Hello everyone! CJzilla here with an update. In this chapter the animals meet the bird of paradise and Julien meets his new rival. Enjoy.
As I rampage all over this city, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love... hate... review.
AN: This fanfiction will be updated randomly.
Chapter 2
The New Royal on the Block
As time grew short, the zoo staff was rushing around trying to get the last minuet decorations, souvenirs and seating taken care of. The Penguins, who had fled their enclosure, not that the preoccupied zookeepers cared, were getting comfortable in their A-list seats.
"You can see the whole stage from up here!" Private beamed as he and his team sat above and across the amphitheatre podium. They sat on the roof of and adjacent building; hidden from the humans but able to see the entire stage.
Kowalski, who sat next to him, was busy doodling on his paper tablet.
"Thus our appropriate position." The intelligent penguin voiced. "In order to take in as much information as possible on this Bird of Paradise, we need to sit high."
"Kowalski!" Skipper leaned back and looked at the tall penguin. "Tone down the massive brain power, huh? Our presence here must look like we are just care-free spectators looking for some entertainment."
Private quirked a brow.
"Why's that, Skipper?" The youngest penguin questioned. Skipper gave him one of his paranoid "the-world-isn't-a-field-of-innocent-daisies" look.
"Because, Private, the bird of paradise is an Animal Ambassador." The lead penguin returned. "She's been making appearances, showing humans the beauty and wonder of nature; possibly inspiring some children to care and nurture wildlife. But I'll bet my beak this is all a front for her real goal. Being an Animal Ambassador, she's been all over the world. With all that globetrotting, she's likely accumulated enough intel that could make or break a country. We will watch her like a hawk and if she pulls anything funny… we'll bust her and strip her for the backstabbing chicken she really is."
Kowalski and Skipper kept their eyes on the stage while Private made a face.
"She's a chicken?" The innocent penguin questioned. Skipper face-palmed.
"It's a metaphor, soldier!" The lead penguin barked. "If she's dirty, we'll be the first to know. Is that clear, Private?!"
The youngest penguin saluted.
"Sir, YES, sir!" Private stood at attention. Skipper returned his salute.
"At ease, soldier." The lead penguin ordered. "And remember: cute and cuddly. Rico! Binoculars!"
The psychotic knife wizard and explosive expert smacked his mouth before he regurgitated a pair of binoculars with a loud "HaaCK". Skipper caught them before they hit the ground and eased them to his eyes. The penguin eyed the stage, made marks of the doors and the seating for the humans. Then they heard the pat of feet on the roof.
"Can't you guys do anything without making it a covert military maneuver?" It was Marlene, the Asian Otter. Skipper took his eyes off of his binoculars and glared at the sensible semi-aquatic mammal female.
"Our maneuvers are the only thing that keeps you and this zoo on the map. If you knew half of the importance of our tactics, you'd never sleep again, Marlene." He huffed and returned his eyes to the binoculars.
Marlene set a webbed hand on her hip and sighed.
"That's nice, because from my vantage point, there is no method to this madness." She voiced sitting next to Rico. Skipper felt a sneer pull on his beak.
"To the untrained eye, maybe. But we are on a very important mission today." He answered. Marlene giggled.
"What? You four boys scoping out the newest female bird? I hear she's really pretty." The otter grinned. That got her looks from all the penguins.
"That's a "no" in big, red capital letters, Marlene." Skipper sneered and continued to observe the stage. Kowalski had a more informative answer.
"Birds though we be, she is a bird of paradise whereas WE are mere penguins." The smartest penguin remarked. "It just "wouldn't work out", as the humans say. You have to take into consideration the massive void in the gene pool, the fact that we are totally different species and the anatomical differences-"
Skipper interrupted Kowalski's mini lecture that was going places it shouldn't.
"We are men of action, not romance." The leader held to a straight face as he dropped his binoculars. Marlene gave him a big smile.
"Says the penguin with a bobble-head doll wife." She smirked. Skipper's face twisted with a full-on scowl.
"We are separated due to marital differences!" The penguin snapped. "That whole situation shows that my job isn't for a fainthearted female. Doll wanted my whole attention and that's something I cannot give."
Marlene found his depth of psychosis unbearably funny but she held in her laugh so as not to hurt his feelings. Just then they heard a trumpet sound; if you call Maurice vocalizing through an empty paper-towel roll was a trumpet. As the silent and watching penguins plus Marlene looked on, the Aye-aye lemur marched toward them, lowered his paper-towel roll and cleared his throat.
"Introducing the amazing, illustrious, big-hearted, unbearably handsome, constipated-" Maurice began.
"Consecrated!" Julien shouted from out of eyesight. The penguins and Marlene stifled laughter.
"-I mean consecrated KING of all lemurs… King Julien XIII!" Maurice corrected. He stepped to the side, motioning to Julien's entrance point.
Then Mort, the Goodman's Mouse lemur came prancing into sight, throwing flower petals to the ground. Then both he and Maurice rushed back to their king. After a round of strained grunts, Maurice and Mort carried Julien's very gaudy mobile throne into view.
"Looks like Ring Tail's been busy." Skipper voiced, seeing that his portable throne was twice the size of his normal one. Marlene rolled her eyes.
"And the welcome wagon to the Central Park Zoo just would not be complete without Julien is giving his own unique style of crazy to the opening ceremony." The otter gestured shaking her head.
"That thing looks top heavy." Kowalski quipped. "There's an access of pompous big-headedness tipping it."
The five snickered, trying to stifle a bigger laugh. But Julien heard them.
"Mock if you will, birds and otter, but this is the only way that a king shall make an entrance." The Ring-tailed lemur dared not stick his nose in the air, lest his enormous and showy crown fall off of his head. Skipper stood.
"The show hasn't even started, Ring Tail!" The lead penguin gestured. "With that ginormous thing, you're going to give our position away to the humans! We'll all be sent back to our pens with reduced rations!"
Julien looked unconcerned.
"Being sighted with de eyeballs is what I want, silly bird." The lemur returned, looking at his nails. "This "royal" bird must know that I am king and that she is substandard."
Marlene quirked a brow.
"Isn't that a little harsh seeing that you've never even met her before?" The otter questioned. Julien had a smug look on his face.
"I am just making sure that all my little duckies are filed so that all my buttocks is sheltered." The lemur rattled off smiling. Even Kowalski was stumped with that.
"Translation please." Skipper barked looking annoyed. Maurice and Mort finally hauled the large portable throne to the penguins and otter.
"What the illustrious king means is that he wants to just make sure that he is not questioned as ruler." Maurice panted before he collapsed in exhaustion. Mort was squished under the throne.
The Penguins and Marlene mutually rolled their eyes.
"Maurice! Do not be lazy! I must be comfortable yet visible from a great distance!" Julien clapped his hands. "Move dis bucket to my proper place."
Maurice and Mort gave pained groans.
Minuets later, after Maurice and Mort dragged Julien's mobile throne into the king's preferred seat, the animals were watching the excited people file into the amphitheater. The turn out was unexpected. The zoo was PACKED to the brim. The other animals were awed while Julien felt jealousy bubble inside of him.
"Why did not these thumb-sucking primates show the REAL king, ME, such treatment?!" The Ring-tailed lemur gestured, his head free of his heavy and gaudy crown. He slumped in his chair, rapping his fingers on his armrest.
Maurice was immediately on damage control.
"Well, you did make a much humbler entrance, king Julien." The Aye-aye lied through a smile. "Such a modest act shows that you are far less arrogant that this bird of paradise."
"King Julien is the most humblest king of all lemurs Mort has ever known!" Mort chirped. Julien seemed slightly pacified by his helpers' comments.
The Ring-tailed lemur looked down at the penguins and Asian otter.
"And neither did any of you give me such a proper welcome." Julien pointed down at them. The Penguins ignored him while Marlene felt that she should say something.
"I'm still speechless that the king of all lemurs found his way to MY zoo. I live to bask only in your glory." The female otter lied through her teeth. Julien gave a smile.
"Yes. I am quite a sight to see." He leaned back into his chair. Marlene wiped her brow, grateful that she avoided Julien's wrath.
But then she noticed that Mort was glaring at her.
"I am de only one to bask in King Julien's glory!" The tiny lemur growled, a dangerous look in his big yellow eyes. Then he dragged his finger over this throat; the classic "throat slash" sign.
Marlene gave the little lemur a wary look before looking back to the stage.
"Something's happening down there!" Skipper exclaimed. "We've got movement from the zookeepers!"
Sure enough, Alice the zookeeper came walking out on the stage. Her normal outgoing and grating persona was taken by crippling stage fright. The red-headed zookeeper gave a nervous wave to the large crowd. Clearing her throat she tapped her ear-microphone.
"Testing… testing? 1, 2, 3; testing!" Alice said into the microphone. The crowd and animals flinched at the blare from the surrounding speakers. "Oh, hi. My name is Alice and-" She dug into her pocket and pulled out some flashcards with her lines written on them. "And it gives me great pleasure to introduce an Animal Ambassador that is known the world over. Born on the exotic isles of Papua New Guinea, this bird represents the beauty and grace of her species. She has traveled the world, visiting over fifty countries!"
Julien felt a sneer curl onto his face.
"The moon is a country! Send this harpy bird there!" He shouted down to the zookeeper, jumping on his seat. Rico and Skipper barely had time to tackle the lemur and dive for cover before Alice brought her eyes to their vantage point.
The paranoid zookeeper gave the building roof a quick glance before continuing with her lines.
"We are very proud to host such a magnificent bird here at our Central Park Zoo." Alice continued. The animals peeked over the ledge as Skipper took his flipper off of Julien's mouth.
"Zip the lip before we're caught, Ring Tail!" The leader penguin snapped. Private called to him.
"Skipper! They're moments away from bringing her out!" The youngest penguin chirped and pointed. Skipper gasped and zipped back to his vantage point.
Julien scrambled for his throne.
"Maurice! My crown! HURRY!" He rushed. Mort and Maurice clamored for the large crow, but had some trouble getting the heavy thing up to the lemur king.
"So without further ado-" Alice gestured toward the door. The crown was nearly on Julien's head. "I present to you, the wonderful, the royal, the beautiful…-" Finally Maurice and Mort set the crown onto Julien's melon.
"Maneuver "Penguins Next Door"!" Skipper barked. The penguins broke out popcorn, stuffing their binoculars into their bags.
Alice took a big breath.
"Sheeeeeeeba the Bird of Paradise!" As the crowd cheered, a bird flew out of the left side of the stage.
At first you couldn't really see her but once she soared over the crowd and extended her wings, the true beauty of the bird of paradise was seen. The crowd cheered as the animals' jaws hit the floor. The bird of paradise gave a jovial laugh at the thunderous applause. She flew just above the heads of the crowd, letting them see her glorious feathers. Then she landed on the roof of the amphitheatre, where everyone could see her.
"Yes! Yes! LOVE me!" She cheered into the air, spreading her wings and closing her eyes, letting the applause sound over her. Suddenly music boomed through the speakers.
The bird of paradise began dancing to the music.
"Shake your tail feathers for your queen! C'mon! Do it with me, my subjects!" She shouted to the crowd, turning her back and shaking her long tail feathers. The people jumped out of their chairs and began dancing.
The whole amphitheater was jumping with activity. Dancing, music and laughter bounced the zoo. The bird of paradise laughed as she took to the air, flying over the people.
"Queen Sheba is in the house!" She cheered.
Then something caught her eye. It was the group of animals sitting at the top of a nearby building. Sheba grinned and flew closer. As she swooped by, giving them a close look of her long tail feathers. The animals applauded, much to Julien's distain. Finally, after working up the crowd, the music stopped and Sheba landed on Alice's arm. The crowd was going nuts, cheering like they'd lost their minds. Sheba took a couple bows, blowing kisses all around. Alice gestured for the crowd to calm and the amphitheatre was suddenly quiet.
"Sheba is a beautiful example of the wonder of her species." The zookeeper began, carrying on with a lecture over the bird of paradise. "Birds of paradise build their nests out of soft materials such as leaves and ferns. A mating pair of the size of Sheba here produces only one egg at a time."
But up on the building, some were not as thrilled to have such a famous bird at the zoo.
"She gets her own music?" King Julien gaped. "And dancing from de crowd?"
Maurice and Mort saw a freak out coming on.
"Uh… It's just part of the promotion for the zoo… They-… uh play that song all the time…?" Maurice readily replied, hoping to calm the lemur king down. Julien looked down at his right-hand man with a glare.
He wasn't buying it and returned his golden eyes to Alice and the bird on her arm.
"Look how pretty she is." Marlene awed. "It makes me wish that I had feathers."
"Being a bird is far harder than it looks, Marlene." Skipper immediately corrected. The otter rolled her eyes.
"You know what I mean, Skipper. But just look at her colors!" Marlene gestured. "She's got the look!"
It was true, Sheba was very beautiful. She was covered in vibrant purples and greens; her tail feathers had to be three and a half feet long and were bursting with all hues of greens and purple. Her plumes were glossy and well kempt. Her eyes were of the darkest brown, twinkling as she held the crowd's attention. Sheba was gorgeous and she knew it. So did others.
Julien shot out of his throne.
"She's not all that great!" The lemur snapped at Marlene. "All of those feathers are obviously fake! MY coat is ten times as glossy and soft."
He brushed his tail. Skipper and the other penguins rolled their eyes.
"Whatever makes you sleep at night, Ring Tail." The lead penguin returned, popping popcorn into his mouth. Julien was speeding closer and closer to a freak out.
"Uh… she doesn't have a crown like yours, your majesty!" Maurice smiled, trying his best to calm the lemur.
"Oh, I didn't notice." He gave a smile. Then he snarled, his black and white tail bristling. "Because I was TOO busy STARING AT HER BEAUTIFUL FEATHERS!"
Unfortunately for Julien, his little tantrum carried his voice to Sheba's ears. The female bird of paradise perked her head up and smiled.
"You're too kind, darlings!" Sheba called back up to the animals. "Really!"
The bird waved at them. The penguins, Marlene and Maurice and Mort waved back. Julien gritted his teeth.
"Nice extensions of feathers, you painted pheasant!" The Ring-tailed lemur shouted down to Sheba, his fur bristled. "De insides of pillows have prettier plumes than you!"
The bird of paradise blinked, taken aback by the lemur as soon as she acknowledged that he was speaking to her. One look and Sheba knew that he was going to be trouble. Feeling that this lemur merited an insult, she frowned slightly.
"And what's that on your head, sir?" Sheba shot back. "Did you make it yourself or did you steal it from a garbage can?"
"It's my kingly crown!" Julien snarled, his back arched like a cat's. "I am king of dis zoo and I will not giving it up without a fight!"
Sheba studied him for a second and then turned up her beak.
"Talk to the backside, raccoon." The bird returned. She maneuvered on Alice's arm so that her back was facing the animals.
Julien was livid.
"Lemur! I AM A LEMUR, you blind-!" The ring-tailed lemur was cut off when Alice's eyes caught sight of his hopping-mad fit. The animals gasped.
"We've been spotted!" Private gasped.
"SPOTTED!" Rico clapped his flippers on his face. Skipper slapped his forehead as he saw Alice take a walkie-talkie from her belt and report them to her fellow zookeepers.
"Ring Tail!" The lead penguin shot at Julien. "You just alerted the keepers to our presence! You and your frilly crown are on your own!"
Skipper grabbed Marlene by the paw as he motioned for his team to scatter.
"Report back to base, team! The show's over!" He called. With military-like precision, the penguins zipped out of sight with Marlene in tow.
Suddenly the lemurs were all alone. Maurice, as usually, was the voice of reason to Julien.
"Uh, your highness?" The Aye-aye spoke up. "We need to get while the gettin's good."
The ring-tailed lemur shot Maurice a glare.
"My kingship is threatened and you want to RUN like little babies?!" Julien seethed. The Aye-aye shook his head.
"Um… We'll run with our heads held high." Maurice replied with an uneasy smile. Julien's eye twitched.
"I will not retreat in front of that ruffled turkey!" He barked, pointing at Sheba, who was currently ignoring him. "I am KING! I will leave when I so please!"
The Aye-aye looked at the mouse lemur at his side.
"Well, it's either running or getting hog-tied and stuffed in gunny sacks in front of the crowd, highness." Maurice voiced. Julien glanced at him.
"And how do you know they will tie us like hogs and stuff us in sacks made out of gunny?" He returned in an indignant sort of way. Maurice pointed up.
The ring-tailed lemur didn't have time to follow his servant's finger when a big animal net was thrown over them. Julien, Maurice and Mort were hauled off of the building by the zookeepers, kicking and screaming.
"THIS ISN'T OVER! NOT BY THE LONGEST OF SHOTS!" Julien shouted down to Sheba. The bird of paradise turned and watched the mouthy lemur get dragged off of the roof in a net.
A smile cracked on her face.
"Hail to the queen, baby." Sheba smirked before opening her wings. The crowd cheered as the gorgeous bird strutted her stuff.
Review. LONG LIVE ROCK!