Brothers in Black and White

Chapter Two "I think I'm gonna like it here"

At 08:30. The Penguins went topside to start their zoo day. When Alice the zookeeper went and opened the gates Skipper got a wave from Marlene, their usual good luck signal.

"Make it extra cute and cuddly today boys," skipper instructed as Crowds of people flooded into the zoo, all eager to see the various creatures that resided there. Soon after, Alice walked past the penguin habitat, throwing some fish as she went.

"Yo Alice, do you anything bout a new penguin comin?" A zookeeper asked over the walkie talkie.

"Yeah, something about a young penguin being transferred from San Diego SeaWorld," Alice replied.

"Well the truck's just pulled up, I think you better put the crate into the penguin habitat," the zookeeper on the radio suggested.

"Whatever," Alice sighed and walked in the direction of the zookeeper office.

"Do you know anything about Oscar gale's daughter skipper?" Private asked once the woman was out of earshot.

"Not a thing, heck I didn't even now he had a daughter!" skipper replied.

"Alice alert!" Kowalski informed as the head zookeeper returned with a wooden crate.

Alice put down a wide wooden plank and used it as a bridge across the pool to the false iceberg, unceremoniously placed the crate down, opened the side of it and promptly left again.

A penguin with slicked back grey feathers, popped his head out of the crate, "all clear lads?" He asked in an English accent.

"Sure is uncle Nigel," private confirmed.

Nigel waddled out of the crate before turning to look inside it, "come on lass, out you come," he beckoned.

Slowly but surely a young penguin stepped out of the crate, she was a tad shorter than private, slender with the deepest blue eyes the Penguins had ever seen. She would have been considered pretty if she hadn't looked absolutely terrified at that exact moment.

"Hello, I'm Private Perry," the youngest of the brothers waddled forward to greet her, "what's your name?" He asked.

"Seraphina Gale," The girl replied quietly.

"Well Seraphina, name's skipper, that's my brother kowalski, and that's Rico," the leader of the Penguins introduced, "I knew your dad, he was one heck of a brave penguin."

"He was," seraphina agreed, sniffing slightly. All four Penguins were confused when Nigel waddled back into the crate until he returned carrying a purple penguin sized rucksack and handed it to seraphina.

"Thank you Nigel, you've been so kind to me," seraphina held the bag close to her chest.

"Wasn't a problem lass, if I had a chick and something happened to me, your dad would have done the same thing," Nigel reassured before turning to the brothers, "skipper, a word?" He requested. Skipper nodded and the two Penguins darted up a nearby tree.

"Okay first, how did you know Oscar gale?" Skipper asked.

"We worked together a fair bit, okay more than a fair bit, more like most missions since we met when seraphina was two," Nigel explained, "you?" He enquired.

"I encountered him a few times on my solo missions, we got to talking and became good friends, I was surprised to find that my team and I weren't the only Penguins who were an elite unit, of course that was before the whole 'Madagascar' thing," skipper informed.

"I'm glad she's come here," Nigel admitted, "the poor lass has been through too much already."

"What exactly?" Skipper enquired.

"It's not my place to say, but you must promise that when seraphina wants to talk, that you'll be there," Nigel requested.

"Okay I promise," skipper agreed, even though he was still wondering what exactly did happen to agent Oscar gale

#

Sadly, Nigel had to leave soon after as another assignment decided to rear it's ugly head. Skipper, Kowalski and Rico stayed topside to keep entertaining the crowds while private took seraphina down into the headquarters. Earlier, Rico had assembled a small bed near one of the portholes.

"Would you like some help unpacking?" Private asked.

"Sure, if you'd like," Seraphina replied, feeling a lot less shy now that she was in the headquarters, she and her father had lived in a similar place in San Diego.

"So, General Kennedy said that you're from San Diego?" Private attempted to start a conversation with this quiet penguin.

"Yep," seraphina confirmed.

"And how long did you live there?" Private enquired.

"All my life," the girl informed.

"Oh right, skipper's girlfriend's from California too, her name's Marlene and she's an otter," private told, Seraphina laughed; "what's so funny?" Private asked.

"Nothing, it's just a little strange to me, a penguin going out with an otter, where I come from, most of the animals sought of keep to their own habitats, the Penguins stay in the penguin habitat, otters to the otter habitat, so on and so forth," Seraphina explained, taking a couple of photos from her rucksack, her face dropped as she looked at them.

"Sorry about your dad," private tried to be of comfort but he'd never really had anyone with a family member who died before.

"It wasn't your doing," seraphina reassured "I did see him before he died and he told me something you know."

"What did he tell you?" Private was now quite curious.

"Have courage and be kind," the young penguin recalled.

"That sounds wise," private nodded, "who's that?" He asked, pointing to a photo of a female penguin who looked like a grown up version of seraphina.

"That's my mother," seraphina replied, "she died when I was a baby."

"If it's any comfort, my parents died when I was still in my egg," private put a flipper on seraphina's shoulder but was surprised when the girl flinched away.

"What happened to them?" The girl asked

"I don't know, uncle Nigel won't tell me," private replied.

"You should know private that Nigel told me a lot about you," seraphina informed, "like how brave, kind, understanding and compassionate you are, and having met you I can see that he was absolutely right," she told, pulling a well loved toy from her rucksack.

Private gasped, "you've got a lunacorn too!" He exclaimed, running to his bunk and pulling out a dark blue winged unicorn with a blue and silver mane and tail. Seraphina's lunacorn also had wings and was white with a blue, green, purple and pink mane and tail.

"I sleep with her every night," seraphina explained.

"Me too," private hugged his toy tight, "I did have a princess self-respectra but it kind of got possessed by an evil spirt, long and complicated story" he told.

"Mine glows in the dark," seraphina ran a flipper through her beloved toy horse's mane.

"So does mine!" Private squeaked with excitement, delighted to have found a fellow lunacorns fan.

Suddenly, skipper popped his head down the hatch, "you two better get up here, we need extra cute power!" He instructed before disappearing.

"What exactly do I do out there?" Seraphina asked nervously.

"It's simple," private reassured, "just smile and wave."

Seraphina followed private up out of the fish bowl hatch. When she reached the top, more people approached the ever-adorable Penguins. Children squealed with cries of "there's a new one" Seraphina went to entertain these children, she said to herself; "mother, father, I know you both never meant to leave me but I just want you to know, I think i'm gonna like it here."