Nicky, Rico, Kowalski, Kiki, Cassy, and Private jumped over the far wall of the zoo into the zoo.
"I can't believe it took you guys three hours to get us home." Nicky growled. She would've thought that they'd be back in an hour, hour and a half maybe. But three hours? These guys were supposed to know NYC like the back of their flippers. "Don't you guys know the map of the city by heart?"
"You want the truth? No." Kowalski replied. He was embarrassed to say it, but he was too tired to acknowledge his embarrassment. "Skipper's always making sure we don't get lost. It's hard to learn a map by heart if you don't need it all the time."
"Doesn't he ever let you venture out on your own?" Kiki asked skeptically. Skipper was really a control freak if he didn't let them out enough to get to know the city.
"Well of course he does. That's how we knew where we were when we took you guys out. We just don't know all the back roads, and cross roads, and side roads like Skipper does." Private snapped. He was still very disappointed by Skipper. He always thought of Skipper as a good guy. Not a player.
"I still want to kill him." Nicky hissed. "When I get my hands on him… ooo-ooo! He's dead!" She hadn't calmed down yet. Skipper needed to be taught a lesson. You can't just break a girl's heart and fling her friends out of the area. It was just wrong on so many levels.
Cassy looked up at the clock tower. It was almost four o'clock in the morning. She sighed and looked at the ground. Was it really four o'clock? She reimagined the clock in her head. It had said four o'clock. But she remembered something else. She looked up at the clock. She blinked a few times and rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Her eyes didn't deceive her, there were two figures on the clock tower. She had to squint to see who it was, she was surprised to say the least. It was Skipper and Destiny…and they were kissing. That was the last thing Cassy thought they would be doing. Skipper broke Destinies heart. Why were they kissing?
"No Kiki." Nicky said angrily, "I'm going to kill him. I swear. Just give me ten seconds with him and I'll-"
"I think you'll have to wait for your turn Nick." Cassy interrupted, still staring at the clock tower in shock. She still couldn't believe what she was seeing.
They all looked at her confused.
"Cass?" Kiki asked confused, why did Nicky need to wait her turn? "What are you talking about?"
Cassy turned them and smiled happily. It had to be true, Destiny and Skipper were kissing, which meant that Skipper actually did love her, which meant they were together, a couple. And a cute one at that. She couldn't find the words to say, so she pointed.
Kiki looked towards whatever Cassy pointed to. It was the clock tower. No, not the clock tower, what was on the clock tower. No, who was on the clock tower. She was severely confused at first. But after a moment of looking and trying to figure out what she was staring at, Kiki realized what she was looking at. She was staring at Skipper and Destiny…kissing.
"Is that?" Kiki asked. Still not sure if she was seeing things or not.
"Yup." Cassy replied happily. "Oh I knew it wasn't true."
"What wasn't true?" Private asked.
"Skipper." Cassy answered. She knew Skipper wasn't a heartless idiot. She knew he had too much heart to lead Destiny on. "He didn't mean to break Destiny's heart. Look." She pointed towards the Clock tower again, "He fixed it."
Nicky finally made sense of what she had been staring at n the clock tower. So did Kowalski. Private and Rico took their first glance at the clock tower. They all saw the same thing. Two penguins on the tower kissing, arms wrapped around each other, in an embrace. It wasn't just a kiss either, it was a pure, love kiss embrace.
All they could do was watch. They were all curious, mostly about how it happened. How it went from a bad boy breaking Destiny's heart, to an angel holding her like she was his only tie to earth. They watched the kiss end, and the two stare at each other for a few seconds. Destiny said something, to which Skipper answered, but they couldn't hear it. They watched Destiny lower her head onto Skipper and he lower his head onto hers. They looked peaceful and happy… and cute.
"Maybe you shouldn't bash his head in Nick." Kiki stated hypnotized.
"No. I don't think I should." Nicky replied. She wasn't sure if she should be happy, or severely confused. At the moment she felt conflicted, her confusion was winning. She started to walk towards the clock tower.
Kiki grabbed Nicky's shoulder. "Nick, you can't go up there." She said calmly. "Let them be alone."
Nicky shook her flipper off. "I just want to make sure my eyes aren't tricking me." She continued to walk towards the clock tower.
Kiki shook her head, Nicky never knew when to quit.
Destiny never wanted to let him go. She didn't want him to ever let her go either. She wanted to stay there, protected by his arms forever. She closed her eyes, enjoying every passing second she had with him. Until a thought came to mind.
Skipper had never felt so relaxed and at peace before. He could stay like this forever.
"Skipper?" Destiny asked sluggishly.
"Yes?" Skipper replied calmly.
"Where are they?"
Skipper picked his head up and looked down at her. Her eyes were closed, she looked like she could be sleeping. "Where are who?" He asked confused. He didn't know who she was talking about. Who? Did she mean the guys and the girls? The ones he had flung out of the zoo? That they?
She opened her eyes and looked up at him, keeping her head on his shoulder but re positioning it so she could see his face. She stared into his eyes, "You know, Kiki and them." She replied calmly. She knew that Skipper knew what she was talking about. He knew where they were, but he was nervous about it. She could see it in his eyes, she was just too blissful to think much about it.
"Oh them, uh…" Skipper looked away. He couldn't tell her that they were lost in the city.
Nicky walked to the clock tower and started to climb it. She couldn't help herself, she was too curious. Maybe they were two different penguins. Maybe Skipper and Destiny were fighting somewhere and these two just decided to hang up there for a little while. Or maybe those two were Skipper and Destiny. She still wanted to know how Destiny forgave him, and what he did to make that happen.
When she got to the top she peaked over the edge to see if they were looking her way. They weren't so she silently climbed up. She stood there and watched them, surprised that neither one of them sensed her presence.
"You know Kiki and them." Destiny said peacefully.
"Oh them uh…" Skipper replied
Destiny sounded peaceful to Nicky. "We were flung halfway across the city." She informed.
Skipper jumped, he did not know Nicky was there. When did she get there?
Destiny lifted her head up sluggishly and looked over at Nicky. She didn't know if she should be surprised, angry, or calm. She went with calm. "Oh hi Nick. How did you get up here?" She asked.
"De?" Nicky asked confused. Destiny sounded sheepish, like she was drugged, or high. The phrase love drunk came to Nicky's mind. It made her laugh. Destiny was love drunk. "Are you drunk?" She asked.
"I don't know." She replied sheepishly. She looked up at Skipper, he stared back her with one eyebrow cocked, confused. "Am I drunk Skipper?" She asked. She didn't know why she was acting so… not herself at the moment. Maybe she was drunk. But she didn't drink anything, just the punch, and that was hours ago.
"No, you're not drunk Destiny." He laughed. He didn't know what was wrong with her. But she did sound drunk. She didn't pay any mind to Nicky's statement. Maybe she didn't hear the words, just Nicky's voice. That would be great, for the time being.
Destiny lowered her head back down to Skippers shoulder and closed her eyes. Maybe she was drunk, but on what? She rethought Nicky's statement. They were thrown halfway across the city. That must've been fun. Wait. Destiny thought, lifting her head back up and her opening her eyes. Flung halfway across the city? "What happened?" She asked seriously, coming back to reality.
"Oh nothing really." Nicky laughed nervously.
"Nothing?" Destiny asked, "Oh really? So um, how exactly did you end up flying halfway across the island then?" she pushed.
"He did it." Nicky stated pointing at Skipper.
Destiny pushed away from Skipper. "You threw them halfway across the island?" She asked shocked. Why would he do that?
"They were getting in the way." Skipper explained. They got in his way of finding her. And he didn't mean to send them halfway across the island.
"That's not an excuse!" Destiny replied sternly.
"She hit three times with a crowbar." Skipper replied pointing at Nicky. "It didn't exactly tickly you know."
"Skipper." Destiny whined. She couldn't believe he did that. And then came up to her like nothing of the sort happened.
"The guys went with them. It's not like I meant to send them that far. I just wanted them far enough to give me time to find you." Skipper explained desperately.
Destiny turned away from him. She couldn't believe it.
"I'm sorry. I-" Skipper started.
"They could've been killed Skipper." She said, disappointed turning back to him. "They could've gotten hurt."
"They were going to kill me. And if I was going to die I didn't want to die without fixing the mistake I made. And the boys went with them. Do you really think they would let anything happen to the girls? Or themselves for that matter?" Skipper asked, hoping he didn't screw things up too bad. He just fixed things between him and Destiny, he didn't need yet another problem between them.
"We're fine De." Nicky reassured. She could see that he was desperately trying to fix things. She had to hand it to him, he was doing a good job so far. Whether he was struggling or not, he was doing pretty good.
"Are you sure?" Destiny asked. She would have to kill Skipper if Nicky was lying. She wanted to hurt him somehow anyway.
Nicky danced around. "Yeah, I'm sure." She confirmed after dancing around for a few seconds.
Skipper looked from Destiny to Nicky and back, concerned. "So... is everything ok?" He asked cautiously.
Destiny hatched an idea. She walked towards the edge of the tower. "Come here." She ordered. He had to pay for flinging them halfway across the city.
Skipper, not wanting to mess things up any further, obeyed. He didn't know what she wanted, but he became nervous. He had a feeling that going towards the edge of the tower wasn't a good thing.
Destiny smiled at him. Then she grabbed his flipper and threw him off the tower.
Before Skipper knew what happened he was lying on his back, implanted in the ground. He moaned in pain. That really hurt, it was extremely unexpected too. Never in his life did he see that happening. But there he was, on the ground, in pain, at four o'clock in the morning. And despite the pain in his back, and how surprised he was, he laughed. He couldn't believe that Destiny just threw him off the clock tower. He would've thought that she'd do something else, something that included a lot more pain in a lot more areas of his body.
Nick gave Destiny a high five.
"Girl." Nicky laughed. "I forgive the guy. That makes up for it" payback was bitter sweet. Skipper being thrown off the clock tower was payback enough. It was funny too, because he looked so shocked. Shocked that he had been thrown off the tower. And he was laughing, she hadn't seen him laughing before, or if she did she didn't remember.
Destiny jumped down to Skipper and bent down to look him in the eye. "Yup. Everything's ok now." She said smugly.
Skipper had stopped laughing by then. He watched Destiny straighten up and start to laugh herself. She had a nice laugh. Sweet sounding, like birds singing in spring, and soft like a slow flowing stream. After a few minutes Skipper got up. "Thank you for rudely throwing off of the clock tower." He said sarcastically.
Destiny stopped laughing. "You know you deserved it." She replied, grinning.
Skipper crossed his arms. He knew he deserved it. It was a small price to pay for what he did to everyone else. But it still wasn't very pleasant.
"Come on. You know it." Destiny pushed. He deserved it, it was the truth. Being pushed off the clock tower was a good punishment for flinging everyone across the city.
Kiki and the others ran up to them.
"Are you alright?" Kowalski asked concerned. He saw Skipper thrown off the clock tower. Fast too.
"I'm fine Kowalski." Skipper replied, not taking his eye off Destiny. He smiled, not knowing what else to do.
She smiled back. He was strong. Well, strong enough to be thrown of the clock tower and get up like nothing happened. His ability to get right back up like a rechargeable battery was impressive.
"Are you sure Skippah?" Private asked confused.
"I'm sure." He reassured.
"I think we should sing." Kiki stated. She was suddenly in the mood to sing. She didn't know where it came from. She was just suddenly filled with the urge to sing.
Everyone stared at her confused. Where did that came from? It came out of nowhere.
"What?" Destiny asked confused. The statement caught her off guard. Nicky was usually the one to randomly say things. Kiki never just threw ideas into the air.
"We should sing. You know on stage, with a microphone?" Kiki replied. She was in the mood to sing.
Everyone responded with silence.
"It was just a suggestion. I checked, the party is still going on. It just took a break." Kiki said defensively.
Destiny thought about it for a few seconds. Singing might be fun. "Sure, why not?" She replied.
"Are you guys in love now?" Cassy asked. Singing was good, for them. She wasn't getting back on stage. Nope. And nothing was going to make her either. But she was curious. They were kissing on the clock tower, and then Destiny threw Skipper off the clock tower. So were they in love? Or were they still mad at each other?
Destiny smiled at Skipper, "Yeah. I would say so." She liked to think so. Even though it was a rough start, she knew now. Skipper was the one guy who had liked her for who she was. He loved her. Why shouldn't they let everyone know?
"I would have to agree." Skipper agreed. He gave her a crooked smile, happy to be in love with her. No girl had ever given him such a hard way to go, in terms of falling in love. He could tell that she wasn't using him like the others. She actually loved him.
"Oh goodie!" Cassy said happily. She was glad that they were finally together. They made such a good couple.
"Wait." Nicky said, interrupting the happy mood. "How did this happen? How did he," She pointed at Skipper, "Go from heartbreaking moron to good guy?" She asked. She wanted to know how he did it.
Destiny thought for a moment. "Well first he didn't give up on the wanting to talk to me. And he apologized for the misunderstanding." Destiny explained. She still thought it was rather charming that he did that.
"Misunderstanding?" Kiki asked confused. Skipper said 'No'. How could that be misunderstood?
Destiny looked at Skipper and smiled. He would have to explain that. "Your turn." She said.
"Well, I um…" Skipper said hesitantly. "I meant not there, in the lemur habitat. I sort of, froze." He explained. He knew there would be some sort of shocking remark from at least one of them.
They all stared at him shocked, opened mouthed. After a few seconds they burst out laughing. None of them would've thought in a million years that Skipper would freeze.
Skipper sighed. He saw the laughter coming. But it still annoyed him.
"So that's what happened?" Nicky asked once they calmed down.
"Pretty much, he confessed too. I don't think that has to be explained." Destiny replied.
"No, we got it now." Private said, smiling. He knew Skipper would never break Destiny's heart. He had too much heart himself to do that to anyone.
Then they all went back to the party. Julian was sitting at the bar looking all bummed out.
"What's wrong Julian?" Cassy asked sweetly. He looked upset.
"My boomie box has stopped booming. Now how are we to have a party without music to dance to?" He asked. He sighed and looked down.
"We could sing for you." Kiki offered without thinking.
"For the rest of the party?" Julian asked hopefully. He hoped they'd sing for the rest of the party.
"No." Nicky said defiantly. She was not singing for the entire end of the party.
"Oh please, I beg of you! It would only be for two more hours." Julian pleaded.
"Ok Julian. We'll do it. If. You get us a set of drums, a guitar, a piano, and an electric piano." Kiki negotiated, remembering what Kowalski said about having musical talent.
"Psht. That's easy silly penguin. We have that stuff in the royal music box." Julian replied. He scurried off and made the apes, Bada and Bing, put the instruments on stage.
"Why did you have him do that?" Private asked. He was confused about why they needed all of that.
"You didn't think we were going to preform and let you guys just sit and watch us did you?" Nicky asked. "No, if we're singing, then you guys are going to be up on stage with us."
"So who can play what?" Destiny demanded.
Skipper, Kowalski, Private, and Rico exchanged looks of nervousness. They all knew how to play an instrument. They never really wanted to though. Never needed to.
"Well?" Nicky pushed.
"What can you play Kowalski?" Kiki asked. She was dying to know what he could play. It would be fun to do a song with him.
"Me? Oh um…." He stammered. He didn't want to play a song, up on stage, in front of the entire zoo. He couldn't do it. He was afraid he'd mess up and look like a fool.
"Destiny raised an eyebrow at Skipper. She doubted that he could play anything. "Well?" She pushed.
"What? I can play an instrument." He replied. He could he wasn't lying. He could play three.
"I don't believe you." Destiny challenged. "Name two instruments that you can play."
"Drums and guitar." Skipper replied boldly. She was wrong. Ha! He could play a guitar in his sleep.
"Me and Skipper will go up first." She announced. Skipper sounded very strong about his talent. She wanted to see him in action. Put his money where his mouth was.
"Wait what?" Skipper asked, nervously. He didn't doubt his abilities. He never performed before. He wasn't sure how to. He wasn't much of a dancer. He usually sat against a wall somewhere when he played.
Destiny grabbed Skippers arm and pulled him towards the stage. It was time to have some fun. She dragged him behind the curtains and pushed him towards the guitar.
Skipper didn't want to perform. He started to walk off the stage.
"You're not afraid are you?" Destiny asked, she smiled at him, knowing she had hit a nerve. That's what she wanted to do.
Skipper froze. "I'm not afraid." He replied.
"Then take the guitar and play." She ordered. He couldn't back out now.
Skipper sighed. "Fine." He grumbled. He walked over to the guitar. Guitars actually. One was light brown with a dark brown pick stop and a circle right above the pic stop. It was an acoustic guitar. Beautiful instrument in sound and appearance. The second Guitar was deep sea blue with a white pic stop and a plug for the amplifier. It was also a beautiful work of art, but was able to be louder and sharper than the acoustic guitar. It was an electric guitar. Off to the side was a mechanical hand and a pic.
Skipper slipped his left flipper into the hand and picked up the acoustic Guitar. "Pick a song." He said as he grabbed the pic in his right flipper and walked back over to her.
Destiny thought for a minute. "Two. First one, ignorance. Second one you don't get to play a lot in. it's called you got me." She blushed at the second one.
Skipper smiled at the last one. He knew both songs of course. And he knew why she picked them. The first one was to see if he could really play, the second one was for him. He knew. It was a love song, it was sweet of Destiny to want to sing it.
"Ok." He replied. He switched for the electric guitar. It was needed for the first song. She was testing to see if he could play both guitars. Clever. He plugged the electric guitar into the amplifier.
They fixed the electric piano to come in when it needed too with all of the other parts, and motioned for the curtains to open.
Then they started the song.
Skipper sat down against the side of the stage, Destiny stood a few feet in front of him towards the center of the stage. Skipper started with the guitar short guitar solo. Not his favorite type of music. But he didn't hate it. He did hate the solo towards the end of the song though. It was very fast, the whole song was, but after it his pic hand started to hurt.
Destiny didn't usually sing songs like this. She usually sang calmer songs. Not necessarily slow songs, just not metal or hard rock like this one seemed to be. But she had to test him, so she sang it. Perfectly might be the right word to describe her singing. It could also be used to describe Skippers playing.
No one clapped when they finished. They were all staring at Skipper wide eyed, and opened mouthed. They never saw him do that before. Half of them didn't think he had actually played that.
"You didn't do that!" Julian stated angrily. "It is impossible for a penguin to play a guitar so well." Skipper didn't play that. Penguins can't play guitars.
"Ringtail, I did do that. And penguins can play guitars I just did." Skipper replied calmly.
Julian thought for a moment. "Unplug the music maker and do it again." He ordered.
Skipper sighed, in annoyance. Julian was being difficult. Skipper hated when Julian was difficult. But he wanted to prove that penguins can in fact play guitars. So he went over to the electric piano and unplugged it. He held the plug up so everyone could see that the electric piano (Or music maker as Julian calls it) was unplugged. And he played the solo again.
Then everyone applauded fully convinced that penguins, specifically Skipper, could play guitars.
He looked over at Julian (the only one who wasn't clapping) and gave him an accomplished smile. "Penguins can't do what? Julian?" he asked, gloatingly. He usually didn't rub things in, but Julian deserved it. If not for tonight than for all the times Skipper had let Julian's annoyance go without stopping it.
Julian grumbled to himself and walked away.
"Tough crowed huh?" Destiny asked. She was surprised that they didn't clap right away. None of them believed Skipper played a guitar so well. Now they knew. That was a good thing right? She was still a little confused about why everyone thought a penguin couldn't play a guitar. It was discrimination against birds. And why? Because they didn't have fingers? If she remembered correctly, penguins invented the mechanical hand. Now every species uses it. And they get no appreciation. The nerve of people these days.
"They didn't know. I really don't blame them. I didn't believe a penguin could play a guitar until Johnson taught me." Skipper admitted. He had always thought that being a penguin sucked because they couldn't do anything. But he was wrong; penguins just couldn't do anything naturally. A few machines and gizmos and gadgets, and wala! Penguins can do everything any other species can do. The first time he ever understood that was when Johnson taught him how to play the guitar.
"Who's Johnson?" Destiny asked curiously. Was Johnson just a passerby Skipper had met one day? Or was he a traveler? Or was he something else entirely?
"I'll explain later. It's kind of a long story." Skipper replied. He probably shouldn't have mentioned Johnson, but it might help him get a better idea of where Destiny came from. He got up and switched guitars for the next song. He actually couldn't wait to get it over with. He hadn't played in a while and his hand was starting to bother him. But he would suffice, for Destiny.
She smiled. She could wait, it wasn't like he was going anywhere. She watched him change guitars, and get a mic. The mic was to amplify the acoustic guitar so it wouldn't be drowned out by her singing.
"Ready?" She asked when he came back.
"Yup." He replied.
She walked over to the electric piano and set it to play the song, minus the guitar part. It started to play, Destiny came in when she had to. Skipper did the same with the guitar, coming in when he needed to.
"You're stuck on me and my laughing eyes. I can't pretend, though I try to hide. I like you, I like you. I think i felt my heart skip a beat. I'm standing here and I can hardly breathe. You got me, yeah, you got me. The way you take my hand is just so sweet. And the crooked smile of yours, it knocks me off my feet. Oh, I just can't get enough. How much do I need to fill me up? It feels so good it must be love. It's everything that I've been dreaming of. I give up. I give in. I let go. Let's begin. Cuz no matter what I do. Oh, my heart is filled with you. I can't imagine what it'd be like. Living each day in this life, without you, without you. One look from you, I know you understand. This mess we're you, you know is just so out of hand. Oh, I just can't get enough. How much do I need to fill me up? It feels so good it must be love. It's everything that I've been dreaming of. I give up, I give in, I let go, let's begin. Cuz no matter what I do. Oh, my heart is filled with you. I hope we always feel this way. I know we will. And in my heart I know that, you'll always stay. Oh, I just can't get enough. How much do I need to fill me up? It feels so good it must be love. I give up, I give in, I let go, let's begin. Cuz no matter what I do. Oh, I just can't get enough. How much do I need to fill me up? It feels so good it must be love. It's everything that I've been dreaming of. I give up, I give in, I let go, let's begin. Cuz no matter what I do. My heart is filled with you. Oh, you got me, you got me. Oh, oh, you got me, you got me." Destiny liked the song, how it sounded and the whole mood of it. So it wasn't very hard to sing.
Skipper knew the song; he played the best that he possibly could, (perfection) though it didn't match how beautifully Destiny sang the song.
Everyone clapped. They all seemed to like the song. Some of them whistled and hollered. It sounded like a big crowed, but it wasn't. Everyone was just either very impressed or really loved the song.
Destiny bowed and walked off the stage. Skipper followed dropping off the guitar with the other one as he walked by.
"So?" Nicky asked Rico when Destiny and Skipper were done with their last song. He still hadn't told her what he could play if anything at all.
Rico didn't want to go up on stage. He never performed before. He was afraid of what it would be like. He was afraid that people would throw tomatoes at him. But then again, Nicky wouldn't drag him up on stage like Destiny did to Skipper. He didn't think she would anyway. He finally decided to tell her, despite his fears. "Drum." He said.
Nicky wasn't as surprised as she thought she'd be. Drums fit Rico. They were wild and loud, Rico seemed to like wild and loud things, and he was wild himself. Drums were an instrument that Rico would know how to play. She wanted to know how well he could play, and if he could play in time and not be wild. "Cam we go up next, Rico?" She asked sweetly.
"Nope." Rico replied defiantly, shaking his head. He had to get over his temporary stage fright first.
"Please?" She pleaded. She wanted to sing now. Cassy sang and Destiny sang. She wanted to get it over with, because she knew that she would have to sing eventually.
Rico looked into her eyes. They were softer than they normally would be. She really wanted to go up and sing. He sighed. He couldn't keep her from doing something that she really wanted to do. "Ok." He replied.
"Great!" Nicky said happily. She pulled him up on stage.
The two of them pushed the drum set forward and fixed it to the way Rico could play. They moved the crash symbols three times along with the smaller drums a few other times. They eventually got it.
"Do you know funhouse or So What by that human singer that calls herself Pink?" Nicky asked when they got the drums all set up.
Rico thought for a minute. "Yup, yup." He nodded.
"Then let's play them." Nicky replied. She liked that song. Funhouse by Pink. It was one of her favorites. But there was one problem. She didn't know how to work the electric piano. She needed a guitarist. "One minute Rico. I'll be right back." She said running off stage.
Skipper was sitting at the bar with Destiny. They were drinking another glass of Maurice's zesty fruit punch.
"I didn't think you'd be able to do it, personally." Destiny complimented. "You were pretty good." He was. His talent surprised her. She expected him to skip a few notes or mess up somewhere. But he played both songs perfectly. It amazed her. He obviously hadn't played in a while, no one knew he could. Yet, he could play a guitar like he practiced every day. She had a feeling that Skipper had many surprising secrets stuffed up his sleeve. What they were, she had no clue.
"I knew I could." Skipper replied. "But I didn't know you could sing like that. Amazing." He smiled at her. He thought her voice was amazing. She could change the tone of her voice perfectly, from hard to soft in just a few minutes. That took talent, and Destiny had talent.
"It wasn't amazing." Destiny denied, blushing. She didn't think that she was that good.
"Yes it was." Skipper argued. "The most beautiful voice I've ever heard."
Destiny started to laugh. "I can't be the best you've heard. I mean, come on. You live in New York City, the big apple. The city that never sleeps! You've heard better." She said smiling. It was charming though, what he said. Old, but still charming all the same. New York had plenty of singers that were better than she was.
"No, honestly, it sounded like the voice of an angel." He replied, calmly. "And if I didn't know you better, I would say it came from and angel." He added.
Destiny thought about that for a minute. "What's that supposed to mean?" She asked confused. Was she or was she not an angel.
"Well you're definitely not an angel. But you have the voice of one." Skipper explained. She pushed him off the clock tower. Angels didn't exactly do things like that. But her voice was sweet and soft, like an angels.
Destiny punched his shoulder, "You're so mean." She commented.
"You pushed me off the clock tower. Angels don't do that." Skipper replied.
Nicky spotted Skipper and Destiny at the bar. She ran up to them.
"Hey De, Can a borrow him?" She asked. She needed a guitarist. And he was a mean guitar player.
Destiny smiled at Skipper, "Sure why not?" She replied. She didn't know what Nicky wanted him for. But whatever it was, Skipper could handle it.
Skipper confused. What did Nicky want? And what gave Destiny the right to let Nicky borrow him? "What?" He asked confused.
Nicky grabbed Skippers arm. She needed a guitar player, and he was one. HE was coming up on stage.
Destiny smiled at him. "I'm not an angel remember?" She replied, waving as Nicky pulled him away.
"Hold on." Skipper said pulling his arm free. What did she need him for?
"What?" Nicky asked impatiently. She had to get back on stage before the night was over.
"What do you need from me?" He asked. He wanted to know what he was going to have to do before he had to do it. He didn't want to operate blind.
"We don't have time for explanations." Nicky replied hurriedly. She had to get up on stage. But she needed Skipper to come with her.
Destiny saw Skipper giving Nicky a hard way to go. She saw that Nicky was in a rush. So she decided to lend a hand. Skipper deserved to do whatever Nicky wanted him to do. She got up and walked over to them. "Having trouble Nick?" She asked calmly.
"Yes. He's being difficult." Nicky complained. She didn't have time for this.
"She isn't telling me anything." Skipper countered. He wanted to know what she wanted from him. Was that really too much to ask for.
Destiny grabbed one of Skippers arms. "I'll be happy to help." She said slyly, smiling at Nicky. She was going to help her drag him…wherever she needed him to go.
Skipper looked questionably at Destiny, not sure if she was going to help him, or Nicky. He didn't know if he should struggle, or agree with Destiny. He felt a little conflicted.
Nicky smiled back. She knew she could always count on Destiny, in the end. She grabbed Skippers other arm. "Stage." She said.
Now Skipper knew two things. One Destiny was not going to help him. And two, he was going back up on stage. For what exactly, he didn't know. His guess was that Nicky wanted him to play guitar for something. He didn't want to, nor did his hand feel up to it, so he struggled. He managed to get free of Nicky. But, as soon as he did, Destiny grabbed his flipped and twisted both of them behind his back. Unlike many others who had tried that move on him, Destiny was strong enough to keep his flippers there. "You're not getting out of this." Destiny whispered.
Skipper tried to pull his flippers free, to no avail. "You think?" He replied harshly. He should've known better. Of course Destiny would assist Nicky and not him. It was payback.
Nicky led the way. Destiny pushed Skipper the entire way. She didn't want to risk him getting away.
Skipper didn't even bother trying to get his flippers free. Destiny maintained a tight grip on his flippers the entire time. He never felt her grip loosen. He was going to have to play again. He really didn't want to though.
Nicky jumped back up on stage and grabbed the mic. She turned to Destiny and nodded.
Destiny smiled, she liked the idea of Skipper playing the whole night. He was really good, he had a talent. She threw him up on stage. She wanted to hear him play some more.
Skipper landed on his face on the cement. He shook himself off and grabbed a guitar, the mechanical hand, and a pic. There was no reason to try to get out of it now. He was up on stage. The best option was to play and get it over with.
"You know funhouse?" Nicky asked. He had to know the songs. If Rico did, then he should.
Skipper thought for a moment. Did he know those? He thought back. She probably asked Rico and he had to say yes if she was going to sing them. So he thought back to when Johnson made him practice with Rico. "Yes." He replied.
"How about so what?" She asked.
"Yes, any song that Rico knows I probably do too." He answered annoyed.
"Then play that one first." Nicky snapped.
Skipper rolled his eyes. She didn't have to snap at him. He was on stage wasn't he? Skipper figured that Nicky was still pissed about him making Destiny cry, which of course was unintentional. But she must've not seen it that way.
Shaking that thought out of his mind, he started to play the first song. So what, by the human who calls herself Pink. He wondered why she picked the name Pink, but he could figure it out some other time. He hadn't played the song in a while and had to focus on the notes.
Shortly after Skipper started Nicky and Rico joined in.
All of the party guests danced to the song… somehow. Nicky wasn't afraid of performing at all, so she didn't really need to think. She picked one of her favorite songs, there were very few because she wasn't a very big fan of music, so she really didn't need to think. The words just came to her. "Nah nah nah nah nah nah nah, nah nah nah nah nahnah. Nah nah nah nah nahnahnah nah nah nah nah nahnah. I guess I just lost my husband. I don't know where he went. So I'm gonna drink my money. I'm not gunna pay his rent. I got a brand new attitude and I'm gunna wear it tonight. I wanna get in trouble. I wanna start a fight. Nah nah nah nah nahnahnah. I wanna start a fight Nah nah nah nah nahnahnah, I wanna start a fight! So, so what I'm still a rock start. I got my rock moves, and I don't need you. And guess what. I'm having more fun. And now that we're done, I'm gunna show you tonight. I'm alright, I'm just fine. And you're a tool. So, so what? I am a rock star. I got my rock moves. And I don't want you tonight. The waiter just took my table, and gave it to Jessica Simp-shit. I guess I'll go sit with drum boy, at least he'll know how to hit. What if this song's on the radio? Then somebody's gonna die. I'm gunna get in trouble. My ex will start a fight. Nah nah nah nah nahnahnah. He's gonna start a fight. Nah nah nah nah nahnahnah. We're all gunna get in a fight. So, so what? I'm still a rock star. I got my rock moves. And I don't need you. And guess what. I'm having more fun. And now that we're done. I'm gunna show you tonight. I'm alright, I'm just fine. And you're a tool. So, so what? I am a rock star. I got my rock moves. And I don't want you tonight. You weren't fair. You never were. You weren't at all, but that's not fair. I gave you life. I gave my all, you weren't there. You let me fall. So, so what? I'm still a rock star. I got my rock moves. And I don't need you. And guess what. I'm having more fun. And now that we're done. I'm gunna show you tonight. I'm alright, I'm just fine. And you're a tool. So, so what. I am a rock star. I got my rock moves. And I don't want you tonight. No no, no no. I don't want you tonight. You weren't fair. I'm gunna show you tonight. I'm alright, I'm just fine. And you're a tool. So, so what. I am a rock star. I got my rock moves. And I don't want you tonight. Ba da da da da da."
They received an applause. Everyone enjoyed it, it seemed.
Skipper got up to leave. His hand was starting to hurt.
Destiny stopped him before he could put the guitar down. "Not so fast." She said strictly. "You still have one more song to play."
"Are you sure?" Skipper asked annoyed. "Am I going to be dragged up here again? Because if so just tell me so I don't get off just to be dragged back on again." He snapped. They could've asked. He might've said yes. They didn't have to drag him up so rudely, like they did.
"I'm sure, just get back out there." She replied. She wanted to hear him play more. But she could settle for one more song.
Skipper sighed. He wanted to get off, but he didn't want to argue. Something in Destiny's voice and the look in her eyes told him that she wanted him on stage. She wanted to hear him play. She could've just told him that. He shrugged it off, he could very well just be reading her wrong. He guessed that the other song Nicky had mentioned was the one he was going to have to play. So he played it.
Rico came in where he was supposed to, running the time scale in his head so he'd stay on track. It was hard not to focus on Nicky. He liked her voice. So maybe it wasn't soft and sweet. But it had life to it. It had a certain melody. And he liked it. He liked the way it sounded, it had a wild sense to it too. He tried to focus on his part in the song, and he staying in time and played all the notes right. He hit all the right drums at the right places. But he had to catch himself when he felt himself becoming too focused on Nicky's voice.
Nicky had fun singing the two songs. She knew her voice wasn't very soft and sweet. But that wasn't her. Wasn't who she was. Her voice was perfect for the songs that she sang. She caught Rico shaking himself back into focus. So he liked it. Why, she had no clue. Maybe because it wasn't soft and sweet. He didn't seem to be very into that kind of thing. Whatever it was, she was glad. She might not be a music freak like Kiki, but the few songs that she did know and liked to sing, she could sing any day anytime. Most guys fell for the soft toned, flowing voiced girls. Yek. Rico was on the wilder side of the male population. She should've guessed that he'd like a wilder voice. Either way, she liked singing the songs that she sang, and Rico liked playing them with her. There wasn't anything else to worry or think about.
Out of the corner of her eye, Nicky saw Skipper drop everything and walk off stage. She didn't really blame him, she could've asked him if he'd play for her. But she didn't think he'd want to, and she didn't have much time to argue with him. She walked over to Rico, who was putting all of the drums away- that's why they call it drum set, you have to move many pieces- and gave him a high five. He was a little busy so she couldn't hug him. He barely stopped long enough for the high five.
Rico wanted to put everything back quickly so he could spend more time with Nicky. He knew she was waiting for him too, that helped him speed up his work.
When he was done, he got a hug from Nicky and the two walked off stage.
They passed Kiki, who was dragging Kowalski on stage. Literally.
"No, I'm not a performance person!" Kowalski argued, pulling away from the stage. He had never performed a day in his life. He could present things, he was very good at doing presentations. He was nervous about the whole performing thing.
Kiki was scared to go up on stage, she hated being in the center of attention. She was terrified by it. But she wanted to do a song with Kowalski. And she was going to do it whether she dies afterwards or not. She just wanted to do something with Kowalski. Something musical. He'd told her that he could play the piano. Pianos' were hard for penguins to play because they required excellent muscle control of the flipper. Even with mechanical hands, a penguin still needed to learn to control the muscle in the tip of the flipper. The mechanical hand picked up the muscular movement of the tip of the flipper and transferred it into the hand. So if you wanted to move the middle finger of the hand, you had to move only the middle of the muscle. It's such a hard talent to achieve that only very few penguins can actually master it enough to play an instrument. Example, only Skipper and Kowalski could do so. She'd seen Skipper do it. She had to hear Kowalski do it. She knew he could, she had complete faith in his word. But she wanted him to play, to make music. And she wanted to sing along with him.
She pulled him with all her might up onto the stage. He was stronger than she thought he'd be. By the time she got him all the way up, her arms wanted to fall off. She didn't even get him all the way up. "Kowalski please." She begged. She wanted so badly for him to come up willingly. She didn't think she could drag him any further.
Kowalski heard how badly Kiki wanted to do this in her voice. He couldn't keep her from doing it. She really wanted to. And who knows. It might not be as bad as he thought it'd be. Maybe it would even be fun. He sighed, and stopped fighting her.
Kiki was still pulling him forward. So when he stopped pulling back, they both tumbled onto the stage. They stopped in the middle of it, and looked up to see everyone staring at them.
Kiki had to immediately close her eyes. She really hated being in the spotlight. But she couldn't do anything about it. Kowalski was on top of her, and her arms were too weak from pulling him, to push him off. And her glasses had fallen off too. "Um…Kowalski." She said nervously.
Kowalski didn't really understand what happened at first. He was almost hypnotized by everyone's stares. They were staring at him and Kiki like the two of them had grown another head. He heard Kiki say something, and turned his head towards her. Her eyes were closed, and her glasses had fallen off somewhere. She couldn't see anything. But that's not why she called his attention. He was on top of her, she could not move. That might also be why everyone was staring at them like they had grown a second head. He hurriedly jumped off of her and helped her up. He was embarrassed to say the least. "Sorry," He apologized nervously.
"Oh don't worry about it." She replied calmly. She had to stay calm or risk having her throat close on her. Another reason why she didn't like being in the spotlight. It made her nervous and, if she didn't keep her breathing under control, sparked her breathing problem. She really hated that. But right now she didn't have to worry about that, as her breathing was under complete control. She still couldn't see. That was the problem at hand. "But I um… need my glasses." She explained, a bit nervous herself. Everyone was probably still staring at them, wondering what they were doing.
Kowalski felt like a knit whit. He should've looked for her glasses after he picked her up. "Oh right, let me, um, go- go find those for you." He replied. He turned around and scanned the floor for her glasses. It didn't take him very long to find them.
Kiki opened her eyes and looked out at the crowd. She couldn't read their faces, all she saw was a blur of multi colored blotches. Everything was fuzzy. The balloons looked kind of funny. They were all just a big blur of colors. It looked a lot like an abstract piece of art. Interesting art work, abstract. The artist could do almost anything. Any shape, any size, any color, and he could use his imagination. She was taken back when everything all of a sudden came back into focus. Kowalski had found her glasses faster than she thought he would. She looked down and saw that everyone was looking at her like she was insane. She turned around to Kowalski.
Kowalski smiled at her. He knew that she had to be extremely nervous at the moment. She told him that she hated being in the center of everyone's attention. She just needed to relax a bit, take her mind off of the audience and just perform. Easier said than done. "Ready?" He asked calmly.
Kiki nodded. She wasn't really, but she knew that it was either now or never. If she was given any time to think about this, she would chicken out. And she didn't want to do that.
Kowalski went over to the piano and pushed it out. The mechanical hands were resting on top. He slipped them on and looked over at Kiki. They had already picked the two songs that they were going to do. The first one relied strictly on the piano. The second song would require use of the electric piano. He couldn't mess up, he had the only instrument that was going to be played for the first song. He had to play perfectly.
She nodded back at him and listened while he started to play. He was good, very good at that. She closed her eyes and tried to forget about the crowed in front of her. The first song she was going to sing wasn't one of her normals. A lot like how Destiny performed. The first song wasn't her, the second one was. The first song was a song that her mother used to sing at restaurants. Her father would take her down to hear her mother sing. Of course her mother sang it a whole lot better than she did. But nobody knew how it was supposed to sound. So no one would notice. "In old Savannah, I said Savannah, the weather there is nice and warm. The climates of a southern brand. But here's what I don't understand. They've got a gal there. A pretty gal there, who's colder than an artic storm. Got a heart just like a stone. Even nice men leave her alone. They call her "hard hearted Hannah", the vamp of Savannah. The meanest gal in town. Leather is tough, but Hannah's heart is tougher. She's a gal who loves to see men suffer. To tease them and thrill 'em. To torture and kill 'em, is her delight they say. I saw her at the seashore with a great big pan, there was Hannah pourin' water on a drownin' man. She's hard hearted Hannah, the vamp of Savannah, GA. They call her "hard hearted Hannah", the vamp of Savannah. The meanest gal in town. Talk of your cold, refrigerating mamas. Brotha she's a polar bear's pajamas. To tease them and thrill 'em. To torture and kill 'em, is her delight they say. An evening spent with Hannah sitting on your knees, is like travelin' through Alaska in your BVDs. She's hard hearted Hannah, the vamp of Savannah, GA. Can you imagine a woman as cold as Hannah? She's got the right name "the vamp of Savannah". Anytime a woman can take a great big pan, start pourin' water on a drownin' man. She's hard hearted Hannah, the vamp of Savannah, GA." It brought back a lot of memories, singing that song. The one thing that she did notice though was, Kowalski could play better than her mother pianist could. He was excellent. She had never heard anyone play the piano part so well. He made the melody flow and stop where it was supposed to. Exactly where it was supposed to. He was quite the impressive pianist, she had to give him that.
Kowalski thought that Kiki sang very well. But it didn't sound like a song that she would sing. HE was beautiful, she truly was, outstanding. But he didn't believe that she sang the song very often. Or had fun singing the song a lot. She did amazing. Didn't even sound nervous.
He got up and fixed the electric piano to come in and play what parts they were missing. He gave Kiki a thumbs up and walked back over to the piano.
She nodded to him. The next song was one that she knew by heart. She would enjoy singing it.
Kowalski started to play the song. He knew it very well. Kiki had played it over and over again, one day a few weeks ago, when they finally got another day together.
"Take me now, baby, here as I am. Hold me close, try and understand. Desire is hunger is the fire I breathe. Love is a banquet on which we feed. Come on now, try and understand, the way I feel when I'm in your hands. Take my hand, come under cover, they can't hurt you now, can't hurt you now, can't hurt you now. Because the night belongs to lovers. Because the night belongs to lust. Because the night belongs to lovers. Because the night belongs to us. Because the night belongs to lovers. Because the night belongs to lust. Because the night belongs to lovers. Because the night belongs to us. Have I a doubt, baby when I'm alone. Love is a ring on the telephone. Love is an angel, disguised as lust, here in our bed 'til the morning comes. Come on now, try and understand, the way I feel, under your command. Take my hand as the sun descends. They can't hurt you now, can't hurt you now, can't hurt you now. Because the night belongs to lovers. Because the night belongs to lust. Because the night belongs to lovers. Because the night belongs to us Because the night belongs to lovers. Because the night belongs to lust. Because the night belongs to lovers. Because the night belongs to us."
Kowalski didn't have to play much in the song. But he didn't mind. He liked listening to her voice. It had a soft tone to it, a nice flowing melody. Her voice fit perfectly with the song. He could tell just by listening that Kiki was a dance singer. She sang songs that were easy to dance to. If Kowalski wasn't so nervous he could've stood up and danced while she sang. Personally, he liked songs that were easy to dance to. He wasn't a very good dancer, so songs with a good rhythm and beat were good for him because they weren't very hard to dance to. He also liked the beat of the music. It may be why he wasn't as annoyed with Julian's music as Skipper usually was. The only problem was how late the music played. He liked the music that Kiki sang. It fit her, too.
Kiki had looked down halfway through the song to see that almost everyone was dancing. They were supposed to. She loved dance music and had the voice to match, or so she's been told. She liked singing dance music, it was fun and if she was feeling brave she could dance to it herself. She looked over to Kowalski. He was smiling happily at her. He must've like it too. She was glad, maybe he could come up on stage with her again sometime, if they ever got the chance again.
Kowalski pushed the piano back and placed the hands on top of it. He walked over to Kiki and the two walked off stage together.
Kiki didn't say anything, she suddenly felt very tired. Looking up at the clock she figured out why. It was almost six o'clock in the morning. She needed to get at least some sleep, singing had made her feel very whipped out. Which was odd because singing usually didn't do that to her. She leaned her head on Kowalski shoulder.
Kowalski could tell that Kiki was very tired, She looked like she could fall asleep on his should. As she continued walking, Kowalski had to gradually hold her up more and more. He was sure that she didn't mean to, or even notice that she was doing it. He didn't say anything, he could complement her later, when she wasn't so tired.
Everyone started to leave the party, so the penguins did too. No one said anything. A wave of fatigue and need of sleep suddenly washed over them. Destiny and Skipper too. They all fell asleep as soon as they laid down.
Every animal in the zoo did. Maurice didn't. Neither did Mort. They cleaned up the habitat to make sure the humans never found out about their after Christmas party. They popped all the balloons and took down all the decorations. They did a pretty good job. By six forty three, the lemur habitat was all clean and de partied. There was no sign that a party had even taken place.
Maurice hadn't seen a lot of singers. But being in central park, he heard a lot of the concerts that were held in the park. If he could say one thing, it would be that those four girls could sing. They each had a different category too. Nicky was more of a wild or rock or somewhere along the hard voiced but very good singers, She wasn't a metal or scream singer. She was good, and she could sing actual music. Some people couldn't sing at all, others with a voice like hers sang songs that were just annoying, like rap and scream or whatever they call it. Destiny seemed talented in changing her voice from wild to soft, some singers had a very hard time doing that. Cassy was more of a calm soft singer, and Kiki was a dance singer. They were all good singers. Nowadays you don't really hear music quite like that. Many young people are more into severe punk rock or rap or screamo bands and what not. That's just what he had noticed. But he was just a kings assistant, what did he know?
Mort fell asleep towards the end of cleaning up. Maurice found him in a garbage can. He took Mort back to the habitat and finished cleaning himself. Then he went to sleep himself.
Alice was surprised when none of the animals woke up when she arrived. Most of them would be wide awake by the time she got there. It was weird that the entire zoo was still locked in dreamland when she walked in. She suspected something unusual and un-animal like, had happened. But like always, she had no evidence, so she had to shrug it off and find a way to wake the animals up.
By the time the zoo had officially opened many of the animals were up. The penguins, lemurs, gorillas, otter, chimps, and elephant were still sleeping. That was bad, mostly because they were the most popular animals in the zoo. It was annoying too. Alice had to explain over and over again that they animals probably had trouble sleeping last night and that she didn't know why and would check maintenance later. It was a long irritating morning.
Sorry if the writing out of lyrics was annoying. I just thought that saying they sang a song was too boring. The ending didn't go quite as well as a thought it would. But I'll leave whether it sucked or not up to you.
Here are the songs that the girls sang.
Destiny: Ignorance by Paramore, You got me by Colbie Cailat.
Nicky: Funhouse and so what by P!nk.
Kiki: Hard hearted Hannah by Ella Fitzgerald, Because the night by Cascada.
For those who don't know or didn't figure out, or just never heard of the song, if I didn't say before, the song that Cassy sang a few chapters back was Kissing U by Miranda Cosgrove.
Those are the songs in which the girls sang for those who don't know or never heard of them.