the way down. She knocked him off of his feet, sending him flying backwards into a mud puddle. When he sat up, he rubbed his head and smiled.

"I'm glad to see you, too. Wing-lady healed my leg, in case you're wondering. How did things go with June?"

"She won't be a problem anymore."

Owen gave her a knowing look.

"You didn't kill her, did you?"

Claire shook her head. Owen grinned and wrapped his arms around her neck.

"I knew you'd do the right thing, Clairebear. I'm so proud of you."

She didn't reply, because she felt ready to break at any second. If there was one thing she didn't want to do, it was cry in front of Owen. She took a deep breath to steady her nerves, then exhaled stiffly.

"There's something I have to tell you . . ." she muttered in a barely-audible voice.

Owen leaned in, slightly worried.

"Claire, what's wrong?"

She looked into his eyes, only to realize that it was a huge mistake. His innocent gaze made her want to break down in tears, so she looked away and pawed at the ground shyly.

"I . . . I feel bad about leaving you down there with a broken leg."

Owen smiled with relief and rubbed his forehead against hers.

"You don't have to worry about that, Clairebear. You were busy fighting a giant dinosaur, and besides, I wasn't about to get up and walk away . . . Oh! That reminds me: I brought you a present. . ."

Claire watched as he unhooked her high heels from a rope on his shoulder. He held one in each hand and spun them around cheerfully.

"Ta-dah! You want to put them on?"

Claire bit her beak. She could feel her heart quivering. Finally, she closed her eyes and prepared to tell him the truth.

"Owen, I-"

"CLAIRE!"

Before she could explain her situation, she felt herself being tackled to the ground by a very happy Mozaradon. She was promptly scooped up by a pair of leathery wings, which constricted around her belly until she had no air left in her lungs.

"Claire! Claire! Claire! You'll never guess what just happened!" Zara trilled merrily as she bounced up and down on her dinky little legs.

"Wmph!"

"Robin- she's the yellow dinosaur- invited me to go live on the other island with her!"

Zara did a dainty pirouette as Claire wheezed uncomfortably.

"Oh, Claire! It's going to be so much fun! She says there's miles and miles of tropical jungle, white sand beaches, and friendly locals! Apparently, all of the carnivores are sentient, so they get along just fine with humans . . ."

Claire wiggled out of her arms, gasping for air.

"That's great, Zara, I'm happy for you."

Lowery came jogging up behind her with Vivian by his side.

"Zara, the people in this world think you're dead. Are you just gonna let them believe that? Isn't there someone you want to say goodbye to, at least?"

Zara bit her lip and looked at her massive, scaly body. After a moment, she shook her head.

"I'd rather be remembered for what I was. I don't think he- they would understand . . . It's better if everyone thinks I'm dead."

Claire gave her an uneasy smile and patted her rear flipper.

"Well, Zara, I hope you find what you're looking for."

Zara shot her a wide grin (which was a little terrifying, given her jagged teeth) and held out her wing-hand.

"Do you want to come with me?"

Claire smiled sadly, pushing Zara's wing to the side with her horn.

"Nah. An island full of carnivores doesn't really appeal to me all that much."

Zara pouted.

"It's not all carnivores. There are plenty of plant-eaters. They just don't speak, is all. Well, except Hoskins. They're dragging him along so he can take sensitivity courses to better integrate into society or something."

Owen raised his eyebrows.

"Another excellent reason to pass. But in all seriousness, Claire and I have to get home. Barry will be wondering what happened to us, and we have a lot of legal issues to sort through. We're in this together now. Right, Clairebear?"

He held out her high heels. Claire stared at them for a moment, then began to tremble.

"Owen . . . I can't."

He cocked his head.

"Claire, I know it's scary, but we have to be held accountable for our-"

"I'm stuck."

Owen blinked.

"Are you- Are you standing in quicksand or something?"

Claire shook her head.

"No, Owen. I'm stuck as a stegoceratops. Forever. I lost the flower."

Owen knew she was telling the truth, because she didn't change back after her last sentence. There was an awkward silence. Owen gave up on searching for the appropriate response, and simply knelt down to hug her face.

"Oh, Claire . . . I'm so sorry."

She swallowed the lump in her throat and nuzzled his chest.

"Thank you, Owen, for being there, even when I thought I didn't need you. I'll never forget what you've done for me. I hope I can repay you someday."

She felt a prickling sensation in her eyes and gave him one last nudge.

"Goodbye."

She turned away, but Owen frowned and cut in front of her.

"Where are you going?"

Claire shrugged.

"I don't know. I guess I could wander around the jungle until I find a home . . ."

Owen's eyes went wide.

"Oh, don't do that. I can build a shelter, if we need a place to stay."

Claire gave a humorless laugh.

"Owen, I can't ask you to stay with me."

He blinked.

"Wait . . . you weren't planning on wandering off alone, were you?"

Claire nodded slowly with a puzzled frown.

"Yeah . . . That's the idea . . ."

Owen crossed his arms.

"What ever happened to sticking together for survival?"

Claire's jaw dropped.

"Owen, I can't make you do this."

"You wouldn't be making me. I want to stay with you."

Claire bit her lip.

"We'd be stuck together for a very long time . . ."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

Owen pressed his lips against her beak, catching her off guard. Her eyes went wide, and she felt utterly paralyzed. Gradually, though, her defenses slipped away, and she couldn't stop herself from returning his kiss. The others looked away awkwardly, except Zara, who gave a sincere "awww". When they pulled apart, Owen smiled and placed the high-heeled shoes on her horns.

"See? They still fit."

Claire smiled and punched his shoulder jokingly. He chuckled and leaned up against her side as she trotted away, leaving the rest of the crew on their own. Lowery took a deep breath and kneeled in front of Vivian, putting both hands on her cheeks.

"Viv, I've been thinking real hard about this, and I've decided that what Owen said goes for me too. I don't care if you're a dinosaur. You're still Vivian, and I lo-"

"Actually, I texted my boyfriend, and he's totally okay with this."

Lowery froze.

"What?"

"Yeah, he said that he'll come live with me on my grandpa's acreage."

Lowery blinked.

"Oh."

"Thanks anyway, though."

Lowery pursed his lips.

"I guess I should go . . . somewhere else . . . right now . . ."

Vivian nodded.

"Yeah . . ."

After a moment, they gave each other a quick hug and waddled away in opposite directions. Zara watched everyone leave with a lonely expression.

"So . . . I guess none of us are saying goodbye, then? Alright. Fine. Not like I had a speech prepared."

Silence.

"I'll just show myself out . . ."

Zara spread her wings, but a tiny sound made her hesitate. She looked down at the ground and saw an ant hopping up and down to get her attention.

"Mr. Masrani?"

Zara picked up a stick and let him crawl on it.

"Are you coming with me to the other world?"

The ant nodded. Zara gave a wide grin.

"Good. Something tells me I'm not going to be lonely after all."

***TSJWFEW***

It's my day and I'm doing okay.

I can make a difference in so many ways.

It doesn't matter what happens to me, cuz it's my choice to feel happy.