Elli came back in through the fishbowl entrance, she could keep this secret if she tried, but she knew it would be hard. She was terrible and keeping secrets, lying, and anything that involved stretching the truth, and if she knew her Uncle Skipper well, she was going to have to stretch the truth a lot to keep a secret from him. "Hello." She said nervously. She saw Marshal was still sleeping, Buttons was hacking up a few firecrackers at the wall out of boredom, and Athena was playing around with a few chemicals on her dad's chemistry set.
Athena looked up at Elli, and slipped her goggles off. "Greetings!" she said with a warm smile, but then she frowned. Elli didn't look…normal. She just couldn't put her flipper on it. "You okay?" she asked a little concerned.
Elli shot her head to Athena in a flash. "Yes! Of course! Uh…why wouldn't I be?" she stammered. She's ALREADY onto me! She thought to herself.
Athena looked at the little penguin, obviously curious, but then it hit her. "Okay, what's the secret?" she asked.
Marshal's eyes popped open, and his head popped up at the word secret. "Secret, who has a secret!?" he asked, looking around the room. He loved secrets, they were future blackmail opportunities! He smiled his trouble smile when he saw Elli's nervous expression. "Come on Elli, what's the secret?" he ran up to her. "You know the old poem."
Elli looked up. "I don't believe I do." She said, not remembering any poem about secrets.
Marshal cleared his throat. "Secrets, secrets, are no fun, unless they're shared with everyone."
Athena rolled her eyes at that. "Then it's not a secret isn't it?"
Marshal ignored her as usual. "Come on Elli, what is it?" he asked.
Elli shook her head. "Sorry Marshal, but this is a BIG secret. Well, it seems like one." She said. I thought that being pregnant meant you were going to have a baby. Who doesn't love babies? They're so cute! She thought to herself, wondering why the new monkey talking to her teachers was keeping this all a secret.
She got so lost in her thoughts, that Marshal waved his flippers in front of her eyes. "Hey, Earth to Elli!" Marshal said, making Elli blink and come back to reality. He started to ask what the secret was again, but just then their parents came in from recon.
Elli thought that she was saved, but it turned out it didn't. "Hey kids, what's going on?" Skipper asked.
"Elli has a secret, and she's not telling anyone!" Marshal explained.
Elli glared at him. "Marshal!" she grumbled. She then turned back around and smiled nervously at her dad and uncles, who were now looking at her suspiciously. "He's just kidding!" she lied, but of course, her voice sounded squeaky, showing she was lying.
Skipper looked over her. "It's okay Elli, you know me and my men are good at keeping secrets."
Elli shook her head. "Sorry Uncle Skippa, but I don't think it would be nice of me to tell anyone. Don't you always say it's good not to let the enemy to know the classified mission?"
"She's got a point." Kowalski said.
Skipper leaned down to the little penguin. "Well yeah, but we're not enemies here, we're family." Skipper assured her. "Besides, if you or anyone else is in any danger at all, you should tell us. Death threats, blackmail, and visits from any evil…"
"Badgers!" Private gasped.
"No, dolphins!" Skipper said, shooting a small look at the British penguin.
Kowalski looked taken back by this. "Skipper, we do not discriminate ALL dolphins in the world, just because one, I repeat, just one, tried to kill us!"
Marshal laughed, knowing he meant Doris. "We can't trust ALL dolphins in the world, just because one is your girlfriend." He teased, making Kowalski blush. "Now tell me that secret!"
"It's not that big a deal really." Elli said, just wanting to get off topic.
Private smiled. "Then we won't bother you about it."
"We won't?" Skipper asked.
"Skippa, she said it wasn't anything, and Elli doesn't lie! Do you Elli?" Private asked, looking at his daughter with a small smile.
Elli started to sweat. You don't lie Elli, you're better than that! She thought in her head. Her down feathers started to feel as if she were wearing a sweater in July. She opened her beak to answer, but before she could, she fainted.
"Well, there goes her three weeks without fainting goal." Marshal said, leaning over the penguin's laying body. "Elli, you up?"
"No Marshal, she's up and atom, in fact, she's gonna build a tree house. She FAINTED! Of course she's not up!" Athena said.
The penguins then set the little girl on a table. "Come on Elli, wake up." Private said, shaking his daughter awake. He started to feel worried, Elli usually didn't faint unless she was pressured, so he wondered what his big secret was like Skipper, who then put his flipper up to the British accented penguin.
"Hold up there Private, I've got an idea." The penguin leader said.
A few moments later. . . . . . . . .
Elli woke up and fluttered her eyes open. "Where am I?" She looked around. She was dizzy, so everything looked blurry. When her eyes finally adjusted, she saw her dad. "D-daddy?" Elli rubbed her eyes. "Where am I?" she repeated.
Private tucked a blanket over her. "You're in my bunk."
Elli moaned and let her head fall on her pillow. "I fainted again, didn't I?" she asked, just looking up at the concrete foundation of her father's bunk. He didn't have to answer, because she knew it. "Oh, I have GOT to stop doing that!" she scolded herself.
Private chuckled.
"What's so funny? Doesn't it worry you that I just…faint?" Elli asked.
Private shook his head. "That's common for sweet, pretty, cute, girls. Don't the princesses faint in the movies?" he pulled the green blanket over her more.
"Yes, but only when they kiss Marshal-I MEAN THEIR PRINCE!" Elli blushed.
Private starred at her. "It sounded like you said Mars—"
"Uh…What time is it?" Elli asked to get off topic.
"Well, Mr. Mason and Phil called a meeting. They said they had something important to tell us." Private answered.
"Is it about Lulu?" Elli asked, but then she covered her beak. She wasn't supposed to know THAT! She growled. She HAD to stop doing that!
Private starred at her funny. "Where'd you hear Lulu was back?"