I'm really sorry I haven't updated lately, I'll try harder to update more often. Thanks for all the reviews!
I don't own the Penguins of Madagascar! DreamWorks & Nick does, worship them! (Well, maybe not Nick)
The next day was the grand opening of the Meerkat Enclosure, the Penguins noted that Tammy seemed very stressed by the crowd of people around her. Kowalski suggested they invite her over to H.Q. in an attempt to make her feel more welcome, Skipper agreed.
After the Zoo closed Kowalski and Rico made their way over to Tammy's. At first she was reluctant to come but was assured she wouldn't have to go in the water. It could provide more information so Tammy finally relented.
They came out through the tunnel behind Private's 1st Prize. Tammy looked around, completely amazed by all the objects. "Ello Tammy, how was you're day?" Private questioned as he waddled up to her.
Her focus continued to dart around the room, "Awful! How can you stand those humans watching and yelling at you all the time?"
"You get used to it…" Skipper said as he cleared the table, Rico regurgitated a deck of playing cards.
She sighed heavily, "They're horrible, keeping us locked up for their amusement…" Something caught her eye, she walked over and picked it up. "What's this?" She inquired as she played with it's rounded pegs.
Kowalski smiled, "That's an abacus, an ancient device used for calculations."
Placing the abacus back where she found it, she continued looking around. She came upon Kowalski's notebook and looked it over. It was covered in equations, Kowalski was slightly amused as she cocked her head, seemingly confused. "You miscarried the 4..." Tammy stated, handing the notebook to him.
"W-what?" He stammered. Looking at the equation she had pointed to he found that he did, in fact, miscarry the 4. The intellectuals mouth hung open, stunned at his simple mistake. How did she know? But he had no chance to question it.
Skipper began shuffling the deck, "Alright, whose up for a game of Stomp the Wombat?"
Tammy quickly made her way to the table, "How do you play?" She'd never played a card game before, but was interested. Private explained the rules of the game, being corrected by Skipper every so often. Rico munched on popcorn while Kowalski dealt the cards.
Before long several rounds had passed, and Tammy was loosing the current hand. She looked around to make sure everyone's focus was on their cards. She snaked her tail around Kowalski, careful not to actually touch him.
Suddenly Kowalski felt something touch his side, opposite of Tammy. He turned to see who it was but found nothing. Tammy took the opportunity to lean over and look at his cards.
"Hey! There's no cheating in Stomp the Wombat!" Skipper spat.
Tammy was startled, Kowalski eyed her. The Meerkat laughed nervously as she straightened, "I wasn't cheating, I was just checking his cards."
Skipper wasn't amused, "That's called cheating…"
"Oh, well now you tell me." She smiled innocently. Knowing full well it was cheating. Kowalski stiffened, but it went unnoticed.
Rico chuckled, causing him to spit up a King of Hearts. Both Rico and Skipper starred at the card. He shifted his gaze to the crazed Penguin. "You too Rico? Was everyone cheating?!" He threw his arms in the air.
There was a moments silence, before Private decided to speak up. "Actually Skippa, the game was starting to get a little boring. I'd like to watch a little telly if you don't mind."
Skipper threw his hand of cards down, "Fine. I need to get tomorrows training course setup anyways." He said before waddling off, up to the platform.
Private plopped down in front of the television and turned it on. Rico went in search of his Barbie doll, leaving Tammy and Kowalski alone. He didn't seem in a hurry to move so she took it upon herself to put the cards back into their box. "I didn't mean to ruin the game, I was just joking." She frowned. He remained quiet, unmoving.
"Your tail…. Is still touching me." Kowalski whispered shyly, blushing under his feathers.
Tammy looked to find her tail wrapped around his bottom. She quickly jumped away, embarrassed. "I'm sorry! I- I wasn't paying attention!" She blushed deeply, the scar on her nose turned a bright red. They starred at each other for a moment, an awkward silence falling on the room, except for the sounds of the television which had Privates full attention.
"Well… Thanks for having me over." The Meerkat fidgeted, scratching at her ear. "But I think I should be getting home."
Kowalski stood, "Would you like me to walk you back?" He questioned, trying to be mannerly, despite the awkwardness.
She jumped into the tunnel leading out, "No, no. I'll be fine. Thanks anyways. Good night." Tammy waved quickly before leaving.
As soon as she was gone he rubbed the area her tail had been. What an odd sensation, the reaction the touch caused from him. It confused him, Kowalski waddled off to get his notebook.
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Kowalski slowly woke up, a little confused why Skipper hadn't sounded the morning wake-up alarm. He opened his eyes and looked around, his gaze landed on an object sticking out from under his pillow. Kowalski curiously picked it up. It was square, wrapped in newspaper. There was a small note attached to it. He slowly read it to himself.
Hey Kowalski, I thought this could help you with your calculations. No more miscarried 4's!
~ Tammy
The intellectual was slightly mystified by the note, setting it aside he began removing the newspaper. He let out a gasp when he realized what the gift was. Holding it up, he admired the object. It was an advanced Calculate 9000, with so many buttons Kowalski thought he might be in heaven. The mathematical possibilities were endless!
Kowalski finally made his way onto the platform, already putting the Calculate 9000 to use. He looked up to see the others huddled around Skipper, who was looking through a set of binoculars. "What's going on?" He inquired as he came up to them.
"The rest of the Meerkats just arrived!" Private chirped happily.
In the next chapter we'll finally get to meet Tammy's family!
