Disclaimer: I do not own the characters portrayed in this story. They belong to Nickelodeon and DreamWorks. Unless, of course, I explicitly say that I made up the character or fleshed out what was merely mentioned.
Warning: The life of this story depends on the amount of reviews I get. If not enough people review, this story will die. So, please review even if it's just to make a fluffy comment! Especially, if it's a fluffy comment!
Winds of Change
By West189
Prologue
Private sighed as he lay down to sleep. It had been a long six months. This was the first time since the fated day of his joining the team that he actually had a bed to sleep in. Of course, joining the team wasn't simple. Nothing ever was with his teammates. He had never intended to meet them, let alone join them. He glanced across the room to the clock. 11:30. He couldn't remember the last time he had time to himself. It felt strange. Never once did he think that these strangers would become his friends.
"Private? Are you still awake?" a calm voice cut into the Briton's thoughts.
"Hullo, Kowalski. Yeah, I just can't sleep for some reason." Private glanced up to look at the Polish man standing in the doorway.
The older man laughed. "It's probably because you haven't had a mattress since when—July?"
"This'll be my first Christmas away from England…" Private said softly. Kowalski let it pass, but shifted slightly and didn't look at Private for a moment. Sitting up slowly, Private quietly asked, "So, what did you want me for?"
Kowalski was silent for a moment as he appraised the boy in front of him. Reflecting quietly, he had to admit that the Private didn't deserve to be called a boy any more than any on the team did, no matter how small and soft he looked. He had originally wondered what Skipper had seen in Private, but after all that their team had been through and what Private sacrificed for the four of them without their deserving it, Kowalski couldn't understand how they'd ever got along without him.
"Ummm, Kowalski?" Private asked worriedly, "Are you okay? You've been staring at me for the past two minutes…"
"Hm? Oh, I'm fine. Just making sure that you're settling in properly, but if you aren't going to sleep any time soon, I could use some help in my lab." Kowalski knew that this would get Private's attention. The younger had yet to receive the grand tour of their headquarters and had been extremely curious to see what all was in it.
Private beamed excitedly as he quickly jumped out of bed. He gasped loudly in pain from the quick movement. A second later he looked down and blushed. He wasn't wearing a shirt, allowing the bandages from the latest mission to show. There was that, and he still hadn't received a uniform, which meant he was still in the torn and burnt trousers Skipper had lent him.
Kowalski winced slightly as Private walked up to him. The last fight the team had been in had really taken a toll on the Briton, leaving his powers drained and giving him numerous injuries to nurse. Not that he outwardly complained. When it came to complaining over injuries, Private was as stalwart as Skipper was on a daily basis.
"So, where is your lab, exactly?" Private seemed quite cheerful despite his burns. Private's so cheerful that he's begun to glow, Kowalski mused. I wonder if this is tied to his skills or if it's a secondary power…
"It's this way. I see that your glowing hasn't been affected by this at all." Kowalski swiftly turned left while keeping a gentle grip on his friend's arm to prevent Private from getting lost.
"No, the glowing just happens. It's not something I can really control unless I concentrate fully. Is that why we're going to your lab?" Private didn't seem offended or nervous, rather he sounded more curious. Kowalski smiled slightly. Curious was good. Curious kept you alive.
"No, that's not why. Perhaps some other time. Right now, we've got a surprise for you." Kowalski refused to answer any further questions, and Private eventually fell silent." Noticing the boy's (no matter what he would always be considered a boy to Kowalski) eyes trying to pick up every detail in the hallway they were going through, Kowalski said, "You'll have plenty of time to admire the base when we have cleaning day in a few weeks."
Private blushed and was about to reply, but Kowalski had halted in front of a large metal door. Motioning for Private to open it, the scientist had difficulty hiding his grin.
Upon opening the door, Private was startled by the group of people shouting "SURPRISE!" Private's reply was to jump and yelp at the same time, causing almost everyone in the crowd to laugh.
"Looks like I have more one-on-one training to do with you than I thought." Skipper sounded serious, but his tone was light and easy-going. His tell-tale smirk was also present, causing Private to be unsure of the words.
"Umm, are you being serious, Skippah. Or are you joking?" Private's question caused everyone to snicker, and Skipper grinned widely.
"That's for me to know and you to find out." Skipper swiftly dragged the boy further into the room, allowing Kowalski to enter as well. "Now for introductions! I'll even describe the people you know. A few may have gotten the wrong impression the first time 'round!"
"'ey! 'ou fogettin' u'fo'm! U'fo'm fust!" Rico interrupted in his raspy, grunting voice. He appeared with a poorly wrapped box, and he excitedly handed it to Private.
"A uniform? You're giving me a uniform?" Rico's excitement was mirrored in Private, who had begun to jump up and down before receiving the package.
"Of course we're giving you a uniform!" Kowalski exclaimed sharply.
"What kind of team would we be if we let you run around all day wearing nothing but an old pair of my pants and some bandages?" Skipper shook his head slowly, smirk still in place. "You're cute and naïve. Just like Manfredi and Johnson."
"Johnson wasn't that cute, Skippah! He had that weird-!" Rico covered his mouth to prevent Private from explaining.
"Would you please hurry this up? Some of us do sleep, you know."
"Which, Rico, is why I was doing introductions first. Private, don't open that until everyone but us has left." Skipper glared at the scarred man before returning to his original remarks. "Everyone this is Private. He's part of my team, so if anyone messes with him, you mess with us. Remember that. Especially if you have the heart to mess with the kid.
"Now, Get in a single file-line, and we'll introduce you as you leave!" No one bothered arguing with him since they were exhausted from staying up so late.
The first person up was a man of average height with short, unkempt auburn hair, a long face, and light brown eyes. The person behind him looked the same except that his hair was neat and dark brown. The second person spoke. "I am Mason, and this is my brother, Phil. I do believe we met when you fell onto our car. It's good to see you are in relatively decent shape. Good night." After quickly shaking hands with Private, the two departed.
Up next was a tall, thin man with bright pink hair and tan skin. His eyes were dark brown and a distinct way of talking. "Name's Pinky! I live with a bunch'a siblings, but I'm the only one worth talkin' to, Baby! You ever need to talk, just ring me up!" The man sauntered off through the door without any further comments.
Three tall, blonde women with blue eyes stepped up. The tallest wore a cowboy hat, abd her hair had a tinge of red to it. She was the one to speak. "Mah name's Darla, an' these ah mah gals, Becky 'n, 'Trina. Do not mess with us." With that the women stalked off, but glared at Rico before disappearing. Private looked at him quizzically, but Rico merely shrugged his shoulders.
"Oh, it looks like I get to meet you! My name's Burt! It's great to meet you!" Burt was a large round man with giant ears that were far away from his head. He had grey hair, pale, wrinkly skin, and blue eyes. He had begun to talk about all manner of things until the people behind him started to yell at him. "Okay! I'm going, I'm going! Anyway, it was nice meeting you, Private!"
There were only three people besides the team left in the room. Two were large, and bulked up with muscles. Their accents were the most like a New Yorker's. "I'm Bada."
"And I'm Bing. If someone gives you trouble, we can take care of them—"
"Through our 'legitimate' business endeavors, and what-not." Both had dark grey eyes. Bada had dark grey hair, while Bing had light brown hair. They quickly left. Skipper's eyes narrowed as they left.
"Legitimate, my foot! You try and stay away from them Private. Those gorillas are bad news!" Skipper's stare was intense, so Private quickly nodded his head to appease his leader.
The last person scoffed. "Name's Joey. Stay outta my place, and we won't have any problems." After this warning Joey left. The Australian had seemed frustrated for some reason. He'd had sandy hair and light brown eyes. He was a respectable height and looked muscular.
"Finally! I thought they'd never leave!" Kowalski sounded exhausted. "I'm going to be cleaning my lab for weeks after this!"
"Kowalski, we'll all be cleaning your lab. We're the ones who set up the party and invited everyone." Skipper corrected, but he too looked tired. "But we'll be doing that tomorrow. In the meantime, it's time for Private to see his uniform!"
"Op'n it, op'n it!" Rico couldn't wait. Even Kowalski was watching expectantly.
Private took a deep breath. And ripped the wrappings off the box. He quietly took the lid off and gasped when he saw what was inside. On top was black mask. The eyes were covered with opaque lenses. Next to the mask was a pair of black fingerless gloves with an adjustable wrist strap. Beneath those were a white t-shirt and a black sleeve-less vest. A pair of black cargo pants were under those, and at the bottom was a black, hooded cloak that had white at the edge of the front. "These are all for me?" Tears were pricking Private's eyes as he softly stroked the uniform. "What are they made of? They're so soft!"
"It's a synthetic fiber of my own design. The softness is for comfort. It's also extremely resilient to most damage we'll be exposed to. It's nearly weightless, and it's structure means that it is highly insulating, which means you'll stay cool on even the hottest of days and warm in the coolest weather." Kowalski looked extremely proud of his work, and the other three couldn't help but admire the clothes.
"Of course, you will receive shoes, but it'll take a while to find some your size. You'll also receive a uniform for your normal, day-to-day activities. Also, here are some regulation pajamas, since you have none of your own." Skipper had pulled out a crisp pair while still wearing his smirk, which faded as he saw the tears start to fall from Private's eyes.
"Wuz wron'?" Rico rasped. This was supposed to be a happy occasion! Why would Private be crying?
"It's just… No one's ever been this good to me unless they were going to be mean to right after." Private had begun to shake, and his head faced downwards, the tears now falling freely to the ground. "A-And, I really like you g-guys, and I-I don't want this to be s-some big j-joke at my expense l-like most other g-good things ended up being!"
Skipper watched him cry a few seconds, his smirk no longer present. He reached out swiftly, and lifted the boy's head. "Private, look at me." His voice was quiet but solid. Private looked at his leader. "We are your friends. We'd never do anything to intentionally hurt you. Don't you trust me?"
Private's eyes widened. "Of course, more than anyone else!" Skipper grinned and released his face.
"Private, we're on your side, so if anyone ever tries to hurt you again, tell us!" Kowalski said, anger lacing his voice.
Rico nodded in agreement, "Bad pers'n h't Pr'v't, we h't d'm!"
Just then, Private's phone began to buzz. Checking caller id, he saw who it was. "Uncle Nigel!"
"Who?" Skipper asked, annoyed.
"My uncle! I haven't seen him since…" Private's voice faded, and they all realized what he was referring to. "Should I answer it?" he asked softly, "And if I do, what should I say?"
"Yes, and tell him the truth. We're behind you 100%." Skipper said.
Private, then answered the phone. "Uncle Nigel? It's me. I-It's Private."
They heard a voice reply, but it was too difficult to understand. "What happened to me? I think the rest of the team will have to answer that with me. It's a long story. Let me put the phone on speaker."
I have finished! This chapter… This is gonna take a while… Oh, well. Once again, review if you want me to continue with the story!
~West189