Author's Note: I thought it would be interesting to throw in the point of views of a couple human characters. I hope that's alright... O, and all characters (except mine, of course) belong to their respected owners. Now enjoy, or I shall steal your cookies! :D
It was another foggy day in the Concrete Cage that was Manhattan. At least, for most it was just another day, for others it was the chance to make something of themselves. Live, laugh, learn. Rendezvous, remember, rejoice. These simple words make almost everything better. But these words are often forgotten by a certain college graduate who's sleeping in on her first day as an intern at the Central Park Zoo.
As Rai twisted and turned in her bed, her alarm clock in pieces on the floor from half an hour ago, it seemed like she would sleep until noon. Then came a rapping at her bedroom door.
"Yo, Rai! You descent? We've got ten minutes to get to the zoo!" Called Kyle from outside her door. Rai responded with a mumble and unidentifiable words crashing into each other.
"Rai! Wake up for heaven's sake! Don't make me do it". He threatened. Rai responded with snore.
"Alright, I warned you," said Kyle, shaking his head as he snuck into her room, and poked the unconscious Rai. No response. A mischievous grin took form on Kyle's face. He took the liberty of jumping violently on Rai's bed while singing the New York theme at the top of his lungs.
"START SPREADING THE NEWS! I'M LEAVING TODAY~! I WANT TO BE A PART OF IT~!" He sang as Rai awoke instantly, hair in her face, her mouth filled with blood curdling screams. After setting eyes on the source of her rude awakening, her eyes filled with rage.
Kyle, enjoying himself, continued jumping, and added a few dance moves while singing.
"If I can make it there, I'll make it anywhere,
Come on come through, New York, NEW YOR- Kack!" Rai had her hand around Kyle's throat and stared menacingly into his dark brown eyes.
"HOLY LADY OF GUADALUPE, KYLE!" She screamed. "Never… and I mean NEVER wake me up like that again!" Kyle smiled sheepishly, and giving Rai the most charming, yet guilty look he could muster.
"Could you please let go of me and get ready so we can leave? We only have seven minutes left."
"WHAT?!" Rai shrieked, as she clumsily ran off her bed to the bathroom, grabbed her clothes, and hurriedly got dressed while brushing her teeth at the same time. She showered in the evening, so thankfully she didn't have to worry about that, and she decided to tie her dark hair in a pony tail for a quick fix, and ran out the door with a backpack at hand without having breakfast. "What are you waiting for? Let's move!" She shouted at Kyle, who was astonished by her speed. Knowing that driving would be a waste of time considering the traffic and looking for parking, the duo ran the whole way to the zoo.
"Kowalski, status report!" Barked a penguin with a military air to him.
"It's two minutes to opening, Skipper, and still no sign of them," answered a taller penguin from the submarine scope.
"I'm so excited!" Chirped the younger penguin. "New penguins! I wonder what they'll be like?" He pondered in a soft English accent.
A fourth penguin with a feathered Mohawk and a scar on the left side of his face gave an anxious grunt, wondering when the recruits will arrive.
"Patience is a virtue, men," said Skipper. "Now, is everything ready? Status on the obstacle course!"
"Newly designed and fully functioning, Skipper!" Replied Kowalski with a respected salute.
"El Excellente. And the beverages?"
The scarred penguin gave a grin and opened the penguins' hidden refrigerator, which was filled with ice-cold fruit punch.
"Good work, Rico! And what of the snack provisions?" Asked Skipper, turning towards the younger penguin.
"Our supply is filled to the brink with popcorn, assorted sushi, assorted fish, and candy, sir!" Said the penguin happily.
"Good work, Private!" Skipper complimented. "Boys, be ready and keep your guard up! The new recruits will be here soon. And before we start the celebration, intense training is in order; a test of character and skill. These naïve newbies won't know what's coming to them." He said with a grin. The clock bell rang, signaling the opening of the zoo. The group of penguins exchanged looks, and as usual, retreated from their comfy den to 'greet' the visitors with Skipper calling after them, "Cute and cuddly boys, cute and cuddly".
It was already past opening time when Kyle and Rai arrived, exhausted, and out of breath. They were only a few yards away from the office to sign in, and meet their superior. But alas, running four and a half miles in twenty-five minutes while shoving past innocent walkers and homeless bums took a lot out of them. Their legs felt like cement. They looked up to see the office and gave a loud groan before slowly dragging themselves to the door.
"You're late!" hissed a red-haired zookeeper, who seemed to pop up out of nowhere. Kyle and Rai gave a startled yelp, and wondered how this person knew they were interns… until they looked at each other and noticed they were wearing the zoo uniforms.
"Well, better late than never, right, miss?" asked Kyle nervously as he scratched the back of his head. The zookeeper stared hard at him, making the atmosphere very uncomfortable.
"You're overly cheery.." Kyle gave a forced chuckle.
"That's a good thing. Keep the cheer. It'll make this job a whole lot easier." Said the zookeeper, patting him on the back with such force, Kyle lost balance. "You on the other hand…" She said, observing Rai, who was standing stiff despite her instinct to lean on her knees until she caught her breath. "Wrinkled uniform, puffy, fearful eyes, and messy hair," "Hey! My hair's always messy!" Rai said, annoyed not only with the zookeeper, but also the fact her hair is impossible to manage. "You look as though you rushed last minute to get ready, meaning that you are not going to take this job seriously!" The zookeeper pointed a finger at her. What was up with this lady? Is she always like this, or is it just at the new guys? Is this a test of character, or is she really threatening her? She waved her arms in front of her defensively. "No, no! It's not that at all!" She said nervously. "I'm just not a morning person, you can understand that, right?" She asked with a hopeful smile. The zookeeper on cocked an eyebrow. After a few painful seconds, Rai coughed to break the silence, and avoided eye contact with the keeper. The zookeeper gave a long, exasperated sigh. "Well, anyway, I'm Alice, and I'll be observing and critiquing your work ethic during your internship." Alice turned and walked ahead. "Come on, time for the tour." She said. Rai and Kyle exchanged looks and hurried to Alice's side. This will be… interesting, thought the two in unison.
After a long tour, the three zookeepers stopped in the walkway between the partying lemurs and the waving penguins.
"Well, now you know where to go and what to do, right?" Asked Alice, though she knew she didn't have to ask. Kyle and Rai were paying careful attention to her and the habitats from the beginning. The two interns nodded, anxious to start work. Despite rough beginnings, the three colleagues looked forward to working with each other.
"Great. There's one more thing I need you guys to do, ok?" Alice stated, hoping that what she tells the new kids won't scare them off.
"Sure thing Alice." Kyle said.
"What is it?" Asked Rai curiously.
"Between you and me, I have some suspicions about the penguins and lemurs." Said the paranoid zookeeper. Rai and Kyle cocked an eyebrow, and hoped to hear Alice fill out the blanks.
"You'll see." She said. Kyle dropped his shoulders, disappointed, while Rai face palmed, as she expected a grand story. "After the two of you are done working with the other animals, I need you to take surveillance of these guys." She said, pointing to the two habitats.
"What about the visitors?" Asked Kyle, who believed the people were more important.
"It's simple. Answer quick questions, point to the restrooms, but do not leave the lemurs or penguins unattended." She said with a solid face.
"Sure?" Kyle and Rai said in unison. Alice thanked them, and turned to report to the giraffe habitat. But before she left, she asked a quick favor from Rai.
"Rai, there's a crate in the research lab with two new penguins. Could you deliver them to the habitat for me?" She asked.
"What? B-but Alice, feeding and cleaning up is one thing, but actually managing the animals should be something done by a professional. Besides, these are wild penguins, right?" Alice nodded.
"Come on, Rai. Feeding and cleaning is volunteer stuff. Chores the teenagers do. You're a college graduate with a bachelor's degree in biology. You can handle delivering a couple of penguins into a habitat." Said Alice matter-of-factly.
"Well… they've had their shots, right?"
"of course."
"All clean? They have a calm disposition? Friendly with people?"
"One of them is more excitable, but it's nothing you can't handle."
Rai shifted her eyes toward the lab uneasily.
"Alice, you there? Is the kid in the giraffe habitat ok? No injuries, right? Haha! Can you believe he actually got himself stuck in there?" Boomed the walkie-talkie.
"I'll be right there," Alice answered.
Rai sighed. She still felt that handling animals should be done by a professional. But Alice had better things to do. She walked to the lab, and found herself surrounded by researchers, vets, and animals of all kinds being observed, some in other rooms being operated on. There was a lot going on, and a lot to take in.
Rai walked up to one of the researchers.
"Pardon me, but do you know where the new penguins are?" She asked, diverting her eyes.
"Hoover dam!" Skipper bellowed. "I don't believe this! Constant surveillance? What kind of twisted conspiracy is this?!" He shouted as he paced around the den apprehensively.
Kowalski was flipping through his notes and charts, confused about the situation.
"I expected this to happen, but not so soon. It just doesn't add up." He said worriedly.
"What are we going to do?" squeaked Private.
"Kaboom?" Rico suggested darkly. Private gasped at the thought.
"No. Too messy, Rico. That's a bit too problematic. I mean could you imagine the amount of paperwork?" Said Skipper as he continued his frustrated pacing.
"As troublesome as it is, Skipper, there is some good news," Kowalski assured. The penguins stared after the brainy penguin curiously.
"According to the files," Started Kowalski, retrieving the memory of employee files from the zoo database, "These 'spies' are newly trained interns, who still have their main chores during the first few hours of the day. Surveillance is simply an extra job for them. By my calculations, they'll have a remaining two hours of surveillance before closing time." He informed, scribbling on his white-board. Skipper stopped pacing, and settled down.
"Ah, sparky-eyed children." He smiled innocently. At least it seemed innocent. "We'll be sure they fall exhausted far before those last two hours. Men, it's time we prepare for 'Operation: Rundown."
As soon as Skipper said this, footsteps were heard above the penguins' headquarters.
"Hey guys! Got some new friends for ya. Come on up!" Shouted a human voice, most likely their assigned intern.
"Kowalski! Analysis!" Skipper ordered, and Kowalski was instantly at the submarine scope, observing the events. He saw the shaken dark-haired intern called 'Rai' reluctantly pull two penguins from a wooden crate, and gently setting them down at the edge of their habitat. She stared almost marveling at the sight of the penguins facing her, before quickly leaving the perimeter, and watching them from a safe distance.
"The eggs are in the henhouse, Skipper!" Stated Kowalski with a grin.
