A/N: I'd just like to thank everyone for all the great reviews; I never thought my story would be seen as really good! I hope you enjoy this one, took a lot of effort to write it all!

Skipper's head slowly nodded back and forth as he sat on the hard wooden chair. He had been sitting in the same spot for nearly two and a half hours, watching, waiting for any sign that the little penguin before him would wake up, only to be rewarded with the cold, monotonous repetitions of breath Private sucked in and blew out. The leader had heard nothing from his lieutenant or his weapons expert, not that he was surprised. He knew that what he did probably wasn't the best way to cope with the terrible news he had received, but he didn't even care. It felt like nothing really mattered anymore, the only thing on his mind being the constant worry of what would happen to Private.

The initial fact in Skipper's mind that the whole mess was more or less his fault haunted him to no end. He ran the scenario through his mind over and over, each time thinking of new ways he could have avoided everything and kept things the way they were, but no matter how much he wished he could have just stopped himself from acting like that, he knew that there was no way to fix what had happened. He could only sit and wait, with hope keeping him awake and by Private's side through the day.

He sighed deeply as he stared up at the ceiling, thinking of what to do next. The only rational thought in his mind was how much help he knew Kowalski could have been right now. He would most definitely have some sort of plan of action, at least one kind of idea on what they could do. But for now, there was no "they". There was only him, a distraught leader with a broken apart team for the moment and a comatose Private beside him, who was nearly dead all because of him. It had seemed the life he once knew as happy and fulfilling was now in pieces, and there wasn't much he could do about it. His mind started to drift off to visions and memories of Private; something he still didn't quite understand, but accepted into his thoughts.

He could remember many missions with such clarity he thought he had seen into his own past; Whether it was battling the evil forces of Dr. Blowhole and his monstrous crab army, or retrieving Julian's crown from the clutches of the Rat King, Skipper could only see him and Private, always fighting side by side, without a doubt in their minds that they would win. Skipper smiled, noticing just how much of an asset the young soldier was, not just to the leader's team, but to his entire life.

He was always the one that put a smile on his face. He was always the one that noticed the simpler and more blissful things in life, something Skipper couldn't quite see all of the time. In a way, the leader sort of envied how Private lived his life. He would always be so upbeat and ready for anything, so ambitious and happy. Skipper could see that cheerful smile now, glowing as it always did. He tried to imagine Private's voice; that precious, British accent that he had come to..love.

He opened his eyes, and his thoughts faded away. He was greeted by the familiar sight of his silent HQ, the dim fluorescent lights flickering softly as the light rain that had just begun falling hit the surface of the habitat. The leader picked himself up, feeling the numbing pain of his feet touching the hard cement. He hadn't realized how long he had actually been sitting in that chair. Cracking his back slowly, he made his way to the ladder. He figured the best thing to do right now was to find Kowalski; the leader didn't know if the strategist even had any plans for what to do, but he had to find out, and soon.

Just as he went to ascend the ladder to the surface, the hatch opened, and two figures slowly came down. Skipper wasn't shocked; he knew the rain would have them running back home in no time. He watched as Kowalski descended the cold metal bars and planted his feet on the cement, turning around and jolting back as he caught sight of the leader.

"Surprised to see me?" Skipper asked sarcastically, lifting his beak up to a smirk. He saw Rico come down right after, but he had his attention on the strategist. He had to know what he could do for Private.

"Oh, um..sorry, sir." He said, calming down and now standing there uncomfortably, smiling sheepishly at the leader. He looked over at the young soldier in the bunk, hidden away by pillows and sheets. The diminutive grin fell from his face, and his eyes drifted to the ground.

"I'll just...go into my lab." He said, passing by the leader and heading straight for the metal door to his lab. Skipper wanted to say something, but he decided against it; he'd just have to talk to him later. Instead, with a heavy sigh, he pulled up a chair and motioned for Rico to join him, pulling out a deck of cards.

"Go fish?"

Time had gone by relatively fast; Skipper managed to beat Rico 5 to 3 in their game of Go Fish, and now the two sat quietly in the HQ, Rico watching TV and Skipper dozing off on a chair near Private. Kowalski had not left his lab since they arrived and the leader had become worried. He decided now was the best time to discuss Private once again with the scientist. He left his chair and headed for the lab, opening the door slowly and peeking inside.

Kowalski had fallen asleep at his table, his pencil still firmly gripped in his flipper and his clipboard laying crookedly on his head. The entire room was dark, save for the small table lamp on the opposite side of the room, where the strategist had been sleeping. Skipper crept up and placed his hand on his back, shaking him forcefully.

Kowalski grumbled incoherently, swatting his hand away and moving his head from the small puddle of drool that left his mouth and sat on the cluttered table.

"Rise and shine, Kowalski," Skipper said, looking into Kowalski's tired eyes and sitting down near him. "I think it's time we talk about Private." Kowalski silently agreed, glancing over at his table.

"I tried to come up with any way possible that we might be able to wake Private without causing any potential harm," He pleaded. "But..I just don't know, sir." Skipper shut his eyes, trying his best to stay optimistic, but it was becoming exceedingly difficult.

"What are our options right now?"

Kowalski took his clipboard and read through it, reading through the plans of action he had come up with.

"So far, the only things I could come up with would be trying to wake him up in our own, which, I may add, could be very dangerous and could harm him. And then there's letting the humans know of his condition, which may or may not help him and us; I'm not sure they'd be able to help him either, they might just.." Skippers fists balled up at the last statement. He could see the humans now, testing on him, letting him get hurt more, even putting him down...he couldn't let that happen. He would never let that happen.

"And then there's doing what we have been doing; waiting to see if Private has the strength to wake up on his own, but even that might not be the best course of action.." Kowalski's head dropped, just realizing how much of danger Private was in and how much it would crush Skipper to see him leave.

The leader looked up, a stressed and weary look in his eyes. "Alright then," He grumbled, standing up and heading towards the door. "I guess there's not much we can do, huh? We just.. leave him here and hope for the best?"

"Unfortunately," Kowalski replied, "Yes, sir."

Skipper wanted to end it all; he wanted to shake Private until he woke up, do anything he could just to get the only bit of happiness he saw in life back. But he couldn't; he could only sit and wait, and he planned to do so until the very moment he saw those icy blue eyes open up to the world once again. He didn't care how long it took; he sat back down next to the little soldier, watching him breathe under the sheets.

He looked over to the television set, where Rico had fallen asleep. The leader could hear the loud snoring of his weapons expert from where he sat. Kowalski still didn't leave his lab; he was most likely trying to find any other possible way to solve the problem the entire team had been struggling with since a couple days ago. Skipper wanted to help in any way he could, but he knew he would just be a burden to the strategist; it was best just to leave him with his thoughts and hope for the best. So, here he was once again.

He took a deep breath, placing his head on the back of the chair and staring up at the ceiling. 'What can I do? How can I get him back?' He tried so hard to think of any way, any helpful thought that they had missed, anything to give him comfort that everything would be alright, but he was at a complete blank. His mind twisted with the many heart-wrenching realizations that had come to demolish his life; he couldn't even think straight anymore.

He heard the sheets near him move, and for a small moment, his heart skipped a beat in the hopes that the young soldier had woken up. But as he shot his head to the bunk, he saw that Private had only stirred in his sleep, and was still in a state of unconsciousness.

"Private.." He said, in the hopes that somehow, somewhere deep in Private's mind, he could hear him. "Please...I want you to wake up, soldier." His eyes burned with the threat of tears; he didn't bother to keep them in, he let them slowly run down his face.

"I..I need you to wake up, Private.." He just now noticed Kowalski, standing in the doorway to his lab, watching the sight before him with gloomy eyes. He didn't care anymore, he continued to sob, now holding the little soldier close to his chest. "I know you can hear me, soldier..." His voice cracked once again and he sniffled, burying his face into Private's and letting more tears run down his cheeks and onto him. "Just..Please.. I can't do this without you, I..I can't live without you here.."

Rico had woken up, and the two soldiers watched with great compassion as their leader broke down in front of them.

Skipper held Private even closer, feeling his breath on his chest. His flippers trembled and the only thing he could think of now was just how much he didn't want to even try without his little soldier.

"I take back every bad thing I ever said about you.. I know you're not a failure, and I was wrong to think that you were anything less than perfect..Private, please...wake up.." Slowly and shakily, he pressed his beak on the young soldier's forehead.

"I..need you..."

Seems like a terrible place to end, but it should all make sense on the next chapter. I hope you liked it, and I also hope I managed to jerk a tear or two from your eyes, so please leave your opinion on this chapter while I work ever so painstakingly to finish the next and very possibly last chapter in this story!