A/N: Be warned, this is a really sad story. At least in the beginning it is anyway. I'm just... so tired not being able to get into any of the stories here emotionally. So I wrote my own. This is actually pretty old, I've had it forever if you read up on my profile page. But I only got to publish it just now. I hope you enjoy it, there are going to be three chapters. This will probably be the longest, but, again, I'm not sure. Okay, read and review! Thanks!

48 Hours

Saturday, March 17

1:42 PM... Marlene had fallen asleep on the top of her cave again when she opened her eyes and blinked in the sunlight. She was SO sore, and, as she got up, she realized she was nauseous. Also, hot and cold at the same time. This could only mean one thing. As she looked over the edge of the rocks with heavy lidded eyes, she felt... knew... All at once, her dinner... lunch... hell, anything she had eaten in the past 24 hours that hadn't been digested came back to greet her. She nearly cried, she hated throwing up so much. Her breath was coming out in wheezing rasps, and she was kneeling, head hanging as if on a string. The last time she felt this bad was... she couldn't even remember.

Taking a few minutes to get it together and not look at her own... gross, Marlene stood up and made her way back down. Only, the higher she held her head, the dizzier she got. Great, she thought, crawling back to the mouth of her cave. Sickness wasn't something she did well with. Even though she barely got sick, when she did, it hit like a hurricane and knocked her out for several days. At the very least.

Not sure of what she had, Marlene laid down on her floor and closed her eyes, hoping whatever this was would end sooner than later.

4:40 PM... The otter started to thrash around in her sleep. Why was breathing so hard, she thought, even in her dreams? Marlene's temperature spiked, and her heart rate increased to a deadly level. No... She needed to breathe... She had to wake up... Subconsciously, she started to scratch at the hard floor of her cave, clawing at the stone. A cold sweat profusely formed on her brow, and by the time she realized what was going to happen, it was too late.

4:45 PM... Marlene the otter died.

5:00 PM... Alice came by to try and feed the otter and get her to come out and play. It didn't take the woman long before she realized something was very wrong. She reached down into the mouth of the cave, and felt a small, furry body. A small, furry... cold... Oh, God. The zookeeper pulled Marlene out, praying she was just really cold. One glance at her once playful eyes told her otherwise. She did her best to hide her tears, and, sadly, the otter was taken away.

5:07 PM... Her habitat was covered in a black sheet. This didn't go unnoticed by four penguins, who were unsure about the sheet, or why the people around her cave were so sad. Kowalski stole away from the den to do some recon.

5:10 PM... Kowalski wasn't sure why he was the one to go. Why Skipper didn't beat him to the punch. Maybe Skipper had other things to worry about. As he leaned against the rocks, hiding in the shadows, he listened to the conversations of the people passing by. Something about the best always leaving early, and that it wasn't fair she had to go. Those were the zoo's regulars... did they transfer Marlene? It was strange, though, the penguins were always the first to know everything.

5:12 PM... The habitat was cold, and there were strange chemicals being sprayed into the den of the cave. That explained the black sheet. But what were the chemicals for, exactly? He checked a nearby canister, one that appeared to be pumping the chemicals into the cave. The canister held a highly concentrated disinfectant. What was going on?

5:30 PM... Leaning over the table were the vet and Alice, the saddest looks on their faces. Kowalski leaned into the office, trying to hear exactly what was going on. The doctor sighed. "I... she was so full of life. I don't understand what could have-" He stopped short, and Kowalski tried to make sense of what the man just said.

Alice put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "She..." The woman struggled to find the right words, and the penguin slid in, hiding behind a file cabinet. "It was her time, doc." She said quietly. The doctor clenched his eyes shut. He remembered when the zoo first got the feisty little animal. She was so full of life, energy, curiosity, and he loved it. That's why he became a vet. Not the money, but for the love of the animals. The little otter... she had been one of his very favorites, always patient and fair with him... understanding, that was the word.

To think she would never look at him with those big, bright, inquisitive eyes again... He covered her up with a white sheet and tore himself from the room, his fingers digging into the palm of his hand.

Left alone with the otter (or so she thought), the zookeeper sighed. "Gosh, it seems like you only just got here, missy. I think you and I were the only normal girls here." Her voice strained as she fought back the same tears that were threatening Kowalski's eyes. It couldn't be possible. This was some other animal. This couldn't be Marlene, it couldn't. Alice's laugh was forced and choked. "And now look. You... y-you left me with a zoo full of insane males." She banged her fist on the table, allowing some of the tears to fall on her shirt. Her mouth worked, but her throat didn't, and soon she gave up on words and left, in very much the same manner as the good doctor.

5:48 PM... Kowalski realized the coast was clear and looked around the file cabinet he was hiding behind. A small white sheet covered something on a table... and as scared as he was to look, he was even more terrified of how he would feel if he didn't. With a brave step forward, he removed the cloth... revealing a very peaceful looking Marlene, her eyes closed now. If he didn't know any better, he'd just think she was asleep.

Upon closer inspection, he could see her coloring was very off, and her nose was no longer wet. He placed a flipper onto her forehead and swept it back, almost immediately regretting it. The fur was almost covered in cold sweat... She had gotten sick.

That's how... He bowed his head, ready to cry over the otter when he heard voices. The people were coming... to take Marlene.

Kowalski knew that he should take her back... she should have a proper burial, with her friends around her. The door swung open slowly, and he dove out the window... leaving Marlene behind.

6:03 PM... When Kowalski came back, everyone was worried. Private thought Marlene had gotten transferred, Skipper thought she was at the vet for a shot, and Rico thought she had been kidnapped. At least everyone was partially right. He couldn't think of how to tell them, it was hard enough just to see. Against any free will he thought he might have, the image of Marlene, laying on that table, popped into his mind.

It was a total out of body experience. His flipper went to her forehead again and again, her eyes actually opening, conveying too many feelings to actually make sense... it was all a blur – until Skipper snapped him out of it. The worry in his eyes told him he was scared, and the fear in everyone else's eyes confirmed that Kowalski had started crying again.

"I... In Marlene's habitat, they're spraying disinfectant chemicals." Skipper was about to interrupt when Kowalski began to pace. And they knew when Kowalski paced, it meant something was really wrong. "She's not in there anymore. She's... Skipper, I-" He met the leader's eyes, and in that instant, it was as if they shared a mind. The shorter penguin's head started to shake, as if egging him on... then it got more rapid. He understood. "I... am so sorry." It was the only thing he could think of to say, and the only thing he could get out at the time.

Private and Rico still didn't understand. "Private, Rico... Marlene hasn't been transferred. She hasn't been kidnapped. But she isn't coming back. She... Marlene got really sick this evening, I'd imagine around five... and... She died." He finished quietly. This news didn't seem to register at first to the two penguins, as if they thought he wasn't done talking. But what was he supposed to say, that she was going to get better? He bowed his head and the loss of eye contact sealed it.

Skipper turned his back on all of them, so no one could see his face. But when he spoke again, they could hear the sadness in his voice. It kind of put it all in prospective, and Private felt his eyes well up with tears. She was really... Marlene was actually- "What," Skipper started, but it was harder for him to continue. "What h-happened to, ah... To her body?" He asked. Kowalski frowned and stared at his commanding officer. What happened to it? Oh. That's what he meant.

He was thinking the same think Kowalski was when he was... "The people took it-" In a flash, Skipper was on him, his beak turned up in an angry snarl.

"You didn't get her! Kowalski!" Skipper's eyes were deranged looking, and starting to scare the taller penguin. He backed up a little bit. "The least we could have done was given her a proper burial-"

Kowalski pushed Skipper back a little bit, straightening himself up to his proper height. "I TRIED! I was going to bring her back, Skipper, I won't lie to you. But they came! What did you want me to do, fight them off!"

"YES!"

Both were being irrational, and they knew it, but neither cared. It took a moment of heavy breathing to realize that Private was sobbing heavily in the corner. Both shot each other a "leave it for now" look and scurried to his side. "M-M-Marlene is g-g-gone... and y-you two are f-fighting... it wasn't her time to go... but we sh-should be coming together. Not arguing. N-never... never arguing." The small bird had a point, and together, sitting at their small table held up by cinder block bricks, they decided to hold a funeral for their fallen friend.

7:45 PM... Gathering the animals for the funeral, setting it up... it didn't take long. They didn't want to do much. They knew Marlene wouldn't care for all the fanciness of decoration or a big party. She'd like something simple. Rico looked around at the calendar, a couple days from now was Marlene's birthday. It was marked with her sticker. She even told him that she wanted a simple party, with just a few friends. And then she smiled at him. He liked her smile, it was so calming, peaceful. Nice.

Now he would never see it again. It was going to hurt like crazy, he knew it. He missed her already. Rico found his doll and sat next to her on the couch, leaning on her a bit for support. He could remember the last time he talked to her. They discussed the difference between eating food and eating weapons. She laughed a lot. That was the night before... Almost twenty-four hours before, actually... Had it really been that long? What if he knew what was going to happen? Would it change anything? Could he convince her to stay with them? Maybe if she were here...

All at once, regret flooded over him. If she had stayed with them last night, Kowalski could have helped her. If Rico had paid more attention, maybe he would have noticed her gripping her stomach in pain last night, or her constant asking for water. Maybe if he would have thought to ask if she was okay, if she was sure, a couple more times... He was the last one to talk to her... God, he was the last one to see her, the last one to check up on her, the last one to make sure that she would still be there when they wanted to see her again.

But he didn't ask. He didn't make sure, and he sure as hell didn't check. And now... Now Marlene, the one who had been like a sister to them all, always making sure they didn't get into too much trouble, or help them whenever she could... the one who understood Rico... was gone. Forever. That's what death meant, didn't it? Gone forever. Not coming back. Never coming back. Rico sniffled and buried his face in his flippers.

What had he done?

7:45 PM... King Julien sat on his throne, his eyes closed over his steeped fingers. Just thinking. The littlest penguin had just come in to tell him that Marlene had died. And that... that made him sadder than even the time he lost his groove. Because even then it wasn't gone for good. Marlene was gone for good.

Marlene was gone for good.

He fought back tears, trying not to feel sad, trying not to feel anything. She was always nice to him. Even when the penguins were mean, when he first got there, through everything that ever happened, she was always nice to him. Always wanted to help him. They were friends. And he valued that friendship. But now, no more. She wouldn't ever come back around, to find out what was up. He smiled a little, remembering the first time she had asked him what was up.

He looked up there for what seemed like hours, trying to figure it out, too. She was so much fun.

"Your majesty?" Julien's bright eyes opened, just opened, and trained on Maurice, who was standing expectantly. Like he was waiting for him to say something. Give a decree. Make an announcement. Those things didn't actually seem important right now. It didn't even seem important that he was king. Nothing seemed important.

Julien sighed and closed his eyes again, going back to thinking. The difference this time was that he spoke. "You remember that flower that grew in Madagascar? The almost glow-y one?" His chunky servant nodded and made a very confused face. "Do we have one of those here?" Maurice thought back to Madagascar. He remembered that flower. It was a lemur favorite, everyone loved it. It smelled nice, looked amazing, and actually did glow. But here? Well, New York wasn't exactly popular for it's glowing flowers. Luckily they smuggled one out in half of a coconut shell. It looked gorgeous this time of the year. Julien made his choice. "The funeral is outside, yes? We shall leave it there, for her."

Nothing else was said on the matter.

8:15 PM... The zoo was empty. And it was cold. The people had all gone home for the day, not even zookeepers remained. Which was good for one penguin, who had gone into the vets office, of his own free will, despite how much he didn't want to be in there. A little shuffling could be heard as he looked around for Marlene's body. It had to be somewhere. He climbed some cabinets to get a better, higher look. The office was so dark, it was pretty hard to see anything, but to a highly trained eye... AH! There!

A black tin box was sitting in the middle of a table. It gleamed in the moonlight, as if knowing the penguin was looking for it. That had to be it. That was Marlene.

The penguin rushed to the box, as quickly and skillfully as he could, before taking a deep breath and grabbing the edges of the box. But he stopped. What was he doing? Trying to get Marlene out of the room would be a feat and a half in itself, not to mention dragging it to the funeral site, and burying it. And what about tomorrow? The people would search for the box, no doubt about it. Asian otters were nearly extinct, they wouldn't just let one go like that. They would call it in, hire investigators, find someone with a metal detector. Eventually, Marlene's body would be found, her grave desecrated...

Skipper would be in shambles, he thought, knowing his leader wouldn't approve.

Private was about to leave the box, distraught, when he turned around and noticed that Skipper was staring at him, his eyes nearly unreadable. Except Private always knew what Skipper was thinking. The little penguin turned around and lifted the lid to the box—

A flipper slammed down on it, causing whatever was inside to remain unseen. Private looked up to see Skipper's face streaked with tears. "I want to see her," He said, as if continuing a conversation they never had. "But I... am afraid..."

"We'll remember her how she was, Skipper." Private whispered, picking up the slack. Whatever Marlene looked like in there... it wasn't who she was. It wasn't how she was before. The pair wrapped their flippers around each other, sighing heavily. It was time.

8:30 PM... That night, the animals held their own funeral, just outside of the gates of the zoo. The one place Marlene wanted to see more than anything. That she would now never see. Rico and Kowalski carefully placed a gravestone they carved themselves near a tree. One they hoped the humans might respect and not move. It had a picture of the small otter on it, and her name in the best letters they could make with the help of the chimps. The animals they had invited trooped out of the zoo, into the park in front and gathered around the tree. No eye in the area was dry. The end had come too quickly her, and, one by one, each of the animals left a single flower on the grave for her.

The last animals to go were the lemurs and the penguins, and, slowly, Julien stepped up, a large, beautiful glowing flower in his arms. "I choose this flower... because it is very much like Marlene. She lit up life a little bit... and..." He didn't say anything else. He couldn't. Placing the coconut shell down, he dug a little hole, which was getting harder by the second, due to the amount of tears in his eyes. He stopped, and wiped them the best that he could, but that didn't stop them from coming out heavier, harder, faster.

He's about to give up on the hole when two pairs of hands come to help him. Mort and Maurice. They don't look at their king as they help him dig, but when they're finished, the three embrace, the glowing flower looking cheerful among the others. Like it was going to protect the grave as best as a flower could.

Skipper place a flipper on his shoulder, causing the king to whip around and look at him. The penguin's eyes were focused on the gravestone the flower stood in front of. Marlene would have liked the flower, he thought. He didn't say it. It seemed... too much. It would be too much right now. As the penguins formed a semi-circle around the grave, the other animals dissipated, tired and sad.

Four penguins watched the gravestone, and it started to rain.

It seemed so cliched, the rain falling on them like that, the sadness they felt reflected in every drop.

So ironic.

9:07 PM... Skipper couldn't take anymore. He ran back to the headquarters, ignoring his men's calls, asking him where he was going and what he was doing. God, he couldn't take this anymore. He needed... out, he needed to be out, that was why he joined the military, so he wouldn't have to get attached or feel anything if anyone...

Dammit. But he had gotten attached, hadn't he? Marlene was one of his best friends. She was the one to be trusted with a secret. To help out on a mission. If she needed to, she could take care of the zoo if he couldn't, with the help of his men, anyway. He stopped in the middle of the zoo, his tears mingling with the rain.

So cliched.

He wanted to scream, to just yell and kick and punch and be angry. Why couldn't he? Why not just let himself go and be angry? God, he hated that he felt this way. Completely helpless... like a new born chick. He looked around and felt a small twinge of pain in his heart. He had somehow wound up right next to Marlene's habitat.

...Well... it wouldn't be Marlene's place anymore, would it?

He tried to shake the feeling of despair, for he'd figured that's what it was, and jumped the fence, ignoring the hazardous chemicals in the area. Maybe if he inhaled them enough, he would be able to forget...

9:10 PM... The majority of the chemicals had worn off, and all that was left was a dreary haze of the disinfectant. Not enough to kill him, but it would hurt to talk for a while. That was fine, though. He didn't feel like talking much anymore anyways. What with the one person he WOULD have spoken to... gone.

He sighed, taking quick mental inventory of the room, for anything that would remind him of her. The minute Marlene got there he knew she was different and special. In the craziest of ways, mind. She would pop out of nowhere, startling them all to near death. And when she would smile, the world just lit up. Skipper had to chuckle before coughing a bit. That disinfectant was strong... starting to make his chest hurt a little bit. The penguin couldn't stay in there for much longer and he knew it. Looking around one last time, at her paint sets and paper and origami swans, he knew that the world would be missing a treasure. Out of the corner of his eye, something glimmered... a book?

Skipper picked it up, cradling it carefully in his arms. The corners had small, golden-bronze tabs attached to them, making the book look more important than just... what was it? Disregarding his own safety, he flipped open the cover to reveal, in giant letters, "Marlene's, Do Not Touch". It was a diary. All of her personal thoughts, secrets... dreams... They were all in there. All he had to do was turn a page it to find out if maybe, just maybe there was something he could have done to save her, to find out if she was feeling okay before she died. He sat down on bench in the cave, and stared at the book before taking a deep breath...

9:11 PM... Kowalski slid to the table, on which Marlene's box sat. He felt strange just thinking that. Marlene's box. After all that was said and done, this box would end up going to the landfill. To a research center. To a lab to be... just thinking about it made him sick.

A long black flipper found the top and stroked it longingly. He wasn't exactly sure what he was doing. Marlene was dead. No amount of want or caring could change that.

He scoffed at his own thoughts. Of course he cared about her, she was a great friend. But wanting her?

Skipper wanted her.

Julien wanted her, but that was only for a minute.

Kowalski? It was more than that. Her mind was nearly robotic. Almost as much as his was. And when they were together? He sighed subconsciously.

"You can't be gone, Marlene. You..." Kowalski stopped, playing with the latch on the box. "You have no idea who much you meant to-" He stopped short, however, when he heard two other sets of feet waddling up to him. It was silent for a few minutes, Kowalski staring at the box with his flippers clasped together in front of him now.

The penguin next to him, as he hadn't looked up at all to see who it was, spoke, probably with his head bowed and his eyes closed. "That's..." Private's voice sounded more emotional than before. Kowalski could hear sadness and loss. And something else he couldn't place yet. "What are we gonna do, K'walski?" We? We, Kowalski thought, couldn't do anything. It was the way it was going to be. With a final rub of flipper on metal, he took his leave out the window, leaving Private and Rico in his wake.

10:27 PM... Skipper packed a quick lunch bag, trying to be quiet about it. It didn't matter, though. "Skipper, what are you doing?" Kowalski sounded shocked, as if he thought Skipper was going to be gone forever.

No, not quite.

"Relax, Kowalski." But he didn't.

"Skipper, you don't have to leave! No one blames you for what happened to Marlene, and-"

"Kowalski!" Skipper had to yell just to get his attention. The taller bird blabbering and just watched him, scared. He was startled to find, however, that his leader was chuckling... at him. "Relax, Kowalski. I'll be back." Before Kowalski could ask where he was going, Skipper answered. "I... found Marlene's diary." There was an awkward silence before Skipper stuttered out, "I didn't really... read it. I only read the first page, before she got here. She mentioned her parents, so..."

There was a silence, though it wasn't as awkward as it could have been, for Kowalski let out a giant exhale, like he was relieved Skipper didn't delve into Marlene's most private thoughts. "I'll be back in a couple of days, so take care of things while I'm gone and-" Kowalski glared at him, as if he had insulted his intelligence (the nerve) and pulled a remote from somewhere. Skipper knew what was going to happen a few milliseconds before it did- a button was pushed and a loud, klaxon sound wailed through the den.

The remaining two penguins hopped into action, looking for the source for the trouble. Skipper merely looked annoyed. "You're not going to stop me, Kowalski. Take the head quarters OFF of lock-down." The young Private looked between the two, very unsure what was going on. It took only seconds, which felt like hours to Skipper, to explain the leader's plan.

At the end of the story, Private glared at Skipper, as did Rico. "Skippah, you can't-" This was starting to piss him off, and Skipper decided to end this nonsense.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" He yelled, startling everyone in the room. The noise from the alarm had stopped, and the head-quarters had been taken off lock-down almost immediately. "I'm heading to California. Marlene's family... Th-they need to know. They need to know..." Their fearless leader, the one they respected so much, one... they'd never seen cry or get upset or get afraid... broke down right there, in front of them. With eyes wet with tears, he continued as best as he could. "Marlene is dead. And this is all that's left of her. It... should go to he-her family. I'll be back in a couple... couple of days." His voice cracked several times in his speech, leaving everyone else around him silent.

10:36 PM... The hidden fishbowl entrance moved aside, and not one, but four penguins slid, silently, into the night. They would go, together, to return the book to Marlene's family.

They would go together.

A/N: Review, let me know thoughts, feelings, improvements... anything.